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

Iran cover image

Iran

August 18, 2026

Tehran 8:28 pm

37°C

Ships are anchored in the Strait of Hormuz on Aug. 10, 2026, off the coast of Bandar Abbas, Iran.

Iran says understanding reached with Oman over new Hormuz route map

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told reporters in Tehran on Monday that “an understanding has been reached regarding the map of the transit route.”

Smoke rises after explosions were heard and air defences activated near the airport in Erbil, on July 24, 2026.

Explainer

Why Iran targeted Barzani family stronghold in Iraqi Kurdistan

Iran’s Kurdish opposition groups have turned Iraqi Kurdistan into a frontline in the war.

US President Donald Trump delivers remarks at the David S. Mack Center for Training and Intelligence on Aug. 14, 2026 in Garden City, New York.

Trump threatens to bomb Oman if it 'gets in the way' of US-Iran deal

The US president also threatened to "blow up" the Gulf partner in May.

Latest News

Analysis

Why Iran is intensifying wartime crackdown in restive Baluchistan

A Baluch Iranian man rides a bicycle

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Explainer

What would BRICS Bank membership mean for Iran's reeling economy?

Motorists drive vehicles past a billboard depicting Iran's late supreme leader Ali Khamenei along a street in central Tehran on August 8, 2026. Hopes for an imminent US-Iran deal to end the blockage of the Strait of Hormuz added to optimism that oil and gas, along with other key products, would again start flowing freely after more than five months of war. But oil prices turned higher ahead of the weekend in the absence of any confirmation of an accord, amid reports that Iran was planning to block US and Is

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

Syria diplomacy 'stuck'

Hopes of the United States, Europe and Russia to try to ramp up Syria diplomacy in the wake of the Iran nuclear deal have stalled amid Saudi reluctance, and there has been no breakthrough after the flurry of recent diplomatic contacts between Washington, Moscow and Riyadh.

How to rein in Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units

There is an urgent need to organize the Popular Mobilization Units' various groups under the government’s control to avoid chaos and internal divisions that some parties might exploit to achieve their regional agendas.

Iranian deputy foreign minister reasserts leadership on Syria, confidence in Hezbollah

During a visit to Beirut, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein-Amir Abdollahian discussed Lebanese presidential elections and pressing regional issues, including relations between Washington, Riyadh and Moscow concerning Syria and the nuclear agreement.

The new pulse of Gulf security

The Iran nuclear deal and the summit between US President Barack Obama and Saudi King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud could signal a turning point in Gulf security.

Will King Salman’s visit to Washington reset US-Saudi relations?

The joint statement released following King Salman's meeting at the White House with President Barack Obama Sept. 4 indicates that they discussed the region's most pressing issues including the Iran nuclear deal, the Syrian civil war, the fight against the Islamic State and the war in Yemen.

Was Bibi's battle against Iran really a fight for his own survival?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu probably understood a while ago that objecting to the Iran deal would lead nowhere, but insisted on waging the battle against it for domestic political considerations.

House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), L, and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) walk to the House Chamber where members of congress were voting on a package of trade bills in the U.S. Capitol in Washington June 12, 2015. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque - RTX1G9G9

Congress' last hurrah before Iran vote

A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of Sept. 7.

U.S. President Barack Obama meets with Saudi Arabia's King Salman (R) at Erga Palace in Riyadh, January 27, 2015. Obama is stopping in Saudi Arabia on his way back to Washington from India to pay his condolences over the death of King Abdullah and to hold bilateral meetings with King Salman. REUTERS/Jim Bourg (SAUDI ARABIA - Tags: POLITICS ROYALS) - RTR4N551

What Obama should say to King Salman during his visit

The inaugural visit of Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud to Washington offers US President Barack Obama a unique opportunity to address the long-standing tensions and rivalry between Iran, Iraq and the GCC states.

Iran's lucrative kidney market

Home to the world's only legalized kidney market, Iran is seeing a boom in the kidney trade.

Khamenei says sanctions must be removed, not suspended

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei spoke in detail about the need for sanctions to be removed, rather than suspended, in regard to the comprehensive nuclear deal.

A man works at his house after an earthquake in Saravan, about 1,400 km (869 miles) southeast of Tehran, in this April 18, 2013 photo taken during government tour to affected areas. A powerful earthquake struck a border area of southeast Iran on Tuesday killing at least 35 people in neighbouring Pakistan, destroying hundreds of houses and shaking buildings as far away as India and Gulf Arab states. Picture taken April 18, 2013. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN - Tags: DISASTER) - RTXYS0N

Small quakes shake loose big fears in Tehran

A recent series of small quakes near Tehran revives fears of the consequences of a major tremor striking the Iranian capital.

Assad’s 'reputation trap' for Moscow

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, in his fear of losing the support of Russia, may be backing Russia into a corner of sorts.