Iran Unveils New Drone, Missile amid Rising Tensions

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, second left, listens to commander of the Revolutionary Guard's ground force Gen. Mohammad Pakpour, left, as the army commander Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, right, stands while they review an annual armed forces parade marking the anniversary of the beginning of war against Iran by former Iraq's Saddam Hussein 44 years ago, in front of the shrine of the late revolutionary founder Khomeini, just outside Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, second left, listens to commander of the Revolutionary Guard's ground force Gen. Mohammad Pakpour, left, as the army commander Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, right, stands while they review an annual armed forces parade marking the anniversary of the beginning of war against Iran by former Iraq's Saddam Hussein 44 years ago, in front of the shrine of the late revolutionary founder Khomeini, just outside Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
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Iran Unveils New Drone, Missile amid Rising Tensions

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, second left, listens to commander of the Revolutionary Guard's ground force Gen. Mohammad Pakpour, left, as the army commander Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, right, stands while they review an annual armed forces parade marking the anniversary of the beginning of war against Iran by former Iraq's Saddam Hussein 44 years ago, in front of the shrine of the late revolutionary founder Khomeini, just outside Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, second left, listens to commander of the Revolutionary Guard's ground force Gen. Mohammad Pakpour, left, as the army commander Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, right, stands while they review an annual armed forces parade marking the anniversary of the beginning of war against Iran by former Iraq's Saddam Hussein 44 years ago, in front of the shrine of the late revolutionary founder Khomeini, just outside Tehran, Iran, Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

Iran unveiled a new ballistic missile and an upgraded one-way attack drone at a military parade on Saturday, state media said, amid soaring regional tensions and allegations of arming Russia.

Iran stands accused by Western governments of supplying both drones and missiles to Russia for use in its war with Ukraine, a charge it has repeatedly denied.

The solid-fuel Jihad missile was designed and manufactured by the aerospace arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and has an operational range of 1,000 kilometers (more than 600 miles), state news agency IRNA said.

The Shahed-136B drone is an upgraded version of the Shahed-136, with new features and an operational range of more than 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles), it added.

New President Masoud Pezeshkian attended the annual parade in Tehran, commemorating the 1980-88 war with Iraq.

"Today, our defensive and deterrent capabilities have grown so much that no demon even thinks about any aggression towards our dear Iran," he said.

"With unity and cohesion among Islamic countries... we can put in its place the bloodthirsty, genocidal usurper Israel, which shows no mercy to anyone, women or children, old or young."

Supreme leader Ali Khamenei delivered a similar tirade against Israel to delegates to an annual meeting of Muslim clerics hosted by Iran, calling on Islamic countries to "completely cut off their economic relations" with Israel and "weaken political ties."

"This inner strength can eliminate the Zionist regime, this malignant cancerous tumor, from the heart of the Islamic community in Palestine and get rid of US domination and coercive interference in the region," he said.

Middle East tensions have soared since Iran-backed Palestinian armed group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 sparking war in Gaza and drawing in Iranian allies around the region.

The tensions have intensified in recent days as the focus of Israel's firepower has shifted north to the Lebanon border where its troops have been battling Iran-backed group Hezbollah.

An Israeli air strike on Hezbollah's Beirut stronghold on Friday killed 31 people, including two of its top commanders, Lebanese authorities said, hot on the heels of deadly sabotage attacks on the group's communications earlier this week.

Britain, France, Germany and the United States slapped new sanctions on Iran earlier this month, alleging that it had been providing ballistic missiles for Russia's war effort in Ukraine.



Trump Licks Wounds as Democrats Celebrate Huge Midterms Win

The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)
The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)
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Trump Licks Wounds as Democrats Celebrate Huge Midterms Win

The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)
The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)

Donald Trump faced a radically transformed and hostile political landscape on Wednesday after US voters handed control of Congress to the Democrats in a stunning rebuke to his presidency.

The result was a personal humiliation for the 80-year-old Trump as a Democratic wave swept into his Republican heartland, boosted by anger at soaring energy prices and his costly war with Iran.

The Democratic capture of the Senate and House of Representatives signals an end to Trump's stranglehold on US politics and gives Democrats the power to block legislation, launch probes into the administration and thwart his appointments.

Another stark challenge to Trump came from closer to home as Vice President JD Vance, a likely 2028 presidential candidate, said that Republicans lost the midterms because of the Iran conflict.

"The reason we lost is the war," said Vance, who had reportedly been skeptical about the war Trump launched in February. "Everyone knows why we lost."

Hakeem Jeffries, expected to be the next speaker of a Democratic House, singled out the high cost of living as the defining issue for voters and predicted Democrats could end up with as many as 255 seats in the 435-member chamber when all the votes are counted.

Jeffries, appearing on MS Now, said his party would focus not on retribution but on fulfilling its promise to lower the prices of groceries, gas, housing and health care.

- 'Still your president' -

Trump, whose approval ratings were at record lows going into Tuesday's vote, struck a conciliatory tone despite his history of rejecting election defeats, telling The New York Times he was "absolutely willing" to accept the results.

The White House made it clear, however, that Trump wasn't going to take a backseat during the remaining two years of his presidency.

"TRUMP IS STILL YOUR PRESIDENT," the White House said in a post on X that featured a picture of a glaring Trump in the Oval Office.

Trump, in remarks to Fox News, acknowledged that the Iran conflict had contributed to the defeat but defended the military campaign.

He said Democrats did a "good job" and "fought hard" while distancing himself from his party's poor showing.

Republicans would have won "IN A LANDSLIDE" if he had been on the ballot, Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

Trump also repeated his threat to use the presidential veto on Democrat-passed bills, posting a picture of a red baseball cap reading just: "VETO."

Democrats flipped seven Senate seats that had been held by Republicans, scoring breakthroughs in South Carolina, North Carolina, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Texas and Maine.

- 'Big wipeout' -

Two Senate races -- in Mississippi and Alaska -- remained too close to call on Wednesday.

In Maine, former logger Troy Jackson defeated longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins.

In Kansas, Methodist minister Adam Hamilton became the first Democrat elected to the Senate from the reliably conservative state since 1932.

Iowa had not elected a Democratic senator since 2008.

In Texas, James Talarico, one of several young, charismatic politicians put up by the Democrats, won a Senate seat and Democrats also won the governor's race, ending decades of Republican rule.

Democrats protected key Senate seats of their own, including Jon Ossoff in Georgia and an open seat in New Hampshire.

In Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed, who Trump crudely derided as a "jihadist," defeated former Republican lawmaker Mike Rogers, making him the first Muslim elected to the upper chamber of Congress.

In the House, Democrats made gains in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Arizona, North Carolina, Wisconsin and New Jersey, including districts Trump had carried comfortably in 2024.

Democrats also won Georgia's governorship, electing former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms as the first Black woman governor in US history.

Republicans had some consolation in Florida, where Trump-backed Byron Donalds became the state's first Black governor and Ashley Moody retained a Senate seat.

But the night was "a big wipeout and a strong repudiation of Donald Trump and his policies," George Washington University professor Todd Belt told AFP.


White House Insists Trump Is ‘Still Your President’ After Midterm Rout

US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)
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White House Insists Trump Is ‘Still Your President’ After Midterm Rout

US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)

Donald Trump is "still your president," the White House said Wednesday, a day after his Republican Party suffered sweeping losses in midterm elections seen as a referendum on his second term.

The White House delivered the message in a post on X featuring a picture of a glaring Trump looming over the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.

"PSA: TRUMP IS STILL YOUR PRESIDENT," text superimposed on the image said, using the abbreviation for public service announcement.

"Thank you for your attention to this matter," the post added, using a phrase Trump frequently employs in his social media messages.

Opposition Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday, dealing a major blow to Trump and the Republican Party.

The Democratic capture of Congress signals an end to Trump's stranglehold on US politics and gives Democrats the power to pass legislation, launch investigations into Trump's administration and thwart his appointments.

The results reflected deep frustration over the cost of living, tariffs and Trump's war with Iran, which has sent prices soaring and compounded dissatisfaction with an already deeply unpopular president.

But Trump has threatened to use his veto power, raising questions about how much Democrats can achieve even with control of both the House and Senate.


US VP Vance Says Iran War Is ‘the Reason We Lost’ Midterms

 Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)
Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)
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US VP Vance Says Iran War Is ‘the Reason We Lost’ Midterms

 Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)
Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)

US Vice President JD Vance said Wednesday that the Iran war doomed Republicans in the midterm elections, as he sought to distance himself from the conflict ahead of a possible 2028 White House run.

"The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night," Vance said in a lengthy post on X -- apparently referring to President Donald Trump saying the Iran war was "part of it" but that it was still justified.

"Everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there," added Vance, who had reportedly been skeptical about the war Trump launched in February.