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

Iran cover image

Iran

September 27, 2026

Tehran 1:12 pm

29°C

A tugboat guides a ship at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on July 14, 2026.

Analysis

Could Iran's 7-day Hormuz proposal culminate in diplomatic deal?

Iran's proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz in seven days brings into focus the central challenge facing diplomacy with Washington: how to turn military leverage into a negotiated path without giving up too much in return.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

An Iran Air Airbus A300 prepares for boarding at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport in Tehran, Iran, Aug. 16, 2016.

‘Free for all or for no one’: Iran warns neighbors over flight bans

Several countries in the region have suspended Iranian flights under US sanctions after Washington warned global companies they would no longer have access to the dollar system if they do business with Iranian airlines.

Hector RETAMAL / AFP via Getty Images

Iran flights continue, UAE route closes on day 2 of US sanctions

All flights by Iranian carriers to the UAE have been canceled, according to Iran's ISNA news agency.

AFP via Getty Images

Iran threatens to expand war to Indian Ocean: What to know

An adviser to Iran's supreme leader has threatened to open a new front in the Indian Ocean if the US resumes its strikes against Iran.

Latest News

Fresh clashes leave 6 dead in Iran's Sistan and Baluchistan: What to know

Iranian security forces stand guard in the capital city on July 03, 2026 in Tehran, Iran.

Rubio: US-Iran talks 'positive,' no breakthrough yet

Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images

Cargo vessel attack in Hormuz kills 1 as world leaders gather at UN

The Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier vessel Manta Ursula is pictured moored in Muscat on July 25, 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

Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, gives a speech during the extended format meeting of the BRICS summit in Kazan on Oct. 23, 2024.

UAE, Egypt pursue Iran outreach at first joint BRICS summit in Russia

The summit in the Russian city of Kazan was the first to feature Iran, Egypt and the UAE as full members.

An Airbus A350 plane of Qatar Airways from Doha parks after it landed at Berlin's airport "Berlin Brandenburg Airport Willy Brandt", during the opening of the southern runway of the airport, in Schoenefeld, southeast of Berlin, on November 4, 2020. - Passenger flights are to began landing on October 31, 2020 at Berlin's new international airport, a moment many Germans thought they might never see after years of embarrassing delays and spiralling costs. (Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP) (Photo by ODD ANDERSEN/AF

Qatar Airways suspends Iran, Lebanon flights, joining growing list of airlines

Amid conflict in Gaza and Lebanon, few airlines are operating in and out of Tel Aviv, and fewer still in and out of Beirut and Tehran.

Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, meets with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Kazan on Oct. 22, 2024.

Iran's Pezeshkian slams Israel at start of BRICS summit in Russia

The summit in the Russian city of Kazan is the first since Iran, Egypt and the UAE joined BRICS as full members.

An Iranian Navy warship takes part in the "National Persian Gulf day" in the Strait of Hormuz, on April 30, 2019.

Iran eyes naval drills with Saudi Arabia, Egypt amid simmering regional tensions

The planned drills come on the heels of a recent joint exercise that Iran hosted in the Indian Ocean, as Tehran seeks to counterbalance Israel and curb US influence in the region's strategic waters.

The Pentagon again postponed a key test of its troubled "THAAD'''' anti-missile defense rocket, seen this file photo, due to a commercial power failure, the Defense Department said. (photo by Lockheed Martin)

Exclusive

Inside US-Israel understanding to reward Netanyahu for not targeting Iran’s oil fields

The Israeli government might agree to refrain targeting Iranian oil sites in exchange for a security package offered by the Biden administration.

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

Russia's President Vladimir Putin meets with the heads of leading media outlets from the BRICS member countries in the Moscow region, on Oct. 18, 2024.

Russia's BRICS summit: Gulf states seek influence as Iran, UAE debut as members

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince will not be in attendance but has sent his foreign minister. Expansion of the group and adoption of a new currency are on the three-day agenda.

United Arab Emirates

JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images

Israel arrests 7 nationals suspected of spying for Iran: What we know

Israeli authorities are saying the affair is one of the most serious espionage cases in recent Israeli history.

TOPSHOT - People walk past a billboard showing a portrait of newly appointed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar (top) next to Palestine Square in the Tehran on August 12, 2024. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo by ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

How does Sinwar's death reshape Iran's proxy war on Israel?

Sinwar's killing is seen as a major blow to the group and to Iran as well given the operational role he played within Hamas and how he closely aligned Hamas' policies with Tehran's strategic interests and regional ambitions.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

JOHN WESSELS/AFP via Getty Images

Gulf governments silent as Iran, proxies mourn Hamas' Yahya Sinwar

Regional governments have not commented on Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar’s killing by Israeli forces in Gaza, but Iran and its proxy groups mourned his death, vowing that the resistance against Israel will continue.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi meets with his Egyptian counterpart (not pictured) in Cairo, on Oct. 17, 2024.

Iran FM Araghchi meets Egypt’s Sisi amid diplomatic push: What we know

The Iranian foreign minister held talks with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, during which both agreed on the need to promote relations between the two countries.

Afghan refugees walk with their belongings after deporting back from Iran at the Islam Qala border between Afghanistan and Iran, in the western Herat province on May 30, 2024.

Taliban minister endorses return of Afghan migrants from Iran

Afghan migrants in Iran have faced violence and hostility recently, according to reports, and the Islamic Republic has vowed to deport them by the end of the year.

MURTAJA LATEEF/AFP via Getty Images

Iran’s FM Araghchi mobilizes against Israel in visits to Jordan, Egypt, Turkey

Iran’s foreign minister has paid visits to several countries in the region in the past weeks, with the latest stop taking him to Jordan, amid Israel’s expected retaliation for Iran's missile attack.