Iran warns US naval blockade threatens ceasefire

Tehran, Iran – Iranian authorities accidental a continued United States naval blockade successful the Strait of Hormuz could extremity the existent intermission successful warring arsenic mediators effort to unafraid a diplomatic solution.

“If the aggressor and violent US seeks to proceed its amerciable enactment of imposing a naval blockade successful the portion and to make insecurity for Iran’s commercialized vessels and lipid tankers, this enactment by the US volition represent a prelude to a usurpation of the ceasefire,” said Major General Ali Abdollahi, the commandant of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

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“The almighty equipped forces of Iran volition not let immoderate exports oregon imports to proceed successful the country of the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman and the Red Sea,” Abdollahi, whose organisation has been moving the warfare and influencing governmental decision-making, was quoted arsenic saying by authorities media connected Wednesday.

The comments travel aft the US subject said its naval blockade has “completely halted economical commercialized going into and retired of Iran by sea” and volition proceed amid the two-week ceasefire declared a week ago.

US President Donald Trump told Fox News that the warfare is “close to over” and hinted astatine a 2nd circular of face-to-face talks with Iran successful Pakistan successful the coming days, but US media person besides reported that thousands much American soldiers person been sent to the Middle East connected warships.

Vice President JD Vance is expected to pb the US delegation if a 2nd circular of talks does materialise, but nary day has been finalised.

Pakistan’s subject chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, and interior minister, Mohsin Naqvi, arrived successful Iran connected Wednesday arsenic portion of a Pakistani delegation aft “numerous messages” were exchanged with the US through mediators since the Iranian delegation returned from Islamabad connected Sunday.

The extremity of immoderate imaginable aboriginal talks volition beryllium to “fully cease the warfare and realise the rights of Iran” successful summation to lifting the sanctions imposed connected the country, Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters.

He besides emphasised that Iran has not and volition not question a atomic limb but insists connected its close to prosecute atomic vigor for civilian purposes nether United Nations safeguards. He said the level and benignant of enrichment tin beryllium negotiated.

Baghaei besides renewed Iran’s disapproval of Rafael Grossi, the manager of the International Atomic Energy Agency, for statements and reports astir Iran’s atomic programme that the state believes paved the mode for Israel’s 12-day warfare successful June and the existent warfare that the US and Israel started connected February 28.

On Wednesday, Iran’s parliament talker and erstwhile IRGC and constabulary commandant Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who led the Iranian delegation astatine the play talks successful Pakistan, held a uncommon telephone telephone with United Arab Emirates Vice President Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan. They discussed “regional developments and ways to de-escalate tensions successful the region”, according to the UAE’s WAM quality agency.

The UAE and different Gulf Arab states came nether dense Iranian onslaught earlier the ceasefire with Iran saying it was targeting the US subject beingness successful those countries.

‘Never springiness concessions’

Iranian authorities person maintained a defiant attack and person said their supporters, who have taken to the streets astatine night successful a amusement of spot implicit the past six weeks, volition not beryllium blessed if large concessions are fixed connected uranium enrichment and the Strait of Hormuz.

Messages from Iran’s hardline-controlled authorities tv and galore members of parliament person been adamantly against negotiations with Washington, pushing the communicative that they judge Iran has the precocious manus aft surviving 40 days of warfare with subject superpowers.

Speaking to supporters gathered connected Tuesday nighttime connected the streets of Saveh, southwest of Tehran, parliament’s lawman speaker, Ali Nikzad, said Iran considers power implicit the Strait of Hormuz a sovereign and ineligible matter.

“We volition ne'er springiness concessions to our enemy,” helium said.

Esmaeil Kowsari, a subordinate of parliament’s nationalist information committee and erstwhile elder IRGC commander, said it would beryllium “impossible” for the authorities to judge “even 1 clause” of the 15 points delineated by the Trump medication to execute peace.

“We volition enactment successful negotiations to amusement to the satellite that they indispensable participate the tract and halt this instability. We cognize the Americans are not trustworthy and volition not stay committed to agreements,” helium told the state-run IRNA quality agency.

For his part, President Masoud Pezeshkian has said Tehran volition proceed dialog wrong the model of planetary instrumentality and has blamed Washington for “excessive demands” that person derailed immoderate agreement, including connected Hezbollah successful Lebanon.

Mohammad Khatami, a erstwhile reformist president who has been sidelined for years, released a connection precocious connected Tuesday to awesome that the IRGC indispensable present alteration achievements successful the tract of conflict to a “lasting peace” that would let Iran to develop.

“We person entered a caller and much delicate signifier successful which we must, escaped from overexcitement and extremism, consolidate our existent subject and governmental achievements; and, done a precise and realistic knowing of nine and of the necessities of the post-war play and the caller planetary economical and governmental developments, region the shadiness of threat, aggression, and warfare from Iran,” helium wrote.

More arrests, confiscations announced

Iranian authorities person continued to announce the enforcement of decease sentences as good arsenic a ample fig of arrests and plus confiscations.

The judiciary has said immoderate of the executions were linked to nationwide protests successful January, during which thousands of radical were killed during an net blackout. Others were tied to nationalist information crimes and a big of different charges.

Iranian authorities executed astatine slightest 1,639 radical successful 2025 and were connected way to execute adjacent much radical this twelvemonth during the warfare with the US and Israel, Norway-based Iran Human Rights and Paris-based Together Against the Death Penalty said connected Monday.

That fig marks a 68 percent summation compared with the twelvemonth earlier and is the highest per-capita fig of executions successful the satellite with the full fig 2nd lone to China owed to its overmuch larger population.

Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence announced connected Wednesday that it arrested 30 “mercenaries linked with the Mossad” spy bureau of Israel. It besides released footage of handguns and ammunition that it said were seized and the “confessions” of a antheral with a blurred-out look who was identified lone arsenic the “head of a secessionist violent group”.

The judiciary named different foreign-based Iranian nationalist connected Wednesday who had each of his assets confiscated, including cash, an flat gathering and a conveyance successful Hamedan, owed to alleged activities against Iran’s authorities abroad. People wrong the state person besides faced plus seizures owed to dissident behaviour.