Iran-US tensions

(EDITOR'S NOTE: This Handout image was provided by a third-party organization and may not adhere to Getty Images' editorial policy.) In this handout photo obtained from the U.S. Defence Department, Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) sails alongside Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121) and Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ship USNS Carl Brashear (T-AKE 7) in the Arabian Sea, Feb. 6, 2026. According to the U.S. government, the Abraham Lincoln

Analysis

Iran scrambles to shape endgame amid growing US military pressure

With Washington tightening deadlines and deploying assets, Tehran is mounting a rapid diplomatic campaign while preparing for what is increasingly seen as some level of unavoidable confrontation.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

In this handout photo provided by the US Navy, Logistics Specialist 1st Class Ousseinou Kaba (left), from Silver Spring, Md., and Logistics Specialist Seaman Abigail Marshke, from Flint, Mich., attach cargo to an MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter from the "Nightdippers" of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 5 from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) May 10, 2019 in the Red Sea.

US partners shy away as Pentagon readies for potential strikes against Iran

Turkey and the United Kingdom are the latest among Washington’s military partners seeking to distance themselves from being tied to any planned strikes against Iran.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands amid debris outside the Soroka Hospital in the southern city of Beersheba, after it was hit by a missile fired from Iran on June 19, 2025. Israel's defence minister warned that Iran's supreme leader "can no longer be allowed to exist" after a hospital was hit in an Iranian missile strike on June 19, spiking tensions in the week-old war. (Photo by Marc Israel SELLEM / POOL / AFP) (Photo by MARC ISRAEL SELLEM/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Despite warnings from Israel's defense elite, Netanyahu pushes for Iran strike

Although Israeli advisers warn against appearing to drag the US into war, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not hidden his desire to help topple the Islamic Republic.

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

Iraqis raise their flags during a protest at the entrance to the Hanging Bridge, one of the entrances to the Green Zone in Baghdad on Jan. 28, 2026.

In letter, US lays out 7 demands for next Iraqi PM, with emphasis on Iran

The Trump administration is pressing Baghdad on Iranian influence and the nomination of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, with Iraq's top diplomat claiming the US stipulations include a "hint" toward potential sanctions.

Latest News

Iran, Russia hold naval drills as Araghchi briefs Saudi FM on nuclear talks

This handout photo made available by the Iranian Army Office on March 11, 2025 shows the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy guided-missile destroyer Baotou (133) during joint military drills between Iran, Russia, and China in the Gulf of Oman.

US readies warships, jets, tankers for potential weekslong Iran war

DENMARK-NORWAY-US-FRANCE-NATO-ARMY-DEFENCE-EXERCISE Picture taken on September 24, 2025 from the French Navy frigate Bretagne shows F-18 fighter jets on the deck of the the world's largest aircraft carrier USS Gerald R Ford as both ships are taking part in the NATO Neptune Strike 2025 exercise in the North Sea. According to NATO, more than 10,000 sailors, soldiers, aviators and marines from 13 allied nations took part in the large-scale multinational enhanced Vigilance Activity, running from September 22 to

As Hezbollah vows to defend Iran, Lebanon braces for potential spillover

Joseph EID / AFP via Getty Images

Israel steps up Iran war preparations, keeps plans within small inner circle

Members of the Israeli security forces check the apparent remains of an Iranian ballistic missile lying on the ground in the Golan Heights, Northern Israel, on Thursday, June 19, 2025. (Photo by Michael Giladi / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by MICHAEL GILADI/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Israeli right-wing Knesset member Itamar Ben-Gvir (R) chats with incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L).

Netanyahu puts Iran, Saudi Arabia at top of agenda

Incoming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated several times that he aspires to normalize ties with Saudi Arabia, but with his pro-settler right-wing partners, the chances of that happening are slim to none.

Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (C) raises his hands toward cheering supporters while standing next to Venezuela's Foreign Minister Elias Jaua (R) as he enters the funeral for Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez at the Military Academy on March 8, 2013 in Caracas, Venezuela. (Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

What's behind Ahmadinejad's awkward silence on Iran's protests?

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s silence since the beginning of the protests in Iran on Sept. 16 is curious and exposes his possible intentions to remain an establishment loyalist rather than falling out of grace with the ruling clerics.

US Central Command Commander Gen. Michael Kurilla speaks at the 18th IISS Manama Dialogue, Manama, Bahrain, Nov. 19, 2022.

US working with Saudi Arabia on strategic military plans, general says

The Biden administration is leveraging the Pentagon to quietly rebuild trust with Riyadh in the wake of a very public dispute.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy receives from US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) (L) a US national flag.

Iran says patience running thin with Zelenskyy's accusations over Ukraine war

Iran and Ukraine appeared to be entering a new phase in their war of words, triggered by evidence of Tehran's shipment of deadly combat drones to Moscow.

The Department of the Treasury building is seen in Washington, DC, on Aug. 29, 2022.

Breaking | Last Updated: December 21, 2022, 6:31 pm

US targets Iran's prosecutor general, military officials with new sanctions

The US Treasury Department also designated a company manufacturing riot gear for Iran's law enforcement.

Dignitaries pose together in a photo at the start of the Baghdad Conference for Cooperation and Partnership.

Iranian, Saudi FMs meet in Jordan after months of stalled dialogue

The Iranian-Saudi dialogue stalled earlier this year amid the protests in Iran and political tensions in Iraq.

Iran nuclear

Analysis

Can Biden afford to give up on Iran nuclear deal?

US envoy's latest word is Iran is 'not interested,' but the EU reaffirms support for the JCPOA while an IAEA team comes to Iran.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Lebanon's Middle East Airlines planes are parked on the tarmac of Beirut International Airport amid restrictions to combat the coronavirus across the country, Lebanon, March 19, 2020.

Israel could strike in Lebanon if Iran renews weapons smuggling

Iran’s suspected intention to launch an aerial smuggling route from Tehran to Beirut, using civilian flights of an airline operated by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, has prompted concern in Israel.

The UN voted to remove Iran from a women's rights body over Tehran's brutal crackdown of women-led protests. Twenty-nine members of the UN Economic and Social Council voted to expel the Islamic republic from the UN Commission on the Status of Women. (Photo by YUKI IWAMURA/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran removed from UN women’s rights body after US push

Iran's removal from the 45-member Commission on the Status of Women comes as Tehran continues its brutal crackdown on its nationwide protests.

Protesters call on the United Nations to take action against the treatment of women in Iran, following the death of Mahsa Amini while in the custody of the morality police, during a demonstration in Times Square, New York, Nov. 19, 2022.

Israeli intelligence sees genuine, lasting changes in Iran

According to Israeli security sources, the blunt breach of human rights in Iran blocks world powers from advancing on a nuke deal.

People demonstrate outside the Iranian Embassy in Ukraine on Oct. 17, 2022, in Kyiv.

Iran sent more drones to Russia for use in Ukraine, US suggests

Tehran sent additional UAVs, but no ballistic missiles thus far, the White House said.

A handout picture provided by the Iranian Army official website on Sept. 12, 2020, shows Iranian naval ships parading during the last day of a military exercise in the Gulf, near the strategic strait of Hormuz in southern Iran.

Breaking | Last Updated: March 9, 2023, 12:26 pm

Iran’s IRGC navy harassed US ships in Strait of Hormuz, US says

An IRGC patrol boat harassed two US Navy ships just days after one of them was involved in the seizure of 50 tons of smuggled ammunition bound for Yemen.