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Iran

October 23, 2026

Tehran 12:37 am

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Explainer

What Iran’s threats to Hormuz internet cables mean for Gulf

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened to cut crucial internet and communications routes in the region if US aggression escalates.

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

US sanctions law firm based in Panama, Greece over Iran shipping ties

The Treasury Department accused Karnakis and Karnakis of registering shipping companies linked to Iran's so-called shadow fleet.

Latest News

Analysis

How Lavrov's Tehran visit tests limits of Russia's influence over Iran

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (L) and Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrive to hold a press conference after a meeting in Tehran on October 19, 2026. The Russian foreign minister arrived in Iran on October 19, in his first visit since the outbreak of the Middle East war as Moscow seeks to play a mediating role. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

IRGC claims it downed US drone, set two tankers ablaze near Hormuz

Ships are anchored off the coast of Khasab in Oman's Musandam Governorate, near the Strait of Hormuz, on Oct. 2, 2026.

Iran says deal reached with Iraq to expel Kurdish separatists: What to know

Safin HAMID / AFP via Getty Images

Lavrov visits Tehran as Trump praises Russia's role on Iran: What to know

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov (L) shakes hands with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi upon his arrival in Tehran on Oct. 19, 2026.

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

Iran's newly elected President Ebrahim Raisi speaks during his swearing in ceremony at the Iranian parliament in the capital Tehran on Aug. 5, 2021.

Raisi reasserts Iran's regional policy in swearing-in ceremony

The new head of state reiterated Iran's controversial regional policy, even as it has been at the very core of tensions between the Islamic Republic's hard-line establishment and the West.

State Department spokesperson Ned Price speaks during a briefing at the State Department August 2, 2021, in Washington, DC.

US urges Iran to return to nuclear talks as Raisi sworn in

Talks over reviving the nuclear deal remain on hold — a process the Biden administration warned "cannot go on indefinitely."

Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi is pictured during his first press conference since his election on the weekend in Tehran, on June 21, 2021.

The Takeaway: Does Raisi sink prospects for Iran nuclear deal?

Maybe not, but diplomacy just got harder; also, Egypt pushes plans to address climate and water crises; Sudan calls out Ethiopia on recent floods; Russia says it is helping save Syria’s heritage; Turkish cleric takes issue with dress code for Olympic women; remembering Beirut’s port explosion; more!

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

US believes Iranians seized oil tanker off UAE coast

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said early Wednesday that the intruders had left the vessel, which is now safe.

Hossein Salami

Iran calls Gulf of Oman accusations 'psychological warfare'

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has warned of a "destructive" response to any attack.

MV Mercer Street oil tanker

Pentagon doesn't rule out response for Gulf shipping attack

Iran's conflicts with its neighbors once again loom over Biden's ambitions to return to the Iran deal.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Raisi pledges to save Iran from sanctions, restore public trust

The new Iranian president said he will push to get harsh sanctions lifted without hinging Iran's battered economy on the West.

Antony Blinken

Blinken vows ‘collective response’ for ship attack blamed on Iran

Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the United States is confident that Iran carried out the attack on the Israeli-linked oil tanker.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Iran's outgoing health minister asks for military-enforced lockdown

Iran's health minister asked for a two-week lockdown to be enforced by the military to stop the spread of COVID-19.

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

UK, Romania summon Iranian ambassadors over ship attack

Iran, which has denied involvement in the attack on the Israeli-linked oil tanker, responded by summoning the British chargé d'affaires in Tehran.

A nurse stands by the CIRA-03 robot prototype built as part of a self-funded project to assist physicians in running tests on suspected COVID-19 coronavirus patients.

Middle East economic outlook hinges on vaccinations

Five countries to watch: Tunisia, Iran, Iraq, Egypt and Oman.

An undated image of Liberian flagged tanker MT Mercer Street.

Two reported dead in attack on Israeli-operated ship near Oman

Iran was suspected in the attack on the UAE-bound Mercer Street, which is connected to an Israeli billionaire businessman.