Thursday, January 1, 2026

Iran News

Iran Front Page offers a handpicked set of the latest news and views from Iran and the Middle East

WHO warns against dire medical crisis amid new Gaza evacuation orders

The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised the alarm over the escalating healthcare crisis in the Gaza Strip following Israel's new evacuation orders in Gaza City.

Ex-Iranian diplomat: “We negotiated with Saddam, so we can talk to Trump too”

Kourosh Ahmadi, a former Iranian diplomat, believes that if Iran could negotiate with Saddam Hussein, the former Iraqi dictator, then it is certainly possible to engage in dialogue with Donald Trump, former US President.

Israeli soldiers allowed to shoot at Gazans ‘virtually at will’: Report

A new investigation by Israeli outlets +972 Magazine and Local Call has found that Israeli forces have been shooting at Palestinians, including civilians "virtually at will" during their military operations in the Gaza Strip.

Russia responds to Ukraine hospital attack claims

Moscow has vehemently denied responsibility for the tragedy at the Okhmatdet children’s hospital in Kiev, after a missile hit the facility on Monday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has claimed that the incident was caused by a Ukrainian air defense missile.

Official: De-dollarization, Rial’s immunity from sanctions in Iran-Russia monetary agreement

The Deputy for International Affairs at the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) detailed the monetary agreement between Iran and Russia aimed at achieving de-dollarization, stating that this move pushes the Iranian Rial towards being unsanctionable.

President-Elect Pezeshkian: Enhancing Pakistan ties Iran’s inviolable foreign policy

Iran’s newly-elected President Massoud Pezeshkian has stressed that the country’s relations with Pakistan will continue to expand during his term in office.

Israel army admits much of Hamas tunnel network in Gaza still in ‘good functional state’

After nine months of war, much of Hamas’s tunnel network is still in a “good functional state” in many parts of the Gaza Strip, and the armed group still has the capacity and capability to organize raids close to the border with Israel and possibly even across it, Channel 12 news reports, citing "a recently written IDF assessment."

Iranian Sahand warship capsizes, sinks again

Iran’s Sahand destroyer, which had been pulled out of water with great difficulty near Bandar Abbas in southern Iran on Monday, capsized and sank again after harness cables broke on Tuesday.

China says NATO threatening global peace

NATO is a threat to global peace, security and stability because of its “deep-rooted Cold War mentality and ideological bias”, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian has stated.

Fire in Karkheh National Park in southern Iran put out

Firefighters have managed to contain the raging flames in the Karkheh National Park in the southern Iranian province of Khuzestan.

Hamas says Israeli attacks not helping Gaza ceasefire talks, Netanyahu creating obstacles

Palestinian group Hamas has announced escalating Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip are not helping negotiations to end the war, saying Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is creating obstacles to the truce talks.

US says not ready to resume nuclear negotiations with Iran under Pezeshkian

The White House has announced it did not expect any change in Tehran’s behavior after the election of the relatively moderate Masoud Pezeshkian as president.

Erdoğan congratulates Pezeshkian on presidential election victory

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has congratulated Iran’s newly-elected President Masoud Pezeshkian for his election victory.

Iran’s president-elect vows to continue supporting axis of resistance

Iran’s President-Elect Masoud Pezeshkian has vowed to continue to support the axis of resistance with full force in a message to Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah.

Putin congratulates Pezeshkian on winning Iran’s president election 

Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Iran’s president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian on winning the Iranian presidential election during a telephone conversation on Monday.

Pardis Technology Park to be changed to Iran International Innovation Zone

Iran’s Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy Ruhollah Dehghani Firouzabadi says the name and nature of the country’s first and biggest technology park, Pardis, will be changed to Iran International Innovation Zone.

Officials: Dozens killed as Russia bombs Ukrainian cities, including children’s hospital in Kyiv

Dozens of people have been killed and wounded after Russia launched a barrage of missiles targeting what it called defence sites across Ukraine, with one missile striking a children’s hospital in the capital, Kyiv, Ukrainian officials have stated.

Moscow claims Ukraine’s plan to hijack Russian strategic bomber foiled

A plot by Ukraine’s intelligence service to hijack a Russian Tu-22M3 nuclear-capable strategic bomber has been intercepted, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) has claimed.

Iran says diplomatic channels with US still open

Diplomatic channels between Iran and the United States are open and the Tehran-Washington negotiations are underway, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Nasser Kanaani has told reporters.

186k may have been killed during Gaza war: Report

A leading general medical journal has estimated that the death toll from Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip could be 186,000 or even more, translating to 7.9 percent of the population in the besieged enclave.

Israel used Hannibal Directive during October 7 attack: Report

The Israeli army has ordered the Hannibal Directive – a controversial Israeli military policy aimed at preventing the capture of Israeli soldiers by enemy at any cost – on 7 October 2023 during an attack by Hamas, an investigation by the Israeli daily Haaretz has revealed.

Iranian Daily: Complying with FATF most daunting challenge for President-Elect Pezeshkian

The first and foremost challenge for Iran’s newly elected reformist President Massoud Pezeshkian is to fall into steps with the directives of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) watchdog in order to reap its economic interests, a newspaper argues.

Hamas says thousands of new fighters recruited during Gaza war

Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, says that they have recruited thousands of new fighters during the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip with Israel since October 2023, with more ready to join if necessary.

Mahsa Ghorbani, first Iranian woman referees men’s football match

Mahsa Ghorbani has made history in sports by refereeing an international football match as the first Iranian woman.

Smog haunts major Iranian cities as temperatures go up

As the weather becomes hotter in summer, Iranians in metropolises have to deal with the old story of air pollution again.