Foreign
Iran Is Ready For A Long War With The US – Iranian Official
A top Iranian official has warned that the government is prepared for a long war with the US and signaled that it is willing to continue attacking Gulf countries in an effort to persuade them to convince US President Donald Trump to step back from the conflict.
The warning came in a new CNN interview in Tehran with Kamal Kharazi, foreign policy adviser to the office of the Supreme Leader, who ruled out diplomacy for now and said the war would only end through economic pain, signaling a hardening of the government’s stance on day 10 of the conflict.
“I don’t see any room for diplomacy anymore. Because Donald Trump had been deceiving others and not keeping with his promises, and we experienced this in two times of negotiations – that while we were engaged in negotiation, they struck us,” Kharazi told CNN on Monday.
“There’s no room unless the economic pressure would be built up to the extent that other countries would intervene to guarantee (the) termination of aggression of Americans and Israelis against Iran,” Kharazi said, suggesting that Gulf Arab countries and beyond need to put pressure on the US to end the war.
“This war has been producing a lot of pressure, economic pressure – on others, in terms of inflation, in terms of lack of energy, and so if it will be continued, this pressure will be built up more, and therefore others have no choice (but) to intervene,” he said.
Since the US and Israel launched the war, Iran has struck a slew of countries across the Middle East. Tehran claims it is targeting US interests in Gulf nations but residential buildings and airports have also repeatedly come under attack.
The Iranian strikes have exploited the fragility of the global energy trade including infrastructure and transit routes. Maritime traffic through the Straight of Hormuz has all but collapsed, with crude oil prices surging past $100 a barrel on Monday, rattling wallets and the stock market.
An estimated 20% of world oil supply has been disrupted by the ongoing conflict, roughly twice as big as the record set during the Suez Crisis of 1956-1957, according to historical data from Rapidan Energy Group.
Not only has the war derailed the flow of oil out of the region, it has also effectively wiped out the “spare capacity” that typically serves as a shock absorber in energy markets. Spare capacity measures how much more oil production could quickly get brought back online, if needed.
A spokesperson for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Sunday that Iran is using 60% of its firepower to attack US bases and “strategic interests” in the region.
Meanwhile, Mojtaba Khamenei, the second son of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was elevated to the country’s highest post over the weekend, an indication that further escalation is likely.
Asked if the Iranian military and the supreme leadership are as one going forward, Kharazi said: “Yes, exactly.”
“The responsibility of the leader of Islamic Republic of Iran is to lead the defense capability of Iran, and therefore, as Ayatollah Khamenei was doing that, now the new leader would do that,” he said.
Trump said last week that Khamenei’s appointment as his father’s successor would be “unacceptable” to him.
“That is not his business,” Kharazi said.
US federal prosecutors said Sunday an Iranian national was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport for allegedly trafficking arms to Sudan on behalf of Tehran.
Shamim Mafi, 44, is charged with “brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses and millions of rounds of ammunition manufactured by Iran and sold to Sudan,” US Attorney Bill Essayli wrote in an X post.
A resident of the Los Angeles suburb of Woodland Hills, Mafi “is an Iranian national who became a lawful permanent resident of the United States in 2016,” the prosecutor said.
Mafi was arrested Saturday and faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison if convicted.
The post was accompanied by images of a woman presumed to be Mafi surrounded by federal agents at the airport, a large drone on a tarmac, a woman’s ID image and bundles of cash.
The United Nations recently warned that Sudan is at risk of slipping into “full-scale famine and collapse,” as the war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) enters its fourth year.
The UN Sudan chief, Denise Brown, told AFP Thursday that Sudan is facing the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, and weapons from outside sources deserve part of the blame.
The UN has repeatedly called on foreign powers to stop fueling the war, but has not accused specific states.
On one side, the Sudanese army has been backed by Egypt and Saudi Arabia, and deployed Turkish and Iranian-made drones.
However, most of the blame has been pointed at the United Arab Emirates, which denies evidence that it has funnelled arms to the RSF, who have been accused of genocide.
AFP
United States President Donald Trump has claimed that Iran has agreed to hand over its remaining stockpile of enriched uranium and abandon ambitions for a nuclear weapon, describing negotiations as being on the verge of a major breakthrough.
Speaking to reporters at the White House on Thursday before departing for Las Vegas, Trump said: “We’re very close to making a deal with Iran. We had to make sure that Iran never gets a nuclear weapon… They’ve totally agreed to that. They’ve agreed to almost everything.”
He added that Iran had consented to return its enriched uranium, which he has repeatedly called “nuclear dust”, material believed to be buried deep underground following earlier U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities.
“They’ve agreed to give us back the nuclear dust,” Trump stated. He also suggested that the next round of talks could take place over the weekend and expressed uncertainty about whether the current fragile ceasefire would need extension.
The comments come amid efforts to end six weeks of conflict in the Middle East that has disrupted global energy supplies and raised fears over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint for oil exports.
However, Iran has not publicly confirmed Trump’s assertions. Multiple reports indicate that Tehran has previously pushed back against similar claims, describing them as exaggerated.
Recent direct talks in Islamabad on April 11-12 collapsed without agreement, with core disputes remaining over the future of uranium enrichment inside Iran and the removal of existing stockpiles.
The White House has been discussing a possible second round of negotiations in Pakistan, with officials expressing optimism.
A U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports remains in place, adding pressure on Tehran.
Analysts caution that any final deal would require strict verification mechanisms, especially given the deeply buried nature of the material in question.
For Nigeria and other oil-producing nations, progress toward de-escalation could help stabilise crude prices, which have spiked due to fears of prolonged disruption in the Strait of Hormuz.
A lasting agreement might also open the door for sanctions relief on Iran, potentially shifting global energy dynamics.
Trump has maintained that preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons is a non-negotiable red line, while offering the prospect of broader regional stability in return for Iranian concessions.
No immediate reaction from Iranian officials was available as of press time. Further developments are expected in the coming days as diplomatic channels continue.
A devastating shooting at a middle school in southeastern Turkey on Wednesday has left at least four people dead and 20 others wounded. The incident, which occurred in the province of Kahramanmaras, marks a harrowing second day of educational violence in the region, an anomaly in a country where school shootings are exceedingly rare.
The local governor, Mukerrem Unluer, confirmed to reporters that the fatalities included three pupils and one teacher. The perpetrator, identified as an eighth-grade student at the school, also died during the attack.
According to Governor Unluer, the assailant, typically aged 13 or 14 arrived at the institution concealing an arsenal within his backpack. The weapons, which authorities believe belonged to his father, a retired police officer, included five firearms and seven ammunition magazines.
“An eighth-grade student entered two classrooms occupied by fifth-grade students and opened fire indiscriminately,” Governor Unluer stated. The victims in the fifth grade are generally between the ages of 10 and 11.
The Governor further disclosed that four of the wounded are currently in critical condition and are undergoing emergency surgery.
Television footage from the site depicted a harrowing scene as police cordoned off the school gates while frantic crowds gathered nearby. Ambulances were seen transporting at least two victims from the premises as emergency services worked to stabilise the survivors.
The Justice Minister, Akin Gurlek, announced via the social media platform X that a formal investigation has been launched into the circumstances surrounding the massacre. Authorities are expected to scrutinise how the minor gained access to his father’s service weapons.
This tragedy follows a similar incident on Tuesday in the neighbouring province of Sanliurfa, where a former student opened fire at a school, wounding 16 individuals including staff and pupils before taking his own life.
The back-to-back attacks have sent shockwaves through the Turkish nation, prompting urgent discussions regarding firearm security and the safety of academic environments.
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