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September 7, 2026

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A man walks past a mural depicting oil pumps and the Venezuelan flag, with portraits of Venezuelan independence leader Simon Bolivar (L) and former late President Hugo Chavez (R), in Caracas, Venezuela, on Sept. 3, 2026.

Analysis

Could Trump’s oil push in Venezuela upend OPEC’s energy order?

Washington’s growing role in controlling the Latin American country's crude riches could help reshape an energy order centered on OPEC as the Hormuz crisis pressures Gulf exports.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

mural of Iran's slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei

Analysis

How Iran's campaign against US bases is forging a new Gulf defense network

Iran's targeting of Gulf states is fueling a regional security architecture designed to counter the Islamic Republic.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Amir Yaryab

Who is Amir Yaryab, IRGC’s cyber commander in US crosshairs?

The US State Department has offered up to $10 million for information on Amir Yaryab, who oversees a key part of Iran’s cyber operations.

Ammar Ammar / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Playing for time: Despite US pressure, Israel stalls Lebanon talks until after election

Ahead of the eighth round of talks in Rome, the Israeli military reported clearing Hezbollah's underground stronghold at Ali al-Taher after besieging the ridge for months.

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

Latest News

US sanctions Turkey-based bank over Iran ties

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Saudi oil exports hit nine-year low as tanker attacks threaten recovery

A commercial vessel passes through an international shipping lane off Yemen's Hanish Island in the Red Sea on July 27, 2026.

US expands Iran campaign with strikes on oil tankers

A women stands overlooking the water as ships are seen anchored in the Strait of Hormuz on Aug. 10, 2026, off the coast of Bandar Abbas, Iran.

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-British aid worker Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe is seen in an undated photograph handed out by her family. Ratcliffe Family Handout via REUTERS FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS - RC1D870429B0

Iran state TV airs video making case for jailing of British-Iranian dual national

A video aired on Iranian state television featured previously unseen footage of the arrest of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe.

Iranian fintech firms carve their place in fast-changing landscape

Fintech firms in Iran have overcome significant hurdles during the past year to participate in devising regulations and setting the stage to change the country’s financial landscape.

U.S. President Donald Trump announces missile strikes on Syria while delivering a statement in front of portrait of President George Washington at the White House in Washington, U.S., April 13, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - HP1EE4E04JFDA

Congress plans new challenge to president’s war powers amid Syria pullout

Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., is looking for allies on her latest push to end the 2001 war authorization that the Donald Trump administration uses to fight terrorism in the Middle East.

Ali Shamkhani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran speaks during the first meeting of national security secretaries of Afghanistan, China, Iran, India and Russia, in the Iranian capital Tehran on September 26, 2018. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran national security adviser says Europe missed chance to save nuclear deal

A top Iranian official has explicitly stated for the first time that Europe's window to uphold its commitments under the Iran nuclear deal has closed.

Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini take part in meeting with Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Brussels, Belgium, May 15, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman/Pool - RC125F8132B0

Iranians slam new EU sanctions as JCPOA hangs in balance

Iran has condemned new EU sanctions targeting its Intelligence Ministry over alleged assassination plots, especially as they are imposed at a time when Tehran is still awaiting a long-stalled European payment mechanism to circumvent US sanctions.

Iran union leader's story of torture prompts investigation

Iranian authorities have promised to probe torture claims by a union leader who was detained following worker protests at a crisis-hit factory.

The motorcade carrying U.S. President Donald Trump and Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) arrives at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 7, 2018. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts - RC16E43D4120

Intel: What the White House’s latest hire says about US Iran policy

Members of Taliban delegation take their seats during the multilateral peace talks on Afghanistan in Moscow, Russia November 9, 2018. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin - RC1BDF87BDC0

Why Iran has opened up about engagement with Taliban

Iran's engagement with the Taliban amid the ongoing US peace negotiations with the group is part of Tehran’s strategy of defensive engagement in its efforts to adapt to the changing geopolitics of Afghanistan.

Brigadier-General Hossein Ashtari, the chief commander of the Islamic Republic's police force, addresses ambassadors and representatives of international organisations based in Tehran on October 10, 2018. - Ashtari called for further international cooperation for fighting terrorism, drug trafficking and cyber crimes. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran ups rhetoric with talk of training Palestinian fighters

Iran has been supporting and instructing Palestinian resistance factions for years on the down low, but now it's bragging about it.

U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo attend the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons annual meeting at the White House in Washington, U.S., October 11, 2018. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC112D918F90

Rival fiefdoms emerge in scramble over Trump's Syria withdrawal

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and national security adviser John Bolton have offered different messages about President Donald Trump’s intentions for a Syria withdrawal.

A U.S. fighter walks down a ladder from a barricade, north of Raqqa city, Syria November 6, 2016. REUTERS/Rodi Said - S1AEULHGDXAA

Iran, Russia remain skeptical about US exit from Syria, Afghanistan

With the announcement of a US withdrawal from Syria, Iran and Russia can be expected to intensify their bilateral cooperation to achieve common interests rather than turn against each other.

Netanyahu’s Golan statement ignores new Syria reality

For Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu partnering with the far-right and proclaiming sovereignty over the Golan Heights is more important than aspiring to regional alliances with Muslim and Arab countries.

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