Iran: The Latest

Tit-for-tat violence between Iran and the US erupted over the weekend as missiles and drones flew in both directions across the Strait of Hormuz. On today’s episode of Iran: The Latest, we break down a dangerous weekend of military escalation that has left the fragile 60-day interim peace agreement hanging by a thread.

Host Venetia Rainey is joined by Bahraini political analyst Ahmed Khuzaie to dissect Iran’s widening campaign of violence and give the Gulf view on who should be allowed to control the vital Hormuz waterway.

He explains why there is no trust in Tehran sticking to its side of any deal and how some Gulf states would like to see Donald Trump return to war - but a more decisive and better planned one.

Plus, Israel and Lebanon have signed a peace deal too. But as fighting continues with Iranian proxy Hezbollah, is it even worth the paper it’s written on?

Highlights

US hammers Iran after Strait of Hormuz shipping attacks
Unsanctioned funds will only finance Iran's terror groups

CONTRIBUTORS:

Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey
Ahmed Khuzaie, managing partner at Khuzaie associates @AhmedAlkhuzaie

WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk

CONTENT REFERENCED:

Trump’s flimsy Iran deal comes back to haunt him

Producer: Max Bower
Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells

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► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/

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Iran’s direct strike on a cargo ship in the Strait of Hormuz has shattered US hopes of bypassing the IRGC with a covert new route. On today’s episode of Iran: the Latest, Venetia Rainey exposes how this tactical escalation threatens to derail the fragile 60-day peace roadmap.

Plus, is Trump’s Iran deal better or worse than Obama’s? Former US lead negotiator Robert Malley joins the podcast to deliver his blunt assessment, including why it’s not as financially generous as some claim, how close Iran now is to going nuclear, and what to do with all that enriched uranium.

Highlights
Iran strikes ship in Strait of Hormuz
Trump vs. Obama: Who got the better Iran deal?

CONTRIBUTORS:
Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey
Robert Malley, former JCPOA US negotiator and program director International Crisis Group @Rob_Malley

WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk

CONTENT REFERENCED:
Iran attacks cargo ship in Strait of Hormuz
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/25/iran-attacks-cargo-ship-strait-of-hormuz/

Israel suspected of cyber attack on Iranian banks
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/23/israel-behind-cyber-attack-on-iranian-banks/

The US-Iran war may have ended, but 6,000 miles away the death toll is rising
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/madagascar-fuel-food-shortages-iran-war-death-toll/

Producer: Max Bower and Lucy Dichmont
Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & Louisa Wells
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► EMAIL US: Contact the team on battlelines@telegraph.co.uk
► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/
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President Donald Trump needs more than $65bn in urgent funding for the Pentagon as a result of the Iran war, a stark reminder of the cost to America’s military. Amid a munitions crunch, the defense industrial base is being told to go faster - and the US’ adversaries are taking note.
In today’s episode of Iran: The Latest, Venetia Rainey sits down with Dana Stroul, former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East and now director of research at the Washington Institute.
She delivers a blunt assessment of the conflict's fallout, why lopsided sanctions relief has handed Tehran an economic windfall, and how the war has severely strained America’s Gulf alliances. Plus, they discuss new reports that an advanced Iranian "jellyfish" drone formation successfully brought down a US F-15 fighter jet back in April.

CONTRIBUTORS:
Venetia Rainey, co-host and executive producer @venetiarainey
Dana Stroul, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Middle East and research director Washington Institute @dstroul

WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk

CONTENT REFERENCED:
Iran was using ‘jellyfish’ swarm of drones, reports downed F-15 pilot
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/us/news/2026/06/23/f-15-pilot-shot-down-over-iran-saw-jellyfish-swarm-of-drone/

Dana Stroul: How the Iran War Will Transform America’s Military Role
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/iran/middle-east-power-paradox-dana-stroul

Producer: Max Bower and Rachel Porter
Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & 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
► EMAIL US: Contact the team on battlelines@telegraph.co.uk
► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/

Highlights
US facing weapons shortage - can Trump fix it?
Did Iran down a US fighter jet with a secret new drone weapon?

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The war in Lebanon between Israel and Hezbollah remains a major sticking point in US-Iran peace talks - but Donald Trump has a controversial solution.

At the G7 summit, he said he wants Syria to militarily intervene in their neighbour and disarm the Iranian proxy by force. Sophia Yan is joined by Ahmad Sharawi, senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies to discuss why Damascus has flatly rejected the plan. From the dark history of Syria’s occupation of Lebanon to the potential for a proxy war between Turkey and Israel, he outlines how such a move could seriously backfire.

Plus, the latest news from the region including the row over Iran letting in nuclear inspectors from the IAEA and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio's high-stakes warnings on the Strait of Hormuz.

CONTRIBUTORS:
Sophia Yan, senior foreign correspondent @sophia_yan
Ahmad Sharawi, senior research analyst FDD @AhmadA_Sharawi

Producer: Max Bower and Rachel Porter
Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & 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
► EMAIL US: Contact the team on battlelines@telegraph.co.uk
► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/

Highlights
‘Creative but wrong’: Trump’s plan for Syria to attack Hezbollah
Plus, a row over Iran letting in nuclear inspectors from the IAEA

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Iran has unveiled a plan to impose stealth fees on the Strait of Hormuz, using an insurance loophole to keep exacting tolls out of the key waterway post-war.

Telegraph senior foreign correspondent Adrian Blomfield joins Roland Oliphant to break down how the conflict has permanently disrupted the global balance of power, from disrupting the US pivot to Asia to breaking US-Israeli ties.

Plus, they take a moment to consider how the past four months will reverberate in the years to come and ask: what would Herodotus, the first historian of a Persian war, make of it all?

Highlights
Iran’s secret plan to keep control of the Strait of Hormuz
How Trump’s greatest foreign policy failure reshaped the world

WATCH US ON YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJnf_DDTfIVAif-vifC6F2aoPB8GIw6dk

CONTRIBUTORS:
Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant
Adrian Blomfield, senior foreign correspondent @adrianblomfield

CONTENT REFERENCED:
How Trump’s greatest foreign policy failure has reshaped the world
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/22/trumps-greatest-foreign-policy-failure-reshaped-world/

Has the US-Israel relationship changed forever?
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/06/20/has-the-us-israel-relationship-changed-forever/

Producers: Max Bower and Elliot Lampitt
Executive Producers: Venetia Rainey & 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
► EMAIL US: Contact the team on battlelines@telegraph.co.uk
► GET THE LATEST HEADLINES: Find all our latest Iran coverage here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/iran-war/
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.