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Iran

September 11, 2026

Tehran 1:28 am

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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

Elke Scholiers/Getty Images

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

The latest Iranian effort to assert control over waterways in the region follows heavy US strikes targeting oil tankers.

AFPTV / AFP via Getty Images

Brent crude sails past $100 as Middle East war intensifies

The Iran war escalated this week as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacked four southern Saudi Arabian cities and oil facilities.

Latest News

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

Analysis

Israel braces for Iran attack as Trump’s economic squeeze on Tehran intensifies

TOPSHOT - Explosions from projectile interceptions by Israel's Iron Dome missile defence system are pictured over Tel Aviv on February 28, 2026. The United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28, with Israel's public broadcaster reporting that the Iranian supreme leader had been targeted, as the Islamic republic retaliated with barrages of missiles at Gulf states and Israel. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP via Getty Images)

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

US hits 27 Iranian airlines with latest sanctions

A picture take on September 14, 2017 shows an Airbus A340 of Mahan Air at the tarmac at Dubai's International Airport. (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE / AFP) (Photo by GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images)

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 wakes up to HIV/AIDS epidemic among expectant mothers

The Iranian government is trying to combat the spread of an HIV/AIDS epidemic in the country, especially among pregnant women, but much work remains to be done.

Ahmadinejad and Iran’s judiciary chief trade accusations

Verbal clashes between former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and conservative judiciary chief Sadegh Amoli Ayatollah Larijani are reaching new heights.

Iraq's PMU leaders 'resign' in preparation for elections

Several leaders in Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units have signaled that they are handing over control of their factions to the central government as they prepare to run in next year's elections, but some argue they will maintain their influence.

Head of Hamas delegation Saleh Arouri attends a reconciliation deal signing ceremony in Cairo, Egypt, October 12, 2017. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh - RC1E7AE97DA0

Hezbollah, Iran, Hamas seek new strategy for resistance

Hamas is moving closer to Iran and Hezbollah, as the "axis of resistance" shifts priorities now that the Syrian war is winding down.

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he talks to the media on South Lawn of the White House in Washington, U.S., before his departure to Camp David, December 16, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1695095ED0

Trump national security strategy doubles down on Iran

The US president’s first national security strategy outlines the White House’s growing campaign to turn the screws on Iran.

Iranian fishermen return to shore after checking their nets for sturgeon in the Caspian Sea near Rezvanshahr 410km (254 miles) northwest of Tehran October 3, 2006. In April 2006 a U.N. body set up to safeguard endangered species said it was extending a ban on the export of caviar from the Caspian Sea for all countries except Iran. Iranians are trying to combat the demise of the sturgeon with ambitious networks of hatcheries, designed to replenish stocks by releasing millions of young fish each year. Environ

Will Iran, Russia find solution to Caspian dilemma?

Russian talk of progress aside, Iran and other Caspian Sea states appear locked in a dispute over the world’s largest inland lake.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley briefs the media in front of remains of Iranian "Qiam" ballistic missile provided by Pentagon at Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling in Washington, U.S., December 14, 2017. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC1942011B60

Iran calls Haley's missile claim 'ridiculous'

Iranian officials view UN Ambassador Nikki Haley’s speech accusing Tehran of sending missiles to the Houthis in Yemen as politically motivated.

Houthis broach talks after Saleh slain, but war continues

Yemen's civil war demonstrates that despotism leads to more of the same, no matter who's in power.

Worshippers sit around before Friday prayers on the compound known to Muslims as Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City, as Palestinians call for a "Day of Rage" in response to President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital December 15, 2017 REUTERS/Ammar Awad

Is Trump’s Jerusalem decision winner for Iran?

Islamic Jihad gains momentum in the Gaza Strip, US-Jordan relations are shaken, US-Turkey relations worsen and Iran reaps the benefits without lifting a finger.

Will Bahrain, Israel establish formal relations in 2018?

Bahrain could become the first Gulf Cooperation Council member to establish official diplomatic and trade relations with Israel, though this may largely depend on the GCC states' response to the Jerusalem crisis.

United Arab Emirates

Iran’s jihadi gambit

A history of support for Kurdish extremists comes back to haunt Tehran.

Iranian pilgrims wait at the Imam Khomeini Airport as they depart for the annual haj pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca, in Tehran, Iran July 31, 2017. Nazanin Tabatabaee Yazdi /TIMA via REUTERS. ATTENTION EDITORS ñ THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1534FF7A20

Iran moves to tax its frequent travelers

The Rouhani administration has come under fire for proposing higher departure taxes for Iranians who travel frequently.