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Iran

September 30, 2026

Tehran 5:04 pm

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A woman crosses a street near a giant billboard erected on the facade of a building depicting a member of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps placing his foot on a US sea drone, reportedly seized by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, in Vanak Square in Tehran, on Sept. 24, 2026.

Analysis

As Iran’s grip on Hormuz weakens, what leverage does Tehran have left?

Six months into the war, Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz is weakening. The world is slowly learning to live with it, oil flows are recovering, alternative routes are expanding and Tehran's own economy is bearing the cost of keeping the waterway under pressure.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Iranian-made Zolfaghar missiles are seen on display beside a large portrait of Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei at Baharestan Square in Tehran on Sept. 28, 2026.

After indirect talks, new US sanctions target Iran's weapons supply

The latest sanctions come after the two sides held another round of indirect talks over a possible deal to end the war.

Saudi stocks hit wartime low as Aramco slides, Gulf oil exports rebound

Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All-Share Index fell 1.17% on Tuesday, dragged down by oil giant Aramco, as investors digested signs that Gulf oil exports are recovering.

A man counts Iranian rial notes

Iran’s rial hits record low as pressure on oil exports mounts

The rial was trading at more than 2.5 million to the dollar in Tehran's open market on Tuesday.

Latest News

Iran’s IRGC slams Trump as Ghalibaf threatens oil infrastructure

Ghalibaf

Iraq announces Iran flights to resume: What to know

An Airbus A321 airliner arrives at the Mehrabad international airport during the delivery of the first batch of planes to the Iranian state airline Iran Air in the capital Tehran on Jan. 12, 2017.

New US aircraft carrier heads to Middle East as Iran war stretches on

In this handout released by the US Navy on July 15, 2010, the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) transits the Pacific Ocean.

Iran rallies thousands of volunteer fighters as talks with US stall: What to know

Members of Iran's Basij paramilitary force march with riffles during a military rally named Jan-Fada in Tehran, Sept. 18, 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

BAKR ALKASEM/AFP via Getty Images

Iran, Turkey brace for face-off in Syria

Iran has been trying to dissuade Turkey from a fresh intervention in Syria while making military preparations on the ground to protect its interests amid a growing rift between the two neighbors.

HASSAN AMMAR/AFP via Getty Images

Researchers say Iran's doing nothing to protect young people from addiction

Addiction among young Iranians is worrying experts who say that as confusion and inconsistency characterize the country's handling of the malady.

JOE KLAMAR/AFP via Getty Images

Iran pledges 'firm' response to IAEA resolution, switches off cameras

Prospects for supervision of Iran's nuclear activities went cloudy as the UN nuclear watchdog chief decried a potential "fatal blow" from Iran's disabling of 27 IAEA-installed cameras at its key facilities.

India protest

Iran moves on from India's Prophet Muhammad controversy

Iranian diplomats have praised India’s response to members of its ruling Bharatiya Janata Party who insulted Islam.

Iran's political attache at the permanent mission to the Vienna-based international organizations Khodayar Rouzbahani.

Iran turns off nuclear site cameras in response to IAEA

Iran and the IAEA continue escalatory measures.

An Iranian boy takes a tray of eggs at a grocery store in Tehran on Sept. 30, 2012.

Retirees join Iran protests over economic grievances

The rallies were sparked by unprecedented rising prices across the food sector under President Ebrahim Raisi's economic policies.

Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh holds a press conference in Tehran on May 9, 2022.

Iran warns IAEA against resolution

Iran has threatened to reduce its cooperation with the IAEA if a resolution is written against it.

Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian (L) meets with head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi (R) in Tehran on March 5, 2022.

Analysis

Limits on Iran’s nuclear program are needed more than ever

Two recent IAEA reports indicate Iran has enough highly enriched uranium to produce material for a nuclear weapon in mere weeks.

Mark Fitzpatrick

By Mark Fitzpatrick

A man stands on the bank of the Shatt al-Arab waterway, formed at the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, in Iraq's southern city of Basra on May 23, 2022, during a sandstorm sweeping the country.

Iran, Iraq, Syria to cooperate on sandstorms

Sandstorms have pummeled the region this year, particularly Iraq.

Iranian Basij paramilitary forces.

Tehran denounces GCC over missile comments

The GCC enumerated worries about Iran and its "destabilizing behavior," triggering typically strong rhetoric from Tehran.

A boy listens to Live Go-Go music playing at Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, DC, on June 19, 2021.

Iran calls exodus of Black staffers from Biden White House 'systematic racial discrimination'

Iran has criticized the treatment of Black Americans before, but the Islamic Republic has its own issues with discrimination against Kurds, Arabs, Jews and others.

Bijan Khajehpour

Analysis

The Takeaway: Iran hoped to close nuclear deal before economic reforms, says expert

Israeli exodus from Turkey over Iranian threat; Turkey takes aim at Syrian towns; Manbij residents brace for Turkish attack; desperation in Yemen’s displacement camps; Egyptian dance music livens up "Moon Knight."

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Andrew Parasiliti

By Elizabeth Hagedorn , Andrew Parasiliti