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November 5, 2026

Tehran 3:30 pm

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An aerial view shows a campaign billboard depicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud party and President Donald Trump in Tel Aviv, on Oct. 26, 2026, on the eve of Israel's legislative elections.

Explainer

Democrats’ midterm sweep tests US-Israel ties as Eisenkot vows reset

Political sources describe the Democrats' midterm victory as a political blow to both US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Iranians walk along a building installed with a giant poster depicting Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei during a rally in front of the former US embassy to mark the anniversary of the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, in Tehran on Nov. 4, 2026.

Analysis

Iran cheers Democrats’ midterm victory but fears Trump's next move

The Democratic win was a victory Tehran had been waiting to claim and project as evidence that Trump's confrontation with Iran has backfired.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

The sun sets on the US Capitol on Election Day evening on Nov. 3, 2026 in Washington.

From Tehran to Tel Aviv, Democrats’ midterm triumph sparks Middle East reactions

Iranian officials responded gleefully to the Democrats’ sweeping victory in the Senate and House, while regional media highlighted Abdul El-Sayed’s election as the first Muslim American senator.

RONALDO SCHEMIDT / AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

War, oil, AI: What US midterms could mean for Middle East economies

Governments across the Middle East will be watching closely after the election amid fears the US-Israel-Iran war could spiral into a new cycle of violence.

Latest News

Iran executes two men in case tied to January protests: What to know

A police officer monitors traffic as he stands under portraits of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in Tehran, on Oct. 21, 2026.

Analysis

'All we can do is wait': Netanyahu's push for Iran strikes hangs on Trump’s post-midterm call

Evan Vucci/Getty Images

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

Iran gives 2-day window for Hormuz deal as US mulls strikes: What to know

Iranian motorists drive past a poster of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in central Tehran on Nov. 1, 2026. I

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

Defense bill could keep sanctions pressure on Iran

A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of June 8.

Selahattin Demirtas, co-chairman of the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP), speaks as his supporters wave Kurdish (L) and Turkish national (R) flags in the background, during an election rally for Turkey's June 7 parliamentary election, in Istanbul, Turkey, June 6, 2015. Turkey's Kurdish-rooted opposition party, which could scupper Tayyip Erdogan's ambitions for sweeping new powers, accused the President on Saturday of a lack of respect for supporters killed in a bomb attack in an election rally an

Will voters reject Turkey’s ‘precious loneliness’?

Parliamentary elections on June 7 could signal a shift in Turkey’s foreign policy; Islamic State’s radicalization campaign extends to Iraqi Kurdistan; Iran not backing down in Syria; Soleimani promises "surprise" in battle against Islamic State.

Senators John McCain (R-AZ) (center), Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) (right) speak before Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Martin E. Dempsey, John Kerry, U.S. secretary of state, and Charles 'Chuck' Hagel, secretary of defense, arrive to present the administration's case for U.S. military action against Syria to a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on September 3, 2013. President Barack Obama on Tuesday urged quick congressional action authorizing the use of military force against Syria

Senate prepares to review Iran nuclear deal

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has started holding classified briefings to prepare members to review the terms of a prospective Iran nuclear deal next month.

A worker works at the Fuel Manufacturing plant at Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facility 440 km (273 miles) south of Tehran April 9, 2009. REUTERS/Caren Firouz (IRAN POLITICS ENERGY) - RTXDTQ0

How do we solve Iran talks' verification dilemma?

The issue of inspections of Iranian military facilities and the interrogation of Iranian scientists has quickly become the most controversial aspect of the nuclear negotiations in Iran.

A Shi'ite fighter keeps watch in Al Hadidiya, south of Tikrit, en route to the Islamic State-controlled al-Alam town, where they are preparing to launch an offensive on Saturday, March 6, 2015. Iraqi government forces and Iran-backed militiamen entered a town on the southern outskirts of Saddam Hussein's home city Tikrit on Friday, pressing on with the biggest offensive yet against Islamic State militants that seized the north last year. REUTERS/Thaier Al-Sudani (IRAQ - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST CONFLICT

Is Iran worried about IS on its border?

Statements by Iranian officials suggest that they are worried about the Islamic State reaching their borders and even carrying out attacks inside Iran.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

A man holds a picture of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, founder of the Islamic Republic as government supporters protest against opposition demonstrations during the holy day of Ashura, in Tehran December, 30 2009. REUTERS/Caren Firouz (IRAN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR28FLB

Khomeini was no liberal, says Khamenei

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has warned Iranians about distorting the character of the founder of the Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) holds a press conference with his Syrian counterpart Walid Muallem in Tehran on December 8, 2014, ahead of a conference with their Iraqi counterpart on combating extremism. Iran is the main regional ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Tehran has acknowledged sending military advisers to assist his forces in their fight against armed rebels and jihadist militants. AFP PHOTO/ ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Why did Iran's Reformists shift on support for Syria?

After having initially supported protests against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, some Iranian Reformists have changed their positions and now openly back Assad's fight against the Islamic State.

IRGC university warns Rouhani administration about foreign policy

Imam Hussein University, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has warned officials in the Rouhani administration about having a "simplistic" view in its negotiations with the United States.

Why did Saudi Arabia intervene in Yemen?

As Yemen fell into the Houthis' hands, Saudi Arabia was left with one choice: to intervene militarily, as the kingdom has long been the country's main financial supporter.

A Palestinian boy wearing an Islamic Jihad headband joins other Palestinians taking part in a protest against what they say are recent visits by Jewish activists to al-Aqsa mosque, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip November 7, 2014. In recent months, a campaign for the prayer ban on Jewish worshippers at the site, known to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and to Jews as Temple Mount, to be overturned, led by settler activists, has gathered momentum, raising alarm among Palestinians and Muslims further

Islamic Jihad's coffers run dry

The cutting off of economic support from Iran and the closing of smuggling tunnels to Egypt have left the Islamic Jihad unable to pay the salaries of its personnel.

An Iranian couple sit on the bank of Zayandeh roud river, which was completely dry in recent years, in the historic city of Isfahan some 400 kms south of the capital, Tehran, on April 21, 2015. AFP PHOTO/BEHROUZ MEHRI (Photo credit should read BEHROUZ MEHRI/AFP/Getty Images)

Why are young Iranians losing interest in marriage?

Societal and economic factors have led to a decline in marriage rates, despite the government's desire to see an increase in population.

Iranian secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Shamkhani (L) speaks to reporters at the Damascus airport on September 30, 2014. AFP PHOTO/ STR (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images)

P5+1 asked to interview Iran’s security council secretary

Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani has said that the six world powers had requested to interview him as part of a comprehensive nuclear deal.