Exiled opposition group denies role in assassinations of Iranian nuclear scientists
Memorial for assassinated Iranian scientists
The National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) denied on Friday that its affiliate, the exiled opposition group Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK), played any role in the assassinations of two figures involved in Iran’s nuclear program, in a statement sent to Iran International.
The group rejected involvement in the 2010 killing of physics professor Masoud Ali-Mohammadi and the 2011 killing of nuclear scientist Majid Shahriari, calling the allegations “pure lies fabricated by the intelligence services” of the Islamic Republic to “demonize the MEK.”
Response to renewed allegations The statement followed comments by Vida Mehrannia, wife of Swedish-Iranian researcher Ahmadreza Djalali, in an interview with Iran International’s “Cheshmandaz” program, in which she noted that some Iranian state media outlets had accused the MEK of aiding in the scientists’ assassinations.
Djalali was arrested in 2016 while visiting Iran at the invitation of universities in Tehran and Shiraz and later sentenced to death on espionage charges. He has repeatedly denied the allegations, saying they stem from his refusal to cooperate with the Revolutionary Guards in spying on Western countries.
Past denials and nuclear disclosures
The MEK said it has repeatedly condemned Djalali’s death sentence and called for his immediate release, adding that it had previously, including in a 2012 statement, categorically denied involvement in the nuclear scientists’ killings.
While rejecting the assassination allegations, the group emphasized its history of exposing Iran’s nuclear activities. It said to have made 133 disclosures in the past 34 years aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, including a May report to Fox News alleging the existence of a secret nuclear site in Semnan province, and a 2020 report that facilities in Tehran and Abadeh were linked to weapons production.
US President Donald Trump will host Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev at the White House on Friday to sign a US-brokered peace agreement creating a transit corridor at Iran’s doorstep, Axios reported.
The deal seeks to end decades of conflict between the two countries and includes a 43.5-kilometer corridor across Armenian territory, Axios reported. The route, to be developed by the United States and called the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity, will connect Azerbaijan’s mainland with its Nakhchivan exclave, which borders Iran and Turkey.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought over Nagorno-Karabakh since the late 1980s, most recently in 2023 when Azerbaijan seized the territory. The corridor would enable travel and trade between Turkey, Azerbaijan and Central Asia without crossing Iran or Russia. Iran has opposed the project, saying it would cut off its only direct land route to Armenia and reduce its influence in the South Caucasus. Russia has also criticized it, while Turkey supports it.
Washington’s quiet diplomacy
Axios said the Trump administration’s work began in March when White House special envoy Steve Witkoff visited Baku after a trip to Moscow at Qatar’s request. According to a US official who spoke to Axios, Witkoff then asked Aryeh Lightstone, a former aide to US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman and close to Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, to lead the talks. Lightstone made five trips to the region to negotiate with both sides.
The same US official told Axios that negotiators pitched Pashinyan on the idea that by allowing a US-developed route, Armenia would gain a strong partner in Washington and a safeguard against future pressure from Baku. Armenia dropped its long-standing objection to the corridor during these talks.
Geopolitical and economic stakes
The route is expected to boost regional trade by billions of dollars a year, US officials told Axios. It would also limit the role of Russia and Iran, whose influence in the South Caucasus has been challenged since the Ukraine war.
The US official said Tehran fears the corridor will leave it more dependent on Azerbaijan for access to Russia and Europe.
The same official described the plan as “very Trumpian,” focusing on trade and economic growth rather than framing it purely as a security issue, and said the deal opens Armenia to the world and gives it the United States as a key partner instead of Iran.
From quiet talks to public signing
Trump called the upcoming gathering a Historic Peace Summit and praised both leaders for “doing the right thing” for their people in a post on Truth Social.
“Peace is not finalized there is still more work to do, but the accord sets out the main issues and steps to resolve them,” the US official told Axios. The agreement will begin with government-to-government cooperation, with hopes it will grow into warmer relations between citizens over time.
A future uprising in Iran could lead to peace with Israel and would be thanks to Israel's attacks on the country in a 12-day war in June, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Fox News in an interview on Thursday.
“If the liberation of Iran happens, it will happen because we delivered a very strong blow to Iran’s seeming invincibility, and the people will rise from within,” Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu said he was pleased with the responses he said he received from Iranians following his direct video messages addressed to the Iranian people advocating for the overthrow of the Islamic Republic.
“I’m amazed. Millions and millions of responses from Iran, sometimes with their names, even their faces. You can't believe they’re doing that, but it shows the thirst for liberation there,” he said.
Israel prime minister’s remarks on regime change in Iran came on the same day Tasnim News, an outlet affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), called the goal of regime change in Iran a futile scheme by Israel.
“In the recent war, Israel bet heavily on political and social collapse in Iran, expecting the public to turn against the Islamic Republic. But what actually happened was the complete opposite of their expectations,” Tasnim said.
Asked about the prospect of more countries in the region normalizing ties with Israel in the so-called Abraham Accords, Netanyahu said he remains hopeful that even Iran might eventually do so.
“Iran could be too, if the people of Iran rise,” he said. “I think many of them want that, they want to relieve themselves of that tyranny.”
Israel launched a series of strikes on June 13 targeting Iranian military and nuclear sites, assassinating senior commanders and killing hundreds of civilians. In retaliation, Iranian missiles killed 29 Israeli civilians.
Asked whether Iran was discussed during a recent call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Netanyahu suggested Iran's superpower ally did not approve of its uranium enrichment.
“I took note of the fact that (Putin) said Iran should not have nuclear enrichment, which is the American position and our position. I thought that was very good,” Netanyahu said.
The United States on Thursday sanctioned seven people and 11 entities allegedly tied to Iran’s financial and technology networks in what the Treasury Department described as a crackdown on sanctions evasion, repression and hijab law enforcement.
“As a result of President Trump’s maximum pressure campaign and increasing isolation from the global financial system, the Iranian regime is running out of places to hide,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
“Treasury will continue to disrupt Iran’s schemes aimed at evading our sanctions, block its access to revenue, and starve its weapons programs of capital in order to protect the American people.”
The designations target Iran’s banking systems, offshore finance networks and technology firms providing surveillance tools to the state.
Among the entities sanctioned is the RUNC Exchange System Company, which developed Iran’s Cross-Border Interbank Messaging System (CIMS), designed to bypass conventional banking controls and facilitate cooperation with sanctioned banks like China’s Bank of Kunlun.
The Treasury also designated Cyrus Offshore Bank, which it said operates from Iran’s Kish Free Zone and is secretly controlled by the already-sanctioned Parsian Bank.
According to the press release, Cyrus Bank has helped route oil proceeds to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
Other sanctions focused on Pasargad Arian Information and Communication Technology Company (FANAP), a tech firm linked to Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and the IRGC.
The Treasury said FANAP and its subsidiaries have developed tools used to surveil citizens, enforce internet restrictions, and identify women who defy mandatory hijab laws.
An Iranian official's assertion that Russia had prior knowledge of Israel’s plans to topple the Islamic Republic has sparked a renewed debate in Iran over the relative silence of Tehran's superpower ally during a punishing war in June.
Mohammad-Hossein Saffar-Harandi, a hardline member of Iran’s Expediency Council, said on state television this week that Israel’s attacks on Iran in a 12-day war in June was part of a deliberate, long-planned “overthrow” operation.
“(Some people) in Israel contacted certain officials within Russia’s Foreign Ministry two to three days before the attack,” he asserted, informing Moscow about the operation and urging them to abandon their cooperation with Tehran.
The Islamic Republic would be toppled in a few days, the Russians were told, according to Saffar-Harandi. He did not say how he obtained the information, nor whether Moscow had informed Tehran or taken any preventive steps.
“If his claim is true, did Russia inform Iran? Or was Russia suffering from a miscalculation (like Israel), believing that Iran was finished?” asked Esfandiar Zolghadr, lawyer and journalist, in a post on X.
Moscow muted
Russia’s response to the war was limited to diplomatic statements, offering no political or military support for Tehran. Iranian analysts see this as a reflection of Moscow’s focus on the Ukraine war and its desire to avoid jeopardizing ties with Israel and the West.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters last week that Moscow was “seriously concerned” about Israeli and American attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities—but stopped short of backing Iran, instead urging negotiations with the UN nuclear watchdog, the IAEA.
Critics in Iran argue this cautious stance fits a broader pattern.
“From Russia’s unfulfilled promises to deliver defense systems like the S-400 and Su-35 fighter jets, to repeated delays in military cooperation, all suggest that this partnership is not based on mutual trust, but rather on opportunistic, short-term interests,” the reformist Shargh daily said in an August 5 commentary.
Israel first?
Russia’s response has not gone unnoticed in Iran’s military and political circles.
Brigadier-General Yadollah Javani, political deputy of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, acknowledged public confusion over the silence of both Russia and China, pointing to the limits of military pacts that don’t entail mutual defense.
Nematollah Izadi, Iran’s former ambassador to Russia, told the Jamaran news website in late July that if Russia had to choose between Iran and Israel, “it would definitely choose Israel.”
He also pointed to Moscow’s strategic logic: continued Iran-West tensions help Russia maintain regional leverage. A thaw with the West, he warned, could shift Tehran’s alignment.
During the war, President Vladimir Putin said Israel has two million Russian speakers and is “practically a Russian-speaking country.”
The comment was seen as a signal of priorities in Tehran.
“Putin’s statements indicated that ethnic and demographic ties with Israel take precedence for him over regional commitments with Iran,” the commentary in Shargh read.
“This behavior cannot be explained merely within the framework of diplomatic caution; rather, it should be seen as the logical extension of a policy rooted in transactionalism.”
Iran's repaired air defenses and stock of unused missiles mean it can fend off Israeli attack and wreak more damage in another war, a media outlet affiliated with Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Thursday.
“Iran’s air defense was damaged early in the 12-day war, but since then Iran has rebuilt and modernized its systems. Israel now realizes that Iran’s air defense in a future war would be multiple times stronger,” Tasnim News wrote in an editorial.
One of the most comprehensive official takes from Iran's security apparatus which was badly bludgeoned in the June conflict, the article doubled down on an official narrative that Tehran had triumphed and pledged greater future accomplishments.
Another Israeli attack is highly unlikely, it added, warning that concerns in Iran of renewed hostility in Iran was unhelpful speculation.
“Iran’s missile arsenal remains intact, and some of its most destructive missiles haven’t even been used yet. Any new war would mean greater destruction in Israeli-occupied territories,” the article said.
'Regime change failed'
Israel launched a surprise military campaign on June 13 targeting military and nuclear sites, assassinating senior Iranian commanders and killing hundreds of civilians. In response, Iranian missile strikes killed 29 Israeli civilians.
According to an Iranian government spokesperson, 1,062 Iranians were killed during the conflict, including 786 military personnel and 276 civilians.
The United States capped off the conflict with attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities at Isfahan, Natanz and Fordow with long-range bombers and submarine-launched missiles on June 22. Washington brokered a ceasefire on June 24.
Tasnim also warned that some media outlets and social media users continue to raise the alarm about another imminent Israeli attack. However, it argued that Israel’s core objective “regime change in Iran” had failed.
“In the recent war, Israel bet heavily on political and social collapse in Iran, expecting the public to turn against the Islamic Republic. But what actually happened was the complete opposite of their expectations,” the article said.
In response to the attacks on its nuclear facilities, Iran suspended cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), conditioning any future engagement on new terms.
Iran’s foreign minister said on Wednesday that the UN nuclear watchdog must clarify how it intends to inspect nuclear sites bombed by Israel and the United States.
Israel not positioned for a second attack
The article contended that Israel’s surprise attack was the result of years of intelligence preparation, and that replicating such an operation would require years more planning.
“After decades of intelligence gathering and planning, Israel attempted to catch Iran off guard, assassinating commanders, disabling defense systems and aiming for a swift decapitation strike,” the report said.
“It did kill several high-ranking military officials and nuclear scientists, but failed to achieve its main goal: the collapse of Iran’s political and social structure and its defense systems,” Tasnim added.
Among those killed during the war were several senior IRGC commanders, including Armed Forces Chief of Staff Mohammad Bagheri, IRGC Commander Hossein Salami, IRGC Aerospace Force Commander Amir Ali Hajizadeh and IRGC Deputy for Operations Mehdi Rabbani.
“Israel gambled everything on this surprise attack but lost. Rebuilding its intelligence network will now take years, meaning Israel is not logically positioned to mount another assault,” the report said.
An Iranian analyst said in July that Israel had hacked Iran’s entire air defense system during the war and that more than 100 Iranian missile launchers exploded upon activation.
“Israel has already lost a war it spent decades preparing for. With exposed defense systems, internal political chaos, and Iran growing stronger and more united, a second act of aggression would not only fail, but would bring even more devastating consequences,” Tasnim added.
