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Iran

September 11, 2026

Tehran 4:21 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

Saudi reforms put spotlight on Iran's women's movement

Absent political will to engage in genuine reform, Iranian women face a long road ahead in achieving their rights.

Israeli soldiers sit on top of tanks as they take part in an exercise in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, near the ceasefire line between Israel and Syria, March 20, 2017. REUTERS/Baz Ratner - RC16E85FD020

Will Israel launch pre-emptive strike against Assad?

Israeli experts claim that the Israel Defense Forces should have struck the Bashar al-Assad regime at the beginning of the war in Syria.

Hamas stands with Hezbollah, says Arab League ignores Israeli terror

After an Arab League summit including delegates from the Palestinian Authority produced a statement denouncing Hezbollah as a terrorist entity, Hamas and other Palestinian groups responded with defiance.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

Hossein Badamaki (R) of Iran's Persepolis, Mishal Al Saeed (C) and Saud Khariri of Saudi Arabia's Al-Ittihad fight for the ball during their AFC Champions League soccer match at Tehran's Azadi stadium May 3, 2011. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN - Tags: SPORT SOCCER) - GM1E75400KD01

Soccer politics reaches fever pitch in Iran

Despite promises to promote the privatization of soccer, Iranian authorities retain a firm grip over the sport in the country.

Iranian wrestler’s deliberate loss stirs controversy

The story of an Iranian wrestler who was pressured to lose against a Russian opponent to avoid facing an Israeli wrestler has caused controversy in Iran.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani together with his counterparts, Russia's Vladimir Putin and Turkey's Tayyip Erdogan, attend a joint news conference following their meeting in Sochi, Russia November 22, 2017. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1D16F4FF70

Sochi summit leaves Turkey facing unsavory possibilities

It's unknown how far Moscow will go to appease Ankara with regard to the Syrian Kurds.

A general view shows a deserted street at the beginning of the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp April 29, 2015. A bout of fighting between militants over control of the Yarmouk refugee camp on the edge of Damascus has only compounded the misery of residents already suffering from acute shortages of food, clean water and power. REUTERS/Ward Al-Keswani - GF10000077547

Four-year-old siege still punishing civilians in Syria's Yarmouk camp

Despite talk of negotiations and a breakthrough, the siege imposed by the Syrian regime on the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus continues to claim the lives of civilians.

Iran prosecutor gets two years for being 'accessory to murder' of protesters

A former Iranian prosecutor receives a two-year sentence for murders at a notorious prison.

Iranians sit outside damaged homes after salvaging furniture and household appliances in the town of Sarpol-e Zahab in the western Kermanshah province near the border with Iraq, on November 15, 2017, following a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that left hundreds killed and thousands homeless days before. / AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Earthquake response shows Iranians' nationalism — and mistrust of authorities

While ordinary Iranians’ response to the deadly Nov. 12 earthquake has been a show of national solidarity, it also displayed mistrust in authorities.

Why did Hariri go to Cairo before returning home to Lebanon?

To spare the Middle East another battleground, Cairo played a role in containing the crisis of the resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri.

Is Saudi crown prince winning or losing in the Middle East?

With Saad Hariri staying on as prime minister in Lebanon, the Saudi crown prince has suffered another setback in his efforts to counter Iran.

A money changer counts out U.S. dollars for a customer in Tehran's business district, Iran, January 20, 2016. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi/TIMA ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - GF20000100973

Imprudent foreign financing could jeopardize Iran’s economy

Contrary to common wisdom, not all foreign financing, especially the type currently trickling into Iran, is good for state finances and the country’s economy.