Pezeshkian accuses Israel of assasination attempt, ‘destroying' US-Iran diplomacy
Trump says scheduled new nuclear talks with Iran
Iran arrests 900 since start of Israel war: watchdog
Surge in Iran's deportation of Afghans sparks 'scapegoating' fears after Israel conflict
Iranian president announces order to end cooperation with IAEA
A+ A-
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has accused Israel of attempting to assassinate him and derailing peace talks with the United States.
In an interview posted Monday by conservative commentator Tucker Carlson on X, Pezeshkian was asked directly whether Israel had tried to kill him. 'They did try, yes, and they acted accordingly, but they failed,' he alleged.
Tensions between Israel and Iran escalated sharply on June 13, when Israeli airstrikes inside Iran killed senior military commanders and nuclear scientists. In response, Iran launched a barrage of missiles and drones targeting Israel.
Tensions between Iran and Israel escalated on June 13, when Israeli airstrikes inside Iran killed senior military commanders and nuclear scientists. In response, Iran launched missile and drone strikes on Israel. The crisis deepened when the US struck Iran's nuclear facilities at Fordow, Isfahan, and Natanz on June 22. Iran responded the next day with a ballistic missile attack on Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar.
A US-brokered ceasefire took effect on June 24 and has held so far.
In his interview with Carlson, Pezeshkian ruled out any US involvement in the alleged assassination attempt, stating firmly, 'It was Israel.'
Israel's mid-June military action notably came just two days before a scheduled sixth round of indirect nuclear talks between Iran and the US in Muscat, Oman. The negotiations - ongoing since April - have since been suspended.
Pezeshkian claimed the Israeli strikes derailed diplomatic progress. 'We were going to have the next round of the talks [on June 15], but suddenly, Israel torpedoed the negotiating table,' he said, accusing Israel of 'destroying diplomacy.'
The Iranian president also raised concerns over the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), claiming that Israeli intelligence may have obtained sensitive information from its inspections. 'We realized that Israel got information from the inspections,' he said.
On Wednesday, Pezeshkian signed a law suspending cooperation with the IAEA. The bill, previously approved by Iran's parliament and Guardian Council, blocks inspectors from entering the country unless Iran receives guarantees protecting its nuclear infrastructure.
In his interview with Carlson, the Iranian president blamed the IAEA's failure to explicitly condemn the Israeli attacks on Iranian nuclear sites for 'a widespread lack of trust among Iranians, legislators, and public opinion.'
He also dismissed accusations that Iran seeks nuclear weapons, calling such claims 'a false mentality promoted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since 1984. 'The truth is that we have never been after developing a nuclear bomb. Not in the past, not presently, or in the future,' Pezeshkian insisted.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Shafaq News
3 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Iran's Quds Force chief held secret meetings with Iraqi Shiite leaders
Shafaq News – Baghdad The commander of Iran's Quds Force, Esmail Qaani, paid a brief, unannounced visit to Baghdad in recent days, where he met with senior figures in Iraq's Coordination Framework. Informed sources told Shafaq News that Qaani's visit lasted approximately ten hours and included separate meetings with former prime minister and State of Law Coalition leader Nouri al-Maliki, National Wisdom Movement (Al-Hikma) leader Ammar al-Hakim, Fatah Alliance head Hadi al-Amiri, and Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq leader Humam Hammoudi. The discussions, the source revealed, focused on regional developments and Iraq's internal political landscape, with particular attention to upcoming elections and shifting alliances within the Shiite-led Coordination Framework, a major political bloc supported by Tehran. The Iranian commander did not meet with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani during this visit. This marks Qaani's second visit to Baghdad within two months. On June 28, he reportedly met with figures from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), an umbrella of mostly Shiite paramilitary groups backed by Iran. No official statements have been issued by either the Iraqi or Iranian sides regarding these meetings.
Rudaw Net
5 hours ago
- Rudaw Net
Iran executes over 100 Kurds in 2025 amid post-war crackdown: Watchdog
Also in Iran Tensions rise in Iranian parliament ahead of IAEA visit At least five killed in attack on Iran courthouse Iranian diplomat says had 'frank' talks with European powers Iran says to continue nuclear enrichment A+ A- ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran has executed at least 100 Kurdish citizens since the start of 2025, including several political prisoners, a human rights watchdog warned Sunday. The surge comes as Iran has been upping its sentences on detainees, following its recent 12-day war with Israel. 'Since the beginning of 2025, the Islamic Republic of Iran has executed at least 100 Kurds, including four political prisoners,' reported the Oslo-based Hengaw Human Rights Organization. The watchdog censured what it described as Tehran's 'death-driven and discriminatory policy,' calling it 'part of a broader project of structural oppression against the Kurdish people that must be halted immediately.' On Saturday, Hengaw released a detailed report documenting a steep deterioration in the country's human rights landscape following the June conflict between Iran and Israel. According to the watchdog, between the outbreak of the war on June 13 and a month after the ceasefire on June 24, 'at least 85 prisoners have been executed in various prisons' across Iran. Among the executed were six individuals - three of them Kurdish - accused of 'espionage for Israel.' Hengaw noted that these executions were carried out secretly, with no final visits permitted for families. Hengaw also reported that 'at least 30 political activists, including 18 Kurdish citizens, were sentenced to death or imprisonment" by the Iranian judiciary over the past month, with cumulative sentences amounting to 272 years and 9 months. Additionally, the Oslo-based human rights monitor pointed to widespread arrests. 'From the start of the Iran-Israel war until one month after the ceasefire, at least 1,800 people were arrested across Iran,' it said. Kurds made up the largest share, with 500 detained. Many were accused by Iranian intelligence agencies of "espionage for Israel." For its part, the Kurdistan Human Rights Network (KHRN) on Thursday corroborated these findings, reporting that "over 330 Kurdish activists and other citizens' were arrested across Iran by the Iranian intelligence ministry and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence apparatus during the conflict with Israel and its aftermath. Among them, 18 Kurdish political activists were collectively sentenced to 221 years and 7 months in prison, and five received a total of 11 death sentences for charges including 'collaboration with [the Israeli intelligence agency] Mossad and Israel.' These reports emerge amid new measures taken by Iranian authorities to intensify the crackdown on alleged espionage and collaboration with Israel and the United States. Earlier this month, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, head of Iran's judiciary, ordered expedited processing of spy cases linked to Israel. 'Part of the deterrence in this matter lies in the speed of action,' Ejei said. His comments followed the Iranian parliament's passage of amendments to the country's espionage laws, significantly broadening the definition of hostile activity and introducing capital punishment for a wider range of offenses linked to Israel and the United States. Tensions between Iran and Israel escalated sharply on June 13 after Israeli airstrikes in Iran killed several senior military commanders and nuclear scientists. Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks on Israeli targets. The conflict widened on June 22 when the United States bombed three Iranian nuclear sites, prompting Tehran to strike back with a missile attack on a US base in Qatar. A ceasefire, brokered by Washington, took effect on June 24 and has largely held. Since the ceasefire, Iranian authorities have ramped up arrests and executions of alleged spies, releasing televised confessions from several detainees. However, human rights groups have questioned the credibility of such confessions, citing longstanding concerns over Iran's use of coercion to extract false admissions.
Shafaq News
5 hours ago
- Shafaq News
Israel's Katz renews Khamenei assassination vow
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz threatened Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatullah Ali Khamenei with assassination if Tehran continues to threaten Israel. Speaking during a visit to Ramon Airbase alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Katz declared, 'I have a clear message for the dictator Khamenei—if you persist in threatening Israel, our long arm will reach Tehran again, this time with greater force—and this time, it includes you.' This marks the second time Katz has publicly named Khamenei in this context. The first came during the 12-day military confrontation with Iran in June, when he described targeting Khamenei as one of Israel's strategic objectives in its campaign against Tehran.
