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August 9, 2026

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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shebaz Sharif in Mecca after signing the defense pact, Aug. 7, 2026.

Analysis

How Saudi-Turkey-Pakistan pact puts Iran's regional strategy to test

The defense agreement is not an anti-Iran bloc, but it may reflect a deeper regional adjustment to years of Iranian asymmetric warfare as well as uncertainty over US security commitments.

A correspondent in Tehran

By A correspondent in Tehran

In Tehran, reporting on politics

US President Donald Trump (R) meets with Jordanian King Abdullah II in the Oval Office of the White House, Washington, DC, Feb. 11, 2025.

Analysis

Jordan shores up US lifelines as Iran targets Amman’s reliance on Washington

Already a leading recipient of US aid, Jordan has secured fresh funds from the United States as the Iran war tests Amman and Washington's partnerships.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Hussein FALEH / AFP via Getty Images

Analysis

As US rethinks regional presence, Israel shifts focus to destabilizing Iran

Uncertain how to interpret the American regional redeployment, Israel is focusing on efforts to destabilize the Iranian regime and stop its nuclear program.

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

Latest News

Explainer

Iran-Oman deal spurs Hormuz hopes as Red Sea threats evolve

Khaled ZIAD / 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

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry sits with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif before a meeting in Geneva January 14, 2015. Zarif said on Wednesday that his meeting with Kerry was important to see if progress could be made in narrowing differences on his country's disputed nuclear program. REUTERS/Rick Wilking (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4LDWK

Obama vows to veto Iran sanctions as Zarif sees Kerry

Strong words from US President Obama in support of negotiations instead of sanctions accompanied the second meeting between US Secretary of State John Kerry and Iran Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Senator Robert Menendez(L),D-NJ, and Senator Lindsey Graham ,R-SC, walk on Capitol Hill January 6, 2015 in Washington, DC. The 114th Congress convened today with Republicans taking majority control of both the Senate and House of Representatives. AFP PHOTO/BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI (Photo credit should read BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images)

Congress to vote on toned-down Iran sanctions bill

Senate bill doesn’t mandate what a nuclear deal should look like, undercutting sanctions opponents.

Honoree actor George Clooney poses with the Cecille B. DeMille award backstage at the 72nd Golden Globe Awards in Beverly Hills, California January 11, 2015. REUTERS/Mike Blake (UNITED STATES - Tags: ENTERTAINMENT) (GOLDENGLOBES-BACKSTAGE) - RTR4KZXT

Iran paper under fire for Charlie Hebdo cover

An Iranian newspaper faces criticism for publishing a picture of actor George Clooney and a headline supporting French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry shakes hands with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif before a meeting in Geneva January 14, 2015. Zarif said on Wednesday that his meeting with Kerry was important to see if progress could be made in narrowing differences on his country's disputed nuclear program. REUTERS/Rick Wilking (SWITZERLAND - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4LDW2

Negotiators: 'Time cannot be wasted' at Iran nuclear talks

US and Iranian negotiators met in Geneva to discuss a nuclear deal, though a new Republican-led US Congress might complicate a potential deal domestically.

Iranian killed in Iraq subject of 2009 controversy

An Iranian killed in Iraq was incorrectly labelled a Lebanese Hezbollah commander by activists during the 2009 election protests, and some news reports of his death still contain the error.

Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud sits before a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at the Royal Palace in Jeddah September 11, 2014. The United States signed up Arab allies on Thursday to a "coordinated military campaign" against Islamic State fighters, a major step in building regional support for President Barack Obama's plan to strike both sides of the Syrian-Iraqi frontier. After talks in Saudi Arabia's summer capital Jeddah, Kerry won backing from 10 Arab countries - Egypt, Iraq,

Some Shiites link Saudi king's health to end-times

Some Shiite scholars believe that the Saudi king's death will signal the resurrection of the Mahdi and the beginning of the end-times.

Speaker of the House John Boehner addresses the members of the 114th Congress after being re-elected as the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives at the start of the 114th Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington January 6, 2015. REUTERS/Jim Bourg (UNITED STATES - Tags: POLITICS) - RTR4KAI9

US House preps its own Iran sanctions bill

The lower chamber says it won't just pass whatever bill the Senate comes up with.

EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on leaving the office to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

An Iranian woman stands in a currency exchange shop in northern Tehran January 3, 2012. The Iranian rial fell to a record low against the dollar on Tuesday following U.S. President Barack Obama signing a bill on imposing fresh sanctions against the country's central bank. REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS) - RTR2VU75

Action needed to reform Iranian banks

Poor economic conditions have led to a crisis of non-performing loans for Iranian banks.

A boy holds up flags of the Shi'ite Houthi movement during a ceremony commemorating the birth of Prophet Mohammed in Sanaa January 3, 2015. REUTERS/Mohamed al-Sayaghi (YEMEN - Tags: RELIGION ANNIVERSARY) - RTR4JYNI

Iran’s shallow influence in Yemen

Iran believes its influence is spreading to a new country with the rise of the Houthis in Yemen in September 2014; however, Yemen is different from other Iranian-influenced countries (Syria, Lebanon and Iraq), where sectarian compositions differ.

Head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation Ali Akbar Salehi (L) speaks to the press during his meeting with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Yukiya Amano (unseen) in Tehran on November 11, 2013. Amano arrived in the Iranian capital to discuss Iran's nuclear programme after top world diplomats fail to clinch a long-sought deal to curb Tehran's nuclear activities but insist they are narrowing the gaps. AFP PHOTO/ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images

Iran presents enrichment needs ahead of talks

The head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization has discussed the next step in nuclear negotiations and Iran's fuel needs on Iranian television.

Dempsey says Iran’s role in Iraq might be 'positive'

Americans consider Islamic State, not Iran, as top threat to US in Mideast; terrorists in Syria planning “mass casualty attacks” in West; Salafists in Gaza look to Islamic State.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani looks on as he chairs the 28th International Islamic Unity Conference in the capital Tehran on January 7, 2015. AFP PHOTO / ATTA KENARE (Photo credit should read ATTA KENARE/AFP/Getty Images)

Divisions in Iran stall nuclear deal, says ex-US negotiator

Secretary of State John Kerry will meet Iran Foreign Minister Zarif in Geneva Jan. 14, ahead of a new round of nuclear talks.