Iran

TEHRAN, Iran — A pair of powerful and divisive figures registered Saturday to run in Iran's presidential election, jolting the political landscape ahead of next month's vote to pick a successor to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, a former president who still wields enormous influence, and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, a close confident of Ahmadinejad, submitted their official paperwork just before Saturday's deadline. Each has a good shot at winning the vote,...

NEW YORK — Iran's wrestling team visited the United States for the first time in a decade and found a virtual home meet. The fans waving Iranian flags and stomping on the temporary bleachers were treated to a show of dominance by the wrestling power Wednesday in the exhibition at Grand Central Terminal. Iran beat the Americans 6-1. "It's typical Iranian. Wherever we go, they do the same thing," two-time world champion Mehdi Taghavi Kermani said through a translator after winning his match at 145½ pounds.

The U.S. government on Thursday warned of a heightened risk of a cyberattack that could disrupt the control systems of U.S. companies providing critical services such as electricity and water. Officials are highly concerned about "increasing hostility" against "U.S. critical infrastructure organizations," according to the warning, which was released by the Department of Homeland Security on a computer network accessible only to authorized industry and government users. "Adversary intent extends beyond intellectual...

UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to create the first treaty regulating the international arms trade, a landmark decision that imposes new constraints on the sale of conventional arms to governments and armed groups that commit war crimes, genocide and other mass atrocities. The vote was hailed by arms-control advocates and scores of governments, including the United States, as a major step in the global effort to put in place basic controls on the $70 billion international arms trade.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has never been a gambling man. Since becoming "supreme leader" of Iran in 1989, he's sought to preserve the status quo by eschewing transformative decisions. But as unprecedented political and economic pressures — including sanctions against Iran's central bank and the European Union oil embargo — increasingly push his back against the wall, Khamenei seemingly has two paths to deliverance: a nuclear compromise or a nuclear weapon. Each could be perilous for him; both would be transformative for Iran.

Nouri al-Maliki is the prime minister of Iraq. Today, on the 10th anniversary of the overthrow of Saddam Hussein , the debate about whether it was worth it to topple the regime and the direction of the U.S.-Iraqi relationship is influenced by a pessimistic view that the United States has lost Iraq. Not true. Despite all the problems of the past decade, the overwhelming majority of Iraqis agree that we're better off today than under Hussein's brutal dictatorship. Iraqis will remain...

On June 7, 1981, eight Israeli F-16 fighter jets, protected by six F-15 escorts, dropped 16 2,000-pound bombs on the nearly completed Osirak nuclear reactor at the Tuwaitha complex in Iraq. Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and other prominent members of the government such as Ariel Sharon saw the reactor as central to Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's quest to build nuclear weapons, and they believed that it posed an existential threat to Israel. The timing of the strike was justified...

I love writing about control freaks. They cannot resist responding in ways that prove my point. I once received a telephone tongue-lashing at dawn from a Treasury secretary identified in that morning's column as being overly sensitive to criticism. And this month, when I suggested that the Obama White House and the Clinton State Department might not have precisely the same agenda on all issues, I was rebuked with a staged display of public harmony between those institutions. I had committed the moral equivalent of ringing...

VIENNA — U.N. nuclear agency officials on Wednesday again failed to reach a deal with Iranian counterparts that would allow the agency to relaunch its probe of suspicions that Tehran might have worked on atomic arms. It was the 10th inconclusive meeting between the International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran on the issue over the past year and a half. The IAEA's investigation has stalled for more than five years, with Tehran saying it has answered all questions it is obliged to. Iran denies any...

Congressional leaders prodded the Obama administration Wednesday to tighten the squeeze on Iran's economy, saying that even last year's dramatic sanctions against ­Iranian banks and oil companies weren't enough to stop the Islamic republic's nuclear advances. At a Senate hearing on Iran , lawmakers called for new curbs on Tehran's ability to sell oil or obtain gold and other hard currency to stabilize the Iranian rial. Some suggested that a show of force may be needed to persuade Iran to...

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is looking at new ways to pressure Iran over its nuclear program. The State Department's nuclear negotiator with Iran, Wendy Sherman, and the Treasury Department's sanctions chief, David Cohen, are telling Congress that the U.S. is exploring different ways to press Tehran into making nuclear concessions. These range from possible executive orders to military signals to U.S. efforts to end the civil war in Syria, a key Iranian ally. ...

MANAMA, Bahrain — The U.S. Navy is putting underwater drones through wartime-style drills as part of international mine-clearing exercises in the Persian Gulf following similar maneuvers by Iran. The U.S.-led exercises, which began last week, include operations by the unmanned SeaFox devices, which are equipped with sonar and an explosive charge designed to shoot and destroy mines. It is part of the Navy's plans to increasingly deploy automated surveillance and protection systems, including aerial drones.

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman says Tehran's nuclear negotiator is seeking a "constructive" response from the European Union's top diplomat in upcoming talks aimed at possibly restarting wider dialogue with the U.S. and other world powers. Wednesday's meeting in Istanbul comes more than a month after the last round between Iran and the six powers ended in stalemate. Spokesman Abbas Araghchi told reporters Tuesday he hopes EU's foreign policy chief, Catherine...

TEHRAN, Iran — Iran has expressed regret for the shooting deaths of Afghan migrants entering the country illegally over the weekend. On Saturday, Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmai Rasoul issued a complaint after 10 migrants were shot and killed by Iranian border guards. Iran initially denied that anyone was shot. Poor Afghans often try to sneak into Iran in search of work as day laborers. Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Aragchi said Tuesday, "We express regret while...

The perennial conflict between Iran and the West has entered a dangerous new phase, with tensions rising in the Persian Gulf since Iran has threatened retaliation for last week's assassination of a chemical engineer linked to the Islamic Republic's nuclear program. What accounts for Iran's behavior? Behind all the sound and fury, Tehran is diligently pursuing a three-track policy that involves provocation of the international community and making noises about diplomacy as it relentlessly marches toward the bomb.

ACCORDING TO a recent story in The Post, the Obama administration is "quietly toasting" the success of international sanctions against Iran. The Islamic republic is having increasing difficulty arranging imports, including food, and the central bank is reportedly short of hard currency. Billions of dollars in foreign investment projects have been canceled, and few banks, insurance companies or shipping firms are willing to do business with Tehran. There are also signs of political stress.

UNITED NATIONS — In Iran, Olympic wrestling champion Jordan Burroughs felt like Justin Bieber, LeBron James and Tom Brady all rolled into one. Not so much in his home country, though the New Jersey native was greeted by more than a dozen television cameras Tuesday when the American team arrived at the United Nations for a news conference with the Iranian and Russian squads. Wrestling's leaders hope sports fans do a double-take when they see those three countries in the same...