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Iran

August 3, 2026

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An Egyptian man looks at the Qatari Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) carrier "Duhail" as its passes through the Suez Canal near the Egyptian port city of Ismailia on April 1, 2008. The vessel has a capacity of 210,100 cu.m making it one of the largest LNG carriers constructed to date. AFP PHOTO/STR (Photo credit should read -/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

How strike on Damietta port exposes Egypt's energy infrastructure risks

The unclaimed attack on the port of Damietta could draw Egypt further into the US-Iran conflict as experts point to growing threats to critical infrastructure in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Palestinian Hamas militants arrive to secure the area as Egyptian workers accompanied by members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), search for the last two remaining bodies of hostages -an Israeli soldier and a Thai national- from under the rubble of the Jabalia refugee camp, in the northern of Gaza Strip on Dec. 1, 2025.

Analysis

How Hamas disarmament deal may test Iran's regional strategy

A possible Hamas decision to disarm would represent more than a Gaza development, testing Iran's decades-old strategy of projecting power through regional allies.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Mourners carry one of the bodies of members of Iraq's Hashed al-Shaabi, or Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) who were killed earlier in Diyala in central Iraq by US-Saudi strikes, during the funeral in Baghdad on July 29, 2026. The US-Saudi strikes killed at least 20 militants, including Iranians, according to the Hashed al-Shaabi. The US and Saudi Arabia said the strikes were in response to attacks on US forces and Saudi oil facilities. (Photo by murtadha ridha / AFP via Getty Images) /

Analysis

Renewed Iraq attacks test Zaidi’s push to disarm Iran-backed militias

An attempt by Iraqi government forces to seize weapons belonging to an Iranian-backed faction encountered resistance, raising questions about Prime Minister Ali Zaidi’s pledge to disarm militias by Sept. 30.

Mustafa Salim

By Mustafa Salim

Latest News

Analysis

No Iran commitment, no Trump endorsement: Netanyahu leaves US empty-handed

US President Donald Trump walks to board Marine One on the Ellipse near the White House in Washington, DC, on July 31, 2026. President Trump is traveling to Camp David in Maryland to hold a cabinet meeting and later to Bedminster, New Jersey to spend the weekend at his golf club. (Photo by Oliver Contreras / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Iran’s new calculus: Strike first, talk later

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

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

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

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

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani (C) arrives to address parliament in the capital, Tehran, on Sept. 3, 2019. In the address, he ruled out holding any bilateral talks with the United States, saying the Islamic Republic is opposed to such negotiations in principle. He also said Iran was ready to further reduce its commitments to a landmark 2015 nuclear deal "in the coming days" if current negotiations yield no results by Sept. 5.

Will Iran’s supreme leader allow Rouhani’s last wish to come true?

As Washington and Tehran make small progress on resolving their dispute over the 2015 nuclear deal, it remains unclear whether Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will support President Hassan Rouhani's efforts to negotiate.

2018 Istanbul protest against Saudi actions in Yemen

Could Turkish involvement in Yemen free Saudi Arabia?

The Muslim Brotherhood and sources close to the Turkish government are arguing that Saudi Arabia could find a face-saving exit from the Yemen conflict it has been looking for by cooperating with Turkey.

Antony Blinken and Borrell

US views EU-led Iran nuclear talks as a 'positive step'

Representatives from China, Russia, France, Germany and Britain will meet virtually with Iran on Friday to discuss the possible return of the United States to the nuclear accord.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi (C), sign an agreement in the capital Tehran, on March 27, 2021.

Zarif throws full weight behind contentious Iran-China deal

Iran’s foreign minister went to lengths to reject criticism and justify a long-term deal with China, which many Iranians fear is a package of concessions.

Rouhani with Khamenei portrait behind

Iran's Rouhani: 'We have to pursue negotiations daily'

Rouhani makes a public plea that Iran has waited two months and should hold talks on reentry into the nuclear deal.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, are pictured during the signing of an agreement in the capital, Tehran, on March 27, 2021. Iran and China signed what state television called a "25-year strategic cooperation pact," as the US rivals move closer together.

Can China balance ties with Iran and the GCC?

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi must take care not to "underestimate the differences" between Iran and the GCC countries.

Iran' Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) meets with the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi (R), in Tehran on Feb. 21, 2021. Iran said it had held "fruitful discussions" with the UN nuclear watchdog chief, ahead of a deadline when it is set to restrict the agency's inspections unless the United States lifts painful sanctions. Grossi's visit comes amid stepped-up efforts between US President Joe Biden's administration, European powers and Iran to salvage th

Iran shuns reported US offer on nuclear deal

A US proposal reportedly demanding Iran halt its current nuclear enrichment in exchange for sanctions removal was turned down by the Iranian side.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (R) and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, pose for a picture after signing an agreement in the capital, Tehran, on March 27, 2021. Iran and China signed what state television called a "25-year strategic cooperation pact" today as the US rivals move closer together. The agreement, which has been kept almost entirely under wraps, was signed by the two countries' foreign ministers, Mohammad Javad Zarif and Wang Yi, an AFP correspondent reported.

Iran, China sign long-term economic deal

The deal between Iran and China is more of a “road map” than a specific deal.

Amos Yadlin

Iran suspected of being behind missile that hit Israeli vessel

An unnamed senior Israeli security official suggests that a missile that hit a container ship owned by an Israeli company may have fired by Iran.

Smoke billows following an airstrike by Saudi-led coalition in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, on June 16, 2020.

Iran downplays Saudi peace plan for Yemen conflict

Iranian authorities continue to cast doubt on the latest Saudi peace proposal for Yemen, where Tehran and Riyadh have been locking horns for more than six years in a deadly proxy war.

Youths play an online multiplayer game at an internet cafe in Iran's capital Tehran on January 24, 2021.

IRGC forms group to monitor internet in Iran

The IRGC announced the formation of a new group to carry out the plans of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe protest

Iran renews call on UK to pay off outstanding debt

The Iranian government is widely accused of using the case of a jailed British-Iranian activist as a pressure tool to secure the repayment of the long-standing debt.