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Iran

April 29, 2026

Tehran 3:24 pm

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

Analysis

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

Iranian authorities are denouncing US seizures of the country's oil tankers as piracy, but mounting disruptions to maritime trade are exposing economic fragility beneath Tehran's claims of control and resilience.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

UAE’s OPEC exit rattles cartel as Gulf alliances shift

OPEC's fourth-largest producer will leave the cartel on May 1, marking the most significant departure in the group’s history as the war changes Abu Dhabi's relationship priorities.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Yuichi YAMAZAKI / AFP via Getty Images

First LNG tanker transits Strait of Hormuz since Iran war began

Latest News

Iran floats ‘plan B’ to defuse Hormuz standoff, delay nuclear talks

Iranian walks past a giant billboard reading "The Strait of Hormuz remains closed" at the Revolution Square in Tehran on April 22, 2026.

Turkey’s military spending jumps to $30B, leads Mideast growth in 2025

Turkey's submarines and fast-attack craft ships participate in the live-fire phase of the Blue Homeland-2026 (Mavi Vatan) tactical military exercises in the eastern Mediterranean Sea, in Antalya on April 9, 2026.

Pistachios reach highest prices in eight years amid Iran war

An Iranian grocer sells pistachios imported from Iran at a Persian products shop in the Gulf emirate of Dubai on July 10, 2019. (Photo by Karim SAHIB / AFP) (Photo credit should read KARIM SAHIB/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran FM meets Putin, Russia’s military intel chief as talks stall: What to know

Iran FM meets Putin and Russia’s military intel chief as talks stall: What to know

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

Iran lawmakers

With Larijani, Ahmadinejad disqualified, six main contenders in Iran's elections

Iran’s electoral Guardian Council has approved the candidacy of six political figures for the snap elections that follow the death of Ebrahim Raisi, rejecting dozens of other potential candidates.

Iranian commander-in-chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Hossein Salami speaks during the funeral ceremony for victims of twin explosions near the cemetery where the grave of Iran's former top military commander Gen. Qassem Soleimani is located on Jan. 05, 2024, in Kerman, Iran.

How Israeli strikes are raising the cost of Iran's presence in Syria

The IRGC's promise to retaliate for the killing of one of its officers comes as it has been rolling back its Syria presence since the outbreak of the Gaza war, which has placed an increasing number of Iranian forces in Israel's crosshairs.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan attend a welcome ceremony at The Great Hall of People on May 30, 2024 in Beijing, China.

Will China's support help UAE in dispute with Iran over Hormuz islands?

China's support for the UAE may have angered Tehran but it shows how Beijing views its priorities and strategic depth in Gulf region.

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

US joins Europeans in rare censure of Iran at UN nuclear watchdog

The International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-member board of governors has voted to censure Iran for the first time since November 2022.

BEIRUT, LEBANON - OCTOBER 13: Lebanese people wave flags and hold portraits of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (not pictured) as he arrives in southern suberb of Beirut on October 13, 2010 in Lebanon. The controversial visit is seen as a boost for key ally Hezbollah. According to reports Mr Ahmadinejad may visit the border with Israel - the site of recent deadly clashes between Israeli and Lebanese forces. (Photo by Salah Malkawi/Getty Images)

Iran's Ahmadinejad, Haghanian grab spotlight in tight presidential race

All eyes are now on the hard-line Guardian Council, which is expected to remove the vast majority of the 80 hopefuls, leaving a limited number to compete in a controlled election process.

Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani waves as he leaves after talks at the Coburg Palais, the venue of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, Vienna, Austria, Aug. 4, 2022.

Iran’s acting FM meets Assad in Syria after talks with Hezbollah chief

Iran has been backing its proxies, including Hezbollah and Hamas, in their fight against Israel since the Gaza war erupted.

China's President Xi Jinping (L) shakes hands with United Arab Emirates' president, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, ahead of the opening ceremony of the 10th Ministerial Meeting of China-Arab States Cooperation Forum at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on May 30, 2024.

In rare clash with Iran, China reaffirms solidarity with UAE over disputed islands

Iran seized control of Abu Musa and the Greater and Lesser Tunbs several decades ago, though the United Arab Emirates has long claimed sovereignty over the islands, a claim backed by Gulf states and Russia.

Former Iranian parliament speaker Ali Larijani registers at the elections registration office in Tehran on May 31, 2024, ahead of the country's election of a new president next month.

With Larijani in, Iran presidential race heats up with cutthroat rivalries

Centrist Ali Larijani threw himself in bitter exchanges with hard-line rivals after attacking the status quo and promising to revive the divisive Iran nuclear deal, which was on life support during late President Ebrahim Raisi's unfinished term.

A military truck carries an Arash drone past a portrait of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a military parade as part of a ceremony marking the country's annual army day in Tehran, on April 17, 2024.

EU sanctions Iranian defense minister, Quds commander over drone transfers to Russia

Iranian Defense Minister Mohammad-Reza Gharaei Ashtiani and IRGC Quds Force commander Ismail Qaani are two of the six Iranian individuals and three Iranian entities sanctioned by the European Union this week as the United States also expands sanctions against Iran.

Ghadr

What we know on Houthis' latest Ghadr anti-ship Iranian ballistic missile

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Wednesday that the Yemeni militant group has obtained the technology to manufacture anti-ship ballistic missiles.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani speaks to the media during a press conference in Tehran on March 16, 2015.

Jalili to Larijani: Key names emerge in Iran's presidential elections

Another hard-liner and a Reformist recently declared their candidacies, and others may soon announce theirs in the election to replace the late President Ebrahim Raisi.

Iranian conservative presidential candidate and Tehran mayor Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf gives an address during a campaign rally in the Iranian capital Tehran on May 14, 2017. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

What does reelection of Ghalibaf as parliament speaker mean for Iran?

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, whose strong connections have spared him prosecution over an array of corruption allegations, is also seen as a potential contender in the upcoming snap presidential election to find a successor to late President Ebrahim Raisi.