Iran: The Latest

Could Iran’s new leader be worse than the old one? On the 10th day of the US-Israeli war with Iran, Roland looks at why IRGC-favourite Mojtaba Khamenei has been chosen as the new supreme leader to take over from his assassinated father and what it means for the regime.

Plus, Venetia gets a view from the Gulf about the growing oil crisis, fears over dwindling interceptor missile stocks and how the war is dragging in countries there.

CONTRIBUTORS:

Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey
Roland Oliphant, Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator and co-host @RolandOliphant
Sascha Bruchmann, IISS Research Fellow for Defence and Military Analysis

CONTENT REFERENCED:

David Blair: New supreme leader shows folly of Trump’s war
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/09/new-iran-supreme-leader-folly-trump-iran-war/

Iran has already made its first big miscalculation of the war
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/09/iran-first-big-miscalculation-war/

Iran war, day ten: Everything you need to know
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/09/iran-war-day-ten-everything-you-need-to-know/

Producer: Peter Shevlin
Executive Producer: Louisa Wells

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Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/
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It’s the seventh day of the US-Israeli war with Iran and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has said America is about to dramatically increase the amount of firepower over the country as the military campaign moves into the next phase.

On today’s episode, Venetia takes a step back and looks at what has been achieved so far over one week of war. She is joined by Col. Simon Diggins, a former British Army Officer who has served in the Middle East, and Matthew Savill, director of military sciences at the Royal United Services Institute.

They discuss how much progress America has made with its stated objectives, whether Iran is running out of missiles or holding them back, the Shahed drone problem, what’s left of the Iranian navy and why regime change still seems a distant prospect for now.

Plus, two arguments for and against the UK becoming militarily involved - is it Keir Starmer’s moral duty or does Britain have nothing relevant to offer?

Read Iran war, day seven: Everything you need to know: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/06/iran-war-day-seven-everything-you-need-to-know/

Read Trump to use British bases for ‘surge’ in Iran attacks: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/06/trump-to-use-british-bases-for-surge-in-iran-attacks/

Producer: Sophie O'Sullivan
Executive Producer: Louisa Wells

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On the sixth day of the US-Israeli war with Iran, the Strait of Hormuz is remains effectively closed to shipping, despite the US Navy crippling Iran’s surface fleet - including by torpedoing a Frigate off Sri Lanka.

On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Roland Oliphant speaks to former Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe about how Western militaries have prepared for years for a big war with Iran; why Iranian maritime forces are equally well prepared; and the cruel necessities of submarine warfare.

And Nicholas Hopton, a former British ambassador to Iran, explains the three conditions necessary for a regime collapse - and why none of them have yet been met.

Read: The US submarine which torpedoed the Iranian frigate will soon be flying the Jolly Roger, by Tom Sharpe: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/05/us-submarine-torpedo-iranian-warship-jolly-roger/

Read: Will America betray the Kurds again? by Owen Matthews: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/05/will-america-betray-kurds-again/

Producer: Peter Shevlin
Executive Producer: Louisa Wells

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In the wake of an attack on a British military base in Cyprus, the UK has said it will send an extra warship to the region. Does this make Britain militarily involved in America and Israel’s war against Iran? Or was that already true after Prime Minister Keir Starmer allowed Donald Trump to use British bases? Venetia and Roland discuss Europe’s growing involvement in the conflict and the countries that are resisting.

Iranian-British journalist Nazenin Ansari talks about why she is pro-regime change but doesn’t want this war, the brutality of the IRGC, and how Khamenei’s son Mojtaba would be just more of the same if picked as his successor.

Plus, senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan sends a dispatch from the Turkish-Iranian border where she has been speaking to fleeing Iranians, and Dr Hanan Balkhy, WHO’s Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, explains how the UN’s health body prepared for the conflict.

Read Sophia Yan’s analysis of why China is unfazed by the war: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/04/why-china-is-unfazed-by-donald-trump-epic-fury/

Read Tom Cotterill on why this could be the Royal Navy’s biggest humiliation: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/03/is-this-the-royal-navys-biggest-humiliation/

Read our visual journalism deep dive on how Trump sank the Iranian navy: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/03/how-trump-sank-iranian-navy/

Producer: Peter Shevlin
Executive Producer: Louisa Wells

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Battle Lines is now Iran: The Latest! Roland and Venetia are going to be covering the new conflict every day for the weeks to come, bringing you the best of The Telegraph’s reporting from around the world and exclusive interviews with world-class experts in military strategy, diplomacy, and the Middle East.

On today’s episode, Venetia and Roland look at America’s devastating attacks on Iran’s official Navy and the possibility of Saudi Arabia joining the war.

The Telegraph’s foreign reporter Akhtar Makoii shares his insights from speaking to people inside Iran about how ordinary people are now facing threats from both American bombs and the regime, who are out in force on the streets.

Maya Gebeily, Reuters’ bureau chief in Beirut, discusses the state of Hezbollah and the mood on the ground in Lebanon after Israel announced it is invading.

Plus, The Telegraph's US Correspondent Connor Stringer talks about his exclusive phone call with Donald Trump in the midst of the Iran war and why the president thinks Keir Starmer is “disappointing”.

Read Connor Stringer's exclusive chat with Trump: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/03/02/exclusive-trump-very-disappointed-in-starmer-over-iran/

Read Akhtar Makoii’s interviews with people inside Iran: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/02/iran-war-tehran-live-in-fear-us-bombs-whats-left-regime/

Read Akhtar Makoii’s rundown of Khamenei’s possible successors: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/03/the-four-men-who-could-save-or-destroy-iran/

Producer: Peter Shevlin
Executive Producer: Louisa Wells

► Sign up to our most popular newsletter, From the Editor. Look forward to receiving free-thinking comment and the day's biggest stories, every morning. telegraph.co.uk/fromtheeditor

Contact us with feedback or ideas:
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