Tag - iran

 
 

IRAN

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun (center) chairs a meeting of a Cabinet session to discuss the issue of disarming Hezbollah at the presidential palace of Baabda, east of Beirut, on Aug. 5.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 6, 2025
Lebanon plans to disarm Hezbollah by year-end
The unprecedented move forms part of a November ceasefire between Israel and militant group Hezbollah following months of hostilities.
A woman casts her vote during parliamentary elections in Qom, Iran, in March 2012. Regime change in the Islamic country is harder than many think, but it has the institutions needed for democracy if it happens.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 28, 2025
Iran is more prepared for democracy than many realize
Some commentators, like the economist Nouriel Roubini and the Stanford political scientist Abbas Milani, see regime change as plausible or imminent.
Afghans expelled from Iran arrive at a processing center in the border town of Islam Qala, Afghanistan, on July 10.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 28, 2025
Iran forcing out Afghans en masse after Israel spying claims
Iran is rounding up Afghan nationals due to accusations that non-documented migrants from the country spied for Israel and helped it launch missiles.
One of the entrances to Pao Compound, a nine-story Silk Road-inspired complex in Tokyo's Higashinakano neighborhood
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jul 19, 2025
Touring the Silk Road — without leaving Tokyo
Located near Higashinakano Station, Pao Compound is an eclectic mix of restaurants, event spaces and an affinity for cultural exploration.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, on June 26. The Donald Trump-ordered strikes on Iran, said to be an example of the “Trump Doctrine,” ignore decades of failed U.S. attempts to force adversaries to back down through short bursts of military power. 
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 18, 2025
The 'Trump Doctrine' is wishful thinking
The Donald Trump-ordered strikes on Iran, claimed to prove a unique “Trump Doctrine,” ignore decades of failed U.S. attempts to force adversaries to back down.
An aerial view from north of the Fukushima No.1 nuclear power plant. Opposition parties are divided over whether Japan should utilize nuclear power while the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, a proponent of it, has avoided explicitly mentioning its stance in its campaign pledges.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 15, 2025
Energy policy debate falls dormant in Upper House election despite growing risk
Rising tensions in the Middle East have fueled concerns the Strait of Hormuz may be closed, dealing a blow to Japan's energy security.
U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on April 7. Trump’s unexpected strike on Iran shows how Israel’s influence overcame his reluctance for foreign wars.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 14, 2025
Trump’s Iran attack shows what it takes to win his military support
How did Israel convince Trump? Put simply, why did Trump, unlike previous presidents who considered it but held back, launch a direct strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities?
U.S. soldiers man a checkpoint on a road outside Tikrit, Iraq, in November 2003. Airstrikes alone won’t truly eliminate Iran’s nuclear program — only a costly ground invasion like the one that took down Saddam Hussein could do that.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 14, 2025
What will it take to end Iran's nuke program? An army.
Trump’s claim that the U.S. “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear program was widely disputed, with current estimates saying it was severely damaged and set back by 12 to 24 months.
Despite perceptions of Russian weakness after Israel’s attack on Iran, that conflict has helped Vladimir Putin by diverting U.S. resources, eroding support for Ukraine and possibly setting the stage for the war to shift in his favor.
COMMENTARY
Jul 7, 2025
The U.S. bombing of Iran was a win for Putin
The possibility of another war in the Middle East has sucked attention, energy and resources away from Ukraine.
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during the BRICS summit, at the Museum of Modern Art in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2025
BRICS leaders condemn Gaza and Iran attacks, urging global reforms
With forums such as the G7 and G20 hamstrung by divisions and Trump's "America First" approach, the grouping has opened new space for diplomatic coordination.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the BRICS summit in Brazil on Sunday
WORLD / Politics
Jul 7, 2025
Russia and Iran relegated to the periphery as awkward BRICS guests
Even with just six of the 10 BRICS leaders present at a summit in Brazil, the grouping is already challenging the U.S.-led order.
Women walk near destroyed buildings, with one holding the flag of Hezbollah, in the southern Lebanese village of Kfar Kila in February.
WORLD / FOCUS
Jul 5, 2025
Under pressure, Hezbollah weighs scaling back its arsenal
The internal discussions, which aren't yet finalized, reflect the formidable pressures the Iran-backed Lebanese militant group has faced since a truce was reached in late November.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks during a meeting in Ilam, Iran, on June 12. Pezeshkian formally enacted the suspension of Iran's cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 3, 2025
Iran ends cooperation with U.N. nuclear watchdog after Israel and U.S. strikes
Washington has described the decision as "unacceptable."
A billboard in Tehran showing a variety of missiles. U.S. military bombers carried out strikes against three Iranian nuclear facilities on June 22.
WORLD
Jul 3, 2025
Iranian nuclear program degraded by up to two years, Pentagon says
The announcement suggests the U.S. operation likely achieved its goals despite a far more cautious initial assessment that leaked to the public.
An oil tanker unloads imported crude oil at Qingdao port in China in 2022.
BUSINESS
Jul 2, 2025
Major Chinese ports keep Iranian oil flowing despite sanctions
From January to June, terminals in the port clusters around Qingdao, Dalian and Zhoushan have helped China purchase almost 1.4 million barrels a day of Iranian crude.
Formula One Group CEO Stefano Domenicali ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal on June 15.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Jul 2, 2025
F1 has a plan if Middle East races cannot happen, says chief
Qatar is due to host the penultimate round of the championship on Nov. 30 with Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina following on Dec. 7.
The remains of an Iranian missile launched during the 12-day Israel-Iran war lie on a road near Tekoa in the occupied West Bank on Sunday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 2, 2025
Nuclear proliferation cannot just be bombed away
The most powerful deterrent for any state is possession of nuclear weapons or membership in an alliance that offers a nuclear umbrella (like NATO).
The Iranian shores and the island of Qeshm are seen in the Strait of Hormuz on Dec. 10, 2023. Two U.S. officials said Tehran was gearing up to blockade the strait following Israel's strikes on sites across Iran last month.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 2, 2025
Iran made preparations to deploy mines in Strait of Hormuz, U.S. sources say
About one-fifth of global oil and gas shipments pass through the strait, and a blockage would likely have spiked world energy prices.
French President Emmanuel Macron urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine "as soon as possible" as the two held their first known phone talks since 2022 on Tuesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 2, 2025
Macron and Putin discuss Iran and Ukraine in first talks since 2022
The two leaders also discussed Tehran's nuclear program, with French President Emmanuel Macron suggesting Moscow and Paris work together to de-escalate tensions.
Hackers linked to Iran who go by the pseudonym Robert said they had roughly 100 gigabytes of emails from the accounts of U.S. White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, among others.
WORLD / Politics
Jul 1, 2025
Iran-linked hackers threaten to release more emails from Trump's circle
The hackers raised the possibility of selling the material but otherwise did not provide details of their plans.

Longform

Koichi Tagawa’s diary entry from Aug. 9, 1945, describes the day of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
The horrors of Nagasaki, in first person