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

Iran cover image

Iran

August 8, 2026

Tehran 12:06 pm

30°C

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif in Mecca after signing the defense pact, Aug. 7, 2026.

Analysis

How Saudi-Turkey-Pakistan pact puts Iran's regional strategy to test

The defense agreement is not an anti-Iran bloc, but it may reflect a deeper regional adjustment to years of Iranian asymmetric warfare as well as uncertainty over US security commitments.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

US President Donald Trump (R) meets with Jordanian King Abdullah II in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, DC, Feb. 11, 2025.

Analysis

Jordan shores up US lifelines as Iran targets Amman’s reliance on Washington

Already a leading recipient of US aid, Jordan has secured fresh funds from the United States as the Iran war tests Amman and Washington's partnerships.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Hussein FALEH / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

As US rethinks regional presence, Israel shifts focus to destabilizing Iran

Uncertain how to interpret the American regional redeployment, Israel is focusing on efforts to destabilize the Iranian regime and stop its nuclear program.

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

Latest News

Explainer

Iran-Oman deal spurs Hormuz hopes as Red Sea threats evolve

Khaled ZIAD / AFP via Getty Images

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

Why Iran needs China to act on far more than oil imports

China may be defying US sanctions by likely resuming limited oil imports from Iran, but even that is a largely symbolic move unless Beijing also steps up non-oil trade with Tehran.

Egypt boosts ties with Gulf countries amid Iranian threats

Egypt has expressed concerns over the growing Iranian threats in the region, fearing it might affect navigation in the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.

After decades, Iran, Iraq ready to dredge the Shatt al-Arab

Iran and Iraq hope to revive the Shatt al-Arab as a source of clean water as well as a generator of increased commerce and tourism.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani speaks about the nuclear deal in Tehran, Iran May 8, 2018 in this still image taken from video. IRINN/Reuters TV via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. IRAN OUT. TV RESTRICTIONS: BROADCASTERS: No Use Iran. No Use BBC Persian. No Use Manoto. No Use VOA Persian. DIGITAL: No Use Iran. No Use BBC Persian. No Use Manoto. No Use VOA Persian. For Reuters customers only. - RC1F80659CA0

US 'maximum pressure' changing Iranian attitudes toward nuclear program

Amid rising anti-Americanism in Iran, attitudes are hardening, even among moderate elites, with some now espousing the use of the nuclear program as a deterrent.

U.S. President Donald Trump listens during a news conference with Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at Akasaka Palace state guest house in Tokyo, Japan, May 27, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC1B9AAE6980

Skeptics wary as Trump appears to ease off Iran

The tense rhetoric between Tehran and Washington appears to be settling down after US President Donald Trump asserted that he is not pursuing regime change, but his latest remarks were received with skepticism in Iran.

Members of the Iraqi pro-government Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation) paramilitary forces gather in a street in the modern town of Hatra, near the eponymous UNESCO-listed ancient city, southwest of the northern city of Mosul, on April 28, 2017.
Iraqi forces retook the town of Hatra, southwest of Mosul, on the third day of an operation that saw them wrest back the archeological site from the Islamic State group. The ancient city is one of the heritage jewels of Iraq and was damaged by IS after they too

PMU economic offices undermine fragile stability in Mosul

The Popular Mobilization Units are spreading their economic influence in Mosul after playing a main part in the city's liberation.

Iranian reformist MP, Mostafa Kavakebian, poses after registering his candidacy for the upcoming presidential elections at the ministry of interior in the capital Tehran on April 14, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran's Reformists push for constitutional amendments

Reformist parliamentarians are pushing for a third round of constitutional amendments since Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Zarif seeks help from Pakistan

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif visits Islamabad with an eye toward receiving help in dealing with Iran's economic woes and its issues with Washington and Riyadh.

A woman uses her mobile phone to take picture of the damage created by debris, after ballistic missiles fired by Yemen's Houthi militia, fell at a house in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia March 26, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Al Nasser - RC13CCD3D530

Trump declares Iran emergency to bypass Congress on Gulf arms sales

The Donald Trump administration cited Iran as the justification to invoke emergency powers to transfer arms to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates over congressional objections.

U. S. sailors watch the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in Arabian Sea, May 17, 2019. Picture taken May 17, 2019. Nicholas R. Boris/U.S. Navy/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS- THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. - RC11514055E0

US says Gulf troop surge ‘defensive in nature’

The Pentagon announced it will send additional US forces to the Middle East, but whether this is a smart defensive move or an unnecessary escalation of tensions with Iran remains to be seen.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani (R) arrives to address the 73rd session of the United Nations General Assembly at U.N. headquarters in New York, U.S., September 25, 2018. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri - HP1EE9P1EGI66

Iran vs. US: From Talk of War to Talk of Talk

Trump repeats his offer of talks with Iran, but Iran is not interested.

U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks during an event to announce a proposal to end surprise medical billing in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., May 9, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RC1C62BF4AB0

Iran calling: How Iranians use humor to cope with Trump

The US president’s statement that he hoped Iran would ring him up to reach a settlement has stimulated Iran's caustic wit — a talent perfected over centuries.