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July 3, 2026

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People ride motorcycles past a large billboard showing portraits of Iran's late supreme leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (L), and slain supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) in central Tehran on June 8, 2026.

Analysis

From Beirut to Bab el Mandeb, Iran tests new deterrence strategy

Tehran views its latest clash with Israel as a watershed moment and proof that any attack on its regional allies can trigger direct and immediate retaliation.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Members of Houthi security forces stand guard while supporters of Yemen's Houthi movement attend an event commemorating the ninth anniversary of the Saudi-led intervention in their country, in the capital, Sanaa, on March 26, 2026.

Exclusive

Senior Houthi official says Bab el Mandab closure an option if any Gulf states join war

Houthi Deputy Information Minister Mohammed Mansour also said the strait could be closed “should the aggression against Iran and Lebanon escalate.”

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

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

Saudis shop for fresh products at a market in Riyadh on Feb. 18, 2026, on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Saudi Arabia.

Analysis

Alternative supply routes emerge as Iran war tests Gulf food security

Roughly 61 million people in the Gulf rely on established food supply chains, many of which have been upended since the United States and Israel launched their attack against Iran on Feb. 28.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Latest News

Analysis

In Saudi Arabia, Erdogan fosters security alignment, $30B trade push

Riyadh

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Yemen’s Houthis hint at Red Sea attacks as US-Iran tensions rise: What to know

Galaxy Leader

Thousands rally for South Yemen independence amid Saudi diplomatic push

AFP via Getty Images

Egypt's economy can weather more Red Sea attacks, says finance minister

Ships sail along Egypt's Suez Canal near Ismailia on April 16, 2025.

People walk at the site of a Saudi-led air strike in Yemen's capital Sanaa September 21, 2015. More than 4,500 Yemeni have been killed since the Saudi-led alliance began military operations in March, in what they said was an attempt to stop the Iranian-allied Houthi group from expanding in Yemen and to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who had been pushed into exile in Saudi Arabia. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah - RTS253B

Will there be peace in Yemen?

Signs point to Saudi Arabia wanting out of its war in Yemen as Oman-mediated talks open with the Shiite Houthi rebels.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

Iranian naval ships take part in a naval parade on the last day of the Velayat-90 war game in the Sea of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran January 3, 2012. Iran will take action if a U.S. aircraft carrier which left the area because of Iranian naval exercises returns to the Gulf, the state news agency quoted army chief Ataollah Salehi as saying o

Six reasons Iran won’t join war in Yemen

Even if Iran considers Yemen as an opportunity to expand its influence, it views averting the crisis there at hand is more important than directly entering it.

How much more can Yemen’s heritage sites take?

The ancient city of Sanaa in conflict-torn Yemen is at risk of complete destruction as its historical landmarks keep taking one blow after the other.

Protesters carry banners and wave Lebanese, Yemeni and Hezbollah flags during a protest against Saudi-led air strikes on Yemen, in front of the offices of the U.N. headquarters in Beirut May 12, 2015. Saudi-led air strikes pounded the rebel-held Yemeni capital Sanaa on Tuesday just hours before a five-day humanitarian ceasefire was set to begin. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir - RTX1CNBR

Is the Saudi, Lebanese relationship gone for good?

In retaliation for Hezbollah’s support of the Houthis in Yemen, Saudi Arabia has launched a campaign designed to pressure Lebanon.

Lebanese Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Samir Moqbel (L) speaks during a joint news conference with French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian at Beirut airport airbase during a ceremony to give weapons to the Lebanese army April 20, 2015. The first shipment of French weapons and military equipment arrived in Lebanon on Monday under a Saudi-funded deal worth $3 billion to bolster the Lebanese army's fight against militants encroaching from neighboring Syria. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir - RTX19GVB

What is Riyadh's endgame in Lebanon?

In an effort to condemn Iran, Saudi Arabia is setting its sights on Hezbollah and Lebanon.

Lebanese army soldiers stand next to displayed weapons that they received during a ceremony at Beirut airport airbase April 20, 2015. The first shipment of French weapons and military equipment arrived in Lebanon on Monday under a Saudi-funded deal worth $3 billion to bolster the Lebanese army's fight against militants encroaching from neighboring Syria. (From L to R) The national flags of Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and France are displayed during the ceremony. REUTERS/Mohamed Azakir - RTX19H2B

Saudis increasingly frustrated with Lebanon

The Saudis, who aspire to expand their status in the Gulf, are growing ever more frustrated with Lebanon.

UNICEF's representative in Yemen, Julien Harneis, listens to a boy during a visit to Yemen's southwestern city of Taiz January 21, 2016. REUTERS/Anees Mahyoub - RTX23EIY

Death, starvation haunt southern Yemen

The catastrophic humanitarian situation in Yemen’s besieged Taiz calls for immediate action to lift the siege that has strangled the city for almost a year.

A member of the Saudi security forces stands guard as other demonstrate their skills during a military exercise in Arar, near Saudi Arabia's northern border with Iraq March 18, 2015. REUTERS/Faisal AlNasser (SAUDI ARABIA - Tags: MILITARY POLITICS) - RTR4TWNJ

Are latest war games just a face-saver for Riyadh?

Saudi Arabia is hosting over 150,000 troops from 20 countries for military exercises in the northeast, but while officially aimed at deterring Iran, they could have a very different purpose.

U.S. President Barack Obama (L) welcomes Oman's Deputy Prime Minister Sayyid Fahd bin Mahmoud Al Said as he plays host to leaders and delegations from the Gulf Cooperation Council countries at the White House in Washington May 13, 2015. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst - RTX1CV9P

How Oman is helping Obama shut down Guantanamo Bay

As the primary destination for transferred Guantanamo Bay prisoners, Oman solidifies its role as a diplomatic back channel for the United States.

Yemenis, hoping to obtain a flight ticket back to Yemen, wait outside a branch office of Yemenia Airways after being stranded in Cairo, April 28, 2015. At least 15 people were killed in heavy fighting between Houthi fighters and tribesmen in the oil-producing Marib province in central Yemen, tribal and medical sources said on Tuesday, as Saudi-led air strikes against the Iran-allied militia continued. REUTERS/Asmaa Waguih - RTX1AND4

Displaced Yemenis suffer in silence in Egypt

Despite the war raging in their country, Yemen’s displaced citizens in Egypt await the day they can return.

As health system collapses, disease kills more Yemenis

The blockades imposed by the warring Saudi-led Arab coalition and Houthi rebels in Yemen have caused severe medicine shortages, which in turn led to the spread of diseases.

Why Yemen may not be heading for a split

Have southern Yemeni rebel leaders forfeited their quest to secede in exchange for positions of power or are they building political strength and biding their time?