Iran navy chief killed & why the war 'was based on a lie'

Iran navy chief killed & why the war 'was based on a lie'

Author: The Telegraph March 26, 2026 Duration: 38:06

Will Israel’s assassination of the IRGC’s naval chief lead to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz?


Hosts Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey analyse the latest news from the Iran war, from the killing of navy commander Alireza Tangsiri to Donald Trump’s claim that Tehran is “begging” for a deal. 


With thousands of US troops en route to the Middle East, the stakes are high. Among them are the 82nd Airborne Division; acting Defence Editor Tom Cotterill explains what sort of missions this elite group of paratroopers might be able to execute.


Plus, former UK ambassador to Iran Sir Richard Dalton gives his insights into why striking a deal with the regime will be so difficult and how he thinks the war is based on a lie around Tehran’s nuclear capabilities. 


CONTRIBUTORS:


Venetia Rainey, co-host @venetiarainey

Roland Oliphant, co-host and chief foreign affairs analyst @RolandOliphant

Tom Cotterill, acting Defence Editor @TomCotterillX

Sir Richard Dalton, UK’s former ambassador to Iran


CONTENT REFERENCED:


What 2,000 US paratroopers could do in Iran

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/25/what-2000-us-paratroopers-could-do-iran-war-america-trump/


Trump denies it – but two wars are becoming one

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/03/26/converging-wars-leave-europe-panicked-and-putin-emboldened/


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


► 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.


For those trying to understand the complex and rapidly shifting landscape of the Middle East, Iran: The Latest offers essential context. This Telegraph podcast moves beyond the headlines to examine the military, diplomatic, and strategic forces shaping the ongoing tensions between Iran, the United States, and Israel. Hosted by veteran foreign correspondents Roland Oliphant and Venetia Rainey, each episode synthesizes frontline reporting from the paper's award-winning journalists with insightful conversations. You'll hear from specialists in areas like regional security architecture, covert operations, and geopolitical theory, providing a clearer picture of the stakes involved. The analysis considers historical grievances, economic pressures, and potential flashpoints, from proxy conflicts to direct confrontations. It’s a resource for anyone who wants to grasp not just what is happening, but why it matters and what might come next. By drawing on deep sourcing and expert commentary, this podcast delivers a nuanced perspective that is both timely and thoroughly researched, making sense of a critical and often misunderstood arena of global affairs.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Iran: The Latest
Podcast Episodes
Trump’s 9 million death gamble: One year since he axed USAID [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:07
Nearly a year after Donald Trump shuttered USAID, the world is still reckoning with the consequences. But what really happened next?Venetia Rainey examines the fallout and what it means for global health, security, and s…
'Copy Ukraine's defence model and reduce China dependency to survive' [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:02:17
Was Peter Mandelson's appointment as UK ambassador to the US a national security risk? Should the US and UK bomb Iran to spark regime change? Will Nato survive Trump? And how should European countries deal with the threa…
'No limits': Russia, China and US enter new nuclear arms race [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:06
This week, the New START treaty expires, ending the last remaining major nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia. With no binding limits on the world’s two largest nuclear arsenals and China r…
Trump masses 'large armada' to force Iran into nuclear deal [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 38:35
The United States appeared poised for a major military confrontation with Iran after Donald Trump ordered a powerful naval force into the region in response to the killing of thousands of Iranian protesters. The expected…