Iran

Gokhan ErgocunFriday March 27, 2026 Markets on Thursday traded under a heavy cloud of uncertainty, with the New York Stock Exchange recording its steepest one-day decline since the start of the Iran war amid heightened tensions across the Middle East. The Dow slid 1.01%, losing 469.38 points to end at 45,960.11. The Nasdaq Composite fell 2.38%, or 521.74 points, to 21,408.08, while the S&P 500 dropped 1.74%, down 114.74 points, to close at 6,477.16. The Volatility Index (VIX), commonly dubbed the market’s “fear index,”…

Iran and the United States stood at a stubborn impasse Thursday, each digging in over ceasefire terms as diplomacy stalled and fears of further escalation grew with more U.S. forces nearing the Middle East. At the same time, President Donald Trump extended a deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, pushing it to April 6. Tehran also tightened its control over the waterway, while Israel increased troop levels in southern Lebanon as it continued fighting the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah. In Israel, sirens…

Trump floats 'taking control of Iranian oil,' says Tehran eager for deal US President Donald Trump asserted that Iran’s leaders are “begging to make a deal” to halt the ongoing Middle East war, pushing back on suggestions that Washington is chasing talks. He claimed Tehran signaled its willingness to negotiate by allowing 10 oil tankers to move through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, describing the passage as a…

Uganda’s top military commander signaled Wednesday that Kampala could be pulled into a wider Middle East war — and would back Israel — even as he urged an immediate end to the fighting. “We want the war in the Middle East to end now. The world is tired of it. But any talk of destroying or defeating Israel will bring us into the war — on the side of Israel,” Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the chief of defense forces and son of President Yoweri Museveni, wrote on the US social media company X. His warning comes as regional tensions…

Iran Says Non-Hostile Ships Can Use Strait of Hormuz Amid War with US and Israel  TEHRAN — Signaling it does not intend to shutter one of the world’s busiest energy corridors, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations said vessels that steer clear of hostilities will be permitted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, so long as they abide by Iranian safety rules and avoid actions Tehran views as aggressive.…

President Donald Trump asserted that Iran is quietly engaged in negotiations and suggested Tehran's public denials stem from fears that negotiators could be killed by hardliners — or targeted by the United States. "They are negotiating, by the way, and they want to make a deal so badly. But they're afraid to say it, because they figure they'll be killed by their own people," Mr Trump told a dinner for Republican members of Congress. "They're also afraid they'll be killed by us." His remarks came after Iranian Foreign…

President Donald Trump asserted that Iran is engaged in negotiations, accusing Tehran of publicly denying talks out of fear that Iranian negotiators could be killed by hardliners — or by the United States. "They are negotiating, by the way, and they want to make a deal so badly. But they're afraid to say it, because they figure they'll be killed by their own people," Mr Trump told a dinner for Republican members of Congress. "They're also afraid they'll be killed by us." The president's remarks came after Iranian Foreign…

By Abubakr Al-ShamahiWednesday March 25, 2026 As fighting grinds toward its first month, United States President Donald Trump is pressing a claim that “productive” talks with Iran are already paving the way to end the war he launched alongside Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — even as Iran’s senior leadership continues to flatly reject that account. With wartime messaging and competing propaganda clouding the picture, it remains difficult to determine what is happening behind the scenes. One way to cut through…

Airstrikes flew between Israel and Iran as Tehran’s unified military command dismissed President Donald Trump’s assertion that Washington was negotiating an end to the conflict, bluntly saying the United States was “negotiating with itself.” The rebuke — issued by the joint command dominated by the hardline Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps — came amid reports that the US had transmitted a 15-point proposal to Tehran for discussion. “Has the level of your inner struggle reached the stage of you (Trump) negotiating with…

The Middle East is once again at the crossroads of diplomacy and conflict. In a statement that has sent ripples through international circles, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed that former US President Donald Trump believes there may be an opening for a deal with Iran. The announcement comes amid escalating US-Israeli military operations and a region teetering on the brink of broader instability. Military Pressure Meets Diplomatic Opportunity Since late February 2026, the US and Israel have mounted a…