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Iran

April 29, 2026

Tehran 10:49 pm

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President Donald Trump gives a speech during the State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn on April 28, 2026, in Washington.

Trump speaks with Netanyahu, Putin as Iran pressure campaign escalates

President Donald Trump spoke by phone separately with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin, discussing the situation in Iran and the possibility of extending the ceasefire.

An Iraqi money dealer counts Iranian rial banknotes bearing a portrait of the late founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, at an exchange office in Baghdad on Feb. 3, 2012.

Iranian rial hits new record low as blockade, war take toll: What to know

The rial had another collapse in late 2025, triggering massive protests and riots in the country that were ended by a forceful government crackdown.

In this handout photo provided by the U.S. Navy, Two F/A-18 Super Hornets launch from the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) in support of Operation Epic Fury on March 3, 2026 in the Mediterranean Sea.

Breaking | Last Updated: April 29, 2026, 2:24 pm

Pentagon: Iran war has cost US estimated $25B so far

A supplemental request won’t be delivered to Congress until the Pentagon fully assesses the war’s cost, a top budget official told House lawmakers.

The Ateela 2 oil tanker boat navigates the sea on April 28, 2026, on Qeshm Island, Iran, in the Strait of Hormuz.

Analysis

How long can Iran's economy withstand Trump's naval blockade?

Iranian authorities are denouncing US seizures of the country's oil tankers as piracy, but mounting disruptions to maritime trade are exposing economic fragility beneath Tehran's claims of control and resilience.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Latest News

Analysis

UAE’s OPEC exit rattles cartel as Gulf alliances shift

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

First LNG tanker transits Strait of Hormuz since Iran war began

Yuichi YAMAZAKI / AFP via Getty Images

Iran floats ‘plan B’ to defuse Hormuz standoff, delay nuclear talks

Iranian walks past a giant billboard reading "The Strait of Hormuz remains closed" at the Revolution Square in Tehran on April 22, 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

An anti-government fighter tears down a portrait of Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo, after jihadis and their allies entered the northern Syrian city, on Nov. 30, 2024.

Analysis

With eye on Iran, Israel wary of Syria rebels offensive, prefers Assad

Israel is now debating whether the recent upsurge of rebels in Syria could increase regional threats and its strategic interests.

Rina Bassist

By Rina Bassist

In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs

Protesters hold signs during a rally protesting against a death sentence given to Toomaj Salehi, a famous Iranian rapper, in Berlin, Germany, on April 28, 2024.

Culture

Iranian rapper Toomaj, who supported protests, released from prison

Toomaj Salehi was sentenced to death earlier this year after releasing a song in support of the Mahsa Amini protests, though the ruling was overturned by the supreme court.

ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images

Iran’s FM meets Fidan in Turkey as rift over Syria persists: What we know

While the top Iranian and Turkish diplomats agree on the need for de-escalation in Syria, the two countries' positions remain divergent.

Afghan workers carry flour sacks off a freight train upon its arrival from Uzbekistan, at the border station in Hairatan, Balkh Province, March 5, 2024.

Analysis

Iran looks to invest $6B in Afghanistan as route to China: What to know

Engaging the Taliban has become a must in Tehran's efforts not only to improve transportation in and boost trade with Afghanistan in the face of economic sanctions, but also to achieve its goal of having a reliable, overland trade route to China.

Sabena Siddiqui

By Sabena Siddiqui

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

Anti-regime fighters drive along the Aleppo- Damascus M5 international highway in the newly captured northwestern area of Khan al-Assal, as smoke rises in the distance on Nov. 29, 2024.

Analysis

Embattled in Gaza and Lebanon, can Iran defend Assad in Syria amid Aleppo offensive?

Iran is at a critical juncture amid the Sunni insurgent offensive in Syria, as it navigates the realities about its weakened ally Hezbollah and the complexities of its own presence in a geopolitical power play that involves multiple actors competing for different agendas.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Algerian People's National Council

Iran sends senior delegation to Algeria, Tunisia as relations warm

This week, a high-level Iranian delegation is visiting Algeria and Tunisia for talks with senior officials from both North African countries.

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei holds a weekly press conference in Tehran on Oct. 28, 2024.

Iran praises Lebanon ceasefire, vows response to Israel 'in due time'

Iran has repeatedly vowed to respond to the late October Israeli strikes on the country, and a senior official repeated the assertion following the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah.

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, Europe gamble on fresh talks in Geneva to resolve nuclear deal deadlock

The upcoming negotiations in Geneva follow a two-year hiatus in Iran's nuclear diplomacy, reviving cautious optimism regarding potential economic relief while also highlighting the pressure Tehran is facing in the wake of Donald Trump's new tenure.

Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

Iran promises response 'beyond imagination' to Israeli strikes even as deal looms

A month after Israel's Oct. 26 strikes on Iran, Iranian officials are ramping up discussions of a response to the attack.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps special forces fire a short-range missile during a military drill in the Gulf of Oman near Iranian southern port town of Bandar-e-Jask on Tuesday, April 4, 2006.

Iran and Azerbaijan hold joint military drills in sign of easing tensions

Iran and Azerbaijan are at odds over the planned Zangezur Corridor through Armenia, as well as Baku’s relations with Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (C)

Iran’s Khamenei says Netanyahu must face death penalty, ICC warrant 'not enough'

In his first comment on the ICC’s decision to issue arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense chief, Yoav Gallant, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said a death sentence must be issued for the Israeli leaders, not arrest warrants.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks after casting his vote for the presidential runoff election on July 5, 2024, in Tehran, Iran.

Analysis

Is Iran's Khamenei signaling readiness for new deal as Trump threat looms large?

Iran's supreme leader appears to be exercising pragmatism and reintroducing his "heroic flexibility," as his top aide says the stalled nuclear deal was "not written in stone" and that Tehran remains open to a new accord with the incoming Trump administration.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics