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

Iran cover image

Iran

August 20, 2026

Tehran 4:56 pm

39°C

AHMAD AL-RUBAYE / AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

Iraq seeks special Hormuz access from Iran in scramble to keep oil flowing

As Iran's parliament speaker holds talks in Baghdad, Iraq has asked Tehran for special consideration for its oil exports.

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf speaks during a press conference at the site where Qasem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, was killed by a US airstrike in 2020 near the airport upon his arrival in Baghdad, on Aug. 19, 2026.

Iran’s Ghalibaf makes high-level visit to Iraq ahead of disarmament deadline

The Iraqi parliament speaker is calling on his Iranian counterpart to help Iraq export oil through Hormuz amid the regional conflict.

Latest News

With talks stalled, Iran ups threats against Gulf, Europe: What to know

Pedestrians walk past a billboard depicting Iran's late Supreme Leaders Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Tehran, Iran, June 15, 2026.

Analysis

How failing US-Iran diplomacy is giving way to fresh confrontation

Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

UAE halts all trade ties with Iran after missile attack

Ships are docked along a pier at the Khor Fakkan Container Terminal, the only natural deep-sea port in the region and one of the major container ports in Sharjah Emirate, along the Gulf of Oman on July 14, 2026.

United Arab Emirates

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

The Iranian gap between Obama, Bibi

The perception gap between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the Iranian agreement extends beyond negotiation tactics, with Obama aspiring to rehabilitate relations with Iran.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the weekly cabinet meeting at his office in Jerusalem February 15, 2015. Netanyahu, who is due to address the U.S. Congress on Iran on March 3 - to the annoyance of the Obama administration - has vowed "to foil this bad and dangerous agreement." REUTERS/Abir Sultan/Pool (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4PN1Y

Why is Bibi's speech to Congress key for Israel's security?

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has headed the battle against nuclear Iran for many years, and his upcoming speech to Congress fits in with his concerns for Israel's existence.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry shakes hands with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif before a meeting in Geneva January 14, 2015. Zarif said on Wednesday that his meeting with Kerry was important to see if progress could be made in narrowing differences on his country's disputed nuclear program. REUTERS/Rick Wilking (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4LDWF

Iran Foreign Ministry criticized for implying 'two-step agreement'

The spokeswoman for Iran's Foreign Ministry has been criticized for saying that a political understanding will precede a nuclear agreement.

U.S. President Barack Obama and Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu walk away after a news conference at the Prime Minister's residence in Jerusalem, March 20, 2013. Making his first official visit to Israel, Obama pledged on Wednesday unwavering commitment to the security of the Jewish State where concern over a nuclear-armed Iran has clouded bilateral relations. REUTERS/Larry Downing (JERUSALEM - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3F8TR

Israel fears rapprochement between US, Iran

Some officials in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Israel fear that the United States aspires to replace its traditional Middle East alliance with a moderate Iran.

Iran's President Hassan Rouhani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (L) and Mohammad Nahavandian the Head of Iran Presidential Office (R) arrive for a meeting during the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos January 22, 2014. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - RTX17PZ0

How does Iran make nuclear decisions?

While Iran's supreme leader has the final say on Iran's nuclear program, the decision-making process and the various institutions involved are very hard to parse.

Masoumeh Ebtekar, Vice President of the Islamic Republic of Iran hands a letter from Iran's President Hassan Rouhani to Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (R) at the latter's official residence in Tokyo April 3, 2014. REUTERS/Kimimasa Mayama/Pool (JAPAN - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR3JQOG

Top Iran official warns of climate change

The head of Iran's Environmental Protection Organization has spoken out about the impact of global warming and the water crisis in Iran.

Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal speaks during a rally in Tehran university February 2, 2009. A delegation from Hamas, headed by its leader Meshaal, arrived in Tehran on Sunday as part of a regional push to reinforce support for the Palestinian group after the Israeli invasion of Gaza. REUTERS/Raheb Homavandi (IRAN) - RTXB5LD

Disagreement keeps Hamas-Iran rapprochement on ice

Reports that Iran is insisting on the resignation of Hamas’ political bureau chief Khaled Meshaal in exchange for the resumption of relations between the parties seems to have stalled reconciliation talks for now.

TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY CYRIL JULIEN
Homayoun Sameyah Najaf Abadi, head of Iran's 8,500-strong Jewish community, poses in front of a new memorial for Iran's Jewish people engraved with 10 names -five died fighting in the 1980-88 war against Iraq, three were killed by Saddam Hussein's bombing of Tehran and the other two died in the tumultuous early days of the revolution that ended the shah's rule- at the Beheshtieh Jewish cemetery in southern Tehran, on January 9, 2015. The eight-acre space in south Tehran

Rouhani accommodates Iran's Jewish students

President Hassan Rouhani's administration has taken steps to address the concerns of Iranian Jews, who wish to observe the holy Sabbath without sacrificing their education.

EMBARGOED UNTIL FEBRUARY 12 AT 00:01 AM EST
Ali Rezaian, brother of Washington Post Tehran bureau chief Jason Rezaian who has been detained in Iran since July 2014, speaks alongside Delphine Halgand, USA Director of Reporters Without Borders, as they discuss the World Press Freedom Index 2015 during a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, February 11, 2015. Published since 2002, the World Press Freedrom Index measures the level of freedom of information in 180 countries. AFP PHOTO /

Iran MP wants Washington Post journalist 'confession' aired

A hard-line Iranian parliament member has accused the Hassan Rouhani administration of giving detained Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian access to sensitive areas.

Iran's first vice President Mohammad Reza Rahimi speaks during a press conference with Turkish Prime Minister in Ankara on October 4, 2012. AFP PHOTO / ADEM ALTAN (Photo credit should read ADEM ALTAN/AFP/GettyImages)

Will Iran's corruption fight attract private investors?

Iran has opened a series of high-level judicial cases against former administration officials, leading some to believe that the government is cleaning up its act to attract private investment in the economy.

Students rest at a university while waiting for a final exam in Tehran January 18, 2009. As Barack Obama moves into the White House promising more engagement with Iran's rulers while threatening tougher sanctions, the radicalism of the embassy hostage-takers has given way to cautious hope among many in Iran's universities. Picture taken January 18. To match feature IRAN-OBAMA/STUDENTS REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN) - RTR23LEE

Iran's job seekers lack practical skills

While many young Iranians are now college graduates, many lack the technical and practical work experience to land a job.

U.S. President Barack Obama is flanked by Vice President Joe Biden (L), Secretary of State John Kerry (2nd R) and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel (R) as he delivers a statement on legislation sent to Congress to authorize the use of military force against the Islamic State, from the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington February 11, 2015. Obama asked Congress on Wednesday to authorize military force against Islamic State that would bar any large-scale invasion by U.S. ground troops and limit operati

US optimism on Iran nuclear deal rises

The US administration believes that prospects for reaching an Iran nuclear deal have increased in recent days.