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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.

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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

Iran negotiators defend deal at committee hearing

Former and current Iranian negotiators testified before a special parliamentary committee and the Assembly of Experts.

Larijani: US must fully implement nuclear deal

In an interview with Al-Monitor, Ali Larijani, the speaker of the Iranian parliament, praised President Barack Obama’s "wisdom" in negotiating a nuclear deal, but chided the United States for backing Saudi military intervention in Yemen.

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Could US state sanctions on Iran unravel nuke deal?

Critics of the nuclear agreement say states have it in their power to kill it, but do they really?

Tehran, IRAN: An Iranian girl gives her drawing to a teacher in the clasroom at Sizdah Abban school in north of Tehran 01 October 2006. Iranian students went back to school a week ago. US President George W. Bush signed into law yesterday a set of sanctions targeting foreign countries that continue nuclear cooperation with Iran and sell it advanced weaponry. The measure, passed by the Senate Saturday after clearing the House of Representatives a day earlier, came as Iran and the European Union are engaged

For Iranian teachers, another day, another rial

Iranian teachers face a crackdown in response to their protests for better conditions.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, left, shakes hands with Saudi Arabia's King Salman at the Royal Court, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, May 7, 2015. REUTERS/Andrew Harnik/Pool - RTX1BXMV

The king finally comes to town

King Salman of Saudi Arabia won't find solutions to his country's deepest problems during his visit to Washington.

Soleimani: US power in region has declined

Quds Force head Qasem Soleimani addressed Iran's Assembly of Experts about regional issues including Iraq, US influence and the wars in Syria and Yemen.

US veterans fight over Iran deal

Congress is getting mixed messages from Americans who’ve battled Tehran.

State Department: Middle East needs 10-year plan including pressure on Iran, improved US relations with Sunni countries

The international community allotted the Iran agreement at least 10 years, a time frame that, according to a State Department official, may be necessary "to stabilize the region and to implement the two-state solution."

Turkey’s protracted PKK problem

Although many Kurds do not like the leftist and secular agenda of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), the PKK has shown great resilience, in part as the result of the fragmented Iraqi and Syrian states and political missteps by Turkey.

DHAHRAN, SAUDI ARABIA - JULY 2: US and Saudi officials spread debris 29 June on plastic sheets as they continue to gather evidence in the 25 June bombing outside the Khobar Towers complex in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The explosion killed 19 and injured some 260. AFP PHOTO (Photo credit should read AFP/AFP/Getty Images)

With Khobar bomber's arrest, Saudi Arabia deals blow to Iran

With the recent arrest of the Khobar Tower bomber, Saudi-Iranian tensions have been elevated to new levels.

Iranian clerics, filmmakers face off over religious movie

In Iran, controversy erupts as "Resurrection," an award-winning film about a Shiite imam, is banned over objections from senior clerics.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani waits for his microphone to be adjusted to start delivering a speech during a press conference in the capital Tehran on August 29, 2015. AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Will Rouhani serve a second term?

Iran's Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli said in an interview that only a quarter of the president's term has passed and that he will serve eight years as president.