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Iran

February 28, 2026

Tehran 10:39 am

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A cyclist rides past an anti-US billboard installed on a building along a street in Tehran on Feb. 26, 2026.

Analysis

How survival mode has reshaped Iran's calculations for potential US war

Iran is blending cautious diplomacy with fortified defenses, a survival mindset and readiness to escalate strategically if challenged.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Sayed Hassan/Getty Images

Shipping giant Maersk diverts from Suez route amid Iran-US tension

The shift comes in reaction to the growing possibility of a military confrontation between the United States and Iran.

An F-18E fighter jet takes off from the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, Sept. 24, 2025.

Analysis

Israel, 'ready' for Iran escalation, looks to US to take lead

Israel ramps up military readiness as the world’s largest aircraft carrier approaches Haifa.

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

The US Navy aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford departs Souda Bay on the island of Crete on February 26, 2026. (Photo by Costas METAXAKIS / AFP via Getty Images)

China, Canada urge citizens to leave Iran as Tehran proxies threaten US

Other countries including the US and Australia have called for the families of diplomats to leave Lebanon and Israel amid concerns of a regional spillover.

Latest News

US embassy in Israel authorizes non-essential staff, families to leave

Israel US embassy

US aircraft carrier nears Middle East as Geneva talks end without Iran breakthrough

The US Navy aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford departs Souda Bay on the island of Crete, on Feb. 26, 2026.

Live Updates

US, Iran resume nuclear talks as Trump ratchets up war threats

Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP via Getty Images

Australia urges diplomats' dependents to leave Lebanon, Israel: What to know

Emergency workers check the damage caused to a building from an Iranian missile strike in Beersheba in southern Israel on June 24, 2025. Israel said on June 24 it had agreed to US President Donald Trump's proposal for a ceasefire with Iran, on the 12th day of war between the foes. (Photo by John Wessels / AFP) (Photo by JOHN WESSELS/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

People push carts loaded with coffins of Afghan nationals who died in Iran after receiving them at an Afghan-Iran border crossing in Zaranj on Sept. 8, 2021.

Afghan crisis exposes rifts across Iran's political spectrum

At the two ends of Iran's political spectrum angry voices are being heard in a fierce battle over the ongoing crisis in Afghanistan, and especially the question of support for resistance forces in Panjshir Valley.

Mikhail Ulyanov, Moscow’s permanent representative to International Organizations in Vienna, mets with US Iran Envoy Robert Malley in Vienna, Austria, May 16, 2021.

The Takeaway: Iran nuclear diplomacy creeps forward in Moscow and Paris

Also: Taliban’s success inspires Syrian jihadis; Russia’s delicate diplomacy in Syria and Turkey; Nile dam parley peters out; IDF snared in political rift; Egypt’s Avenue of the Sphinxes; and more … in only about 1,500 words.

Iranian Quds force commander Esmail Ghaani speaks during a ceremony on the occasion of the first anniversary of death of former Iran's Quds force commander Qasem Soleimani in Tehran, on Jan. 1, 2021.

Quds Force commander says Iran will take 'realistic' approach in Afghanistan

Iran must strike a balance between accepting the reality of the Taliban and supporting Shiite and other ethnic groups.

An Iranian Kurdish peshmerga member of the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) sprays red paint on holes in a wall made by shrapnel from a rocket attack days earlier.

Iranian commander warns Iraqi Kurdish government about harboring opposition

The IRGC's rare warning has fueled fears about civilian casualties in the Kurdish villages stretching on the Iran-Iraq border.

Zahra Nemati of Team Iran celebrates her gold medal in the Women's Individual Recurve gold final on day 9 of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games at Yumenoshima Park Archery Field, Tokyo, Japan, Sept. 2, 2021.

Iranians set records at Tokyo 2020 Paralympics

Iran is currently leading Middle Eastern states in medals won at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

An exterior view of the building of US Department of the Treasury is seen on March 27, 2020 in Washington, DC.

US sanctions four Iranians over plot to kidnap New York activist

The newly designated Iranian intelligence operatives were charged in July with conspiring to kidnap a New York-based activist and journalist.

A man walks past some of the thousands of photos of people killed in Iran during the 1988 massacre of political prisoners.

Iranian man 'lashed to death' over alcohol possession

While the family released videos of the victim's body with lash marks, authorities claim his death was caused by deteriorating health.

This courtroom sketch shows Iranian defendant Hamid Noury (2ndL) sitting in the District Court of Stockholm with his defense attorney Daniel Marcus (3rdL) on the opening of his trial for "war crimes and murder" on Aug. 10, 2021.

Iran opens 'drug-trafficking' trial of two Swedish nationals

The drug-smuggling trial comes as Sweden prosecutes a former Iranian official linked to the mass killing of dissidents in 1988.

Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi speaks before parliament in the capital, Tehran, on Aug. 25, 2021.

The Takeaway: Iranian foreign policy under Raisi takes shape

Also: Shapiro appointment welcomed in Israel; Gantz meeting doesn’t help Abbas’ popularity; "Saudization" of labor gets slow start; Turkey’s targeted killings in Syria; Sextortion in Egypt; More … in about 1,300 words.

An Iranian health worker inoculates a young man against the coronavirus, at a vaccination centre set up inside the Iran Mall in the capital Tehran, on Aug. 14, 2021.

With new Iranian president comes new promises of vaccines

The new administration has made a number of promises on vaccines.

A picture obtained by AFP from the Iranian news agency Tasnim on January 31, 2021, shows Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif (2nd-R) meeting with Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar (2nd-L) of the Taliban in Tehran.

Iran-Afghan trade has murky future under Taliban

While the chaos that followed the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan will present challenges to trade, resulting geopolitical shifts could provide some opportunities for Tehran.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian attends an extraordinary meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on June 16, 2015, in the Saudi Red Sea city of Jeddah.

Iran warns US against wasting time in nuclear talks

Iran's hard-line foreign minister said Tehran will only pursue talks that bear tangible outcomes.