Iran-US tensions

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) walks with Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif upon his arrival during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey on June 1, 2022. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Inside Turkey’s role in the US-Iran ceasefire

Turkey used its intelligence networks and rare access to both Washington and Tehran to quietly facilitate the US-Iran ceasefire while advancing its own regional security priorities.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

People gather under a large portrait of Iran's new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, during a memorial to mark the 40th day since his father, Ali Ayatollah Khamenei, was killed in US-Israeli joint strikes, on April 9, 2026, in Tehran, Iran.

Analysis

Ceasefire without relief: How Iranians are grappling with post-war repression

Despite the ceasefire, pressure is mounting inside Iran: arrests are rising, the internet remains largely shut down, and millions face deep economic uncertainty.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

A woman walks past a digital screen displaying news of US-Iran peace talks along a road in Islamabad on April 10, 2026.

In Islamabad, US set to face a more defiant Iran at negotiating table

Iran's widening ambitions after the war include a bid to exercise permanent control over the Strait of Hormuz.

Israeli military vehicles drive along a road in southern Lebanon, near the Israeli border on April 8, 2026. Israel's Defence Minister Israel Katz said the military had carried out a surprise attack on April 8 targeting hundreds of Hezbollah members across Lebanon. (Photo by Jalaa MAREY / AFP via Getty Images) /

US to host Lebanon-Israel talks next week in first such meeting

A senior Lebanese official told Al-Monitor that the Trump administration relayed to Beirut on Wednesday its support for Lebanon to handle its negotiations with Israel, separate from talks taking place with Iran this weekend in Pakistan.

Latest News

Analysis

Sanctions relief, Pakistan role propel China backing of Iran-US ceasefire

Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, speaks during a UN Security Council meeting regarding the situation in the Middle East on April 7, 2026, in New York City. A vote on a resolution in the Security Council introduced by Bahrain focusing on reopening the Strait of Hormuz failed after opposition from Russia and China. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Joyce Karam

By Joyce Karam , Rosaleen Carroll

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

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)

United Arab Emirates

Lebanon rejects Iran negotiating on its behalf, PM says only Beirut handles talks

This picture taken on April 9, 2026, shows the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the Basta neighbourhood of Beirut the day before. Calls were mounting for the ceasefire between the US and Iran to be extended to Israel's war with Hezbollah, after a massive wave of Israeli strikes on Lebanon killed more than 200 people. (Photo by FADEL itani / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Ceasefire or strategic pause? How Iran is framing war narrative amid deep mistrust

Iranians hold national flags as they gather in Tehran's Revolution Square after the United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire, on April 8, 2026 in Tehran, Iran.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Rescue teams attend to the scene of devastation after an Iranian military plane crashed into a residential building in a heavily built-up suburb on December 6, 2005 in Tehran, Iran. A huge explosion was reported as the plane, carrying 94 people, crashed into a 10-storey block killing all on board. Many deaths are also feared on the ground after the C-130 plane encountered a technical problem shortly after take-off from Mehrabad airport. (Photo by Hossein/Getty Images)

Mysterious fire at Iran's Defense Ministry site north of Tehran

The second such fire in less than a week comes amid high tensions between the United States and Iran, though details surrounding the incident remain unclear.

US Army helicopter crew from the 101st Airborne Division prepares the Apache attack helicopter at the the Camp Udairi airfield in preparation for a mission to Iraq 20 March 2003.

US accuses Iran’s IRGC of harassing helicopter over the Gulf

The first reported tense interaction between the US Navy and Iran's naval forces comes just days after Bahraini soldiers were killed in a drone attack attributed to Yemen's Houthi rebels, who receive arms from Iran.

Biden

Iran indicts Biden, Trump over support for exiled group

The current US president and three of his predecessors have been indicted in Iran for their alleged backing of a California-based Iranian pro-monarchy group that Tehran has designated as a terrorist organization.

Evin Prison

Iranian-American dies in Tehran’s Evin Prison due to 'lack of medical care'

Faramarz Javidzad, 60, was taken to hospital after he suffered stomach bleeding, but he was later returned to the prison in the Iranian capital where he later died, according to reports.

Iran drone parade

Iran parades lines of drones, calls for US Gulf pullout

Iran showed off at least 16 drone types, one of which it said was the world's longest range, as President Ebrahim Raisi urged regional cooperation against the American military presence in the Persian Gulf.

Ansari Hagedorn

Inside Qatar’s key role in US-Iran prisoner swap

Majed Al-Ansari, an adviser to the Qatari prime minister, details the behind-the-scenes diplomacy that led to the prisoner deal, and why Doha believes there now exists a “platform for dialogue” between Iran and the United States.

Anwar Gargash

Al-Monitor/Semafor summit: UAE seeks ‘ironclad’ defense agreement from the US, Anwar Gargash says

UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash said growing ties with countries like China will not replace its reliance on the United States for security.

King of Jordan

Highlights: Al-Monitor/Semafor Middle East Global Summit

The Al-Monitor & Semafor inaugural Middle East Global Summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meetings on Wednesday brought together the region’s leaders, newsmakers and business heads.

Siamak Namazi

'The nightmare is over' as Americans freed from Iran reunite with families

Seven Americans released from Iran as part of a prisoner swap held tearful reunions with family members early Tuesday.

Red Sands

Pentagon expands counter-drone exercise with Saudi Arabia, eyeing Iran threat

US and Saudi forces teamed up to shoot down simulated complex drone attacks in the Saudi desert last week as Pentagon officials warn Iran is likely learning from Russia's use of one-way attack drones in Ukraine.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken attends breakfast with the foreign ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) on September 18, 2023 in New York.

Blinken defends Iran prisoner swap at meeting with Gulf counterparts

The US secretary of state also touted the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, seen as competition to China’s Belt and Road Initiative, ahead of the discussion with Gulf Cooperation Council member states.

Released American citizens landed in Qatar today.

Breaking | Last Updated: July 10, 2024, 12:33 pm

Iran frees 5 Americans in prisoner swap with US

A US-bound flight carrying a group of American detainees including Siamak Namazi, Morad Tahbaz and Emad Shargi left Iran on Monday.