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Iran sees "a pause rather than an end," BBC Persian's Parham Ghobadi says

BBC News' The Iran War Today pairs Tehran's defiant state media with Israel's coming election and Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.

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BBC News Story of October 24, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? One of BBC News's most watched videos since yesterday, with 67,561 views.

Iranian media is defiant as hardliners brace for war | BBC News

Things we can learn from the video

Press to jump

0:42Iranian state media reports a meeting between Mojtaba Khamenei and Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf.
1:14Anita McVeigh summarizes Donald Trump's comments and Pete Hegseth's visit to Israel.
2:02Parham Ghobadi says Iranian officials view the lull as a pause rather than peace.
3:04Ghobadi reports threats against seven undersea internet cables running through the Strait of Hormuz.
5:16James Landale examines how Netanyahu and Eisenkot approach Iran ahead of Israel's election.
9:20Greg Holyoke reports Saudi interceptions of Houthi drones and missiles and the disruption to regional air traffic.

Inside Tehran, the recent quiet is not being treated as peace. "Iran sees this as a pause rather than an end to the conflict," BBC Persian's Parham Ghobadi tells presenter Anita McVeigh in the latest edition of BBC News' The Iran War Today. The bulletin has drawn nearly 68,000 views in its first five hours, the most of any new upload on the channel.

The program opens with Iranian state media, which BBC News describes as emphasizing the country's readiness for war amid renewed concern in Tehran about a return to fighting. McVeigh notes state media reports of a meeting between Mojtaba Khamenei and Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf. She also sets out recent moves in Washington and Israel, including comments from Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth's visit to Israel.

Ghobadi's most concrete detail concerns the Gulf's internet links. He reports threats against undersea cables, saying, "They are going to target undersea internet cables that they mention there are seven of them going through the Strait of Hormuz."

The second segment turns to Israel, where elections are less than a week away. McVeigh frames the contest around Benjamin Netanyahu, who she says "has made it his promise to finish the job in Tehran," and Gadi Eisenkot, a former chief of the Israeli military's general staff. From Jerusalem, diplomatic correspondent James Landale examines how each approaches military policy toward Iran and the role of American support. His summary of Israel's main contenders: "They all see Iran as an existential threat."

The bulletin closes on Saudi Arabia. Greg Holyoke of BBC Monitoring reports that the kingdom has continued to announce interceptions of drones and ballistic missiles launched by Yemen's Houthis, with effects on air traffic at regional airports.

The broadcast comes the same day the channel posted a separate explainer on how Yemen became part of the wider rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

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