{
  "id": 7777193,
  "title": "U.S. officials met Iran-backed Houthis in Oman over the weekend, sources say",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/u-s-officials-met-iran-backed-houthis-in-oman-over-the-weekend",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-16T11:46:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Al-Monitor",
    "slug": "al-monitor",
    "url": "https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/09/us-officials-met-iran-backed-houthis-oman-over-weekend-sources-say"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "US officials met with representatives of Yemen's Houthis in Oman over the weekend. The meeting, which was not made public, took place at the US Embassy in Muscat, according to three sources who spoke on condition of anonymity. Oman's government, a longtime regional mediator, helped organise the meeting, two sources said.\n\nThe talks came days after the Iran-backed Houthis seized a strategic stretch of the Red Sea coast in a sweeping offensive that routed Saudi-backed forces. According to the Jerusalem Post, the Houthis told US officials they had no intention of attacking American vessels and were committed to a 2025 ceasefire with the US.\n\nThe US had previously negotiated with the Houthis, reaching a ceasefire in May last year after a two-month bombing campaign to halt attacks on Red Sea shipping. The Trump administration had designated the Houthis a \"foreign terrorist organization\" in March 2025.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Jerusalem Post",
        "title": "US officials met Iran-backed Houthis in Oman over the weekend, sources say",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/us-officials-met-iran-backed-houthis-in-oman-over-the-weekend-sources",
        "published": "2026-09-16T11:54:04.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}