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Iran

July 28, 2026

Tehran 10:37 am

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A giant billboard depicts late Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (2nd L), and his son Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, with Arabic writing that reads: "Thank you Iran," in Dahiyeh, Beirut's southern suburbs, on June 15, 2026.

Khamenei says Hezbollah's agenda 'strategic mandate' for Iran

Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei’s comments come as Lebanon and Israel move forward with a US-backed plan to disarm Hezbollah in the south, though the Iran-backed group is resisting calls to turn over its weapons.

Trump Netanyahu

On eighth visit, Israel’s Netanyahu seeks to repair ties with Trump

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to focus on Iran in his Tuesday meeting with President Donald Trump, while the US leader is more likely to want to discuss Lebanon and Syria.

US President Donald Trump takes questions from the media during a bilateral meeting with President of Lebanon Joseph Aoun in the Oval Office of the White House on July 21, 2026 in Washington, DC.

Trump says Iran seeks talks after strikes halted

An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the two sides have communicated only through intermediaries.

Iranian security forces stand guard in front of the French Embassy in Tehran in this undated image.

Iran summons French ambassador after detaining 2 diplomats: What to know

Last week, France’s foreign minister said that two French diplomats had been detained and interrogated, and that one had been physically assaulted by Iranian security services.

Latest News

Oil falls 9.5% in steepest drop in months as Iran, US pause attacks

AMIRHOSSEIN KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

Zaidi’s test in Tehran

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi is welcomed to the Saadabad Palace in Tehran by Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, July 23, 2026.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

Analysis

What Iran's warning to Britain reveals about broader escalation strategy

Muntions near a B1 Bomber are seen at RAF Fairford on July 24, 2026, in Fairford, England.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

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

While hosting Iran’s Raisi, Turkey’s Erdogan avoids harsh criticism of Israel

Erdogan's measured tone on Israel comes in midst of US-Turkey rapprochement following Ankara's ratification of Sweden's entry into NATO this week.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian listens to a question during a press conference with his Saudi counterpart (not pictured) in Tehran, on June 17, 2023.

Interview

Iran sent US back-channel messages on risk of wider regional war, FM says

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said Tehran is not seeking a wider regional conflict, even as his country's network of militias across the Middle East are stepping up attacks on US bases and ships.

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian

Hossein Amir-Abdollahian

Foreign Minister of Iran

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan shakes hands with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi during a meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Sept. 17, 2022.

Iran's Raisi makes first visit to Turkey seeking to close gap on Gaza, Zangezur

Apart from economic ties, the Gaza war is expected to be in focus, on which the two sides may share public rhetoric but diverge deeply when it comes to policy and interests.

Mohammad Ghobadlou

Outcry as Iran executes young protester with mental illness: judiciary

Mohammad Ghobadlou, who had allegedly a history of mental illness, was hanged in an Iranian prison in relation to his role in the 2022 nationwide protests.

Iranian mourners gather during the funeral ceremony of yesterday's explosion, Kerman, Iran, Jan. 5, 2024.

Soldier arrested in Iran after inside attack killing 5 troops in Kerman

The latest incident involves the killing of five soldiers by a fellow conscript in Kerman, which was the scene of a deadly bombing claimed by ISIS earlier this month.

Pakistan activists protest in Lahore on Jan. 19, 2024, after Iran launched an airstrike in Pakistan's southwest Baluchistan province.

What's behind Turkey's muted response to Iran-Pakistan escalation?

Two considerations stand out in Turkey’s muted response to recent Iranian strikes in Iraq and Pakistan.

Pakistani police officers stand guard outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Islamabad on Jan. 18, 2024. Pakistan said on Jan. 18 it carried out strikes against militant targets in Iran, after Tehran launched attacks on Pakistani territory earlier this week.

How Iran miscalculated its gamble in the Pakistan strike

With its brief attack on Pakistani territory, Iran appears to have shot itself in the foot, inadvertently playing into the Western argument that Tehran is a destabilizing state in an already volatile region.

Members of Iranian paramilitary's Basij forces march next to the fourth generation Khorramshahr ballistic missile Khaibar displayed during an anti-Israeli rally to show their solidarity with Palestinians, in Tehran on November 24, 2023. (Photo by AFP) (Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Are Tehran’s internal politics at play in Iran-Pakistan flare-up?

Although internal political considerations may have led Tehran to conduct airstrikes in Pakistan, ties between the two are likely to suffer lasting damage.

Rafael Grossi

Davos 2024: IAEA chief says monitoring of Iran nuclear sites 'not at a good place'

Asked by Al-Monitor if Iran was close to enriching weapons-grade uranium, Grossi responded, “They are already there.”

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

IRGC holds drills as Iran dispatches naval mission to international seas

The move coincides with large-scale drills held by Iran’s military and IRGC days after Pakistan struck areas in Iran.

A Baloch militant (L) hands over his gun and surrenders to Baluchistan province Chief Minister Sardar Sanaullah Khan Zehri (R) in Quetta on April 21, 2017. Around 500 Baloch rebel militants on April 21 surrendered to Pakistan's government as Islamabad pursues its development agenda linked to the ambitious China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in the southwest province. / AFP PHOTO / BANARAS KHAN (Photo credit should read BANARAS KHAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Across Baluchistan, who are the groups targeted by Iran, Pakistan?

The cross-border strikes have raised questions about the separatist groups operating in the border area between Iran and Pakistan.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (R) welcomes Prime Minister of Pakistan Shehbaz Sharif as they pose upon his arrival during an official ceremony at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, Turkey on June 1, 2022. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP) (Photo by ADEM ALTAN/AFP via Getty Images)

Turkey treads cautious line amid Iran-Pakistan flareup

Turkey’s highly cautious tone over attacks by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps on Iraq and Pakistan reflects Ankara’s approach of not wanting to involve outside players in its disagreements with Tehran.