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Iran

September 14, 2026

Tehran 10:05 am

29°C

Fighters loyal to the Houthi authorities gather in Sanaa on Sept. 10, 2026.

Analysis

As Houthis seize Bab el-Mandeb, Iran appraises value of new Red Sea card

Iran is celebrating the Houthis' rapid advance toward Bab el-Mandeb, but appears reluctant to act on the win.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

member of the Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces firing a heavy machine gun

Claude AI used for missile, influence projects in UAE, Iran, Yemen: Anthropic

Military and government actors across the Middle East — from Iran to Yemen to the United Arab Emirates — have used Anthropic's Claude AI model for war planning and influence campaigns.

Pedestrians walk past a wall mural along a street in downtown of Tehran on Aug. 31, 2026.

Analysis

Could Iran’s nuclear ambitions harden as war escalates?

A new report has raised alarm about the Pickaxe Mountain nuclear site that President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to strike.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Australia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Richard Marles at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on September 2, 2026. (Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Iran’s Pickaxe mountain tests limits of Trump’s military options

A secretive Pentagon innovation agency has hastened to test munitions that may penetrate deeper than the GBU-57 bombs dropped on Iran’s two main enrichment facilities.

Jared Szuba

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

Latest News

Iran's IRGC set to declare new ‘sanctions zone’ beyond Hormuz: What to know

Elke Scholiers/Getty Images

Brent crude sails past $100 as Middle East war intensifies

AFPTV / AFP via Getty Images

US strikes Iranian tankers after attempted attack on Navy ship

Vessels transit the Hormuz Strait off the coast of Iran's southern port city of Bandar Abbas on September 7, 2026. Iran's top negotiator threatened on September 6 of a more forceful response to any further US attacks after Tehran targeted American warships in their latest round of clashes. The exchanges of fire, which began with US raids last week, come amid a deadlock in the six-month war between the two foes. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images) /

Analysis

What Houthi setbacks in Yemen mean for Iran's regional influence

Forces loyal to Yemen's Saudi-backed government

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

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 Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks live on television after casting his ballot in the Iranian presidential election in Tehran June 12, 2009. REUTERS/Caren Firouz/File Photo - S1AETHSUNEAA

Iran brings in New Year by focusing on domestic production

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stressed the need to focus on domestic production in the upcoming year.

US singles out ‘mafia’-like groups as key threat to Iraq’s future

In exclusive interviews with Al-Monitor at the State Department, two top State Department officials lay out US policy goals as Iraq seeks normalize and balance ties with Iran and its other neighbors while seeking to prevent a return of the Islamic State.

Empty and disused Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL Group) containers are seen at Malta Freeport in the Port of Marsaxlokk outside Valletta February 10, 2012. The IRISL ships and containers are key parts in an international cat-and-mouse game: Iran's attempt to evade the trade sanctions tightening around it. Washington and European capitals want to stop or slow Iran's nuclear programme. They believe that IRISL, which moves nearly a third of Iran's exports and imports and is central to the coun

Road map for Iran-EU trade and investment relations

Europe is making efforts to set up a special purpose vehicle to uphold legitimate trade with Iran, but there is a need for a more comprehensive action plan for such trade and political relations.

Saudi-Iran conflict threatens to flare in Pakistan

Recent Saudi investments in a Pakistani port near the border with Iran are likely to irk Tehran, but Islamabad’s strategic ties to both Tehran and Riyadh make it a prime contender to ease the tensions.

An Airbus A340-300 of Iranian airline Mahan Air takes off from Duesseldorf airport DUS, Germany January 16, 2019. Picture taken January 16, 2019. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay - RC130B90B210

France bans flights operated by Iran's second-largest airline

Iran's second-largest airline, Mahan Air, has to stop flights to Paris for what has been reported as sanctions imposed by the French government.

Is Tehran trying to distance Qasem Soleimani from Iraq?

The recent visit of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to Iraq has been read as attempt to distance Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani from Iraq, replacing him with the Foreign Ministry.

Democratic 2020 U.S. presidential candidate and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks at a campaign rally in Concord, New Hampshire, U.S., March 10, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder - RC17BE4EE740

2020 Democrats vow to re-enter Iran nuclear deal

Advocacy groups are pushing to rejoin US allies in the JCPOA amid criticism of Trump’s foreign policy record.

Iran's state TV kills top-rated show

Despite being the most popular show on Iran's national TV, Adel Ferdowsipour's hard-hitting soccer program has been axed by the station's new hard-line manager.

A woman dances with men during the "Chaharshanbeh Soori" festival in Tehran March 18, 2008. People jump over fire during the festival to burn away the year's sins on the last Tuesday night before the new year. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN) - GM1E43J07KQ01

Iran’s Islamic authorities slowly embrace ancient Festival of Fire

As Iranians uphold both religious values and national traditions, the Islamic Republic is beginning to recognize the once-rebuffed ancient Festival of Fire.

For Netanyahu, all is political, even cybersecurity

The hacking by a foreign power of the cellphone of the head of the Blue and White Party, Benny Gantz, is primarily a security lapse that occurred on the watch of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is in charge of the National Cyber Directorate.

Iran's state TV woos audiences with American-style shows

Iranian versions of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" and "America's Got Talent" are now on state TV, but seem to draw more criticism than ratings.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani speaks during a news conference with Iraq's President Barham Salih (not pictured) at Salam Palace in Baghdad, Iraq March 11, 2019. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani - RC1E8AE10620

Rouhani’s Iraq visit raises important questions for Israel

Does Israel see Rouhani's visit to Iraq as strengthening his hand in Iran? One answer could be that while Rouhani was in Baghdad, hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi was elected deputy chief of the Assembly of Experts.