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

Iran cover image

Iran

June 17, 2026

Tehran 5:00 am

25°C

An Iranian woman waves a national flag at Valiasr Square in Tehran on June 15, 2026.

Analysis

Why Iran's hard-liners are turning on each other over US deal

Iran's memorandum of understanding with the United States has triggered unusual regime infighting, as the official line hails victory, while hard-liners worry about strategic concessions and hidden traps.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Snipers set up their positions above of the US Capitol on Feb. 24, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Scrutiny builds over Iran deal kept from lawmakers

Both Republicans and Democrats are calling for the White House to show them the deal.

MAHMOUD ZAYYAT / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

How Iran's internal divide over Lebanon could shape US negotiations

Sources familiar with the indirect discussions between Tehran and Washington told Al-Monitor that Iran had prepared a significant response to Sunday's Beirut strike.

Ali Hashem

In Doha, reporting on Iran, regional politics, conflict

Latest News

Trump punts nuclear question with placeholder Iran deal

President Donald Trump speaks before signing a proclamation in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 11, 2026.

Gulf cautiously welcomes US-Iran deal as Hezbollah congratulates Tehran

Veiled women in black Chadors wave Iran and Hezbollah flags during commemoration at the Iranian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, on April 22, 2026.

Trump, Vance sign Iran-US framework

A police officer stands holding a flag in Valiasr Square beneath a mural of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on April 23, 2026 in Tehran, Iran.

Analysis

'He knew it was over': Inside Netanyahu’s response to Trump’s Iran deal as Israel recalibrates

Joe Raedle/Getty Images

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

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

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani waves as he stands next to a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, after he registered for February's election of the Assembly of Experts, the clerical body that chooses the supreme leader, at Interior Ministry in Tehran December 21, 2015. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi/TIMA ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTX1ZKHQ

Cabinet shakeup rattles Iran

Following a week of whispering, three controversial members of the cabinet of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani have stepped down.

Why religious singers are gaining power in Iran

Eulogists or religious singers are the latest actors to gain prominence on Iran’s ever more crowded political stage.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to film or take pictures in Tehran.FILE PHOTO: A IranAir Boeing 747SP aircraft is pictured before leaving Tehran's Mehrabad airport September 19, 2011. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl/File photo - RTX2GZM9

The real reason Boeing, Airbus deals with Iran matter

Beyond being the first major aircraft sales with Iran in decades, the Boeing and Airbus deals are groundbreaking because they may entice major Western banks to resume dealings with the Islamic Republic.

Cast member Golshifteh Farahani poses during a photocall for the film "Paterson" in competition at the 69th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France, May 16, 2016. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RTSEJ46

Iranian actor calls for famous actress in exile to be welcomed back

A well-respected actor has shocked Iran by saying in a TV interview that Golshifteh Farahani, the renowned Iranian actress living in exile in France, should be respected for her choices and allowed back in Iran.

(From L-R), Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry, Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, Qatar's Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, Iraq's Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, Staffan de Mistura, UN Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for Syria, Turkey's Foreign Affairs Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, Jordan's Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh, speak togethe

How Syria is pushing Egypt and Iran closer

Converging views on Syria appear to be leading to real mutual support between regional powers Iran and Egypt.

Video surfaces of detained US businessman in Iran

A year after the arrest of Iranian-American businessman Siamak Namazi, a video has appeared on social media with new footage of him.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani attends a meeting during the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) summit at the Foreign Ministry in Bangkok, Thailand, October 10, 2016. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha - RTSRK1N

Why Rouhani won't halt costly cash handouts anytime soon

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is unlikely to discontinue the monthly cash handouts paid to most Iranians any time soon, despite the payouts' steep costs.

Ron Arad, an Israeli air force navigator missing since he bailed out over Lebanon in 1986, is seen in this undated handout picture released by Israel's Channel One on July 13, 2008. Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah group will exchange prisoners beginning on Wednesday under a U.N.-mediated deal, Israel's Prisons Service said on Sunday. A report on Arad's fate was handed over to Israel as part of the agreement. REUTERS/Handout ISRAEL OUT. ISRAEL OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN ISRAEL. FOR EDITORIAL U

30 years on, fate of Israeli air force officer remains a mystery

Three decades after IDF navigator Ron Arad ejected from his jet in Lebanon, Israelis still cannot be sure of his fate and cannot heal from the trauma that left such a deep scar on both the military and civil society.

Smoke rises from the community hall where Saudi-led warplanes struck a funeral in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen on October 9, 2016. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah/File Photo - RTSRJA4

Will Obama push for Yemen cease-fire?

The United States, which fired cruise missiles at rebel radar sites in Yemen on Oct. 13 after missiles were fired at a US warship, needs to push for an immediate cessation of hostilities in Yemen before things get even more out of hand.

Iran's head of Atomic Energy Organisation (IAEO) Ali Akbar Salehi (L) talks with the Head of the Central Bank of Iran, Valiollah Seif, as they arrive for a press conference of Iranian President on January 17, 2016 in the capital Tehran after international sanctions on Iran were lifted.

President Hassan Rouhani said that sceptics who said a nuclear deal with world powers would not bring benefits to Iran were all proven wrong.

/ AFP / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Im

Why Iran’s banking shake-up won't be enough

The first shake-up of Iran's banking sector in three decades is only the first step toward supporting the economy.

Iranian Shiite Muslims chant in western Tehran on October 12, 2016, during the annual Ashura commemorations marking the killing of Imam Hussein, the grandson of Islam's Prophet Mohammed in 680AD. / AFP / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iranian eulogist in trouble for saying Imam Hussein used to swear

A eulogist stirred strong reactions and possible legal consequences after a televised interview in which he described how Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, used to swear.

Iranian pop singer Mohsen Yeghaneh (C) performs on stage during the 31th Fajr International Music Festival at the Milad hall in the capital Tehran, on February 17, 2016. / AFP / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Rouhani’s opponents take aim at concerts

The continuing controversies surrounding the holding of concerts in Iran appear to have less to do with Islam and more to do with the country’s upcoming presidential vote.