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Iran

September 19, 2026

Tehran 2:14 pm

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A picture of Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Hajizadeh, who was killed during Israeli strikes on Tehran in June, is displayed Zahedan, the capital of the southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan, during a media tour organized by the Iranian government on Dec. 18, 2025.

Analysis

How a new Baluch militant coalition raises pressure on Iran-Pakistan border

Iran's military standoff with the US may be creating opportunities for Baluch groups to launch operations from the mountainous, sparsely populated frontier region with Pakistan.

Sabena Siddiqui

By Sabena Siddiqui

In Karachi, reporting on South Asia, Middle East, Iran

Members of Iran's Basij paramilitary force march

Analysis

As Iran regime marks 200 days of war, is it also preparing for dissent?

Seven months into the war with the US, Iranian authorities staged a pro-government mobilization in Tehran, combining patriotic spectacle with a carefully calibrated demonstration aimed for domestic internal security capacity.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

A pedestrian passes by the Treasury Building in Washington, DC on Jan. 18, 2023.

US sanctions Iranian crypto exchange BitBank over Hormuz payments

The US government says the exchange was used to channel payments from an Iranian maritime-insurance scheme to the regime.

AFP via Getty Images

China presses Iran, US to reopen Hormuz as disruptions threaten oil supply

Conflicts in the region are disrupting two key routes for oil bound for China, with Iranian crude affected by the Strait of Hormuz and Saudi shipments facing growing risks in the Red Sea.

Latest News

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Lacking deterrence, Israel’s security establishment opposes attacks on Houthis

Fighters loyal to the Houthi authorities, brandish their weapons during a rally to recruit more fighters, in Sanaa on September 10, 2026. The country relapsed into war in July after years of calm, drawn into the regional conflict triggered by the US-Israeli offensive against Iran that began at the end of February. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Analysis

How far will Iran push Houthis against Saudi Arabia amid raging conflict?

Houthi fighters marching

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

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

Al Ahli fans take part in a protest march in front of the general prosecutor's office in Cairo November 6, 2013. The protesters were calling for the release of their fellow fans, who were arrested earlier last month during clashes with security personnel as the club's handball team returned from Morocco after winning silver in the African Champions League handball tournament. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: SPORT HANDBALL CIVIL UNREST) - RTX152G1

Arab societies must build 'citizen-states'

The Arab state system needs to better apply to concepts of civil society.

Iranians slam France on nuclear talks

Iranian media, politicians and citizens have reacted harshly to what they perceive as French obstructionism in the nuclear negotiations.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (L) walks with chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat into Kerry's third meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank town of Ramallah June 30, 2013. Kerry squeezed in final meetings with Israeli and Palestinian leaders on Sunday as he wrapped up a fifth peace-brokering visit to the region with little sign of progress. REUTERS/Jacquelyn Martin/Pool (WEST BANK - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX116RH

Palestinians play resignation card to protest Israeli settlements

Unable to break off the talks, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has decided to reshuffle his negotiating team to send a message to Israel.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) and European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton speak during the third day of closed-door nuclear talks at the Intercontinental Hotel in Geneva November 9, 2013. REUTERS/Jean-Christophe Bott/Pool (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS ENERGY) - RTX156EI

Iran’s red line on enrichment

Forget France and Israel; talks are probably stuck on Iran’s insistence on its right to enrich uranium on its own soil.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry steps aboard his aircraft en route to Geneva, after holding private talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv November 8, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX1553K

Will Israel wag the dog on Iran?

The Obama administration is struggling to make the case that Israel will benefit from a nuclear deal with Iran.

An Iranian dress designer checks the fit of a veil on a bride at a high fashion studio in north Tehran October 2, 2007. Wearing the all-enveloping chador (veil) or a headscarf and loose-fitting full-length coat is obligatory under Sharia law, imposed after the 1979 Islamic revolution. Offenders face fines, whipping or jail. But that has not stopped image-conscious Iranian women and a growing number are going under the knife for new noses, tummy tucks, liposuction, lifting eyelids or breast augmentation. Pic

Iranians question tradition on sex, virginity and marriage

While more traditional families still insist that a woman must be a virgin before marriage, some men are questioning the custom.

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton (obscured) and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (4th R) arrive at a news conference at the end of the Iranian nuclear talks in Geneva November 10, 2013. Zarif and Ashton said on Sunday they hoped Iran and six world powers would reach an agreement when they gather again in 10 days, adding that the latest round of talks on Tehran's nuclear programme was something all delegations can build on. REUTERS/Jason Reed (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS)

Iran and the two Genevas

There is widespread understanding that a nuclear deal on Iran will facilitate progress on Syria.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has his tie adjusted before the arrival of Poland's President Bronislaw Komorowski to their meeting in Jerusalem November 4, 2013. REUTERS/Menahem Kahana/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX14ZOS

Netanyahu faces possible lose-lose on Iran, peace process

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may be right in his vigilance on Iran, but if US-Israel relations suffer, he could find himself with a nuclear Iran and a Palestinian state.

Islamists, members of the brotherhood, and supporters of Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi shout slogans during a protest around the Raba El-Adwyia mosque square in the suburb of Nasr City, Cairo, June 28, 2013. Egypt's leading religious authority warned of "civil war" on Friday and called for calm after a member of the ruling Muslim Brotherhood was killed ahead of mass rallies aimed at forcing the president to quit. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany (EGYPT - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTX114YI

Crisis of democracy for Islamic parties

While Islamic parties in the Middle East have been keen to use democracy as a way to reach power and maintain their authority, they do not apply democratic principles when it comes to other aspects of governance.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) meets with his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Bishkek, September 13, 2013. Rouhani said on Friday that he wanted a swift resolution to a dispute over Tehran's nuclear programme, which Western states fear is aimed at developing nuclear weapons. REUTERS/Mikhail Klimentyev/RIA Novosti/Kremlin (KYRGYZSTAN - Tags: POLITICS) ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, E

Russia's Iran policy in transition

Russia is likely to benefit from an agreement between the P5+1 and Iran.

Iran's low-key reaction to bugging of supreme leader

Iran's response to reports that the US National Security Agency bugged Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a trip to the Kurdistan region of Iran in 2009 has been relatively muted and has not affected Iran's position on negotiations with the P5+1.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry walks to his plane after a private meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv November 8, 2013. REUTERS/Jason Reed (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX1553J

The cost of Netanyahu's campaign against an Iran deal

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's opposition to an Iranian nuclear deal has a cost in US-Israel relations.