August
Labor approves controversial Tasmanian wind farm
The $3b project has been criticised as a threat to endangered species; police say upcoming “March for Australia” protests won’t hinder manhunt for Dezi Freeman. How the day unfolded.
Iran attacked Australia. For Jews, that was not the surprise this week
While the Jewish community suspected Iranian involvement in a spate of antisemitic attacks, they didn’t expect some of their fellow Australians to deny it.
Iranian groups warned for years of IRGC danger
Iranian Australians who have faced rising threats from the authoritarian regime have long urged the government to sanction the IRGC as a terrorist organisation.
Fallen officers named by Victoria Police
The two men killed in Tuesday’s shooting have been identified; one girl has died in a bus crash in Victoria. Follow live.
June
Israel says it has killed IRGC’s Palestine commander in Iran
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz said Saeed Izadi, who armed Hamas, was killed in an apartment strike in Iran. How the day unfolded.
Why US strikes on Iran would bring risks at every turn
The largest perils for not only the region but the world may lie in the aftermath, many experts say, just as they did in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Why Israel’s attack could push Iran to build a bomb
This conflict will solve nothing, and absent the collapse of the Iranian regime, it is quite possible that an even more consequential security threat may emerge in the future.
This is the only outcome markets should fear in Iran-Israel conflict
Markets have reacted predictably to the Israeli attacks on Iran: oil up, gold up, stocks down. But investors need to work through the scenarios of Iran’s response.
June 2024
Iran open to talks with Australia on accepting failed asylum seekers
Iran wants to revive talks after Labor threatened to put the Islamic Republic on a blacklist of countries banned from travelling to Australia.
May 2024
President’s death shows an Iran with few cards left to play
The death of president Ebrahim Raisi opens the way for a dynastic succession to Iran’s supreme leadership. The regime’s chief goal now is protecting the status quo.
How sanctions played havoc with Iran’s ageing helicopters
The US-made Bell 212 carrying the country’s president and foreign minister was almost 30 years old when it crashed into a mountainside.
April 2024
‘Iran is broke’: How clerics crippled the Islamic Republic
Behind all of Iran’s posturing, there seems to be a backstop. The country cannot afford all-out war because its economy is on its knees.
Iran oil exports hit six-year high as West considers tougher sanctions
Iran’s success in exporting its crude underscores the difficulties facing the West as it seeks to build pressure on Tehran following its attack on Israel.
Market aftershocks from Iran’s attack depend on one thing
Investors are treading water as they wait for Israel’s response to the largely failed strike. But shareholders need to start thinking through two scenarios.
Iran is now caught up in a mess of its own making
The Tehran regime’s use of proxy forces has left it boxed into a regional fight that it does not really want.
‘Cartel of aggression’ trades on timidity and self-interest
The West has enormous economic leverage over China and Russia. But fear of their own consumers prevents governments from using it.
February 2024
Iranian sanctions-evasion operation in the heart of London
Two banks, Lloyds and Santander UK, provided accounts to an Iranian sanctioned petrochemicals company near Buckingham Palace
Biden orders more strikes as US hits Houthi cruise missile
The US said it had targeted Iranian-backed armed groups for a third straight day, and destroyed an anti-ship missile fire by Houthi militia in Yemen.
Middle East tensions raise election risks for Biden
Joe Biden’s Middle East foreign policy juggle risks turning into an election nightmare.
January 2024
Five maps that show why the Red Sea is so important
The Houthi attacks on shipping and the US-led response have highlighted the global significance of this narrow stretch of water.