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Iran

May 8, 2026

Tehran 4:32 am

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In this picture obtained from Iran's ISNA news agency on May 4, 2026, the Iran-flagged tugboat Basim sails near a ship anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas in southern Iran.

What to know about Iran's 'Persian Gulf Strait Authority' to control Hormuz traffic

The establishment of an entity seeking to control maritime transportation in the Strait of Hormuz is the latest sign that Iran wants to formalize authority in the strategic waterway.

Popular Mobilization Forces

US sets expectations for Iraq’s next PM to confront Iranian militias

The Trump administration is cautiously sizing up Iraq’s new prime minister-designate, Ali al-Zaidi, as a potential partner in pushing back on Iranian influence.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi of Iran meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi of China in Beijing on May 6, 2026. Credit: Telegram

Analysis

China shores up Iran support as Trump seeks exit

China understands how badly Trump wants an exit from the conflict. But timing is critical: if no agreement is reached before Trump arrives in China on Thursday, Beijing would be better positioned to set the agenda.

Joyce Karam

An Iranian woman holds up an image of Iran's new supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei.

Iran president says he held official meeting with Mojtaba Khamenei: What to know

The president’s announcement marks the first public confirmation of a meeting between a senior official and Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not been seen publicly since the start of the war.

Latest News

Iran, China discuss Hormuz reopening amid potential US-Iran talks

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, second right, talks to his Iranian Counterpart Abbas Araghchi, left, during the bilateral meeting in Beijing, Wednesday, May 6, 2026.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

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

Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Benjamin Houghton

In Durham, reporting on China in the Middle East

Rahim Rahimov

In Baku, reporting on Middle East-Caucasus ties

Mehrnaz Samimi

In Washington, DC, reporting on Iranian culture

Iran's President's Ebrahim Raisi remotely addresses the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly on Sept. 21, 2021, in New York.

The Takeaway: What will it take to jumpstart Iran nuclear talks?

Jihadi spat in Idlib; Palestinians’ fashion feud; Lapid pivots left; Palestinians reject Armenian land sale in Jerusalem; Turkey’s generals and Syria; Qatari artist bemoans plastic pollution; and more! In less than 1,200 words.

A picture taken on May 3, 2019, shows boats off the coast of the island of Sir Abu Nuair island between the Gulf emirate of Sharjah and Iran's territorial waters

Iran, UAE rehash tensions over contested islands

The UAE deputy foreign minister’s address to the United Nations stirred up the territorial dispute, which has long been at the very core of tensions between the Arab state and the Islamic Republic.

A picture taken on Nov. 10, 2019, shows an Iranian flag in Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant, during an official ceremony to kick-start works on a second reactor at the facility.

Iran, IAEA spar over access to Karaj nuclear site

The International Atomic Energy Agency claims that Iran has limited its access to the Karaj nuclear facility, where surveillance cameras have been damaged.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Iran introduces own version of maximum pressure

Iran may return to the table in a few weeks, but expect it to continue waiting for the United States to make concessions.

LUDOVIC MARIN/AFP via Getty Images

Iran's foreign minister says nuclear talks to restart 'very soon'

Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian told reporters that Iran plans to return to the negotiating table after suspending its participation at the end of June.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Iran says 'remarkable progress' made in Saudi Arabia talks

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said significant progress had been made during direct talks in Baghdad between the rival powerhouses.

A man holds a portrait of Iranian wrestler Navid Afkari during a demonstration on the Dam Square in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, on Sept. 13, 2020.

Iran admits ‘witness to torture’ died in custody

The prisoner had defied pressure from intelligence authorities to withdraw his shocking statements after he blew the whistle on “medieval-style torture” of executed political prisoner Navid Afkari.

A picture taken on January 13, 2020, during a press tour organised by the US-led coalition fighting the remnants of the Islamic State group, shows a member the US forces walking past a drone in the Ain al-Asad airbase in the western Iraqi province of Anbar.

Are Iranian threats to escalate in Iraqi Kurdistan more hot air?

US President Joe Biden addresses the 76th Session of the UN General Assembly in New York on Sept. 21, 2021.

The Takeaway: Iran nuclear diplomacy shows faint pulse at UN

Signs of life at an extraordinary meeting of senior Middle East officials; also, updates from our correspondents on Israel, West Bank, UAE, Turkey, Egypt, Iraq … and more … all in about 1,400 words!

Iran's President's Ebrahim Raisi remotely addresses the 76th Session of the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 21, 2021 at U.N. headquarters in New York City.

Iran’s president slams US in first UN speech

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi used the occasion of his first UN General Assembly speech to heavily criticize the United States.

A picture shows daily newspapers on sale at a kiosk in the capital Tehran, on Sept. 18, 2021. Conservative and reformist newspapers showed rare unity in welcoming results of a conference yesterday in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, where members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation endorsed Iran's future membership in the bloc.

Iran’s membership in Asian security body won’t solve sanctions problem

While the news that Iran will gain full membership in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a psychological victory for the sanctions-hit country, it will take much more to achieve lasting economic impact.

An incoming passenger crosses with his luggage through a disinfection tunnel upon arriving on an Emirates flight at the Iranian capital Tehran's Imam Khomeini International Airport on July 17, 2020.

Iran to lift visa restrictions to revive pandemic-hit tourism sector

Iran’s new tourism chief said the government will soon scrap visa restrictions, a plan that the struggling tourism sector has been desperately waiting for to get back on its feet amid the coronavirus pandemic.