Iran and U.S.

Iran insists on 'indirect' talks with the U.S., refuting Trump

3:08am April 08, 2025

Iran says it will have indirect talks with the U.S. Saturday in Oman, opening possible diplomacy over Iran's nuclear program but revealing a potential sticking point about the format for negotiating.

"It's not emotionally easy to come by here anymore," Neda Sharghi said of this alley in Washington, D.C. Her brother Emad Shargi, depicted above, remains in Iran's Evin prison.

'This has become a sacred alley.' The face of Emad Shargi imprisoned in Iran

11:38am July 26, 2023

by Steve Inskeep

A mural in Washington, D.C. depicts Americans wrongfully detained abroad and fades with time to represent passing days. Neda Sharghi's brother Emad imprisoned in Iran is one of those faces.

Queue Listen Now

A mural in Washington, D.C. depicts Americans Siamak Namazi (left), who remains in Iran, and Jose Angel Pereira, who was released from Venezuela in October.

American Siamak Namazi is on a hunger strike in Iranian prison. Why now and for what?

10:43am January 17, 2023

by Rachel Treisman

Namazi is on a hunger strike to mark the seventh anniversary of a prisoner swap that did not include him, and calling on Biden to free detainees in Iran. His lawyer spoke with NPR about those efforts.

Queue Listen Now

Iranian demonstrators protest in Tehran on Sept. 21, after Mahsa Amini died in custody of the country's so-called morality police.

World News

U.S. announces new sanctions on Iran, even as it seeks a new nuclear deal

3:27pm October 06, 2022

by Michele Kelemen

Thursday's announcement of new U.S. sanctions follows pressure from activists for the U.S. to support the protests, following the death of Mahsa Amini in custody of Iran's so-called morality police.

Queue Listen Now

Supporters hold a photo of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe during a vigil in London in 2017. Iran released Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who was imprisoned in 2016, and Anousheh Ashouri, a businessman, on Wednesday.

World News

Iran releases 2 British Iranian citizens from prison

3:08pm March 16, 2022

by Deepa Shivaram

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a charity worker, and Anousheh Ashouri, a businessman, have now left the country. A third prisoner was released on furlough. Other foreigners remain imprisoned in Iran.

A man reads the news about the U.S. elections on Nov. 9 in Tehran. Many Iranians are hopeful that President Biden will lifts sanctions imposed on Iran by his predecessor.

World News

What It Would Take For Biden To Revive The Iran Deal

8:03am March 16, 2021

by Jackie Northam

President Biden wants to rejoin the Iran nuclear deal that his predecessor pulled out of. It's at a standstill, but analysts say the Biden administration can make gestures to bring Iran to the table.

Queue Listen Now

Friends and family members of slain prominent Lebanese activist and intellectual Lokman Slim (shown in the raised image), attend a memorial ceremony in the garden of the family residence in the capital Beirut's southern suburbs, a week after he was found

World News

Opinion: Pursuing Diplomacy With Iran Doesn't Mean Ignoring Its Bad Behavior

6:34pm February 18, 2021

by Firas Maksad

Arab and U.S. liberals differ on how to handle Iran and its proxies, writes Firas Maksad. He says reactions to the killing of his friend Lokman Slim, a critic of Hezbollah, are a case in point.

Technicians work inside of a uranium conversion facility producing unit in 2005 outside the city of Isfahan, Iran. After the 2015 Iran nuclear deal put limits on the program, Iran's government has been increasing uranium enrichment since the United States

World News

Opinion: Iran Is Escalating Its Nuclear Program. Biden Should Not Rush To Respond

10:18am January 08, 2021

by Henry Rome

Iran has announced new nuclear steps aimed at the incoming Biden administration, but the U.S. has leverage to push back, argues analyst Henry Rome.

In this Wednesday photo made available by U.S. Navy, Iranian Revolutionary Guard vessels sail close to U.S. military ships in the Persian Gulf near Kuwait. Eleven Iranian naval vessels made "dangerous and harassing" maneuvers near U.S. ships in the Gulf o

World News

Opinion: Iran's Aggression Continues Even Amid Coronavirus And 'Maximum Pressure'

5:50pm April 16, 2020

Hawks argue the Trump administration's approach to Tehran is working, but recent events clearly demonstrate that Iran has not been cowed, argue Ariane Tabatabai and Colin P. Clarke.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps vessels approach U.S. military ships in the Persian Gulf near Kuwait on Wednesday.

Iranian Speedboats Conduct 'Dangerous And Provocative' Maneuvers Near U.S. Warships

2:05pm April 16, 2020

by Scott Neuman

U.S. officials say nearly a dozen small craft from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps harassed U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships conducting exercises in the Persian Gulf.