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Iran

May 9, 2026

Tehran 11:41 pm

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China’s overland trade routes offer Iran wartime economic lifeline: What to know

Cargo rail traffic between China and Iran has reportedly surged since the US blockade began in April as Tehran seeks overland trade alternatives to help buy time.

A woman walks past a banner featuring Iran's late supreme leaders, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini (L) and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (C), next to newly elected Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, in Tehran on April 19, 2026.

Analysis

Why Iran's wartime behavior risks lasting rupture with Gulf states

Iran's rhetoric and policies toward Gulf states have sharply escalated, raising questions about whether years of painstaking regional rapprochement can survive mounting distrust and maritime confrontations.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Traffic passes a billboard depicting Iranian ballistic missiles in service, with text in Arabic reading "the honest [person's] promise" and in Persian "Israel is weaker than a spider's web," Valiasr Square, Tehran, April 15, 2024. ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images.

Analysis

CIA report on Iran missiles undercuts Netanyahu as war euphoria dissipates

The findings cast doubt on Israel’s wartime gains and put pressure on Netanyahu’s campaign strategy ahead of elections.

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

Getty

US strikes Iran tankers as UAE reports fresh missile, drone attacks

Strikes on Iranian tankers and fresh exchanges in the Gulf escalate tensions as Washington awaits Tehran’s response to a deal proposal.

Latest News

What to know about Iran's 'Persian Gulf Strait Authority' to control Hormuz traffic

In this picture obtained from Iran's ISNA news agency on May 4, 2026, the Iran-flagged tugboat Basim sails near a ship anchored in the Strait of Hormuz off Bandar Abbas in southern Iran.

US sets expectations for Iraq’s next PM to confront Iranian militias

Popular Mobilization Forces

Analysis

China shores up Iran support as Trump seeks exit

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi of Iran meeting with Foreign Minister Wang Yi of China in Beijing on May 6, 2026. Credit: Telegram

Joyce Karam

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 commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force, General Qassem Suleimani, attends celebrations marking the 37th anniversary of the Islamic revolution on February 11, 2016 in Tehran.

Iranians waved "Death to America" banners and took selfies with a ballistic missile as they marked 37 years since the Islamic revolution, weeks after Iran finalised a nuclear deal with world powers.
/ AFP / STR (Photo credit should read STR/AFP/Getty Images)

Iran's Soleimani continues war of words with Trump

The head of Iran’s Quds Force, Qasem Soleimani, responded to President Donald Trump’s tweet threatening Iran.

GettyImages-996920282-(11).jpg

Iran maneuvers to protect its interests in Syria

Iran’s strategy on Syria enters a more proactive phase as the Islamic Republic maneuvers to keep its interests, including its partnership with Russia, intact.

TEHRAN, IRAN - FEBRUARY 7, 2018: Eshaq Jahangiri the Iranian vice president sits in one of the presidential palaces rooms during an interview on February 7, 2018 in Tehran, Iran. (Photo by Kaveh Kazemi/Getty Images)

Is ‘national reconciliation’ Iran's key weapon to win economic war?

A top pro-reform official in Iran said national unity and reconciliation are in the making to defuse the US-led economic pressure and media war against the country.

Israel detects Russian shift on Iran's presence in Syria

Israeli military sources sense that President Donald Trump, President Vladimir Putin and even Iranian President Hassan Rouhani wouldn't object to Israel pushing Iran out of Syria.

Iranian president Hassan Rouhani extends his hand to Iran's Judiciary Chief Sadegh Larijani during a swearing-in ceremony for Rouhani for a further term, at the parliament in Tehran, Iran, August 5, 2017. Nazanin Tabatabaee Yazdi/TIMA via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC15208A0ED0

Iran arrests top state managers as anti-corruption drive forges ahead

Iran's judiciary is intensifying its crackdown on state managers accused of massive fraud amid a currency crisis the country is struggling to overcome.

Khamenei adviser’s Moscow visit stirs foreign policy debate in Iran

The lack of transparency surrounding Ayatollah Khamenei’s foreign policy adviser’s recent trip to Russia, including his announcement of a major deal for Russian investment, has caused heated debate among Iranians.

Will Iranian Kurds be on front lines of US conflict with Iran?

The US administration appears to increasingly be looking at armed Iranian Kurdish opposition groups as part of its campaign to economically and militarily pressure Iran.

Iraqi-Kurdistan

U.S. President Donald Trump and Acting U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo hold a news conference after participating in the NATO Summit in Brussels, Belgium July 12, 2018. REUTERS/Yves Herman - RC195AB27C30

More fire and fury: Trump, Pompeo offer mixed messages on Iran

Iranian Americans are unsure whether the Donald Trump administration intends to press for regime change in Iran or pursue eventual diplomatic outreach.

Rouhani, Trump in a war of words

A war of words erupted between the Iranian and American presidents, signaling an increase in tensions and unleashing recriminations.

Will Iran, Russia step up energy cooperation to blunt US sanctions?

Amid rising US pressure, Tehran and Moscow might be on the cusp of a new era of economic cooperation, particularly in the energy sector.

The art of the deal in Helsinki – the next chapter

More than 11% of internally displaced people have returned to areas retaken by Syrian government forces this year.

Iranian MPs are seen during a meeting of the Iranian parliament for the impeachment of the Minister of Labor on March 13, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Violence against women at center of debate on landmark bill in Iran

A landmark bill to expand the legal definition of violence against women remains stalled amid objections from the Iranian judiciary.