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April 2, 2026

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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

A view of the platform of the Leviathan natural gas field in the Mediterranean Sea is pictured from the Israeli northern coastal beach of Nasholim, on Aug. 29, 2022.

Israel energy minister says gas flowing to Egypt, Jordan despite shutdown reports

Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen told Al-Monitor that despite security concerns and partial shut down of marine gas platforms, Israel continues to supply gas to Egypt, Jordan and Israeli consumers.

Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Turkey in talks with Iran to clear 11 ships stuck in Hormuz: What to know

Turkey's transport minister says that 11 vessels await passage from Hormuz pending talks with Iran.

Latest News

UAE accuses Iran of 'extortion' in Strait of Hormuz: What to know

AFP via Getty Images

United Arab Emirates

Analysis

Iran executes alleged MEK members in bid to signal wartime control

A member of the Iranian security forces stands guard next to a banner honoring Iran's slain supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Tehran on March 31, 2026.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

Analysis

How the Iran war is giving Turkey's Erdogan a big boost

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan speaks to MPs at his party's group meeting in the Turkish parliament on Jan. 21, 2026 in Ankara, Turkey.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Who is Handala, the hacktivist group US ties to Iranian intelligence?

Flag of Iran on a computer binary codes falling from the top and fading away.

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

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi (L) meets with UAE Foreign Affairs Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (R) and brother Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi in this handout picture released by Emirates News Agency WAM July 9, 2012. REUTERS/WAM/Handout (UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Tags: POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO

Arrest of Iranian teachers tests Iran-UAE relations

The arrest of Iranian teachers working in the UAE has prompted some Iranian officials to call for firmer measures against the UAE.

United Arab Emirates

Iran's Navy commander Habibollah Sayyari (C) points while standing on a naval ship during Velayat-90 war game on Sea of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran January 1, 2012. Iran test-fired a new medium-range missile, designed to evade radars, on Sunday during the last days of its naval drill in the Gulf, the official IRNA news agency quoted a military official as saying. REUTERS/Fars News/Hamed Jafarnejad (IRAN - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTR

What could 'harsh' Iranian reaction to Riyadh constitute?

Amid increasingly heated rhetoric between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the question arises of what a "harsh" reaction that Tehran has warned of may actually entail.

Iranian general killed in Syria came back for special operation

An Iranian general recently killed in Syria had returned to Tehran nearly a year ago and went back to Syria recently to take part in a special operation.

An Afghan man works on a poppy field in Jalalabad province April 17, 2014. Afghanistan is the world's top cultivator of the poppy, from which opium and heroin are produced. Despite more than a decade of efforts to wean farmers off the crop, fight corruption and cut links between drugs and the Taliban insurgency, poppy expanded to 209,000 hectares (516,000 acres) in 2013, up 36 percent from the previous year. REUTERS/ Parwiz (AFGHANISTAN - Tags: DRUGS SOCIETY AGRICULTURE ENVIRONMENT) - RTR3LOO5

Iran key player in global war on drugs

It is time for the world to engage with Tehran to assist its war on drugs, and to acknowledge Iran as an important player in combating the global illegal drug trade.

Police vehicles drive past pilgrims on a road in Mina, near the holy city of Mecca September 24, 2015. At least 310 pilgrims were killed on Thursday in a crush at Mina, outside the Muslim holy city of Mecca, where some two million people are performing the annual Haj pilgrimage, Saudi authorities said. REUTERS/Ahmad Masood - RTX1S7WW

Were missing Iranians arrested in Saudi Arabia?

Some Iranian officials are speculating that the Iranians still missing after the hajj disaster may have been arrested as Iran continues to watch the Saudi investigation with distrust.

Muslim pilgrims circle the Kaaba at the Grand mosque during the annual Haj pilgrimage, in the holy city of Mecca October 17, 2013. Muslims around the world celebrate Eid al-Adha to mark the end of the Haj by slaughtering sheep, goats, cows and camels to commemorate Prophet Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Ismail on God's command. REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa (SAUDI ARABIA - Tags: RELIGION) - RTX14EKI

Will Saudi Arabia give up hajj management?

The harsh criticism by various Muslim countries and other parties of Saudi Arabia over the most recent hajj tragedy may prompt the kingdom to take drastic steps to protect its reputation.

The U.S. families of Iranian dissidents, members of Iran's opposition movement Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK) who reside in Camp Liberty in Iraq, look on as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry testifies on agreements over Iran's nuclear programs, before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, December 10, 2013. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY) - RTX16CNF

Congress shows renewed interest in Iranian opposition after nuclear deal

Iran hawks tout MEK as way to keep pressure on Tehran.

Goals of Russia’s recent military action go beyond Syria

The Russian entry into the war in Syria may herald a new era of cooperation with countries such as Iran, as Moscow seeks to strengthen its international role.

Khamenei warns against further negotiations with US

Iran's supreme leader has once again warned about the desire of America to have an impact inside Iran.

Jordan's Prince Prince Faisal bin al-Hussein (R) and former Commander of Royal Saudi Navy Special Forces Prince Sultan bin Khalid Al-Faisal attend the opening ceremony of the Middle East Special Operations Commanders Conference (MESOC) in Amman May 5, 2014. REUTERS/Majed Jaber (JORDAN - Tags: POLITICS MILITARY ROYALS) - RTR3NT7M

Saudi prince alleges capture of Iranian military, Hezbollah in Yemen

A grandson of the late Saudi King Faisal and former senior military officer says the time has come for Saudi Arabians “to take care of ourselves” and “lead” the Middle East against regional threats.

Is Iran's inflation deflating economic recovery?

Will the domestic pressures Rouhani is facing force him to abandon his goal of single-digit inflation?

Did Iranian TV censor Rafsanjani?

Iran's national media has been accused of editing out coverage of Ayatollah Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani from a commemoration for the hajj stampede victims.