Trump’s threats and economic pressure rattle Iranian officials

"Iran is very concerned. Iran is very frightened, to be honest with you, because their defense is pretty much gone," Trump told Fox News.

He was apparently referring to Israel's October attacks on Iran which, according to US officials, knocked out the country's last three Russian-provided S-300 air defense missile systems.

"Maybe they are trying to get new defense as we speak but their defense is largely gone... Iran is very nervous. I think they're scared. I think Iran would love to make a deal and I would love to make a deal with them without bombing them," Trump added.

Israeli officials have repeatedly raised the possibility of military action against Iran’s nuclear program, but Trump has insisted that he hopes a deal over Iran's nuclear program would make it so that the United States did not have to support an Israeli attack on Iran.

"Everybody thinks Israel with our help or our approval will go in and bomb the hell out of them," Trump said Monday, stressing that Israel would need the US support for such a strike.

"I would prefer that not happen. I'd much rather see a deal with Iran where we can do a deal, supervise, check it, inspect it."

Earlier he had said that any reports the United States and Israel would work together on a devastating military attack on Iran were overblown.

"I want Iran to be a great and successful Country, but one that cannot have a Nuclear Weapon. Reports that the United States, working in conjunction with Israel, is going to blow Iran into smithereens,” ARE GREATLY EXAGGERATED," Trump said on February 5.

'Iran is very militant'

Trump has long opposed foreign wars but has adopted a hard line on Iran, beefing up sanctions on its oil exports in his first term and pulling out of an international deal on Tehran's disputed nuclear program, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

"That was the dumbest" deal, Trump said. "And by the way, that would have expired by now. That was a road to a nuclear weapon. It was a short-term deal. You can't make a deal with just a few years on it."

Trump was referring to the so-called sunset clauses of the 2015 nuclear deal which, according to him, would enable Iran to pursue nuclear weapons in the future.

"They would have a legal right to have a nuclear weapon. You cannot allow Iran or just about anybody else by the way but especially Iran because they are very, very militant. You can't allow them to have a nuclear weapon," he told Fox News.

Trump said there are two ways to stop Tehran from developing a nuclear weapon: "With bombs or with a written piece of paper. And I'd much rather do a deal that's not going to hurt them. And I think they want it too."

Iran has denied seeking a nuclear weapon, but Israel has long contended that a bomb in the hands of its arch-enemy poses an existential threat.

Iranian news site Khabar Fori cited a report it falsely attributed to The Wall Street Journal on Monday saying one of President Trump’s conditions for negotiating with Iran was the "transfer of three Iranian islands to the United Arab Emirates."

The control of the islands is a deeply felt issue for many Iranians across the political spectrum.

Hours later, other Iranian media outlets reported that the American newspaper had not published any such report.

At the same time, an article in Arman-e Melli newspaper and Nameh News listed seven alleged conditions, including "US oversight of all of Iran’s peaceful nuclear activities."

The report also said that, according to these conditions, all American and European prisoners "must be released unconditionally," and that Iran must "dismantle or place under full US supervision" all space technology and satellite research centers.

None of the alleged conditions appear in President Trump's official executive order on Iran, or in his public remarks on potential negotiations.

According to Iran International's in-house analysts, the disinformation campaign—emerging amid sharply rising prices and an unprecedented decline in the national currency rial—appears designed to shape public opinion, justify the Supreme Leader’s decision and mitigate public resentment toward him.

Trump ramps up pressure, Khamenei rejects talks

On February 5, Trump signed a presidential directive to resume his "maximum pressure" policy against the Islamic Republic, with the aim of preventing Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, countering its malign influence in the region by reducing its oil exports to zero.

Khamenei expressed opposition to negotiating with the US, saying such talks "have no impact on solving the country’s problems".

"Negotiating would not be wise, intelligent or honorable," added Khamenei, who is the ultimate decision-makers on all matters of state.

A day later, Trump expressed hope about reaching a deal with the Islamic Republic, saying that such a deal would forestall an Israeli attack on Iran.

Khamenei's categorical rejection of negotiations drew skepticism from some pro-government social media users and a few officials within the Islamic Republic.

Telegram channel Seda-ye Hashemi, which is said to be affiliated with associates of former President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, published an editorial titled "Foreign Policy or Historical Stubbornness?", criticizing Khamenei’s reference to past nuclear negotiations.

"National interests should be defined based on realities, not historical and political prejudices," the author of the editorial wrote.

Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, however, addressed the matter, saying, "My expectation and demand from the president is that he and his colleagues in the government implement the Supreme Leader’s directive."

Tehran aligns with Supreme Leader on US talks

On Monday, during state-led celebrations marking the anniversary of the Islamic Revolution, several officials commented on Trump’s threats and the issue of negotiations.

In a speech, President Masoud Pezeshkian said, "Trump says, ‘Let’s negotiate,’ but signs every possible conspiracy against Iran and then claims he is ready for talks." Earlier, Pezeshkian said, "Our enemies think that if they besiege us, we will die of hunger," aligning with Khamenei’s stance against negotiations.

The country’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, also referred to "America’s betrayal in the JCPOA," saying, "We do not trust negotiations and will never negotiate under pressure and coercion." A similar narrative came from Defense Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, who said, "We will not negotiate under conditions of threats and sanctions."

On the other hand, Mahmoud Vaezi, former chief of staff to President Hassan Rouhani and deputy head of the Moderation and Development Party, suggested that Khamenei’s remarks do not rule out negotiations entirely but are specifically directed at the current circumstances under Trump.

Mostafa Pourmohammadi, secretary-general of the Combatant Clergy Association, echoed this view, saying that based on Khamenei’s position, negotiations should take place "at the right time, from a position of power and dignity."

Trump's remarks on Iran further inflamed currency and gold markets, driving dramatic price surges amid an already strained economy. In response, some officials stressed the need to "clarify" the Supreme Leader’s stance against negotiations with the US.

Gholam-Ali Haddad-Adel, head of the Coalition Council of Revolutionary Forces, said, "The Supreme Leader provides reasoning for his position, and those who support negotiations with Trump should also present their arguments." He acknowledged the "negative reactions of some on social media" to Khamenei’s remarks, attributing them to economic hardships and the pressure on vulnerable groups, but insisted that negotiations would not resolve these problems.

Despite some of Tehran's efforts to justify Khamenei’s decision and spread disinformation about Trump’s alleged preconditions for talks, many among the wider public continue to blame the Supreme Leader and state officials for Iran’s economic and social crises.

On the eve of the 46th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution, citizens in various Iranian cities chanted slogans against the Islamic Republic, including "Death to the Dictator" and "Death to Khamenei."

The land dispute involving a body at the heart of Iranian establishment illuminates the controversy around alleged land grabs involving well-connected people and institutions.

Centering on 200 hectares in Damavand near Tehran, the case dates back to 1996, three years after longtime editor Hossein Shariatmadari was appointed as Ali Khamenei’s representative at the Kayhan Institute overseeing the newspaper.

According to the journalist Yashar Soltani, at the time, the government transferred the land for tree farming and grazing. However, subsequent legal changes challenged such allocations.

“On November 25, 1996, Gholamreza Forouzesh, the minister of agriculture, approved the allocation of 200 hectares of land to the Kayhan Institute. The land was intended for the construction of a township to consolidate all of the institute's publications, as well as for a printing house and administrative facilities.

"However, it was later transferred to the institute under the vague and general pretexts of livestock farming,” said a report by Soltani.

A law passed in 2003 mandated that land transfers made after 1985 without provincial commission approvals must be reversed if the intended projects had not materialized.

Following this, the ministry of agriculture pursued legal action in several cases, including the Kayhan land deal.

In 2007, a court ruled that the land deed should be invalidated and converted into a lease, yet the institute has refused to recognize the decision.

Despite the law’s explicit language, officials from Tehran’s Natural Resources Directorate have been unable to enforce the ruling.

Tehran's Friday prayer leader, Kazem Sedighi, another appointee of the supreme leader, has faced scrutiny in the wake of allegations that he and his family purchased a valuable 45,200 sq ft plot in northern Tehran.

Khamenei presents his office as incorruptible and apart from any financial peccadillos of officialdom but is Iran's ultimate source of authority.

“We pursue and advance our national issues and interests independently of the United States,” said Alaeddin Boroujerdi, a member of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee.

“Therefore, it is essential to strengthen our relations with major countries like China and Russia, as well as with our neighboring countries,” Boroujerdi told ISNA news agency.

Khamenei said on Friday that talks with Washington are "neither wise, intelligent nor honorable."

He also said that US withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear deal under President Donald Trump shows Washington is unreliable.

“The Islamic Republic trusted America once, despite the Supreme Leader’s clear distrust. The Americans, however, failed to honor their commitments, even tearing up an agreement backed by a UN resolution,” Boroujerdi added.

He also said Iran’s policies must reflect reciprocity, warning that threats to Iranian national security would be met with countermeasures.

The remarks indicate that hardliners are coalescing around the intransigent take of the Supreme Leader on talks, in opposition to the public desire for talks mooted by the relatively moderate government.

While Iran’s leadership frames its anti-US approach as protecting national sovereignty, the economic toll of sanctions and isolation has taken a heavy toll.

Ordinary Iranians are confronted with worsening standards of living as the US dollar is being exchanged at over 890,000 rials on Saturday, a new record low. Inflation, unemployment, and shortages in critical sectors continue to strain daily life.

Hadi Matar, a 27-year-old American whose parents are of Lebanese Shi'ite extraction, pleaded not guilty to second-degree attempted murder and assault.

Jurors in the Mayville, New York courtroom have heard the prosecutor's opening statements on how the knife attack at a 2022 New York lecture unfolded in a matter of seconds, leaving Rushdie blinded in one eye and fighting for his life in hospital.

Moments before 77-year-old Rushdie was stabbed on stage, a poet was introducing the book event on the topic of keeping writers safe from harm, Chautauqua District Attorney Jason Schmidt told the jury according to Reuters.

The defendant is accused of running on stage and stabbing Rushdie up to 10 times. The attack also damaged Rushdie’s liver and paralyzed one hand.

Matar’s defense team has questioned the neutrality of police officers’ testimony.

Lynn Schaffer, an assistant public defender here in Chautauqua County, opened her remarks by saying it was an honor to defend Matar and argued that the case and sequence of events is not straightforward, a BBC journalist attending the trial said.

Matar’s lead defense lawyer, Nathaniel Barone, was absent due to illness.

Who is Hadi Matar?

In July 2024, two years after the incident, an unsealed indictment charged the defendant with providing material support to Iran-backed Hezbollah, sometime between September 2022 and August 2022.

The indictment did not specify how Matar is linked to the group.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, Matar's mother told the outlet that her son went on a month-long trip to the Middle East in 2018 and came back radicalized.

Rushdie was forced to spend about 10 years in hiding throughout the United Kingdom and United States for much of the 90s after Khomeini issued a fatwa or religious edict to kill the author.

Khomeini called on “the proud Muslim people of the world” to kill the author of “The Satanic Verses,” which centered on the life of the Prophet Mohammad.

The trial is expected to last up to 10 days, the Associated Press reported.

Rushdie who released a memoir after the attacked called Knife, is expected to take the stand and come face-to-face with his would-be murderer later in the trial.