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May 1, 2026

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This photo obtained by AFP from the Iranian news agency Tasnim shows an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) boat allegedly taking part in an operation to seize ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz, on April 21, 2026.

Trump faces three paths ahead in Iran war as Hormuz standoff intensifies

As the Hormuz standoff intensifies, Trump must choose between military escalation, a limited diplomatic deal, or continuing a pressure campaign against Iran.

AFP via Getty Images

In defiant message, Iran’s Khamenei threatens US but appeals to Gulf

The address was Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s third since coming to power and included a pledge to rid the Gulf of the US.

QESHM ISLAND, IRAN - APRIL 28: Boats navigate the sea on April 28, 2026 on Qeshm Island, Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran's latest proposal for ending its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz calls on the United States to end its naval blockade of Iran's ports, and sets aside questions about what to do with Iran's nuclear program. The United States has not formally responded to the latest proposal, which was delivered by Iran's foreign minister to Pakistan two days ago. (Photo by Asghar Besharati/Getty Images

US blockade tests Iran's limits, but will global pain force Trump’s hand?

President Trump is doubling down on economic warfare against Iran, betting a naval blockade and sanctions can force a nuclear deal and end the war.

Latest News

Iran-linked group claims stabbing in Jewish area in London: What to know

Local residents look on from outside a cordoned off area in the Golders Green neighborhood of north London on April 29, 2026, following the stabbing to two people nearby.

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

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.

Trump speaks with Netanyahu, Putin as Iran pressure campaign escalates

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

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

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.

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

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (4th R) attends a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (3rd L) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on February 22, 2019. (Photo by HOW HWEE YOUNG / POOL / AFP) (Photo credit should read HOW HWEE YOUNG/AFP via Getty Images)

From roads to routers: The future of China-Middle East connectivity

Latest Trend Report: China is deepening its engagement in the Middle East, and the region, by and large, is welcoming it.

missile

Iran tests ballistic missile with 1250-mile range, capable of hitting Israel

The missile's declared range makes it capable of reaching Israel, which warned Tehran this week with military action over its ramped-up nuclear enrichment and regional activities.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (R) welcomes his Omani counterpart Sayyid Badr al-Busaidi in Tehran on November 19, 2022. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Sultan of Oman to make first visit to Iran amid regional thaw

The visit comes amid Iran’s rapprochement with Saudi Arabia, and Oman's mediation between Egypt and Tehran.

An engineer from the Israeli company "Commun.it" uses his expertise in social media commercial analysis to identify networks of fake users.

Iran suspect in cyberattack targeting Israeli shipping, financial firms

Iran has increased its cyberattacks against Israel in the past year, according to several observers.

Alireza Enayati, previously Tehran’s ambassador to Kuwait from 2014 to 2019. Enayati will be the next envoy to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Who is Alireza Enayati, Iran’s first ambassador to Saudi Arabia in 7 years?

Alireza Enayati previously served as the director-general for Persian Gulf Affairs at the Iranian Foreign Ministry and as Iran’s ambassador to Kuwait.

Chairman of the Indonesian People's Consultative Assembly Bambang Soesatyo (R) meets Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (L) in Jakarta, on May 23, 2023, during Raisi two-day state visit to the most populous Muslim country.

Iran's Raisi visits Indonesia, announces agreement to ditch dollar

The Iranian government has signed a dozen agreements with Indonesia, pressing ahead with its pushback on sanctions that has also involved strategic deals with China, Russia and India.

Tree branches flutter near high voltage transmission towers (electricity pylons) during a sandstorm in the south of the capital Tehran on July 4, 2022. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Will Iran cut its energy subsidies?

If the Iranian government reduces its current energy subsidies, it will be a huge remedy for the country's runaway budget deficit. But there will be major political obstacles.

Bijan Khajehpour

Bijan Khajehpour

In Vienna, reporting on Iranian politics

People protest against executions and detentions in Iran, in front of the Iranian Permanent Mission to the UN in New York City on December 17, 2022. (Photo by Kena Betancur / AFP) (Photo by KENA BETANCUR/AFP via Getty Images)

New EU sanctions on Iran target Basij, judiciary after executions

The foreign ministers of the European Union have adopted an eighth round of sanctions against Iranian individuals and entities responsible for serious breaches of human rights.

Ali Shamkhani (R), the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council of Iran extends his hand to Emmanuel Bonne (L), diplomatic advisor to the French president, in the Iranian capital Tehran on July 10, 2019. - Iran has breached a uranium enrichment cap set by a troubled 2015 nuclear deal and warned Europe against taking retaliatory measures, as France decided to send an envoy to Tehran to try to calm tensions. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran replaces security chief Shamkhani with IRGC official

Ali Shamkhani was heavily involved in Iranian foreign policy and will be replaced by a senior member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

A US Navy patrol ship guards US and coalitions ships docked at the US 5th Fleet Command in Bahrain's capital Manama on Dec. 17, 2019.

US steps up Gulf patrols amid increasing tanker seizures by Iran

In an excerpt from the latest edition of Security Briefing, our Pentagon correspondent looks at efforts by Washington to stem an increasing spate of civilian tankers by Tehran.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Breaking | Last Updated: May 19, 2023, 2:34 pm

New US sanctions target Russia-Iran military trade

The sanctions come days after the White House said Russia was seeking to replenish its supply of Iranian-made attack drones.

An Afghani policeman looks out to the horizon while on patrol in the mountains surrounding the Helmand River valley in Afghanistan on Feb. 24, 2006.

Iran threatens 'pressure' on Taliban amid deepening water row

The warning marked the most serious episode in Iran-Taliban ties since the extremist group's takeover of Afghanistan in 2021.