Middle East wars loom over UN General Assembly, and other Mideast developments

World leaders gathered this week in New York for the UN’s 81st General Assembly session, with the general debate scheduled to run from 22–26 September 2026 and on 28 September 2026. In an AP roundup published Sept. 22, the outlet said the conflict between the United States and Iran, fighting in Yemen, and Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon were expected to dominate discussions.

The AP roundup reported that the Gulf Cooperation Council called for Iran and allied groups to cease attacks on Arab Gulf states and to allow free transit through two maritime checkpoints: the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. The AP said the GCC statement linked disruptions at those chokepoints to concern over global oil markets and supply chains.

Chokepoint disruption has long been associated with wider economic spillovers. The IEA describes the Strait of Hormuz as a critical route for oil exports with limited alternatives, while the EIA has described Bab el-Mandeb as a strategic route for petroleum and natural gas shipments—conditions that align with the GCC’s warnings as reported by AP.

The AP roundup also reported that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, traveling to New York for the General Assembly, said Iran was wary of another round of talks and accused the United States of seeking to block routes, after earlier attacks by the U.S. and Israel during negotiations.

Other items in the AP roundup included reporting that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was not expected to meet with President Donald Trump during the trip, and separate reporting of strikes in a Yemen port city controlled by the Houthis alongside discussions involving Iraq and the United States on disarming Iraqi militias.