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May 5, 2026

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WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 18: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (R), French President Emmanuel Macron (L), and European leaders at the White House on August 18, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Trump hosted President Zelensky at the White House for a bilateral meeting and an expanded meeting with European leaders to discuss a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Macron casts doubt on Trump’s Hormuz operation as France-US gap grows

French President Emmanuel Macron slammed President Donald Trump for launching a unilateral operation to reopen the Strait of Hormuz instead of pursuing a coordinated effort with Iran.

Meysam MIRZADEH / TASNIM NEWS / AFP via Getty Images

Iran strikes UAE’s Fujairah oil hub as US pushes Hormuz reopening

The United States launched an initiative to restart commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz on Monday as the UAE braced for fallout amid new missile and drone attacks.

United Arab Emirates

Crops of wheat and barley in Terbol village on May 10, 2022, in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Analysis

MENA wheat importers face food security risks as Hormuz crisis festers

Home to many of the world's largest wheat importers, the Middle East and North Africa face acute food security risks as the US-Israel-Iran war disrupts global fertilizer flows and pushes up prices.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Latest News

Analysis

How Iran is rebuilding its bruised military as ceasefire masks recalibration

Soldiers from Iran's land, navy, air force and special forces parade on the occasion of National Army Day in Tehran, capital of Iran on April 18, 2025, in Tehran, Iran.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

US sanctions Iran’s shadow banking channels moving oil proceeds from China

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent testifies during a Senate Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building on April 22, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Analysis

Without exit strategy, Israel faces emboldened Hezbollah, limited options on Iran

Ibrahim AMRO / AFP via Getty Images

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

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

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.

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

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL - NOVEMBER 12: IDF Chief Aviv Kochavi makes a statemnent on November 12, 2019 in Tel Aviv, Israel. Israeli Air Force kills Islamic Jihad Commander, Abu Al-Ata in his home in Gaza. (Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images)

Israeli military draws up new plans against Iran, top commander says

IDF Chief of Staff Aviv Kochavi said attack plans should be "on the table" given Iran's recent violations of the nuclear accord.

Iranian-American sentenced to prison, allegedly without a trial

Iran has imprisoned a number of dual citizens of the United States and European countries on disputed charges.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (R) meets with Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Moscow on December 30, 2019. (Photo by Yuri KADOBNOV / AFP) (Photo by YURI KADOBNOV/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran’s FM in Moscow to discuss post-Trump policy

Iran’s foreign minister was in Moscow to discuss a range of issues with Russian officials in his first such meeting after the inauguration the new administration in Washington.

Iran blocks encrypted messaging app Signal

Signal has experienced an increase in downloads in the region following competitor WhatsApp's user requirements update. Internet is heavily restricted in Iran.

France says Iran must return to nuclear deal compliance before US does

Paris backed up Washington after Russia’s government said the Biden administration must make the first move before Iran returns to compliance.

Iranian government spokesman Ali Rabiei speaks during a news conference in the capital Tehran on July 22, 2019. - Iran's seizure of a British-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz was a "legal measure", Rabiei said otoday.
Iran impounded the Stena Impero tanker on July 19, on allegations it failed to respond to distress calls and turned off its transponder after hitting a fishing boat. (Photo by str / AFP) (Photo credit should read STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran to restrict nuclear inspections unless sanctions lifted

Government spokesperson Ali Rabiei said Iran would start restricting short-notice inspections of its nuclear facilities beginning next month.

An Iranian man wearing a protective mask amid the COVID-19 pandemic, walks past a mural painted on the outer walls of the former US embassy in the capital Tehran, on December 30, 2020. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran urges US to end sanctions it says hinder vaccine access

Iran says sanctions imposed by former President Donald Trump are preventing the country from securing the COVID-19 vaccines it needs.

Iraqi youths watch an event celebrating the inauguration of a street named after the late Iraqi commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis in the southern city of Basra on January 8, 2021, more than a year after a US drone strike killed Iran's revered commander Qasem Soleimani and his Iraqi lieutenant Muhandis (image) near the capital. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP) (Photo by HUSSEIN FALEH/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraqi Kurdish officials call Iran's Soleimani film 'insult' to Peshmerga

Peshmerga that fought on the front lines against the Islamic State see the film as an "insult and belittling the role of Peshmergas."

TOPSHOT - Isreali Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the Kohelet Policy Forum conference in Jerusalem, on January 8, 2020. - Netanyahu today warned Israel would strike a "resounding blow" if attacked by arch foe Iran, as regional tensions spike after the US killing of military commander Qasem Soleimani. (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA / AFP) (Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images)

Netanyahu bristles in warning as Biden seeks reentry to Iran deal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hinting to the new US administration that reentering the original nuclear deal with Iran could spell Israeli military action.

A picture taken on February 19, 2020, shows a general view of the airport of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo upon the relaunch of commercial flights. (Photo by - / AFP) (Photo by -/AFP via Getty Images)

As Syrian regime touts reopening, Iran continues to lurk at Aleppo airport

International air traffic has resumed at Aleppo International Airport, but it is believed to remain under the control of Iranian forces.

Iranian commander threatens to 'destroy' US ships

A general in Iran's elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps made the provocative statement less than a week into Joe Biden's presidency. The new US president has said he wants to talk with Iran.

Picture shows Iranian supertanker Grace 1 off the coast of Gibraltar on August 15, 2019. - Gibraltar's Supreme Court ruled today to release an Iranian supertanker seized last month on suspicion of shipping oil to Syria in breach of EU sanctions, despite a last-minute US request to detain the vessel. (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP) (Photo by JORGE GUERRERO/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran demands answers from Indonesia over seized oil tanker

Indonesia seized an Iranian fuel tanker on Sunday, accusing the vessel of failing to respond to radio calls and disabling its identification system.