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Iran

July 31, 2026

Tehran 12:13 pm

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A woman stands next to Iranian-made Zolfaghar missiles displayed at Azadi Square in Tehran on July 24, 2026.

Iran’s new calculus: Strike first, talk later

An increasingly emboldened Tehran has put President Donald Trump in a bind.

This aerial photo shows a tanker unloading imported crude oil at a terminal port in Qingdao, in China's eastern Shandong province on June 25, 2026. (Photo by CN-STR / AFP via Getty Images) / China OUT

China cuts deal with Houthis, adjusts for long US war with Iran

China is cutting its own deals and gaining wartime leverage as the Trump administration scrambles to contain the war and reopen Hormuz.

In this handout photo provided by the US Navy, Two F/A-18 Super Hornets launch from the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) in support of Operation Epic Fury on March 3, 2026 in the Mediterranean Sea.

US carries out strikes in southern Iran after IRGC attack on Jordan airbase

The US says the strikes were retaliation for an attempted IRGC ballistic missile attack on a US airbase in Jordan as Iranian state media report explosions in the country's south.

Latest News

Oil jumps 8% as US-Iran war pressures Saudi Arabia, explosions hit Egypt

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on July 24, 2026, in New York.

Exclusive

Saudi Arabia to announce Red Sea coalition to counter Houthi threats

Houthi soldiers stand guard on a missile carrier during an official military parade marking the ninth anniversary of the Houthi takeover of the capital, Sanaa, on Sept. 21, 2023.

Amberin Zaman

Jared Szuba

By Amberin Zaman , Jared Szuba

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

Victoria Jones/Getty Images

Iran hard-line press says Tehran will release US prisoners for unfrozen assets

The US State Department has denied reports from three hard-line outlets that billions of dollars in Iranian funds are to be unblocked in exchange for Tehran releasing three imprisoned Iranian-Americans.

Iranians visit the spot in the courtyard of Imam Reza shrine in the northeastern city of Mashhad on April 6, 2022, where a day earlier a Muslim cleric was killed.

Three Iranian clerics stabbed, one killed in attack at shrine

The attack of three Iranian clerics has put authorities on alert about a possible backlash.

blinken

Analysis

The Takeaway: Trump's revenge as Biden deal with Iran stymied by IRGC sanctions

Russia backs Syrian attacks on opposition; Turkish inflation soars as result of Ukraine war; Iran-linked mob attacks Kurdish party offices in Iraq; new generation runs for election in Lebanon; Egypt rallies Africa climate consensus.

Andrew Parasiliti

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Andrew Parasiliti , Elizabeth Hagedorn

IAEA

Iran's parliament presses Raisi to ask for more in nuclear talks

The letter shifted to yet another level an increasingly toughened Iranian position amid the impasse in the Vienna nuclear talks with the United States.

A picture taken on April 24, 2018, shows Iranians reading the Quran.

Culture

Supreme leader wants 10 million Iranians to memorize Quran

Iran’s supreme leader has tweeted controversial statements on numerous occasions, which has sometimes led to censorship from the social media giant.

Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh speaks to media during a press conference in Tehran on Nov. 15, 2021.

Iran blames US for halt in nuclear talks

Iran’s Foreign Ministry claims the United States still has not decided to return to talks.

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh.

Iran slams new US sanctions amid nuclear deal uncertainty

The fresh sanctions targeted a network of Iranian firms over links to the Revolutionary Guards' missile program and came as an impasse in the nuclear deal talks drags on.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (R).

Iran FM: US needs to be ‘realistic’ in nuclear talks

Iran’s foreign minister continues to lobby for the United States to come to an agreement for the revival of the nuclear talks.

Iranian foreign minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian

Iran's foreign minister in China to pursue partnership deal

Top on the agenda is a controversial, long-term partnership pact that critics fear may effectively push the Islamic Republic into becoming a China "colony."

Members of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Iran FM says IRGC sanctions 'red line' for Vienna talks

Iran’s foreign minister has issued a clarification stating that sanctions on the IRGC must be removed before Tehran agrees to a new Iran deal in Vienna talks.

Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein attends a news conference with High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy in Brussels on Jan. 20, 2022.

Analysis

Iraqi foreign minister says Iran nuclear deal in Iraq’s interest

Fuad Hussein, in an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, says Iraq continues to play a role in helping to facilitate dialogue, and de-escalating conflict, between Washington and Tehran.

Week in Review

By Week in Review

A picture shows vehicles blocked in traffic in the capital, Tehran, on March 9, 2022.

Iran's New Year marred by alarming road accident fatalities

Officials said an average of two Iranians have died per hour in the first week of the Nowruz holidays, galvanizing debates on the safety of domestically produced vehicles.