Iran’s top negotiator and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Ghalibaf told Pakistani army chief during a meeting in Tehran that Iran would not compromise on the rights of its nation and country, state TV reports.
He said that Iran’s armed forces had rebuilt their capabilities during the ceasefire and that if the US “foolishly restarts the war,” the consequences would be “more crushing and bitter.”
Iran’s internet blackout enters 13th week, surpassing 2000 hours
Digital monitor Netblocks says Iran’s internet blackout is entering its 13th week.
“Network data show Iran’s internet blackout is entering its 13th week after surpassing 2016 hours of digital isolation from the outside world,” the watchdog writes on X.
“Daily life for most Iranians is now shaped by the loss of opportunities and access to information others can reach in seconds.”
While Iran’s domestic intranet is largely operational, access to the global internet is severely restricted.
Pakistan army chief meets Iran’s chief negotiator, president and foreign minister in Tehran
Iran’s top negotiator and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf met Pakistani Army Chief Asim Munir in Tehran as part of ongoing diplomatic efforts over regional tensions, Iranian state media reports.
Munir also held meetings with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in the presence of Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi during his visit to Iran.
US has almost completely excluded Israel from Iran negotiations, Israeli defense officials tell NYT
The United States has almost completely excluded Israel from the negotiations with Iran, two Israeli defense officials tell The New York Times.
Israel was not involved at all in the discussions ahead of the ceasefire and learned of developments in the talks between the US and Tehran from regional diplomatic contacts, as well as through the use of surveillance, the report says.
The Israeli officials spoke to the newspaper on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the issue.
The report notes that in the run-up to the start of the war against Iran earlier this year, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in close coordination with Trump and was leading a discussion in the Situation Room in Washington predicting the fall of the regime in Tehran.
“The banishment from the cockpit to economy class has potentially significant consequences for Israel,” the newspaper says.
Araghchi tells UN chief that US is making ‘repeated excessive demands’
Tehran has accused the United States of making “excessive demands,” Iranian media says, as US media reports raised the prospect that Washington is mulling new strikes and leaders of the Islamic Republic consider the latest proposal.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a call with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that Tehran was engaged in the diplomatic process despite “repeated betrayals of diplomacy and military aggression against Iran, along with contradictory positions and repeated excessive demands” by the United States, according to the reports.
Pakistan’s powerful army chief arrived in Tehran yesterday to bolster mediation and US President Donald Trump abruptly changed his plans, saying he would skip his son’s wedding to stay in Washington due to “circumstances pertaining to government,” fueling speculation that the situation had entered a sensitive stage.
Trump has described the stop-start negotiations this week as teetering on the “borderline” between renewed attacks and a deal to end the war, which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28 and led to competing blockades around the strategic Strait of Hormuz that have roiled the global economy.
Weeks of negotiations since an April 8 ceasefire — including historic face-to-face talks hosted by Islamabad — have still not produced a permanent resolution or restored full access to the strait, choking vast quantities of global oil supply.
US media outlets Axios and CBS News, citing unnamed sources, reported the White House was considering strikes on Iran, although both added a final decision had not been made yet.
Pakistan army chief, Asim Munir, held talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Tehran yesterday as Islamabad steps up diplomatic efforts to help mediate between Iran and the United States, Iran’s state media reports.
Both sides exchanged views on the latest diplomatic initiatives aimed at preventing further escalation and ending the Iran war in talks that lasted late into the night, the report says.
Trump reportedly moving toward ordering strikes on Iran but no final decision made
The Trump administration is readying to launch a wave of fresh US strikes against Iran, CBS News reports, amid ongoing diplomatic mediations for a deal between the United States and Islamic Republic.
The report stresses no decision has been made, but notes US President Donald Trump is skipping his son’s wedding to stay at the White House and quotes sources with direct knowledge of the planning as saying that some American military personnel and members of the intelligence community have cancelled their plans for Memorial Day weekend.
A separate report by the Axios news site says Trump met Friday with top members of his national security team to discuss Iran, with sources saying he is seriously weighing new strikes unless there is an eleventh hour breakthrough in the talks.
Citing unnamed sources, the report says Trump has “grown increasingly frustrated about the negotiations with Iran over the past several days,” with his position through the week shifting from favoring diplomacy toward ordering a strike.
Like CBS, Axios reports Trump has yet to make a decision on whether to resume the conflict.
A White House spokesperson, Anna Kelly, tells CBS in response that “the president has been clear about the consequences if Iran fails to make a deal.”
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