Iran’s top commanders sharpened their rhetoric against the United States and Israel ahead of expected diplomatic contacts in Oman, boasting of technical superiority and strategic endurance in the face of Western pressure.
“Despite all their claims, the United States and the Zionist regime are ineffective in practice,” said Revolutionary Guard Quds Force Commander Esmail Qaani at an event in Tehran on Thursday.
“They cannot even understand how our missiles strike their targets with such precision. This is our power.”
Qaani said Western-backed forces, though well-equipped, remained “helpless before the will of determined nations.”
At the same time, Navy Commander Shahram Irani said Iran’s maritime strength had reached unprecedented levels, saying international actors now viewed his forces as a superpower.
"Today, the enemies view the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran and the Strategic Naval Force of the Army as a superpower, and the devil is seeking direct confrontation at sea. By the grace and power of God, we will defeat and drown the devil in the sea, just like Pharaoh’s people."
The comments follow recent threats by US officials, including president Donald Trump over Iran’s nuclear activities and regional support for proxies.
After Trump’s threats of a military strike, Tehran has agreed to indirect talks, despite a previous refusal by Khamenei.
Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s decision to drop his longstanding opposition to talks with the United States drew criticism from some Iranians that the veteran leader capitulated under pressure in order to retain power.
The reaction came after Iran International invited public responses to the reversal in Khamenei’s stance, asking why he would now consider negotiations he previously called “unwise, undignified, and dishonorable.”
One respondent, in a video message to Iran International, referenced the leader’s earlier rhetoric: “You said negotiating with America is dishonorable. Now do you realize you’re without honor?”
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday confirmed the start of high-level, direct talks with Iran, following his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“We’re dealing with them directly and maybe a deal is going to be made,” Trump said, warning that if not, “Iran is going to be in great danger”.
Tehran is set to hold negotiations with Washington in Oman on Saturday.
In the face of criticism from inside and outside government, Iranian officials continued to frame the diplomatic channel as indirect. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told state TV, “What America is doing is dictating. We believe indirect talks are more effective”.
Fatemeh Mohajerani, the administration’s spokesperson, also said the negotiations, while advanced and significant, remain indirect for now. “We have to begin the process to see where it leads, but the format remains non-direct,” she added.
Still, the public remains unconvinced by the government’s attempts to save face. Several respondents accused Khamenei of misleading the population over years of opposition to the US, only to retreat under duress.
“They lied about indirect negotiations for so long,” one person said in a voice message. “Now they should admit they were wrong.”
Others tied the capitulation to a fear of system collapse in the wake of the Women, Life, Freedom movement which has seen a mass movement against the government since 2022.
“Khamenei agreed to talk because he fears ending up like Gaddafi or Saddam,” another one said.
One man argued the stakes had now grown too high, just last month, Trump threatening to bomb Iran if a new deal was not agreed upon within two months. “Khamenei has no choice but to sit at the table. He knows if war breaks out, the same youth he wants to send to fight won’t aim at America or Israel—they’ll aim at him," he said.
Criticism also targeted the perceived hypocrisy of the leadership. “You used to accuse protesters of collaborating with hostile governments,” said one voice message addressed to Khamenei. “Now you’re negotiating with the very government you called hostile.”
Another message addressed Khamenei directly: “You’re a coward ruining the lives of over 80 million people. Now that you've suffered a defeat and backed down, even your own followers can see how cowardly you are.”
A separate voice message even accused the leader of backpedaling so much that he risked a total turnaround of decades of anti-US and anti-Israel animosity.
“Khamenei redefines words. Even ‘honor’ means something different to him,” the speaker said, before adding, “Soon he’ll be on his way to kiss Netanyahu’s hands.”
An overwhelming sense of "humiliation" has dominated the messages received by Iran International.
“This is humiliation. Khamenei once vowed neither war nor negotiation. Now there’s negotiation, no deal, and he still has to go," another Iranian said.
Iran’s conservative factions are concerned upcoming talks with the United States could extend beyond the nuclear file and may involve additional demands such as disarming Tehran’s regional allies that remain deeply contentious.
Hardline publication Khorasan cautioned that Iranian negotiators must guard against what it called mission creep, particularly in the face of US efforts to shift the agenda toward direct talks.
Iran insists the Oman discussions will focus solely on its nuclear program and officials in Tehran have ruled out negotiations on regional issues or its ballistic missile capabilities.
However, US officials may press for a broader agenda. An executive order US President Donald Trump signed in February called for curbs on Iran’s ballistic missile program and an end to its support for allied groups across the region, such as the Houthis in Yemen.
The group, designated a terrorist organization by countries such as the US and UK, is currently engaged in a tit-for-tat battle with the US amid its blockade of shipping in the Red Sea region.
Khorsan also warned that the talks should not overtake national priorities, including the country's economic crisis, the worst since the founding of the Islamic Republic in 1979. Iran has been demanding the quick lifting of US sanctions that have devastated the economy.
The publication wrote that "diplomacy is not a solution to the country’s core problems".
On the eve of talks this week, President Masoud Pezeshkian, speaking on National Nuclear Technology Day, reiterated Iran’s rejection of nuclear weapons.
“They [UN inspectors] have checked us a hundred times. Check again. We are not after the bomb,” he said. “We need nuclear science. They want us weak, but we will stand tall through knowledge.”
US President Donald Trump has warned of bombing Iran if Tehran fails to reach a new deal over its nuclear program, giving a two month deadline, without stating when that ends.
An Argentine prosecutor has requested the arrest of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in connection with the 1994 bombing of a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires that killed 85 people.
Prosecutor Sebastián Basso, who replaced the late Alberto Nisman, asked federal judge Daniel Rafecas to issue national and international arrest warrants for Khamenei, according to Argentine paper Clarin.
Basso also requested the application of trial in absentia for the remaining Iranian and Lebanese suspects named in the case.
Some of the high-level officials accused in the bombing case include former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who has since died, then-Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati, and former Intelligence Minister Ali Fallahian.
Others include former IRGC commander Mohsen Rezaee, former Quds Force commander Ahmad Vahidi, former Iranian diplomat Ahmad Reza Asghari, former cultural attaché Mohsen Rabbani, and Imad Mughniyeh, the late Hezbollah operations chief.
The move follows the passage of a law promoted by President Javier Milei last year, allowing trials in absentia in cases involving grave crimes.
The bombing remains Argentina’s deadliest terrorist attack. On July 18, 1994, a truck loaded with explosives detonated outside the Argentine Israeli Mutual Association (AMIA) building in Buenos Aires, killing 85 people and injuring hundreds.
In April 2024, Argentina’s top criminal court found that the bombing was carried out by Hezbollah militants under “a political and strategic design” by Iran. Iranian officials have denied any role in the attack, and no suspects have stood trial to date.
In 2015, Alberto Nisman, the Argentine prosecutor who was later succeeded by Basso, was found dead days after accusing then-President Cristina Fernández of covering up Iran’s role in the AMIA bombing. A federal judge later ruled that Nisman had been murdered.
Last year, President Javier Milei announced the new legislation aimed at allowing the prosecution of those responsible. “Today we chose to speak out, not stay silent,” Milei said.
“We choose life, because anything else is making a game out of death ... While they may never be able to serve a sentence, they will not be able to escape the eternal condemnation of a free court proving their guilt to the entire world.”
Milei has blamed the “fanatical government of Iran” for the bombing and linked the 1994 attack to the October 7, 2023, assault by Hamas on Israel. “The terrorism of that tragic Oct. 7 is exactly the same terrorism that attacked us 30 years ago,” he said.
Speaking at a commemorative event last year organized by the World Jewish Congress and the Latin American Jewish Congress, Milei also criticized previous Argentine governments and the judiciary for “negligence, cover-up, and manipulation of evidence” in the case.
In the same week as his speech, Milei’s government declared Hamas a terrorist organization, a move which irked Tehran, and said that “in recent years, a link with the Islamic Republic of Iran has been revealed.”
A report last year by the INSS said the government of President Javier Milei is "an ardent ally of both the United States and Israel", and said the Argentine government still holds Iran accountable for the attacks in 1992 on the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires, in addition to the AMIA bombing.
"In total contrast to previous governments, the current [Argentinian] regime is willing to stand up to Iran and its axis of resistance. Argentina is no longer willing to sweep the problem under the rug," the report said.
Argentina is also trying to secure the extradition of Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi, last year issuing a request to Interpol for his part in the AMIA bombing.
The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on five Iranian companies and one individual for their alleged support of Iran’s nuclear program, the Treasury Department said.
The action targets entities linked to the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) and its subsidiary, the Iran Centrifuge Technology Company (TESA), both of which play key roles in Iran’s uranium enrichment and nuclear development efforts.
The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated the firms under Executive Order 13382, which aims to curb the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
"The Iranian regime’s reckless pursuit of nuclear weapons remains a grave threat to the United States and a menace to regional stability and global security," said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “Treasury will continue to disrupt Iran’s nuclear advances and broader destabilizing agenda.”
Among those sanctioned is Atbin Ista Technical and Engineering Company (AIT), accused of aiding TESA’s acquisition of foreign components. AIT's managing director, Majid Mosallat, was also designated for acting on behalf of the company.
Also blacklisted are Pegah Aluminum Arak Company, which supplies aluminum products to TESA, and Thorium Power Company (TPC), established in 2023 to develop thorium-fueled reactor technologies under the guidance of AEOI.
The designations further include Pars Reactors Construction and Development Company (Satra Pars) and Azarab Industries Co., both of which are involved in AEOI-led nuclear projects, including reactor construction and equipment production.
As a result of the sanctions, all US-linked assets of the designated individuals and entities are frozen, and US persons are generally prohibited from conducting transactions with them. Secondary sanctions may apply to non-US persons engaging in certain activities with the listed entities.
The sanctions come amid heightened nuclear tensions and just days before talks between the United States and Iran are set to take place in Oman on Saturday.
The upcoming negotiations, to be led by Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US envoy Steve Witkoff, were announced on Monday by President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly threatened Iran with military action if it does not agree to a deal since returning to the White House in January.
Germany’s Federal Prosecutor says the investigation into the 1992 murder of dissident Iranian singer Fereydoun Farrokhzad remains open, following claims by an ex-IRGC official that the Islamic Republic ordered the killing in Bonn.
Mohsen Rafiqdoost, a founding member of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its minister from 1980 to 1999, recently described his role in funding covert operations abroad. His statements indicated that Iran was directly involved in orchestrating political assassinations beyond its borders, including the 1992 murder of Farrokhzad in Bonn, Germany.
Ines Peterson, a spokeswoman for the German Federal Prosecutor, told Iran International that “I can only inform you that the case of Mr. Fereydoun Farrokhzad is not closed, but still under investigation. As a rule, however, we do not comment on details or alleged suspects. Likewise, we do not comment on motions or requests made by third parties to our office. Therefore, I can only confirm that we have received the email you have mentioned.”
The E-mail that Peterson referenced was a letter sent by the German-Iranian activist Behrouz Asadi from the group Forum Woman, Life, Freedom.
The group urged the Federal Prosecutor, Jens Rommel, “to intensify the criminal investigation into these matters – regardless of political considerations. It is of utmost importance that the Federal Prosecutor's Office exhaust all legal means at its disposal to identify those responsible, hold them criminally accountable, and take appropriate measures to protect democracy and public security in Germany.”
The German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) proposed, according to a 2024 report by North German Broadcasting, the theory that Iran’s government executed Farrokhzad because he mocked Iran’s religious leaders during his concerts. The BKA reported said Farrokhzad said during one concert appearance that he had sex with Islamic clerics.
Farrokhzad, who publicly declared his homosexuality at a time when many gay entertainers remained in the closet, frequently ridiculed the Islamic government's restrictions on sexuality.
German-Iranians have long criticized the authorities in the Federal Republic for showing no appetite to solve Farrokhzad's murder case.
Asadi continued that “There is increasing evidence that the IRGC is directly involved in the planning, organization, and execution of assassinations and attacks against opposition figures and dissidents in Europe,” especially in Germany and France, the statement notes. It highlighted the 1992 killing of Farrokhzad as a particularly serious case, adding that legal proceedings are still pending.
When questioned about Farrokhzad’s murder in Bonn, a spokesman for the prosecutor’s office for the former capital of Germany, Martin Kriebisch, told Iran International “The exclusive responsibility for any statements concerning your inquiry is with the Federal Public Prosecutor General, so I kindly ask you again to address further inquiries directly there.”
Kriebisch initially sent Iran International’s press query to the Munichprosecutor’s office, which replied that the crime was in Bonn and Munich would be the wrong place to refer to.
Asadi’s letter added that “ In particular, there are statements indicating that high-ranking IRGC representatives—including Mohsen Rafiqdoost - were directly involved in the planning and execution of this crime. In several interviews, he has spoken openly about the elimination of opposition figures, particularly the targeted killing of Mr. Farrokhzad.”
Mina Ahadi, a German-Iranian dissident who is slated to start a speaking tour this month in the US, brought up the case of Iran’s former ambassador to Germany, Seyed Hossein Mousavian, who is currently a researcher at Princeton University, and called for his arrest by authorities because of his alleged role in the murder of Farrokhzad.
Mousavian wrote on X that “After reading the interview with Mohsen Rafiqdoust, ex-IRGC minister, I was stunned, amazed, and shocked...At that time, I was the Iranian Ambassador to Germany, and along with my colleagues at the embassy, I made extensive efforts for the return of Iranians residing in Germany who wanted to return to Iran.”
Iran International reported that Mousavian allegedly played a role in the assassinations of more than 20 Iranian dissidents in Europe in the 1990s, including Farrokhzad. Mousavian, who was Iran’s ambassador to Germany from 1990 to 1997, has vehemently denied the allegations that he was involved in the mass assassination of Kurdish dissidents at the Berlin restaurant Mykonos in 1992.
The former high-level Islamic Republic of Iran intelligence agent, Abolghasem Mesbahi, said during the Mykonos trial in 1997 that "Mr. Mousavian had a role in most of the assassinations committed in Europe."
In late March, the Iranian-American human rights activist Lawdan Bazargan, who oversees the campaign, The Alliance Against the Islamic Regime of Iran Apologists (AAIRIA), issued a call “for the immediate arrest and prosecution of Mousavian for his direct role in Iran’s state-sponsored assassinations across Europe.”
AAIRIA organized a protest in at Princeton in April 2024 to demand Mousavian’s dismissal. Mousavian and Princeton University’s President Christopher Eisgruber refused to answer multiple Iran International press queries about Farrokhzad.