WASHINGTON — A U.S. Navy veteran whose family said his only crime was falling in love left Iran on Thursday after nearly two years of detention, winning his freedom as part of a deal that spared an American-Iranian physician from any additional time behind bars. Michael White flew from Tehran...
Iran Guard Reveals Secret Space Program in Satellite Launch
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s Revolutionary Guard launched its first satellite into space Wednesday, dramatically revealing what experts described as a secret military space program that could advance its ballistic missile development amid wider tensions between the Islamic Republic and the U.S. Using a mobile launcher at a new launch site,...
Trump Tweets He’s Ordered Navy to Destroy Iranian Gunboats
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he has ordered the Navy to “shoot down and destroy” any Iranian gunboats that harass U.S. ships, a directive that comes a week after the Navy reported a group of Iranian boats made “dangerous and harassing approaches” to American vessels in the Persian Gulf....
Iran Opens up as Economic Woes Trump Virus Infection Fears
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran on Monday began opening intercity highways and major shopping centers to stimulate its sanctions-choked economy, gambling that it has brought under control its coronavirus outbreak — one of the worst in the world — even as some fear it could lead to a second wave of...
Iran's Army Sets up Hospital in Capital as Virus Toll Climbs
TEHRAN, Iran — Iran announced another 144 deaths from the coronavirus on Friday and said thousands more were in critical condition as the military completed work on a 2,000-bed field hospital in an exhibition center in the capital. Iran has reported nearly 2,400 deaths among more than 32,000 cases. Iranian...
Aid Group Says Mideast Lockdowns Hinder Humanitarian Efforts
CAIRO — An international aid group said Wednesday that closures aimed at containing the coronavirus pandemic are preventing it from reaching 300,000 people in conflict zones across the Middle East, as the coronavirus arrived in war-torn Libya and three more cases were detected in Syria. The Norwegian Refugee Council said...
US, UAE Troops Hold Major Exercise Amid Virus, Iran Tensions
AL-HAMRA MILITARY BASE, United Arab Emirates — U.S. Marines and Emirati forces held a major military exercise Monday that saw forces seize a sprawling model Mideast city, a drill conducted amid tensions with Iran and despite the new coronavirus pandemic. Troops raced over the dunes of the Al-Hamra Military Base...
2 Americans Imprisoned in Iran, Lebanon Released
WASHINGTON — An American jailed for months in Lebanon was released from custody Thursday, while a Navy veteran was granted medical furlough from an Iran prison as the country struggles to curb the spread of coronavirus, U.S. officials said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that Michael White, imprisoned more...
The Immoral Cruelty of the Trump Administration’s Refusal to Grant Iran Sanctions Relief Amid Its COVID-19 Crisis
[aggregation-styles] Responsible Statecraft There is a growing consensus that — to prevent Iran from spiraling out of control from the coronavirus epidemic and causing untold harm to the Iranian people — the Trump administration must immediately relent in its use of sanctions and allow Iran the ability to combat the...
Virus Fatalities Spike in Iran, With Toll Now at 1,135 Dead
TEHRAN — Iran on Wednesday reported its single biggest jump in fatalities from the coronavirus as another 147 people died, raising the country's overall death toll to 1,135. The nearly 15% spike in deaths — amid a total of 17,361 confirmed cases in Iran — marks the biggest 24-hour rise...