Iran - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Iran cover image

Iran

November 12, 2026

Tehran 1:38 am

10°C

Iraqi President Nizar Amede (R) greets Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian (L) on the sidelines of COP31 in Antalya, Turkey, on Nov. 11,2026. Iraqi Presidency

Iranian, Iraqi presidents meet after border closure, militia row: What to know

It was the first meeting between the countries’ leaders since Iraq shut the Sheeb border crossing with Iran in late October, a move a senior Iraqi official later tied to pressure from Washington.

Shoppers enter a SuperValu store in Haggardstown, Dundalk, Ireland on November 2, 2026. Grocery stores in at least six European countries saw temperatures in their cold cases soar on Monday, with several confirming they had been hit by a cyberattack similar to one three weeks ago in France. Supermarkets in Ireland, Belgium, Estonia, Finland, Luxembourg and Sweden were among those affected in the latest hacker attack. (Photo by Arthur CARRON / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Iran's alleged cyberattacks in France raise fears of wider confrontation

Iran's wartime threats are increasingly reaching beyond the Middle East, exposing vulnerabilities in Europe's civilian infrastructure and raising questions about Tehran's use of deniable operations to pressure its adversaries.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Iranian-made Zolfaghar missiles

Iran unveils new underground 'missile city': What to know

Iran has moved much of its missile stockpile underground as the threat of a new war looms.

Latest News

Hormuz LNG shipments hit wartime high, but Qatar lags

PATRICK MEINHARDT / AFP via Getty Images

GCC to build military command center in Kuwait as region simmers: What to know

ANDY BUCHANAN / AFP via Getty Images

France blames Iran for supermarket fridge hack, seeks EU sanctions

This photograph shows empty fresh-food refrigerators at an Intermarche supermarket in Nevez, France, on Oct. 12, 2026, following a cyberattack that caused its refrigerators to defrost.

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

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to film or take pictures in Tehran.

Iranian Judiciary Chief Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi speaks as Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani (top) watches during President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's swearing-in ceremony in Tehran August 5, 2009. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN POLITICS) - RTR26F4N

Shahroudi seen as likely candidate to head Assembly of Experts

Ayatollah Mahmoud Hashemi Shahroudi is considered a strong candidate to head the Assembly of Experts as the Iranian leadership reshuffles after the death of late chairman Ayatollah Mohammad Reza Mahdavi Kani.

What does Hezbollah mean by 'painful concessions' in Syria?

UN Syria envoy meets Hezbollah official; Erdogan sets back Turkey-Iran ties and points out US "mistake"; Israel seeks to suppress "silent intifada" in Jerusalem.

Iranian worshippers shout anti-U.S. slogans during a demonstration by hardline group Ansar Hezbollah to protest against the social corruption and unIslamic outfits worn by women after Friday prayers ceremonies in Tehran, Iran April 28, 2006. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl - RTR1CVWE

Iran acid attacks put 'vice groups' on defensive

The acid attacks in Iran have prompted criticism of a proposed law that would provide legal protection to vigilante groups working to discourage "vice."

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) speaks with Turkish officials while meeting Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan in Tehran December 3, 2006. REUTERS/ISNA (IRAN) - RTR1K0EK

Iranian-Turkish relations strained over Syrian agendas

Turkey's desired outcome in Syria would result in massively scaling back Iran's influence in the region, with Tehran losing its ally in Damascus, Hezbollah confined to Lebanon and Iraq threatened.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to the media in front of a display of M302 rockets, found aboard the Klos C ship, at a navy base in the Red Sea resort city of Eilat March 10, 2014. Netanyahu, displaying on Monday what Israel said were seized Iranian-supplied missiles bound for militants in Gaza, called on the West not to be fooled by Tehran's diplomatic outreach over its nuclear programme. REUTERS/Amir Cohen (ISRAEL - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY CIVIL UNREST) - RTR3GGS8

Bibi's Iran nuclear talks blunder

Israel's failure to influence the emerging agreement between the world powers and Iran should be cast on Prime Minister Netanyahu, who failed to adapt to the evolving reality of a new Iranian regime, in which the West sees a potential partner.

Shi'ite Houthi rebels ride a patrol truck in Yareem town of Yemen's central province of Ibb October 22, 2014. Houthi fighters clashed with supporters of the Sunni Muslim Islah party in Yareem, earlier this week, residents and local officials said, raising the spectre of a wider sectarian confrontation in the country, which shares a long border with the world's top oil exporter, Saudi Arabia. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah (YEMEN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST) - RTR4B6F7

Iran, Saudi Arabia jockey for power in Yemen

Yemen has become a stage for the conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia on religious, economic, political and military levels.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during Friday prayers in Tehran September 14, 2007. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN) - RTR1TTSE

Khamenei preaches Shiite-Sunni unity against Islamic State, US

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's Eid al-Ghadeer speech revealed his concern that the coalition against the Islamic State might give Sunnis and the United States the upper hand in the region.

Iranians protest acid attacks

Protests have sprung up in Esfahan over the acid attacks that have terrorized the citizens there and concerns of potential leniency by authorities.

An Israeli soldier stands guard at a check point near the Lebanese-Israeli border, southern Lebanon October 8, 2014. An attack by Hezbollah on Lebanon's border with Israel which wounded two Israeli soldiers was a message that the group remained ready to confront its old foe despite its engagement in Syria's civil war, the group's deputy leader said. The soldiers were wounded by a bomb planted by Lebanese Hezbollah fighters in the Shebaa hills, drawing Israeli artillery fire in response. It was the first tim

Is Hezbollah preparing large assault on Israel?

If Iran succeeds in securing an agreement that enables it to preserve nuclear capabilities, it might decide to attack Israel through Hezbollah on the Lebanese and Syrian borders.

People hold posters with an image of Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the Al-Hussein mosque, named after Prophet Mohammed's grandson Hussein ibn Ali, before Ahmadinejad's visit to the mosque in old Cairo February 5, 2013. Ahmadinejad was both kissed and scolded on Tuesday when he began the first visit to Egypt by an Iranian president since Tehran's 1979 Islamic revolution. The trip was meant to underline a thaw in relations since Egyptians elected an Islamist head of state, President Mohamed Mursi, l

Are relations between Iran, Egypt warming?

The rise of the Islamic State as a common enemy threatening Muslims from all sects explains the possible rapprochement between Iran and Egypt.

Lebanese army soldiers gesture while riding on an armoured vehicle as they exit the Sunni Muslim border town of Arsal, in eastern Bekaa Valley August 28, 2014. Gunmen killed at least one Lebanese soldier on Thursday when they attacked an army post at the border with Syria on Thursday near a town seized by Islamist insurgents earlier this month, a security source said. Three soldiers were wounded in the clash in the mountainous border zone just outside the town of Arsal, which was held for five days by milit

Lebanese army struggles for financing

Without a proper budget and new weapons procurement, the Lebanese army faces an uphill struggle in combating terrorism and securing the country. Why then have recent international donations not materialized?

Iran media, activists criticize Turkey's Kobani stance

While Iranian authorities maintain strict red lines for national security issues, media reactions to Turkey's inaction in Kobani reveals Iran's tensions with Turkey over its Syria policy.