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July 4, 2026

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Motorists drive past a billboard bearing a picture of Iran's slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei, ahead of his funeral in Tehran on July 3, 2026. Iranian leaders began paying their respects on July 3 before the coffin of the country's late supreme leader Ali Khamenei, killed in the US-Israeli strikes that triggered the Middle East war, as Tehran prepared for a vast funeral. Khamenei's body arrived at Tehran's Grand Mosalla on July 3 ahead of ceremonies which are expected to draw millions. (Photo by AFP via Ge

Analysis

As US-Iran talks falter, Israel views war outcome as 'total strategic failure’

Israeli officials believe the US failure to attain the kind of agreement with Iran that it originally sought stems from the strategic mistakes made during and after the recent war.

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

Crude oil tankers, bulk carriers and vessels sit anchored around Qaboos Port on June 22, 2026, in Muscat, Oman.

Oil falls below $71 as US-Iran talks continue, Gulf exports rebound

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said in an X post on Wednesday that Iran and the United States had made "positive progress."

Latest News

Who is Melat Kiros, the pro-Palestinian who unseated a longtime Democrat?

Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images

Explainer

Saudi FM concludes China visit amid Trump-MBS friction: What to know

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi (R) shakes hands with Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud before a family photo for the attendees of a meeting of foreign ministers from Arab and Muslim-majority nations at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing on November 20, 2023. The international community must take urgent action to stop the "humanitarian disaster" unfolding in Gaza, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told visiting diplomats from Arab and Muslim-majority nations on Novembe

Analysis

For Israel, Lebanon deal 'historic' despite fears Hezbollah will rebuild

Shia Muslim devotees gather for a mourning ritual near the shrine of Hassan Nasrallah, the slain leader of the Lebanese Shia movement Hezbollah who was killed in a 2024 Israeli-airstrike, in Beirut's southern suburbs on June 26, 2026 at the peak of Ashura, a 10-day period commemorating the seventh century killing of Prophet Mohammed's grandson Imam Hussein. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP via Getty Images)

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

Adam Lucente

News and Business Correspondent

In New York City, reporting on regional news, militancy, climate change

Elizabeth Hagedorn

Diplomatic Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Jared Szuba

Defense and Security Correspondent

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

Joyce Karam

Editor-in-Chief

Rosaleen Carroll

News Reporter and Supporting Editor

In Washington, DC, US, reporting on the Middle East

Paul J. Saunders

In Washington, DC, reporting on Russia in the Middle East

Siamak Nazami (L) and Baquer Namazi (R) are seen in images provided by their family.

Biden urged to secure release of Americans left behind in Iran

Amid intensifying speculation over a prisoner exchange between the United States and Iran, the family of Siamak and Baquer Namazi is appealing to President Joe Biden to secure their release.

US President Joe Biden (R) talks to Russian President Vladimir Putin prior to the US-Russia summit at the Villa La Grange, in Geneva on June 16, 2021.

Biden discusses imperiled Syrian aid at high-stakes Putin summit

The two leaders met ahead of a looming UN Security Council deadline to renew a massive cross-border aid operation that Russia is intent on shutting down.

Michael McCaul

House Republicans cite 2015 law mandating congressional review of any Iran nuclear deal

Republicans say the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act requires the president submit any deal on Iran's nuclear program to Congress for review. This could complicate the Biden administration's efforts to revive the Iran nuclear deal.

MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images

Republican senators ask Biden's UN rep to highlight Houthi rights abuses

Some Houthi officials in Yemen have already been sanctioned by the United States and the United Nations this year.

US President Joe Biden (R) speaks with Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan prior to a plenary session of a NATO summit at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) headquarters in Brussels, on June 14, 2021.

Erdogan’s meeting with Biden more spin than substance

The two leaders' first meeting as heads of state led to detailed discussions, but there were no breakthroughs.

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) participates in a news conference outside the US Capitol, Washington, May 20, 2021.

Intel: House to vote to repeal 2002 Iraq war authorization

Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) has bipartisan support and a nod of approval from the White House.

Turkish soldiers at Kabul airport

Intel: US engages Turkey over Kabul airport security

Ankara could leave some troops in Afghanistan if Washington provides support.

Ilhan Omar

Rep. Omar clarifies comments on 'atrocities' by the US, Israel, Hamas and the Taliban

The Democratic representative said that domestic courts are insufficient to prosecute crimes against humanity, but her reference prompted criticism from some of her Democratic House colleagues.

A Palestinian member of a Health Ministry mobile unit vaccinates elderly Palestinians against the coronavirus, in the village of Dura near Hebron, West Bank, June 9, 2021.

Middle East countries set to benefit from Biden’s global vaccine initiative

A US State Department spokesperson told Al-Monitor that hard-hit Iran will not be receiving doses at this time.

Antony Blinken

Blinken says Iranian compliance on nuclear deal 'a first step, not a last step'

The US secretary of state told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that there are 'areas where we can get even stronger commitments from Iran.”

Police guard the Grand Hotel on the day the JCPOA Iran nuclear talks are to resume on May 25, 2021, in Vienna, Austria.

Blinken: Iran's nuclear 'breakout time' a matter of weeks if violations continue

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told lawmakers it was unclear if Iran is "willing and prepared" to resume compliance with the nuclear agreement.

Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran Javad Zarif (L) meets with Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza (R) at the Casa Amarilla palace in Caracas, on Nov. 5, 2020.

Pentagon issues warning over Iran warship reportedly headed to Venezuela

The United States is threatening to "deter" Iran's apparent effort to deliver weapons to Venezuela.