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August 27, 2026

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Demonstrations in Tehran, Iran

Analysis

How Iran is readying for economic protests as Trump escalates pressure

Iranian authorities are bracing for unrest as US pressure collides with a battered economy, fuel price indecision and fresh memories of bloodshed.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

US President Donald Trump arrives at Myrtle Beach International Airport on Aug. 21, 2026, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Trump says Hormuz mine-free as Iran, Oman agree to clear them

The US president again says Hormuz is clear of mines as Iran and Oman announce their plan to clear the strait.

BAY ISMOYO / AFP via Getty Images

China warns US not to interfere with Iran trade: What to know

China's Foreign Ministry said Beijing was firmly opposed to what it called “illegal unilateral sanctions” and would take “all necessary measures” to safeguard its rights.

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Israel recalibrates Syria policy, explores path to security deal

Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani (C) watches as US special envoy for Syria Tom Barrack prepares to sign an agreement in Damascus on September 16, 2025. Shaibani announced on September 16 a plan backed by Jordan and the United States to restore calm to Druze-majority Sweida province, which witnessed deadly violence in July. (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA / AFP) (Photo by LOUAI BESHARA/AFP via Getty Images)

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

In 'warning shot,' US threatens sanctions on Iran’s trading partners

Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent addresses the audience during opening remarks at the Ministerial on the Resurgence of Political Terrorism at the State Department on July 16, 2026 in Washington, DC. Bessent spoke alongside U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller as they discussed the rise of far-left political terrorism as a transnational threat. (Photo by Finn Gomez/Getty Images)

Oil falls 1.8% as traders await 'toughest' sanctions on Iran

Leon Neal/Getty Images

Analysis

Israel fears Turkey’s Syria ambitions and doubts Trump will stop them

ANKARA, TURKEY - JULY 7: U.S. President Donald Trump (L)shakes hands with with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) during a formal arrival at the Bestepe Presidential Palace during the NATO summit on July 7, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey. Leaders from NATO's 32 countries, plus NATO allies like Ukraine, gathered in the Turkish capital to discuss a range of issues involving spending targets, defense industrial production, and support for Ukraine, among other topics. (Photo by Emrah Gurel - Pool/Getty Images)

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

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Joyce Karam

Editor-in-Chief

Rosaleen Carroll

News Reporter and Supporting Editor

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Paul J. Saunders

In Washington, DC, reporting on Russia in the Middle East

Israel pays the price for sidelining Europe on the Iranian file

The latest visit of Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Biarritz indicates that France is willing to offer Israel a respite on the Palestinian issue, but not on the Iranian file.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani speaks at a news conference on the sidelines of the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., September 26, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan Mcdermid - HP1EE9Q1E15GW

Rouhani backpedals on suggestion of talks with Trump

The Iranian president has conditioned any meeting with his US counterpart on sanctions removal, a clear shift from an earlier statement that he was prepared for any meeting that might help his country.

Vehicles of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces, are seen near the building belonging to Popular Mobilization Forces in Basra, Iraq September 8, 2018. REUTERS/Alaa al-Marjani - RC1A26D72410

Will Iran-backed factions attack US troops in Iraq?

Pro-Iranian militias in the Popular Mobilization Units are calling for taking strong action against the United States and for even targeting its presence in Iraq.

U.S. President Donald Trump attends a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron (not seen) at the end of the G7 summit in Biarritz, France, August 26, 2019. REUTERS/Christian Hartmann - RC149A0F16C0

Netanyahu’s worst nightmare: a Trump-Rouhani meeting

The G-7 statement by US President Donald Trump about Iran changing is the worst nightmare Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could have ever imagined.

A sign of Taba Protectorate is seen at the new road to Saint Catherine, in the Sinai Peninsula, south of Cairo, Egypt December 11, 2018. Picture taken December 11, 2018. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh - RC1D87D720C0

Skepticism looms over Egypt’s plan to develop Sinai

The Egyptian minister of planning announced $316 million worth of investments in the Sinai Peninsula for fiscal year 2020, but observers are skeptical in light of the threats posed by the Islamic State in Sinai.

French President Emmanuel Macron shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump during a joint press conference at the end of the G7 summit in Biarritz, France, August 26, 2019. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer - RC168327FDE0

Trump leans into Macron's Iran diplomacy, open to meet Rouhani

US President Donald Trump welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal to try to arrange a meeting between Trump and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to discuss prospects for a new deal in the coming weeks.

An Iranian government plane is seen on the tarmac at Biarritz airport in Anglet during the G7 summit in Biarritz, France, August 25, 2019. Iran’s foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived on Sunday in Biarritz, southwestern France, where leaders of the G7 group of nations are meeting, an Iranian official said. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau - RC12D3EBA530

Rouhani defends Zarif’s G-7 appearance

Conservative Iranian media outlets found much to criticize in Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s surprise arrival at the G-7 meeting, but President Hassan Rouhani is standing by the move.

Israel 2019: There is still hope for coexistence

In stark contrast to the racist performances of two of Rabbi Kahane’s top disciples, who were disqualified from running for the Knesset, the success of a joint performance by Jews and Arabs singing of peace and equality stands out.

Members of Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) stand guard at Popular Mobilization Forces Media Center in Baghdad, Iraq July 2, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily - RC11A11145C0

US influence on the line if Israel has 'free hand' to bomb Iraq

Israeli attacks in Iraq signal need for some red lines with Iran.

Turkish soldiers stand on a watch tower at the Atmeh crossing on the Syrian-Turkish border, as seen from the Syrian side, in Idlib governorate, Syria May 31, 2019. REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi - RC1525F30880

Why Iran has been quiet when it comes to Syria's Idlib, safe zone

Iran has been careful not to antagonize Turkey while also opposing US-Turkish agreements on Syria.

Palestinians take part in an-anti Israel protest at the Israel-Gaza border fence in the southern Gaza Strip August 23, 2019. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa - RC172DEA5FA0

Why is Netanyahu reviving Palestinians' ‘willing relocation’?

Past attempts to encourage Palestinians to voluntarily emigrate have always failed, so time and effort would be better invested in reaching an Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement than pursuing a new push by the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for Gaza residents to voluntarily move elsewhere.

Syrians in makeshift displacement camp face ‘impossible choice’

A joint United Nations-Syrian Arab Red Crescent mission has arrived at the Rukban camp, near the Jordanian border, where more than 10,000 people are living in dire conditions, to ask them if they want to go back to the government-held area of Homs province.