Iran Deal

TOPSHOT - People watch from a street as a tall smoke plume billows following an explosion in the Fujairah industrial zone on March 3, 2026. Iran's strikes on Gulf neighbours since February 28, following the US-Israeli attack, forced the UAE to shut its airspace, blindsiding travellers who thought they were headed to one of the region's safest holiday destinations. (Photo by Fadel SENNA / AFP via Getty Images)

UAE says no more 'niceties' with Iran, seeks clarity on fragile truce terms

The UAE said Iran must pay “compensation” for damages incurred during the conflict.

United Arab Emirates

President Donald Trump pauses as he finishes speaking about the Iran war from the Cross Hall of the White House on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, in Washington.

Trump agrees to halt war for 2 weeks if Iran reopens Hormuz

A family sits against the backdrop of a dockyard in Khor Fakkan in the Gulf emirate of Sharjah, off the coast of the Gulf of Oman, on Feb. 25, 2026.

Iran threatens energy shock, ups Gulf strikes ahead of Trump deadline: What to know

Majid Mousavi, head of the IRGC Aerospace Force, declared the start of a “new phase” of the war in response to US threats to target key Iranian civilian infrastructure.

TOPSHOT - A view of the B1 bridge is pictured, a day after it was destroyed by a strike in Karaj, around 20miles (35kms) southwest of Tehran, April 3, 2026. US President Donald Trump said on April 2 the tallest bridge in Iran had been destroyed, hours after threatening to bomb the country "back to the Stone Ages." (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images) /

With Trump's goals unmet, can strikes on Iran's economy force a deal?

Ordering the US military to destroy Iran's road transit system and electrical grid risks war crimes that may harden Iranian resistance after five weeks of bombing has failed to deliver Trump’s strategic objectives.

Latest News

‘No bridges, no power plants’: Trump ups threats against Iran if deal fails

US President Donald Trump looks on during a press conference about the conflict in Iran in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House, on April 6, 2026, in Washington.

Exclusive

Senior Houthi official says Bab el Mandab closure an option if any Gulf states join war

Members of Houthi security forces stand guard while supporters of Yemen's Houthi movement attend an event commemorating the ninth anniversary of the Saudi-led intervention in their country, in the capital, Sanaa, on March 26, 2026.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Jet fuel squeeze exposes Europe’s reliance on Middle East supply

Exhaust emits from the engine of a passenger jet as it prepares for take off at Heathrow Airport on March 30, 2006, in London, England.

Dermer’s return puts Netanyahu’s 'brain' at center of US-Israel calculus

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) is joined by Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer and other officials for a meeting with US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (not pictured) at the Pentagon, July 9, 2025.

Britain's Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak (L), greets Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Downing Street on March 24, 2023 in London, England. Benjamin Netanyahu visits London against a backdrop of unrest at home. Protests are being held weekly across Israel against legislation being pushed through the Knesset by his government to restrain the judiciary. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

UK's Sunak cancels appearance with Netanyahu as Israelis rally in London

Amid protests in London against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's judicial overhaul push, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak canceled a planned joint press conference.

Marines

Setback for Iran as US court orders $1.68 billion payout for 1983 Beirut bombing

One analyst told Al-Monitor that the families of the US Marines killed in the attack could finally receive compensation following years of legal battles.

US General Mark Alexander Milley, 20th Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on Feb. 14, 2023.

Top US general says ‘multiple options’ ready if Iran develops nuclear weapon

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley said Iran could produce enough fissile material for a nuclear weapon in less than two weeks.

A member of the US Airforce looks on near a Patriot missile battery at the Prince Sultan air base in Al-Kharj, in central Saudi Arabia on February 20, 2020.

US officials skeptical of China's deal but concerned about deterring Iran

China’s diplomatic reach into heart of Middle East was an unmistakable signal to Washington. Read more in the weekly security-focused newsletter from Al-Monitor’s Pentagon Correspondent Jared Szuba.

IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi arrives for the IAEA Board of Governors meeting on March 06, 2023 in Vienna, Austria.

IAEA’s Grossi expects Iran’s cooperation as technical team readies visit

Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen addresses a joint press conference after talks with his German counterpart at the Foreign Office in Berlin, Germany on February 28, 2023. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP) (Photo by ODD ANDERSEN/AFP via Getty Images)

After thaw with Iran, Saudi Arabia sends negative signals to Israel

From Israel’s point of view, the China-brokered Iran-Saudi Arabia agreement could dramatically hamper its efforts to normalize with Riyadh.

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during the daily press briefing at the White House December 12, 2022 in Washington, DC. Sullivan spoke at length about the this week's upcoming U.S-Africa Leaders Summit, with dozens of African leaders visiting Washington, DC. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

'No deal' on US-Iran prisoner exchange: White House

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan confirmed "there's no deal" to free the Americans held by Iran.

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu give a statement after their meeting at the prime minister's office, Jerusalem, April 12, 2021.

Analysis

Tensions in West Bank threaten Israel-US intelligence cooperation

Top US Gen. Milley delivered "unprecedented message" to Israeli officials, warning that internal chaos and growing tensions in the West Bank could endanger the country’s strategic relations with the United States.

In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense

Barbara Leaf (L), US Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs, and Dana Stroul (C), US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence (DASD) for the Middle East, join a media roundtable in Kuwait City on October 19, 2022. (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT / AFP) (Photo by YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images)

US will 'protect' its technology against China theft in Middle East: Leaf

Barbara Leaf, top Middle East official at the State Department told Al-Monitor that the Syrian government is participating in the drug trade, and blamed Iran for the failure of the nuclear deal.

Win McNamee/Getty Images

US defense chief delays arrival to Israel, will meet Netanyahu near airport

Defense Minister Lloyd Austin will conclude his Middle East in Israel Thursday morning, meeting with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

Protesters carry the Palestinian National Flag during a march in support of the Palestinian people in Nouakchott, Mauritania on May 19, 2021. (Photo by MED LEMIN RAJEL/AFP via Getty Images)

Israel eyes normalization with Mauritania, Indonesia to expand Abraham Accords

Jerusalem's efforts to add more countries to the Abraham Accords have intensified since Netanyahu returned to power in December.

Azerbaijani servicemen stand guard at a checkpoint at the Lachin corridor, the Armenian-populated breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region's only land link with Armenia, as Azerbaijani environmental activists protest what they claim is illegal mining, on December 26, 2022.

Israel exports arms to Azerbaijan as tensions soar with Armenia: Report

According to Haaretz, 92 cargo flights have departed since 2016 from the southern Israel airport of Ovda to Baku.