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Iran

May 9, 2026

Tehran 7:35 pm

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China’s overland trade routes offer Iran wartime economic lifeline: What to know

Cargo rail traffic between China and Iran has reportedly surged since the US blockade began in April as Tehran seeks overland trade alternatives to help buy time.

A woman walks past a banner featuring Iran's late supreme leaders, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (L) and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (C), next to newly elected Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, in Tehran on April 19, 2026.

Analysis

Why Iran's wartime behavior risks lasting rupture with Gulf states

Iran's rhetoric and policies toward Gulf states have sharply escalated, raising questions about whether years of painstaking regional rapprochement can survive mounting distrust and maritime confrontations.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

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.

Latest News

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

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.

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

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 reports two new cyberattacks

An official did not reveal any further details on the incidents, Reuters reported. Iran was rocked by a series of mysterious explosions and fires over the summer.

Iran official: Coronavirus deaths could double if guidelines not followed

Iranian officials are warning that the 30,000 deaths reported could be much higher.

Iran breaks daily record for COVID-19 deaths three times in a week

The coronavirus continues to spread in Iran despite lockdowns as sanctions and a poor economy add to the country's pain.

Rouhani celebrates end of Iran arms embargo

In an open message of defiance against US pressure, Iran said it could resume arms purchases as early as Oct. 18 when a decadelong UN embargo effectively expires.

Iran in shock after 11-year-old boy commits suicide over poverty

The suicide of an 11-year old boy from a destitute family has sent shock waves across Iranian society, further highlighting the questions of growing poverty and state neglect.

A woman looks at art work made by Iranian victims of acid attacks at the Ashianeh gallery in Tehran on February 28, 2018.
Acid attacks have been an occasional scourge in Iran, with a spate of incidents in 2014 triggering protests and claims they were linked to women wearing "immodest" clothing. Money raised by the show went to Iran's Association of Support of Acid Attack Victims. / AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Cleric reopens scars of acid attacks after threatening Iranian women

Threats by an influential hard-line cleric against Iranian women with loose headscarves has opened up old wounds left behind in acid attacks perpetrated by religious extremists.

Khamenei: Iran must look inward to address economy

In today's Iran media review, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei said the country must look at domestic solutions to address its economic woes.

Fans of Iranian singer, instrumentalist and composer Mohammad-Reza Shajarian gather outside the Jam hospital in Tehran where he has died on October 8, 2020. - Singer, instrumentalist and composer Mohammad-Reza Shajarian, who died today aged 80, embodied traditional and classical Iranian music for more than half a century both at home and abroad. A national treasure in his homeland, Shajarian nevertheless maintained difficult relations with the authorities in Tehran throughout his career, first under the rei

Protests break out in Iran after death of famed singer

Mohammad Reza Shajarian was a renowned singer and composer of classical music. He also notably supported the 2009 protests in the country.

US government sanctions 18 Iranian banks

New sanctions imposed by the US Treasury Department aim to deny the Iranian government funding. Iran says the move will hurt its ability to pay for medicine and food.

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US government announces seizure of 92 Iran-linked websites

The US seizure of the news sites allegedly connected to the Iranian government came before new US sanctions on Iranian banks.

An Armenian soldier of the self-proclaimed republic of Nagorno-Karabagh aims his Kalashnikov assault rifle as he stands in a trench at the frontline on the border with Azerbaijan near the town of Martakert, on July 6, 2012. EU president Herman Van Rompuy urged last week enemies Armenia and Azerbaijan to end frontline clashes that have raised fears of renewed war over the disputed region of Nagorny Karabakh. Armenia-backed separatists seized Karabakh from Azerbaijan in a war in the 1990s that left some 30,00

Between a rock and hard place: Iran’s dilemma in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

Tehran is sending forces to its borders in anticipation of the Armenian-Azeri conflict spilling over.

A woman, mask-clad as a COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic precaution, walks past shops along a street in Iran's capital Tehran on September 27, 2020. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran official seeks lockdown extension as virus rages

A Tehran official has pled for a longer lockdown as coronavirus cases rise in Tehran province.