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April 30, 2026

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A pumpjack stands idle in the Huntington Beach oil field, with port cranes visible in the distance, on April 23, 2026, in Huntington Beach, California.

Oil surges past $120 to war-time high as Trump rejects Iran overture

Benchmark Brent crude surpassed $120 per barrel on Wednesday, reaching the highest levels yet seen during the US-Israel-Iran war.

President Donald Trump gives a speech during the State Arrival Ceremony on the South Lawn on April 28, 2026, in Washington.

Trump speaks with Netanyahu, Putin as Iran pressure campaign escalates

President Donald Trump spoke by phone separately with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin, discussing the situation in Iran and the possibility of extending the ceasefire.

An Iraqi money dealer counts Iranian rial banknotes bearing a portrait of the late founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, at an exchange office in Baghdad on Feb. 3, 2012.

Iranian rial hits new record low as blockade, war take toll: What to know

The rial had another collapse in late 2025, triggering massive protests and riots in the country that were ended by a forceful government crackdown.

In this handout photo provided by the U.S. Navy, Two F/A-18 Super Hornets launch from the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) in support of Operation Epic Fury on March 3, 2026 in the Mediterranean Sea.

Pentagon: Iran war has cost US estimated $25B so far

A supplemental request won’t be delivered to Congress until the Pentagon fully assesses the war’s cost, a top budget official told House lawmakers.

Latest News

Analysis

How long can Iran's economy withstand Trump's naval blockade?

The Ateela 2 oil tanker boat navigates the sea on April 28, 2026, on Qeshm Island, Iran, in the Strait of Hormuz.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Analysis

UAE’s OPEC exit rattles cartel as Gulf alliances shift

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

First LNG tanker transits Strait of Hormuz since Iran war began

Yuichi YAMAZAKI / AFP via Getty Images

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

TEHRAN, IRAN - MARCH 01: Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) arrives to cast his ballots during the parliamentary and key clerical body elections at a polling station on March 1, 2024 in Tehran, Iran. Iranians are voting in parliamentary elections and will also cast ballots for the Assembly of Experts, which selects and nominally oversees the work of Iran's supreme leader. (Photo by Majid Saeedi/Getty Images)

Iran’s Khamenei says Israel ‘will be punished’ for Syria consulate bombing

Khamenei's remarks come as the region awaits a response to the suspected Israeli strike on the Iranian Consulate in Damascus.

An Iranian Navy warship takes part in the "National Persian Gulf day" in the Strait of Hormuz, on April 30, 2019.

Iran naval chief calls Israeli presence in UAE 'threat,' seeks Islamic army coalition

During the course of the Gaza war, Iran has been critical of some Islamic countries for their refusal to sever ties with Israel, and it's hoping that the war will shelve Arab-Israeli normalization plans.

A Pakistani police officer stands guard outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad on Jan. 18, 2024.

Iran: At least 5 security forces killed in latest Jaish al-Adl attack in Baluchistan

The Baluchi Islamist group Jaish al-Adl has escalated its attacks against Iranian forces in the Sistan and Baluchistan province, a region that suffers from poverty and neglect, and where the unrest has complicated relations with neighboring Pakistan.

Syria's Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (R) and his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, talk to reporters at the Foreign Ministry in Damascus on Feb. 11, 2024.

In Syria, Iran FM says Israel ‘will be punished’ for consulate strike

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian is on a regional tour, visiting Oman and Syria after the suspected Israeli strike that killed several IRGC officers near the Iranian Embassy in Damascus.

Iranians attend the funeral of seven Revolutionary Guard Corps members killed in a strike on the country's consular annex in Damascus.

Iran buries officers killed in suspected Israeli strike but seems in no rush to retaliate

Despite the harsh slogans in the state-organized funerals for the slain officers, Iran appeared to be exercising "patience" and calibrating any potential reprisal against Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem on Sept. 27, 2023.

Analysis

Despite rift over Gaza, Biden and Netanyahu find common ground on Iran

US president has his "come to Jesus" moment with Bibi, but the threat from Iran may temper United States' conditioning arms assistance.

Week in Review

Andrew Parasiliti

By Week in Review , Andrew Parasiliti

US President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the collapse of Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on March 26, 2024 in Washington, DC.

Biden vows to defend Israel from Iran's retaliation over Damascus strike

At a funeral in Tehran for IRGC officers killed earlier this week in an Israeli airstrike, IRGC top commander Gen. Hossein Salami reaffirmed Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei’s threat to “punish” Israel.

Workers walk along at refinery No. 2 (Phases 2, 3) of the South Pars Gas-Condensate field.

Turkey, Iran launch talks on energy cooperation

The talks, aiming to enhance energy cooperation between the two countries, kicked off in Tehran.

BANARAS KHAN/AFP via Getty Images

Separatist group claims attacks killing 11 security forces in southeast Iran

A province in southeast Iran bordering Pakistan is the scene of frequent attacks by Sunni militants seeking independence.

Emergency and security personnel gather at the site of strikes which hit a building next to the Iranian embassy in Syria's capital Damascus, on April 1, 2024.

Iran says killing of commanders in suspected Israeli strike ‘won’t go unanswered’

Fears grow over a wider regional conflict as Iran's leadership pledges retaliation against Israel, which is accused of having killed over a dozen senior Iranian commanders during the course of the Gaza war.

Iranians participate in the 12th term parliamentary elections and the 6th term Assembly of Leadership Experts' voting at a Tehran polling station on March 01, 2024. The elections encompass both parliamentary and Assembly of Experts' ballots, crucial for Iran's leadership selection and oversight. (Photo by Hossein Beris / Middle East Images / Middle East Images via AFP) (Photo by HOSSEIN BERIS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

What will post-election hardline domination mean for Iran's future?

Bijan Khajehpour

Bijan Khajehpour

In Vienna, reporting on Iranian politics

A view of Lake Urmia, one of the largest saltwater lakes in the world, which is located in the northwest of Iran, while the drought has affected the entire country and put the lake in danger of drying up again in Urmia, Iran.

Regional water tensions in focus as Iran FM visits Turkmenistan

Severely hit by a worsening water crisis in recent years, Iran has been seeking to claim its share of water from reservoirs originating in its neighbors' territory.