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Iran

October 23, 2026

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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 President-elect Ebrahim Raisi speaks during his first press conference in the Islamic republic's capital Tehran, on June 21, 2021.

Iran's new president rules out meeting with Biden

President-elect Ebrahim Raisi suggested he would continue President Hassan Rouhani’s foreign policies.

Iran's President-elect Ebrahim Raisi speaks during his first press conference in the Islamic Republic's capital, Tehran, on June 21, 2021.

Iran’s president: No talks with US on militias, ballistic missiles

President-elect Ebrahim Raisi called on the United States to rejoin the nuclear deal.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Raisi says Iran will prioritize improving regional relations

The president-elect said Iran wants "interaction with the world" and called on US President Joe Biden to lift all sanctions.

A woman holds a poster of newly elected President Ebrahim Raisi, with text in Persian reading "Government of the people, strong Iran," as supporters celebrate his victory in Imam Hussein Square, Tehran, Iran, June 19, 2021.

Iran's Iraq policy unlikely to change under Raisi

Despite his hardline credentials, Iran's foreign policy is likely to remain unified under the new president.

Iranian ultraconservative cleric and presidential candidate Ebrahim Raisi gives a news conference after voting in the presidential election, at a polling station in the capital Tehran, on June 18, 2021.

Hard-liner Raisi wins Iran presidency amid record low turnout

Ebrahim Raisi's win came as little surprise amid widespread voter apathy, in a race already tilted to his favor by a powerful supervisory body.

A worker prepares a campaign banner of presidential candidate Ebrahim Raisi at a print shop in the Iranian capital Tehran on June 7, 2021.

Iranian citizens in US vote in presidential election

Iranians are voting for their next president in 133 countries worldwide.

Supporters of Iranian presidential candidate Ebrahim Raisi hold posters of him during an election campaign rally in the capital Tehran, on June 10, 2021.

Apathy shadows Iran vote but that doesn’t mean change won’t follow

Even if hard-liner Ebrahim Raisi wins, reviving the nuclear deal with the West could gain traction.

An Iranian woman walks past banners of ultraconservative cleric and presidential candidate Ebrahim Raisi, in Tehran, on June 17, 2021, on the eve of the Islamic republic's presidential election.

Iranians set to vote for president amid turnout concerns

After preparing everything to guarantee a victory for its preferred candidate, the ruling establishment is now attempting to draw the largely apathetic electorate to the ballot box.

US President Joe Biden (R) speaks with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan prior to a plenary session of a NATO summit at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) headquarters in Brussels, on June 14, 2021.

The Takeaway: Pragmatism is the new watchword in US-Turkey relations

Plus: A fresh start for Israel; Iran’s hard-line front-runner on the issues; Egypt’s faltering Palestinian mediation; Saudi-Syria talks; Golani’s makeover.

Siamak Nazami (L) and Baquer Namazi (R) are seen in images provided by their family.

Biden urged to secure release of Americans left behind in Iran

Amid intensifying speculation over a prisoner exchange between the United States and Iran, the family of Siamak and Baquer Namazi is appealing to President Joe Biden to secure their release.

Iranians walk past banners encouraging people to vote hung on a fence at Tehran university in the eponymous capital, on June 14, 2021, ahead of the June 18 presidential elections.

Iran's conservative candidates step aside to support Raisi

Two conservative candidates have stepped aside to support front-runner Ebrahim Raisi.

Raisi supporter holds his picture

Does hard-line front-runner for Iran's president have foreign policy plan?

Although Ebrahim Raisi has been generally mum about his potential foreign policy focus, some recent comments offer clues to the approach his administration could take if he wins the elections June 18.