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Iran

May 16, 2026

Tehran 8:27 pm

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Women shop from a street vendor at Enghelab Square in the capital Tehran on Nov. 11, 2025.

Analysis

From hoarding to unemployment: Iran's economy buckles under US pressure

Iran's fast-rising inflation is driving aggressive state market controls, exposing deeper structural strains from war, sanctions and declining consumer confidence.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Explosions rattled buildings in Dubai and a large cloud of smoke hung over a central area of the Middle East financial hub on March 13, 2026.

Analysis

How the Iran war is exposing a growing Saudi-UAE divide

Reports on Emirati and Saudi strikes suggest Gulf monarchies moved beyond passive defense — but followed sharply different strategies.

Francesco Schiavi

By Francesco Schiavi

In Bologna, reporting on security, defense, economy, governance

US President Donald Trump talks to UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan as he departs the Al Bateen Executive Airport on May 15, 2025, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Analysis

‘A reckless act’: Netanyahu sparks UAE fury by claiming secret visit

Just as UAE-Israeli relations were deepening through cooperation against Iran, the Israeli prime minister publicly embarrassed Abu Dhabi by revealing his March visit.

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

Latest News

Uptick in Chinese tankers transiting Hormuz amid Trump-Xi summit

Jag Vasant, an Indian-flagged tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) that transited through the Strait of Hormuz amid the Middle East war, remains docked at an offloading terminal along the coast in Mumbai on April 1, 2026.

United Arab Emirates

Analysis

Iran looms large over Trump’s China visit, but breakthrough unlikely

TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump (C) is escorted by China's Vice President Han Zheng (R) upon his arrival at Beijing Capital Airport in Beijing on May 13, 2026. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP via Getty Images)

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

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

QOM, IRAN: TO GO WITH AFP STORY: IRAN -VOTE-RELIGION-CLERICS An Iranian cleric student looks at the courtyard of Faiziyeh religious school in Iran's clerical capital Qom, 120 kms south of Tehran, 18 May 2005. It was in this desert city where it all began 42 years ago: Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini branded the shah of Iran a "wretched, miserable man", and set in motion a series of events that led to the Islamic revolution. Khomeini's theocracy, where Shiite clerics exercise absolute power, is now 26 years old

Revolution at 40: Qom seminary at crossroads over clergy’s future in Iran

On the 40th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution, the Qom seminary is torn in a struggle that may very well once again decide the future of Iran.

Revolution at 40: Have Iranian regional policies come full circle?

Forty years after the Islamic Revolution, the shah’s view of Iran and its role in the region is paradoxically echoed in the foreign policy debate by those with a more revolutionary perspective.

President Vladimir Putin of Russia, Hassan Rouhani of Iran and Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey meet in Tehran, Iran September 7, 2018. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC179AE28110

Russia is 'clear eyed' about its Mideast policy

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin discusses the results of his latest tour around the Middle East and Russia’s vision for key regional issues, including Israeli-Iranian frictions, Idlib and the buffer zone in Syria.

A money changer displays U.S. and Iranian banknotes at the Grand Bazaar in central Tehran October 7, 2015. To match Insight IRAN-BANKING/ REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi/TIMA/File Photo ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - S1BETSJMVNAC

Revolution at 40: Same old structural problems still plague Iran

While the Islamic Republic can pride itself on improvement on literacy and poverty, 40 years after its Islamic Revolution, Iran is still struggling with many of the structural deficiencies that plagued the country under the shah.

Revolution at 40: IRGC turns to new nationalism to win over Iranian millennials

The rise of the Islamic State has provided the IRGC with an opportunity and platform to project a new form of nationalism that portrays it as the defender of Iran.

Will Warsaw summit unite US, EU against Iran?

Despite a likely Western European snub in terms of level of representation, the Warsaw summit holds the possibility of being a starting point for a European-American consensus against Iran down the line, potentially depriving Tehran of even the minimum benefits of the nuclear deal.

Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud shake hands with Iraq's President Barham Salih during his visit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, November 18, 2018. The Presidency of the Republic of Iraq Office/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC1650B939B0

Riyadh woos Iraqis with security talks, economic projects

Saudi Arabia is working to reconcile with Iraq to reduce Iranian influence in the country.

President Vladimir Putin of Russia, Hassan Rouhani of Iran and Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey attend a news conference following their meeting in Tehran, Iran September 7, 2018. Kirill Kudryavtsev/Pool via REUTERS - RC14766DD6C0

Israel factor complicates but won’t break Iran-Russia partnership in Syria

There is speculation in the Persian-language media that Russia and Israel are collaborating against Iran and that Tehran is reconsidering its partnership with Moscow in Syria.

Iran's parliament speaker Ali Larijani speaks during a news conference in Baghdad December 24, 2014. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS) - GM1EACO1I3601

Khamenei calls for ‘structural reforms’ in Iran’s budget

Parliament speaker Ali Larijani’s comments about "structural reforms" ordered by Iran's supreme leader have led to anxious speculation about broader changes ahead.

Iraqis watch the news on TV at a cafe on August 9, 2015 on al-Rasheed street in the capital Baghdad as Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi called for sweeping reforms, including abolishing the current post of his predecessor Nuri al-Maliki, in response to weeks of demonstrations against corruption and poor services. AFP PHOTO / SABAH ARAR (Photo credit should read SABAH ARAR/AFP/Getty Images)

Launch of Saudi news channel sparks controversy among Iraqis

The announcement by Saudi media group MBC that it will launch a new TV channel — MBC Iraq — aimed at the Iraqi public has been met with a number of swift and angry responses, sparking defense of the station.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pauses during a news conference at the State Department in Washington, U.S., November 20, 2018. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas - RC1247769330

Iranian opposition unwelcome at Pompeo’s anti-Iran bash

Iranian opposition gets left out of meeting on Iran taking place in Poland next week.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif shakes hands with his Iraqi counterpart Mohamed Ali Alhakim, in Baghdad, Iraq January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily - RC1447E53E80

How US sanctions could be boosting Iran's presence in Iraq

Reimposed US sanctions have encouraged an active Iranian geo-economic agenda in neighboring Iraq, a profitable market where Tehran can ease the pressure coming from Washington.