Iran-US tensions

Ahmed Shihab‑Eldin attends the Opening Night during the Doha Film Festival 2025 on Nov. 20, 2025 in Doha, Qatar.

Breaking | Last Updated: April 23, 2026, 10:32 am

Kuwait acquits journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin after 7 weeks in detention

The American-Kuwaiti journalist is expected to be released after 52 days in custody over posts about wartime damage.

Qais al-Khazali (L), head of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq group, stands along with former Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki after casting their ballots at a polling station in Baghdad on Nov. 11, 2025.

Split over Maliki, Iraq’s Shiite bloc delays PM vote as deadline nears: What to know

Two other candidates have emerged as alternatives to Coordination Framework nominee and former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who is openly opposed by the Trump administration.

Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi speaks at a candidates' registration office in Tehran on May 30, 2024, during the first day of registration ahead of the country's presidential election.

Who is Ahmad Vahidi, IRGC chief and hard-liner against nuclear compromise?

A longtime Revolutionary Guard insider with strong ties to Iran’s security apparatus and proxy network, Ahmad Vahidi has taken over the IRGC at a moment of crisis, with some reports suggesting he is playing an outsized role in the country’s decision-making.

Fishing and cargo ships and ferries are pictured in the Gulf off the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas, which is the main base of the Islamic Republic's navy and has a strategic position on the Strait of Hormuz, on April 29, 2019.

Iran seizes two cargo ships in Hormuz after Trump extends ceasefire

The IRGC Navy’s seizure of two cargo vessels follows US Navy interdictions of two Iran-linked crude oil tankers in the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean earlier this week.

Latest News

Iran executes 14th person since war over alleged Mossad ties: What to know

Mahdi Farid, who was convicted of espionage for Israel’s Mossad, was executed after his death sentence was upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court, Tehran, Iran, April 22, 2026.

Analysis

As Iran's power struggle deepens, US talks stall, who’s calling the shots in Tehran?

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaks to the press during a visit to the shrine of slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut's southern suburbs on Jan. 8, 2026.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Analysis

Gulf energy deals face Iran war stress test as global expansion meets oil shock

A picture shows the Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar's principal site for production of liquefied natural gas and gas-to-liquid, administrated by Qatar Petroleum, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) north of the capital Doha, on Feb. 6, 2017.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Analysis

Israel sees chance of US-Iran deal as almost 'non-existent,' readies for war

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

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

Oliver Contreras / AFP via Getty Images

First round of Lebanon-Israel talks concludes in Washington: What to know

Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the meeting a “historic opportunity” to end Hezbollah’s influence in Lebanon.

A photograph shows the damage in the aftermath of a drone strike in the Seef district of Manama on March 10, 2026.

Bahrain, Saudi Arabia summon Iraqi diplomats over militia attacks: What to know

The United States and Kuwait have likewise criticized Iraq over actions tied to Iran-backed armed groups in the country.

This photograph taken from the southern Lebanese area of Tyre shows smoke as it rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the village of Qlaileh on April 13, 2026.

Uncertainty shrouds Lebanon-Israel talks as Israeli bombardment continues

The two countries' ambassadors are scheduled to meet at the State Department at 11:00 am Tuesday.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, in Beijing on April 13, 2026.

China signals bigger Gulf role as UAE crown prince visits Beijing

China, which maintains close ties with both Iran and Gulf states, is hosting one of the UAE's top officials this week as a fragile ceasefire in the region holds.

ELVIS BARUKCIC / AFP via Getty Images

Hormuz blockade gambit aims to squeeze Iran without expanding war

By blockading Iran’s ports and de-mining the Strait of Hormuz, the US Navy aims to deny Tehran leverage in future negotiations, but experts warn it could take months before the economic pressure builds on the Islamic Republic.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Getty Images

As US blockades Hormuz, China urges restraint, rejects call to ditch Iran oil

Beijing and Ankara called for calm as the US began its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz as regional diplomacy over the fragile ceasefire intensifies.

Pope Leo XIV

'No fear': Pope Leo pushes against Trump attacks as he lands in Algeria

President Donald Trump has escalated against the first American pontiff over his criticism of the Israel-US war in Iran.

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.

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)

Analysis

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

The US–Iran truce boosts Pakistan — one of China’s closest partners — by elevating its role as a mediator and strengthening a regional balance that favors Beijing’s allies.

Joyce Karam

By Joyce Karam , Rosaleen Carroll