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Iran

May 9, 2026

Tehran 1:44 am

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Traffic passes a billboard depicting Iranian ballistic missiles in service, with text in Arabic reading "the honest [person's] promise" and in Persian "Israel is weaker than a spider's web," Valiasr Square, Tehran, April 15, 2024. ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images.

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

The findings cast doubt on Israel’s wartime gains and put pressure on Netanyahu’s campaign strategy ahead of elections.

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

Getty

US strikes Iran tankers as UAE reports fresh missile, drone attacks

Strikes on Iranian tankers and fresh exchanges in the Gulf escalate tensions as Washington awaits Tehran’s response to a deal proposal.

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.

Latest News

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

Popular Mobilization Forces

Analysis

China shores up Iran support as Trump seeks exit

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

Joyce Karam

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

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

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

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif speaks during a press conference at the International Conference on the Legal-International Claims of the Holy Defense in the capital Tehran on Feb. 23, 2021.

Iran's foreign minister calls attack on nuclear site 'bad gamble'

Mohammad Javad Zarif said Sunday's explosion at the Natanz nuclear facility will "strengthen" Iran amid ongoing indirect talks with the United States on the nuclear deal.

Iranians holding national flags and pictures of the Islamic republic's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, take part in a pro-government demonstration in the capital, Tehran's, central Enghelab Square on Nov. 25, 2019, to condemn days of "rioting" that Iran blames on its foreign foes. In a shock announcement 10 days ago, Iran raised the price of petrol by up to 200%, triggering nationwide protests in a country whose economy has been battered by US sanctions.

Iran's authorities reopen wounds of 2019 deadly crackdown

One and a half years after they crushed the November 2019 protests with an iron fist, Iranian authorities are not just dodging responsibility, but they are also adding insult to injury.

Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami speaks during a pro-government rally in the capital, Tehran's, central Enghelab Square on Nov. 25, 2019. In a shock announcement 10 days ago, Iran had raised the price of petrol by up to 200 %, triggering nationwide protests in a country whose economy has been battered by US sanctions.

EU hits Iranian officials with sanctions over human rights abuses

The eight individuals sanctioned include the head of the Revolutionary Guards and the commander of the Basij forces.

Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

US denies involvement in attack on Iran's Natanz nuclear site

Iran has blamed Israel for the attack on its Natanz nuclear site.

Thomas Kronsteiner/Getty Images

Iran hard-liners call for end to Vienna talks after attack on nuclear facility

The second attack on a nuclear facility in five months has prompted calls for Iran to quit talks on reviving the nuclear deal.

abbas araghchi in Vienna

White House faces tough task of tearing down Iran sanctions wall to save nuclear deal

In Trump's final days, the White House introduced a slew of new sanctions aimed at hindering a return to the nuclear deal. Yet since the designations were so blatantly politicized, the risk of undoing them is politically manageable.

An Iranian woman wearing a protective mask amid the COVID-19 pandemic, sits in a bus in the capital Tehran, on Dec. 30, 2020.

Bitter blame game in Iran amid coronavirus ‘explosion’

Iranian authorities are pointing the finger of blame at one another over the chaotic management of the recent skyrocketing COVID-19 infection rates.

In this handout provided by the EU Delegation in Vienna, Representatives of the European Union (L) and Iran (R) attend the Iran nuclear talks at the Grand Hotel on April 06, 2021 in Vienna, Austria.

Iranian source rejects removal of sanctions in segments

This week's talks in Vienna have brought officials closer to resolving the nuclear deal crisis, though Iran still insists on full sanctions removal.

limpet mine

Iranian ship, believed to be spy vessel, damaged by mine off Yemen

The Iranian Foreign Ministry said its ship suffered minor damage from a limpet mine attack, which The New York Times reports was carried out by Israel, off Yemen.

Matt Gaetz

Man admits asking Gaetz's father for $25M to find FBI agent in Iran, denies extortion

Robert Levinson, a former FBI agent believed to have died in Iranian custody, is now wrapped up in Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz's legal drama.

In this handout provided by the U.S. Navy, an F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Sidewinders of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 86 launches from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69)on June 28, 2016 in the Mediterranean Sea.

US aircraft carrier returns to Middle East as Suez Canal opens

The USS Eisenhower arrives in the Gulf region as the Biden administration kicks off indirect talks with Iran over its nuclear program.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Alarm in Iran as pandemic numbers shoot back up

Iranian officials are talking about a fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic with infections more than doubling since last week and hospitals in Tehran near capacity.