Trump threatens to “annihilate” Iran, Tehran calls it “strategic desperation”; Greenland signs deal expanding U.S. presence

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres during the speech of President Donald Trump at the 81st United Nations General Assembly on September 22, 2026 in New York City. Photo by Patrick van Katwijk/Getty Images. Wednesday, September 23, 2026 – President Donald Trump threatens to “annihilate” Iran in speech at UN General Assembly. Iran military warns of “more crushing” attacks after Trump threats. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva warns against foreign election interference, defends Brazil’s sovereignty in UN Speech. French President Emmanual Macron condemns Israeli aid restrictions at UN; UK, France, Canada talk Palestinian statehood in committee. U.S.-Iran UN hold first indirect talks since June Memorandum of Understanding unraveled. Macron says France ready for greater role in reopening Strait of Hormuz. U.S., Denmark, Greenland sign deal expanding U.S. military presence. Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskyy says Ukraine ready for energy truce after “productive” Trump talks. U.S. withholds visa for Sudanese Leader Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, tying it to ceasefire proposal Khartoum has resisted. Canada pledges $71 million in Palestinian aid, imposes restrictions on Israeli settlement goods. Trump and Latin America allies invoke Rio Treaty against cartels. Ansarallah, Saudi-backed forces clash near Bab al-Mandab. Cargo vessel hit by projectile in Strait of Hormuz. New U.S. sanctions on Iranian aviation take effect. Israeli attacks kill six Palestinians across Gaza since dawn. Israeli forces carry out demolitions across the occupied West Bank as settlers block Salfit road. Military court extends detention of Palestinian-American journalist. Israeli forces arrest senior Palestinian Authority security official. Pregnant Palestinian detainee suffers bleeding, harsh conditions in Israeli prison. Trump's “Board of Peace” to unveil $2.45 billion Gaza plan. Israeli ceasefire violations continue in southern Lebanon as blast in Khiam damages homes, school, and power lines. DoorDash settles NYC underpayment probe for $131.5 million. Federal judge orders Texas to air condition all prisons by end of 2029. ShinyHunters hackers claim to have breached FBI, stolen data on all employees. Trump administration asks Supreme Court to overturn release of pro-Palestinian scholar. Trump backs diesel export ban amid GOP pressure over record fuel prices. Trump officials plan to allow up to 17,500 more White Afrikaner refugees over next year. Trump officials cut 760,000 from Affordable Care Act coverage over alleged fraud. GOP Sen. John Curtis calls for Senate probe of Donald Trump Jr. over Russian oligarch’s wedding gift. ICE officer who shot Austin man was not wearing body camera. Michigan Democratic Senate Candidate Abdul El-Sayed defends support from former Vice President Kamala Harris. Florida Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds scrubs Trump references from campaign website amid president's sinking approval. U.S. claims neither Sudanese army nor Rapid Support Forces has legitimate authority. South Sudanese leader Salva Kiir dissolves transitional government. Tigray forces launch offensive against Ethiopia’s government. Survivors: Nigerian guards sprayed substance into packed cell before 37 detainees died. Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado makes unsuccessful bids to return home, adviser says. Alleged fentanyl trafficker arrested in Mexico City in joint U.S.-Mexico operation. Taiwan says it will stay in “close contact” with U.S. on arms sales. UN report finds Nicaragua's crackdown on dissent amounts to crimes against humanity. This is Drop Site Daily, our free news recap We send it Monday – Friday Subscribe UN General Assembly Trump threatens to “annihilate” Iran: During his speech before the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, President Donald Trump threatened to “annihilate the Islamic republic” of Iran if the two countries fail to reach a deal. “Will a deal be made with Iran that lets them rebuild and create a far greater country than it ever was before, maybe one of the greatest in the Middle East or even the world?” Trump said, suggesting that Iran was waiting to see the outcome of the midterm elections. “Or do I annihilate the Islamic Republic and do it quickly, never giving them a chance to kill and destroy people and countries again?” Trump also defended recent U.S. moves in the Western Hemisphere, saying “to the victor belong the spoils” when he discussed the U.S.’s seizure of Venezuelan oil after U.S. forces snatched Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro from his home in Caracas. He called Cuba a “failed state” that serves as a “haven for foreign adversaries to threaten America,” and said its government would soon fall. These remarks prompted Cuban delegates to walk out. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla later said: “The U.S. government proves incapable of accepting that Cuba is, and has the right to be, a fully independent and sovereign country.” Trump also attacked the International Criminal Court as a “rogue institution,” called for its members to resign, and dismissed climate change as a “hoax.” He rejected any “globalist scheme” to control advances in artificial intelligence, which he proposed be called “super intelligence,” as a “test” of his influence on the world stage. Iran military warns of “more crushing” attacks after Trump threats: Iran’s military warned Wednesday that it was prepared to launch “more crushing and less predictable” attacks against the U.S. and Israel after Trump threatened to “annihilate” the Islamic Republic during his UN General Assembly address Tuesday. Responding in a statement carried by Mehr, Iran’s General Staff of the Armed Forces and the Khatam Al-Anbiya Central Command accused Trump of using the UN podium to justify U.S. “aggression” and described his threats as evidence of Washington’s “strategic desperation,” warning that Iranian forces were prepared to strike the U.S. and Israel with attacks more severe than those carried out earlier in the war. Lula warns against foreign election interference, defends Brazil’s sovereignty : Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva warned Tuesday against domestic or foreign interference in Brazil’s October 4 election, telling the UN General Assembly “Brazilian democracy belongs to Brazilians” and “Brazil will remain a sovereign country.” Lula did not name Trump directly, though he did appear to reference the United States when he condemned the resurgence of “hegemonic ambitions” in the region and asserted that the country did not “need aircraft carriers in its waters,” a probable reference to the U.S.’s Operation Southern Spear. “Brazil does not belong in anyone’s backyard,” he said, calling attempts to divide the world into spheres of influence “anachronistic.” Lula’s comments follow accusations that the Trump administration, allied with his election rival Sen. Flavio Bolsonaro, is trying to influence the vote through economic pressure, after Washington imposed two new rounds of tariffs on Brazilian goods in July. Macron condemns Israeli aid restrictions in UNGA speech; UK, France, Canada talk Palestinian statehood in committee: French President Emmanuel Macron condemned Israel’s aid restrictions on Gaza as “a shame for the world” in his UN General Assembly address Tuesday, asking “what credibility do we have if we continue to remain inactive in the face of Gaza?” Macron also criticized what he characterized as Israel’s “daily” violations in the occupied West Bank. Macron, alongside UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Canadian Prime Minister Mike Carney and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, chaired a meeting on Palestinian statehood, where Burnham warned that failing to deliver a two-state solution “will corrode trust in the political, diplomatic, and international process.” Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney also announced his intention to introduce restrictions on goods produced in West Bank settlements, following the UK’s earlier announcement of similar restrictions. U.S.-Iran UN hold first indirect talks since June MOU unraveled: Trump administration special envoy Steve Witkoff said U.S.-Iran talks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly were conducted through mediators who shuttled between the two delegations, clarifying that the sides did not hold direct discussions after President Donald Trump said Tuesday that three-hour talks with the Iranian delegation had been “very good.” Iran separately said the communications took place through a Qatari mediator and that Tehran presented conditions for ending the war, including an end to U.S. “acts of aggression,” a halt to the naval blockade and economic warfare, and the release of Iranian assets. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Iran maintained its negotiating stance in the discussions. “This was not anything new,” Baghaei said of Iran’s conditions. Witkoff said, in a post on X, the mediators had completed a round of discussions that he hoped would prove “constructive and promising” and would continue their work. Macron says France ready for greater role in reopening Strait of Hormuz: French President Emmanuel Macron said France was prepared to become more involved in efforts to secure transit through the Strait of Hormuz, while stressing that Paris did not want a confrontation with any country. Macron told ABC News that the “main objective” of his meeting with Trump was to find an agreement to reopen the vital waterway and address the global energy crisis. He reiterated France’s opposition to the U.S. decision to go to war with Iran, saying “regime change by bombing a country” was not feasible and that Washington had not consulted its allies before launching the war. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and criticized France’s “interventionist” positions toward Iran and its stance on U.S. and Israeli attacks. U.S., Denmark, Greenland sign deal expanding U.S. military presence : The United States, Denmark and Greenland signed an agreement Tuesday at the UN General Assembly granting Washington expanded military access to Greenland, allowing it to modernize the Pituffik Space Base and build new facilities at Narsarsuaq and Mestersvig. The agreement resolves months of tension between the U.S. and Denmark, with President Donald Trump repeatedly threatening to seize the territory. The open-ended agreement bars non-NATO countries from establishing military installations without unanimous approval from Denmark, Greenland and the U.S., restricts investment from “sensitive sectors” outside NATO and the EU, and grants the U.S. undersea access and unrestricted overflight rights. Zelenskyy says Ukraine ready for energy truce after “productive” Trump talks : Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after a 40-minute meeting with President Donald Trump in New York at the UN that Ukraine remains ready for a bilateral “energy ceasefire” with Russia, telling reporters “we are ready” to halt strikes on Russian refineries if Moscow stops targeting Ukraine’s energy system. Separately on Tuesday, Zelenskyy warned on Telegram that Ukrainian intelligence indicated Russia was “preparing a new massive attack” against Ukraine. Trump called his talks with the Ukrainian president “positive and productive” and said ending the war is likely, though a similar energy truce he announced last week collapsed almost immediately after strikes resumed. Zelenskyy also said he asked Trump for additional Patriot air defense missiles for winter, proposing to swap future Patriot deliveries from a German deal in exchange for supplies from U.S. stockpiles now, though Trump had not yet agreed to this arrangement. U.S. withholds visa for Sudan’s Burhan, tying it to ceasefire proposal Khartoum has resisted : The United States is withholding a visa for Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan ahead of his scheduled UN General Assembly speech, contingent on his acceptance of a 90-day ceasefire proposed by U.S. Senior Advisor Massad Boulos, Reuters reported. The suspension prompted Sudan’s UN ambassador to appeal to Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who said he is “deeply concerned” and engaging with the U.S. on the issue. Canada pledges $71 million in Palestinian aid, imposes restrictions on Israeli settlement goods: Canada will provide about $71 million in assistance for the Palestinian government and impose trade restrictions on goods produced in Israeli settlements, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. He described the restrictions on settlement products as a “pragmatic, practical” measure intended to help preserve “the possibility of a two-state solution, and ultimately a durable peace for Israelis and Palestinians.” Trump and Latin America allies invoke Rio Treaty against cartels: The Trump administration is seeking to turn its campaign against Latin American cartels into a hemispheric security framework under the umbrella of the Shield of the Americas initiative. Fourteen governments joined a U.S.-backed declaration at the UN General Assembly pledging coordinated action against 24 organizations designated as “narco-terrorist”. The declaration calls for sanctions, intelligence sharing, security