Al-Monitor, on Iran, 29 September 2026

The headline editorialises, the legal stakes go unmentioned, and the civilian cost of sanctions is ignored.

2.9

out of 10, scored on 3 of 11 checks. Few checks applied, so read it with that in mind.

The double standard

Deaths caused by US-Israeli strikes are reported without naming the actors who caused them, while Iranian and US actions are attributed precisely, creating an asymmetry in how agency over killing is assigned.

How it builds, in Final sentence on casualties

  1. Actor named for strikes but not for who killed whom

    US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed ​thousands and displaced millions.

    Passive construction: 'have killed thousands' names the striker but not the victim population, and no figure is sourced or attributed

  2. US-Israeli aggression named; Iranian response framed as reactive

    Trump has offered shifting goals and timelines for the Iran war that began on ‌February ⁠28 when the US and Israel attacked Iran and Tehran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases.

    Causal sequence attributed precisely for US-Israel; Iran's action labelled a 'response', granting it less independent agency

  3. Economic harm to Iranians attributed to US blockade

    A US blockade has cut Iran's financial lifeline - oil exports, and economic costs of the war have made life tougher for Iranians.

    Actor named and harm described concretely for Iranian civilian population

  4. Iranian official claim reported without qualification

    Iran's president ​told the UN General Assembly last week that Tehran would never surrender to US pressure.

    Iranian statement carried straight, no sceptical framing

  5. Trump prediction reported without challenge or context

    "I don't know if they are going to give up yet but they'll give up," Trump told reporters.

    US presidential assertion carried straight, no sceptical framing

The same decision, both sides

Sourcing and attribution of casualty figures

Deaths caused by US-Israeli strikes are given no source, no breakdown, and no named authority: the figure 'thousands' floats without attribution.

US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed ​thousands and displaced millions.

The economic harm inflicted on Iranians by the US blockade is attributed directly to a named US policy with a concrete mechanism explained.

A US blockade has cut Iran's financial lifeline - oil exports, and economic costs of the war have made life tougher for Iranians.

Framing of who initiated violence versus who responded

The US and Israel are described as having 'attacked Iran' first, establishing them as initiators of the conflict.

the US and Israel attacked Iran and Tehran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases.

Iran's military action is framed entirely as a 'response', subordinating its agency to that of the US and Israel even though its strikes hit multiple countries.

Tehran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases.

What a reader is left with. A reader is left with a vivid picture of Iranian economic suffering and a precise causal chain for the war's outbreak, but with only a vague, unsourced 'thousands killed' for the human cost of US-Israeli strikes, making the scale of lethal violence harder to grasp or scrutinise than the financial and political pressures on Iran and the US.

Trump says he does not know if Iran is going to 'give up yet'

By Steve Holland and Kanishka Singh WASHINGTON, Sept 29 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he does not know if Iran is going to "give up yet" but cast the country as doing "very poorly" in its war with the US. DETAILS AND QUOTES: • "I don't know if they are going to give up yet but they'll give up," Trump told reporters. • "They are doing very poorly," he added. • A US blockade has cut Iran's financial lifeline - oil exports, and economic costs of the war have made life tougher for Iranians. • Iran's president ​told the UN General Assembly last week that Tehran would never surrender to US pressure. • The rise in oil prices due to the war has also become a major issue for Trump's Republican Party heading into the November US midterm elections. • The war has led to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which carried ⁠a fifth ​of global supplies of crude oil and LNG before the conflict. • Trump has offered shifting goals and timelines for the Iran war that began on ‌February ⁠28 when the US and Israel attacked Iran and Tehran responded with its own strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases. • US-Israeli strikes on Iran and Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed ​thousands and displaced millions. (Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Steve Holland in Washington; Editing by Daphne Psaledakis and David Gregorio)

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