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Iran

October 19, 2026

Ostān-e Tehrān 12:12 am

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shoppers walking through the Tajrish Bazaar, a traditional market in Tehran

Analysis

As Iran’s oil lifeline runs dry, can it outlast Trump's economic siege?

The country's last barrels of crude stockpiled beyond the reach of a US naval blockade fell to zero in October, raising the stakes for Tehran amid mounting economic distress.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Turkey's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan (L) and Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi holds a press conference in Tehran on November 30, 2025.

Analysis

Turkey turns to Iran to contain Houthis as Saudi defense commitments grow

Ankara is trying to contain the fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis through Tehran’s help, but Iran may see an advantage in allowing the Houthis to maintain pressure on the kingdom.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

US President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally at the Oncenter Convention Center in Syracuse, New York, on Oct. 9, 2026.

Window for diplomacy with Iran may be closing as Trump again threatens Pickaxe Mountain

Israel still wary of Damascus, writes Ben Caspit from Israel; our correspondent in Tehran and Amberin Zaman explain how Iran and Turkey look to exploit Azerbaijan’s headscarf controversy; Qatar’s top diplomat offers energy assistance to Lebanon, Beatrice Farhat reports from Beirut.

A vessel transits the Gulf of Oman

Analysis

How much oil can cushion another Middle East supply shock?

Global oil inventories stood at 3.35 billion barrels in October, the lowest level on record since January 2017, according to Kpler.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Latest News

Analysis

How hijab dispute is opening new front in Iran-Azerbaijan tensions

A woman walks past a wall painting in the colours of the Iranian flag in Tehran on February 25, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Trump rules out US troops in Iran, leaves Pickaxe Mountain strike on the table

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House on Oct. 7, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Female commander in Iran's Basij units assassinated: What to know

People attend the funeral ceremony of Mahan Setareh, a member of the paramilitary Basij force who was killed in the recent Israeli attacks on June 26, 2025 in Tehran, Iran. A cease-fire between Israel and Iran has brought an end to 12 days of daily aerial attacks that started with Israel's strikes on Iranian military and nuclear sites on June 13. (Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)

Analysis

What's behind Iran’s intensifying attacks on shipping in Hormuz?

Ships are docked along a pier at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on July 14, 2026.

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

An Iranian woman holds a poster with a picture of Sayyed Razi Mousavi, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Syria, during his funeral ceremony at the Imam Hossein Square in Tehran, Dec. 28, 2023.

Iran executes four alleged spies for Israel as regional tensions flare

The executions follow accusations that Israel was responsible for the death of Sayyed Razi Mousavi, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in Syria.

Honor guards carry the coffin of Sayyed Razi Mousavi.

Funeral held for Iran's IRGC commander killed by Israel as Tehran vows revenge

Iran said Sayyed Razi Mousavi was killed in an Israeli strike in Syria. The death of the commander, who was mourned in Syria and Iraq, could ignite war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow Dec. 7, 2023.

Iran in tight spot as Russia backs UAE claim on disputed Gulf islands

Russia-Iran ties were in the spotlight again, and Tehran was put in the unwanted position of having to reservedly criticize the key ally, after Moscow supported the Arab stance on three Iran-controlled disputed islands.

Sara Massoumi in an undated photo

Iranian journalist Sara Massoumi sentenced to prison over tweet: lawyer

Sara Massoumi criticized the Islamic Republic over the death of teenage girl Armita Geravand, who some allege was beaten for not wearing the hijab.

Yemeni coastguard members loyal to the internationally-recognised government ride in a patrol boat cruising in the Red Sea off of the government-held town of Mokha in the western Taiz province, close to the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait, on December 12, 2023. (Photo by Khaled Ziad / AFP) (Photo by KHALED ZIAD/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran launches new naval unit as Red Sea attacks intensify

Equipped with rocket-launching vessels, the additional force is introduced amid increasing encounters between Iranian and American vessels in the Persian Gulf.

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY SALAM FARAJ An Iraqi money dealer counts Iranian rial banknotes bearing a portrait of the late founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, at an exchange office in Baghdad on February 3, 2012. Tens of thousands of Iranian visitors have been finding difficulty in using the Iranian currency in Iraq due to a depreciation of the rial against the dollar. AFP PHOTO/ ALI AL-SAADI (Photo credit should read ALI AL-SAADI/AFP/GettyImages)

How will uncertainty and government policies impact Iran’s economic outlook in 2024?

Bijan Khajehpour

Bijan Khajehpour

In Vienna, reporting on Iranian politics

People wait at a gas station as fuel distribution across more than 70% of gas stations is disrupted, Tehran, Iran, Dec. 18, 2023.

Iran says ‘enemy conspiracy’ behind outage at 70% of gas stations

The Oil Ministry’s Shana news agency reported that operations will be running again as normal within “a few hours” and until then fuel is being distributed offline.

Policemen stand guard outside Sweden's embassy in Tehran on June 30 2023, during a demonstration denouncing the burning of Islam's holy book.

Iran Sunni province awaits crackdown after militant attack

Iran's past pledges to give a "decisive" response to similar militant attacks in Sistan-Baluchistan have effectively meant widespread local raids, a rise in executions and stricter security controls in the already restive region.

People wave Hezbollah and Iranian flags at a rally in Baalbek, Lebanon, May 13, 2022.

Britain hits Iran and its foreign proxies with fresh sanctions

The measures, coordinated with the United States, also target Iran's shipping sector and drone exports.

KHALIL MAZRAAWI/AFP via Getty Images

Iran slams US' planned maritime force in Red Sea

The Iranian threats come amid repeated attacks against vessels in the area, mostly claimed by the Iran-backed Houthi group.

Signs criticizing the Iranian Islamic Regime's use of the death penalty are seen in Trafalgar Square on Sept. 16, 2023, in London, England.

Iran executions rise as world busy with Israel-Hamas war

A man accused of killing a powerful senior cleric was executed in Iran, as rights groups warn of a rising number of executions.

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) military personnel are participating in the Ela Beit Al-Moghaddas (Al-Aqsa Mosque) military rally in Tehran, Iran, Nov. 24, 2023.

Iran holds military drill near Iraqi border to counter ISIS infiltration

The stated goal of the exercise appeared as a shift from Iran's older official line, in which it had declared and taken credit for a "full eradication" of the Islamic State (ISIS).