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

Iran cover image

Iran

October 2, 2026

Tehran 7:54 pm

25°C

A Caspian Airlines McDonnell Douglas MD-83 lands at Sabiha Gokcen Airport in Istanbul, Turkey, on Aug. 17, 2014.

Turkey seizes Iran’s Caspian Airlines jet over $3.4M debt

The court-ordered seizure at Istanbul Airport comes as Iranian carriers face mounting pressure from sweeping new US aviation sanctions.

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.

Latest News

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

A man counts Iranian rial notes

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.

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 Rouhani suggests nuclear deal’s fate is in Biden’s hands

President Hassan Rouhani said Iran will resume full compliance with the nuclear deal as soon as his incoming American counterpart uses his signature to rejoin the same accord.

Iran makes arrests in nuclear scientist's killing, official says

Iranian parliamentary adviser Hossein Amir Abdollahian said some of the "perpetrators" had been identified and arrested.

A medical professional prepares a syringe with a dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, before it is administered to a patient at Croydon University Hospital in south London on December 8, 2020. - Britain on December 8 hailed a turning point in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, as it begins the biggest vaccination programme in the country's history with a new Covid-19 jab. (Photo by Dan CHARITY / POOL / AFP) (Photo by DAN CHARITY/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran accuses US of blocking coronavirus vaccine purchases

Iranian officials said US sanctions have impeded their attempts to secure the purchase of coronavirus vaccines for their country, which remains the hardest-hit in the Middle East.

Rafael Grossi (R), Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), listens to Iran's Atomic Energy Vice-President Ali Akbar Salehi, who attends virtually the 64th General Conference of the IAEA at the agency's headquarters in Vienna, Austria on September 21, 2020. (Photo by JOE KLAMAR / AFP) / The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by JOE KLAMAR has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [Ali Akbar Salehi] instead of [Zarif]. Please immediately rem

European powers call Iran’s enrichment plans 'deeply worrying'

The governments of France, Germany and the United Kingdom expressed concerns over Iran's reported plan to install additional centrifuges at its Natanz nuclear facility.

A woman walk by a billboard in honour of slain nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh in the Iranian capital Tehran, on November 30, 2020. - Iran laid to rest a nuclear scientist in a funeral befitting a top "martyr", vowing to redouble his work after an assassination pinned on arch-foe Israel. Fakhrizadeh died on November 27 from his wounds after assailants targeted his car and engaged in a gunfight with his bodyguards outside the capital, according to the defence ministry, heightening tensions once more bet

Iran claims scientist was assassinated via satellite

Commanders in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have said that Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was killed by use of satellite and face recognition.

Biden: 'Hard to tell' how scientist’s killing would impact Iran negotiations

The recent assassination of Iranian scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh could complicate Biden's pledge to rejoin the nuclear agreement.

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 14: President Barack Obama, standing with Vice President Joe Biden, conducts a press conference in the East Room of the White House in response to the Iran Nuclear Deal, on July 14, 2015 in Washington, DC. The landmark deal will limit Iran's nuclear program in exchange for relief from international sanctions. The agreement, which comes after almost two years of diplomacy, has also been praised by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani. (Photo by Andrew Harnik - Pool/Getty Images)

Israel worries that Biden will re-adopt Obama’s Iran policy

The most important thing now for Israel’s security agencies is for the Biden administration to dialogue with them and include them over its future Iran policy.

Trump administration imposes new sanctions on Iranian company

The administration is continuing to add sanctions on Iranian entities ahead of President-elect Joe Biden's taking office. Biden could remove some of the sanctions.

Iranian-Swedish scientist's execution on hold for 'next few days'

Amnesty International said Ahmadreza Djalali's execution has been halted for now, but his fate is unclear. The rights group, Sweden and the UN are protesting Iran's treatment of him.

Iran says no new negotiations until US reenters nuclear deal

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the United States must reenter the nuclear deal without preconditions.

Biden reaffirms pledge to revive Iranian nuclear deal

In an interview with The New York Times, Biden said rejoining the landmark agreement is the best way to avoid a nuclear buildup in the region.

Iran identifies perpetrators as it probes scientist’s killing

The Iranian government said it has identified those linked to the assassination of one of its top nuclear scientists and will retaliate after the investigation is concluded.