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November 9, 2026

Ostān-e Tehrān 12:58 pm

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People vote on Election Day during the midterm elections

Analysis

From sanctions relief to deterrence: How Iran reads US elections

Iran's negotiators now view US elections through the lens of political pressure and the costs of conflict, while even Javad Zarif frames diplomacy as part of deterrence.

Jamshid Jamshidi

By Jamshid Jamshidi

Alexey BABUSHKIN / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Iran turns to Putin as war, US election reshape strategic calculations

A Kremlin meeting with Iran's top security official coupled with reports of new arms deals amid looming war demonstrate Tehran's push to turn vulnerability into strategic leverage.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Tump

Can Trump turn midterm defeat into Iran breakthrough?

Although Iran may have contributed to Republican losses in midterms, the Trump administration still has a historic opportunity in the Middle East.

ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images

As Trump weighs Iran strikes, possible nuclear opening emerges

Sticking points include Iran's highly enriched uranium and lack of access for international inspectors.

Latest News

Russia to provide Iran with 90 missile launchers as military ties grow: Reports

Russian Mil Mi-8 military helicopters fly over a joint Russian and Turkish convoy, northeastern Hasakeh province, Syria, Feb. 4, 2021.

Turkey says soldier killed by gunfire from Iran at border: What to know

A sign marking the border of Turkey in Van, Turkey, on March 14, 2026.

Explainer

Democrats’ midterm sweep tests US-Israel ties as Eisenkot vows reset

An aerial view shows a campaign billboard depicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud party and President Donald Trump in Tel Aviv, on Oct. 26, 2026, on the eve of Israel's legislative elections.

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

Khamenei warns against questioning of election results

In his annual Nowruz speech, Iran’s supreme leader urged the government to ramp up domestic production, while calling on ordinary Iranians to purchase locally made goods.

Iranian president Hassan Rouhani takes part in a press conference near the United Nations General Assembly in the Manhattan borough of New York, U.S., September 22, 2016. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson - RTSP0V5

Gloom surrounds Rouhani’s budget for new Iranian year

Despite the relative stabilization of the Iranian economy, the Rouhani administration has no choice but to seriously address the issues in the budgeting process if it wishes to realize its goals for economic growth.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), in Washington, March 4, 2014. Netanyahu urged world powers on Tuesday not to allow Iran to retain the ability to enrich uranium, saying it must be stripped of all nuclear technologies with bomb-making potential. REUTERS/Mike Theiler (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS)

Congress races to craft Iran sanctions bills ahead of AIPAC conference

Lawmakers hope to have bipartisan legislation ready when thousands of pro-Israel advocates descend on Capitol Hill next week.

U.S. soldiers gather near military vehicles at an army base in Karamless town, east of Mosul, Iraq, December 25, 2016. Picture taken December 25, 2016. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RTX2WHHJ

The coming Iran-US confrontation in Iraq

With the operation to seize Mosul from the Islamic State coming to an end, it appears that Iran and the United States are on the path to a showdown in Iraq.

Iran’s supreme leader calls for 'economy of resistance' in Nowruz message

As is custom, Iran’s supreme leader and president have issued video messages on the occasion of the Iranian New Year, expressing a need for further focus on economic matters.

A protester, holding a Bahraini flag, confronts a riot police armoured personnel carrier in an attempt to stop it from entering the village of Bilad Al Qadeem south of Manama, January 6, 2015.
Bahraini police fired rubber bullets and tear gas to scatter protesters who gathered outside the home of Sheikh Ali Salman, a Shi'ite Muslim opposition leader on Monday, witnesses said, after he was remanded in custody for a further 15 days. Around 100 protesters angry at the decision had assembled outside his house

Will Bahrain use military trials against Shiite leader's supporters?

Bahrain recently amended its constitution to expand military courts' jurisdiction, perhaps in anticipation of fiery protests once a verdict is announced in the trial of Sheikh Isa Qassim.

Israeli soldiers evacuate their comrade, playing the role of an injured person, as they drive past a Hezbollah flag during a combined forces drill in Shizafon military base, near Eilat in southern Israel June 7, 2016. REUTERS/Amir Cohen - RTSGDEV

Israel weighs response to Hezbollah rocket threat

For now, deterrence holds on Israel’s northern border; Iran ready to "fight to the last man" in Syria; Why does Erdogan go easy on Putin over Syrian Kurds?

An Iranian technician sits in a Peugeot 206 car on the final production line at the Iran Khodro auto plant, west of Tehran, on February 20, 2016. / AFP / BEHROUZ MEHRI (Photo credit should read BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

Why French carmakers are real winners of Iranian protectionism

While Iran's steep import tariffs for vehicles are ostensibly designed to protect local industry, it appears that the primary benefactors are French carmakers.

Lebanese sit in front of giant posters bearing portraits of Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Lebanon's militant Shiite Muslim movement Hezbollah (L), the founder of Iran's Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (R) and Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (C) on March 1, 2016, in the southern town of Kfour, in the Nabatiyeh district during the funeral of a Hezbollah fighter, Mohammed Hassan Nehme, who was killed while fighting alongside Syrian government forces in Syria.
Mohammed Hassan Nehme wa

In Syria, Iran sees necessary war

New accounts detailing Iran’s decision to intervene in the Syrian war shed light on an important and previously unknown chapter of the conflict.

Iranian lawmaker Ali Motahari speaks during a reformist campaign for upcoming parliamentary election, in Tehran February 18, 2016. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi/TIMA ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - RTX27KC9

Iranian MP threatens to impeach intelligence minister

An Iranian parliamentarian has threatened to begin impeachment procedures against the intelligence minister if he is not forthcoming about recent arrests of activists using Telegram.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to film or take pictures in Tehran.
Motorists travel on a highway in Tehran as the city is covered in dust July 6, 2009. The government closed private educational centres, state offices, industrial units and military bases for two days and raised its pollution alert status due to the dust, which an official from Tehran's environment office attributed the source to dust from dried marshland in Iraq blown towar

Why dust storms still suffocate Iran’s Khuzestan province

The administration of President Hassan Rouhani has declared that it has made great strides in combating dust storms and pollution in Iran’s southwestern province of Khuzestan, but the region appears to still be in the grip of recurring environmental crises.

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (C) meets with Iraq's Vice President Khudair al-Khuzaie (not seen) during his visit in Baghdad July 18, 2013. REUTERS/Hadi Mizban/Pool (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX11QSK

The real reason Ahmadinejad still covets media attention

Iran’s former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s attempts to attract attention ahead of the May 19 elections spark outrage among moderates and Reformists.