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Iran

March 3, 2026

Tehran 8:48 am

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Staff from Qatar Airways help assist people with questions at their empty check-in area at London Heathrow Airport in west London on March 1, 2026, as flights are severely disrupted following the US and Israel's strikes on Iran.

State Department urges Americans in Middle East to leave immediately

The latest travel advisory applies to nearly the entire region and comes as the US Embassy in Jordan evacuated all personnel due to an unspecified threat.

A man rides a motorbike past a billboard of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Tehran on March 2, 2026.

Analysis

As Iran weighs Khamenei’s successor, some question future of role

Iran faces uncertainty as the process of choosing Khamenei’s successor unfolds, with some experts saying that wartime conditions and the lack of a clear heir could prompt debate over whether the supreme leader’s office should continue in its traditional form.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Small boats loaded with merchandise sail past the St. Kitt's and Nevis-flagged container ship Marsa Victory in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Khasab in Oman's northern Musandam Peninsula, on June 25, 2025.

Hormuz traffic slows as Iran threatens to set 'ships on fire'

Maritime intelligence company Lloyd’s List reported on Sunday that no traceable passages have been made by major crude tankers through the Strait of Hormuz since Saturday night.

A food delivery bike drive close to a plume of smoke rising from the Zayed Port following a reported Iranian strike in Abu Dhabi on March 1, 2026. Iran's retaliatory missile and drone campaign in the Gulf has killed three people and wounded 58 in the United Arab Emirates since it began, Emirati authorities said on March 1, the day after the US and Israel launched a nationwaide attack on Iran killing its supreme leader. (Photo by Ryan Lim / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

From oil to data centers, US-Iran war takes key Mideast infrastructure offline

Although disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz have long been expected as a by-product of a regional war with Iran, Tehran is expanding the list of targets — with other key energy assets potentially in the crosshairs.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Latest News

With Gulf partners under fire from Iran, will Europe step up its defense?

Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Meet Alireza Arafi, a Khamenei confidant on Iran’s Leadership Council

Ayatollah Alireza Arafi, a member of Iran’s interim leadership council.

Trump pledges 'whatever it takes,' signals Iran war could last weeks

US President Donald Trump arrives for a Medal of Honor Ceremony in the East Room of the White House on March 2, 2026, in Washington.

Exclusive

Israel anticipates anti-regime protests in Iran, unlikely to invade Lebanon

Majid Saeedi/Getty Images

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

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

US sells seized Iranian fuel, seeks forfeiture of missiles

The United States has sold and delivered the 1.1 million barrels of Iranian oil seized from four Venezuela-bound vessels in August.

Iran tries to mediate cease-fire between Azerbaijan, Armenia

The fighting on Iran’s northwestern border has begun to alarm officials who are attempting to mediate a cease-fire between the two sides.

Egyptian, Iranian leaders criticize French president over comments on freedom of expression

French President Emmanuel Macron angered many Muslim leaders when he defended images of the prophet of Islam after a Parisian teacher was beheaded for showing such images.

Iranian plane sanctioned by US lands in Venezuela

It is unclear what the aircraft brought. The United States maintains sanctions on both Iran and Venezuela.

Iran's Atomic Energy Vice-President Ali Akbar Salehi, is seen speaking on a screen as he attends virtually the 64th General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at its headquarters in Vienna, Austria on September 21, 2020. (Photo by JOE KLAMAR / AFP) / The erroneous mention[s] appearing in the metadata of this photo by JOE KLAMAR has been modified in AFP systems in the following manner: [Ali Akbar Salehi] instead of [Zarif]. Please immediately remove the erroneous mention[s] from all

Satellite images indicate construction at Iran's Natanz nuclear plant

Work is apparently underway at a facility where Tehran said an act of sabotage caused an explosion in July.

Iranian Mohamad Bagher Ghalibaf (C) sits among members of the parliament after being elected as parliament speaker at the Iranian parliament in Tehran on May 28, 2020. - Iran's newly formed parliament elected the former Tehran mayor Ghalibaf as its speaker, consolidating the power of conservatives ahead of next year's presidential election. State television said the 58-year-old received 230 votes out of the 267 cast to secure the post, one of the most influential positions in the Islamic republic. (Photo by

Parliament speaker tests positive on Iran’s deadliest virus day

Iran’s hard-line parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has tested positive for the coronavirus as the pandemic rages the country.

Facebook removes Iran-linked network targeting Americans

The tech giant said the network was discovered early in its operations.

Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh speaks during the 24th International Oil, Gas, Refining & Petrochemical Exhibition at Tehran Permanent Fairground in Tehran on May 01, 2019. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP) (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran downplays impacts of new US sanctions on oil industry

A set of new US sanctions targeting Iran’s oil sector was shrugged off by officials in Tehran, who have been scrambling to keep the lifeline industry up and running in the face of US pressure.

Iranian police stand between supporters of the Basiji militia and supporters of Iranian president Hassan Rouhani upon his arrival from New York, on September 28, 2013 in Tehran. Some 60 hardline Islamists chanted "Death to America" and "Death to Israel" but they were outnumbered by 200 to 300 supporters of the president who shouted: "Thank you Rouhani." AFP PHOTO/ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran investigates case of man killed in police custody

Investigators have opened a case against a police officer who pepper-sprayed and tased a man who died on the way to the hospital.

Russian fighter jets drop bombs over the Ashuluk military base in Southern Russia on September 22, 2020 during the "Caucasus-2020" military drills gathering China, Iran, Pakistan and Myanmar troops, along with ex-Soviet Armenia, Azerbaijan and Belarus. - Up to 250 tanks and around 450 infantry combat vehicles and armoured personnel carriers will take part in the September 21 to 26 land and naval exercises that will involve 80,000 people including support staff. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP) (Photo by DIM

Can Russia return to Iranian arms market following end of weapons embargo?

With the end of the UN arms embargo, Iran could be looking to purchase new additions to its defense system — could Russia become a main supplier again?

Would Mideast leaders prefer Trump or Biden to deal with Iran?

Whoever wins the election, a new Iran deal would require a regional consensus and some tough diplomacy with Putin.

Iran desperate to maintain Iraqi financial lifeline

Iran seeks to maintain the flow of hard currency from Iraq to help it overcome the US sanctions.