Iran - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Iran cover image

Iran

October 31, 2026

Tehran 9:57 am

19°C

Vessels transit the Hormuz Strait

Limpet mine attack in Hormuz suggests Iran may be shifting tactics

UKMTO report of the first successful limpet mine attack on a commercial vessel in the Middle East since 2019 appeared to undermine the Pentagon's claims to have fully cleared and opened the Strait of Hormuz.

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange at the opening bell, New York City, Sept. 28, 2026.

Oil tops $114 as traders brace for Iran escalation after US midterms

On Friday, BP posted its highest profits in 18 years as a result of the Iran conflict, which has driven up oil and gas margins.

US President Donald Trump walks on stage

Analysis

Mediators scramble to avert US-Iran fighting after Trump's midterm restraint fades

Tehran has little incentive to make concessions that the Trump administration could tout as a win before next week’s election.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

US CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper speaks during a press briefing

CENTCOM chief briefs Trump on Iran strike options

It was not immediately clear following Trump’s meeting with top defense officials whether he had decided to restart the war.

Latest News

Iran arrests 16 in connection with alleged US-Israel-linked cells: What to know

John Moore/Getty Images

Analysis

How wartime urgency pushed Iran to court Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Pakistan

A woman walks past a mural bearing the Iranian national flag

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Saudi Arabia’s KBS, top Turkish and Pakistani officials hold rare meeting in Iran: What to know

GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Putin puts Trump ahead of Iran in bid to mediate war

Putin

Week in Review

Andrew Parasiliti

By Week in Review , Andrew Parasiliti

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 fills in her ballot during elections for the parliament and a leadership body called the Assembly of Experts, which has the power to appoint and dismiss the supreme leader, in Tehran February 26, 2016. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi/TIMA ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. - RTX28SH7

Why did over 1,600 Iranians sign up to run for president?

Over 1,600 Iranians showed up at the Interior Ministry to register to run in the May 19 presidential election, fully aware that the Guardian Council will block their running.

How North Korea nuke crisis affects Israel

Israeli intelligence believes that North Korea, Syria and Iran are collaborating on the development of missile systems and nuclear programs.

Iranian cleric and head of the Imam Reza charitable foundation, Ebrahim Raisi, gestures while registering his candidacy for the upcoming presidential elections at the ministry of interior in the capital Tehran on April 14, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran's conservative presidential candidates pledge more cash handouts, jobs

Presidential candidates Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Ebrahim Raisi focus on the economy and make pledges to create jobs to attract votes.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Mayor of Tehran, shows his ink-stained finger after registering his candidacy for the upcoming presidential elections at the ministry of interior in the capital Tehran on April 14, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / STR (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran polling: Will vote see Rouhani-Ghalibaf rematch?

Polls suggest incumbent Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will get a strong challenge from Tehran Mayor Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, but can cleric Ebrahim Raisi close the gap?

Iraqi fighters from Hashid Shaabi take part in a training at Makhmur camp in Iraq December 11, 2016. REUTERS/Mohammed Salem - RTX2UHUL

Will Iraqi government-PMU disputes spiral into armed clashes?

With the Islamic State nearly defeated in Iraqi cities, disputes between PMU-affiliated Shiite factions and the Iraqi government have surfaced, threatening future military clashes between them.

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir (R) and Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani attend a news conference after an extraordinary meeting of the foreign ministers of GCC, in Riyadh January 9, 2016. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser - RTX21N8K

Why region should prepare for long Saudi-Iranian confrontation

Despite the efforts of smaller players such as Kuwait and Oman to defuse tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran, there is little on the horizon suggesting an end to Riyadh’s determination to directly confront Tehran.

Iranian cleric and head of the Imam Reza charitable foundation, Ebrahim Raisi, delivers a speech after registering his candidacy for the upcoming presidential elections in the capital Tehran on April 14, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Is conservative Iranian candidate reviving Ahmadinejad’s Cabinet?

Ebrahim Raisi is increasingly leaning on officials from former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s presidency.

Will Riyadh’s new DC ambassador draw US deeper into Yemen war?

While the new Saudi ambassador to Washington, Khaled bin Salman, wants to convince the Trump administration to get more involved in the war in Yemen, history may deter the US administration.

A member of the Islamist Syrian opposition group Ahrar al-Sham fires against a position of the Committees for the Protection of the Kurdish People (YPG), a militia set up to protect Kurdish areas in Syria from opposing forces, during clashes in the countryside of the northern Syrian Raqqa province on August 25, 2013. Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem said on August 27 the UN mission investigating alleged chemical weapons attacks in Damascus has been delayed until the following after rebels failed to gu

Complex deal frees kidnapped Qatari royals, two Saudis

Various versions of a recent hostage deal are circulating that include, potentially, political motivations, millions of dollars in ransom, exchanged military prisoners and relocated civilians.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) listens to his Jordanian counterpart Nasser Judeh during a joint news conference in Amman, Jordan January 14, 2014. REUTERS/Mohammad Hannon/Pool (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTX17E5V

War of words escalates between Jordan, Iran

Jordan’s 1994 peace treaty with Israel along with its pro-US orientation seems to have put the country on a collision course with Iran.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses his supporters at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, Turkey, April 17, 2017. REUTERS/Umit Bektas - RTS12NRL

Does Erdogan expect Trump to ditch Syrian Kurds?

US and Turkish presidents talk, agree to meeting in Washington; Saudi-Iraqi ties hit Iranian ceiling; Turkey sees al-Bab as safe haven for displaced Syrians.

Is prominent conservative cleric really a threat to Rouhani?

While Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and cleric Ebrahim Raisi have to some extent shared backgrounds in public service, the incumbent Iranian president’s greater experience in politics remains the biggest thorn in the side of his conservative opponents.