Iran-US tensions

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan hosted the third meeting of the foreign ministers of Turkey, Egypt, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on the margins of the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum, on April 17, 2026.

Analysis

Why Saudi Arabia, Egypt are wary of Turkey’s proposed 4-way defense pact with Pakistan

The proposed framework faces major hurdles and fault lines, ranging from NATO constraints to Israeli opposition and weak military integration.

Barin Kayaoglu

By Barin Kayaoglu

In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security

TEHRAN, IRAN - APRIL 23: A police officer stands holding a flag in Valiasr Square beneath a mural of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on April 23, 2026 in Tehran, Iran. Earlier this week, U.S. President Donald Trump announced an extension of the current ceasefire between his country and Iran, despite Iran declining to attend the latest proposed round of peace talks in Islamabad. The focus of the war has shifted largely to the Strait of Hormuz, where both sides are trying to assert control over the critical m

Analysis

Araghchi’s Russia, regional tour tests path to breaking US-Iran deadlock

Iranian officials say dialogue remains open, but negotiations are clouded by intensifying hard-line domestic messaging and conflicting signals over Tehran’s red lines.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

A person walks past the closed Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center on Jan. 7, 2021, in New York City.

Why did the Met Opera lose its Saudi funding deal?

The deal, announced as a nonbinding memorandum of understanding last September, would have seen the PIF inject up to $200 million into the opera institution over the next eight years.

US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa (R) holds a signed "Make America Great Again" hat while (L-R) US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Lebanon Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh Moawad listen to US President Donald Trump speak during a meeting with Lebanon Ambassador to the US and Israel Ambassador to the US, at the White House in Washington, DC on April 23, 2026. US President Donald Trump met Lebanese and Israeli envoys at a new round of peace talks Thursday, with Beirut seeking a one-month extension of a

Analysis

Israel fears Trump angling for Lebanon deal to offset Iran missteps

Some Israelis worry the US president might force them to accept an unsatisfactory agreement driven by his inability to secure a tangible achievement in Iran.

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

Latest News

Trump says Israel-Lebanon ceasefire extended by three weeks

US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, Israel Ambassador to US Yechiel Leiter, US Vice President JD Vance, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Lebanon Ambassador to the US Nada Hamadeh and US ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa listen as President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting at the White House in Washington on April 23, 2026.

Which airlines are cutting flights amid Hormuz fuel disruption?

Refueling trucks are seen at Southend Airport on April 17, 2026, in Southend, England.

Analysis

China gets around Iran blockade as Gulf courts Beijing

US forces patrol the Arabian Sea near M/V Touska on April 20, 2026, after firing upon the Iranian-flagged vessel. (Handout Photo by the U.S. Navy via Getty Images)

Joyce Karam

Kuwait acquits journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin after 7 weeks in detention

Ahmed Shihab‑Eldin attends the Opening Night during the Doha Film Festival 2025 on Nov. 20, 2025 in Doha, Qatar.

Iranians participate in the 12th term parliamentary elections and the 6th term Assembly of Leadership Experts' voting at a Tehran polling station on March 1, 2024.

Culture

What Iran's elections could signal about potential for US escalation

The sudden death of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has plunged the country into new uncertainty, but it’s unlikely to derail Washington's quiet push to dial back tensions with Tehran.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei arrives to cast his ballot during the parliamentary runoff elections in Tehran on May 10, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

With outsiders purged, Iran hard-liners set to settle Khamenei succession

Former President Hassan Rouhani has attacked the ruling hard-liners for purging him and other moderates from a key clerical body that will be responsible for picking Khamenei's successor.

This handout image supplied by the IIPA (Iran International Photo Agency) shows a view of the reactor building at the Russian-built Bushehr nuclear power plant as the first fuel is loaded, on Aug. 21, 2010 in Bushehr, southern Iran.

Understanding Iran's increasingly open rhetoric about atomic bombs

Several Iranian officials and military generals have recently abandoned earlier reservations on nuclear policy, sending out the message that the country could be turning into an atomic weapons possessor to deter Israel.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei (L) welcomes Nechirvan Barzani, the regional president of Iraqi Kurdistan, during an official visit to Tehran on May 6, 2024. (Photo: KRG Presidency)

Analysis

In Iran, Iraqi Kurdistan President Barzani welcomed by Khamenei, IRGC

Nechirvan Barzani’s trip to Tehran follows tensions between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Islamic Republic over Kurdish armed groups and attacks by Iran-backed militias.

Adam Lucente

By Adam Lucente

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdoulahian meets with UN atomic watchdog chief Rafael Grossi in Tehran, Iran, May 6, 2024.

Iran urges IAEA to dodge US, Israeli 'pressure' over nuclear program

The visit by the UN nuclear watchdog's chief comes two months after he raised concerns about losing track of Tehran's enrichment program and its possible capabilities to produce nuclear weapons.

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi (C) inspects the guard of honor upon his arrival for a state visit at the Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport in Harare on July 13, 2023.

What's behind Iran's ambitious push for influence in Africa?

With a key Tehran conference hosting African nations, the Islamic Republic is moving to catch up with such heavyweight investors as China and Russia, pursuing geopolitical interests in Africa through both trade ties and the shipment of military equipment.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iran's president, Ebrahim Raisi, hold a meeting in Tehran on July 19, 2022.

Russia hosts Iran, China security chiefs after escalation with Israel

Iran's highest-ranking security official traveled to Russia to meet with other like-minded advisers and to promote its fight against "Western hegemony."

Retired Israeli general and Executive Director of Tel Aviv University's Institute for National Security Studies Amos Yadlin attends a session at the Manama Dialogue security conference, Manama, Bahrain, Dec. 5, 2020.

Interview

Israel's ex-intel chief: Biden distrusts Netanyahu, Iran escalation unlikely

Former head of IDF intelligence Amos Yadlin believes Israel should take the time to estimate whether the additional sanctions announced by the US and the EU would indeed affect Iran’s decision-making on its regional aggression and nuclear program.

Amos Yadlin

Amos Yadlin

Former Head of Israeli Military Intelligence

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP via Getty Images

Iraq's Kataib Hezbollah denies resuming attacks on US bases

Iran-backed Iraqi militia Kataib Hezbollah denied on Monday it had resumed attacks on US bases after two apparent barrages threatened to break a fragile detente that had held since February.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan (L) and his Pakistan's counterpart Ishaq Dar arrive to address a joint press conference at the foreign ministry in Islamabad on April 16, 2024.

As Iran, Israel trade fire, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan try to forge stability

As Prince Faisal bin Farhan made his way to Pakistan with a high-powered delegation to discuss energy and economic ties, tension in the Middle East overshadowed the discussions.

JARABLUS, SYRIA - AUGUST 31: A member of the Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) stand guarded in front of a ISIS flag in the border town of Jarablus, August 31, 2016, Syria. Turkish troops and Turkey-backed rebels have been fighting Kurdish-led forces and IS since Turkey's incursion into Syria on Aug. 24. with the swift capture of Jarablus, a town a few km inside Syria that was held by Islamic State.(Photo by Defne Karadeniz/Getty Images)

ISIS takes advantage of Israel-Iran spiral to mount resurgence in Syria

Amid the relocation of Iranian-backed forces due to Israeli and US airstrikes and the lack of coordination between the SDF and Damascus, ISIS has intensified its operations, clawing back parts of the vital highway separating Raqqa and Deir Ezzor.

US President Joe Biden walks on the South Lawn after landing on Marine One with senior members of his staff at the White House on April 18, 2024, in Washington, DC.

With Iran and Israel avoiding full-blown war, US refocuses on Gaza

Limited Israeli strikes and a muted Iranian response suggest the dangerous tit-for-tat retaliation between the two foes may be over, at least for now.

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights