Russia, China back Iran’s view on end of UN sanctions, top diplomat says

The Falcon (IMO 9014432), a 31-year-old, Cameroon-flagged vessel owned by an Indian company, was laden with liquefied petroleum gas loaded in Iran's Assaluyeh on September 25, the tracking firm said.

The tanker was most likely en route to Yemen’s Ras Isa terminal to deliver fuel to Tehran-backed Houthis, according to Tanker Trackers.

Iran’s semi-official Mehr News Agency, citing informed sources, denied that the vessel had any links to Iran.

An informed source at the Iranian Oil Ministry also told IRGC-affiliated Fars News that the vessel does not belong to the Ministry of Oil or the National Iranian Tanker Company.

However, the Falcon had earlier been flagged by the US-based advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) as part of an alleged Iranian “ghost fleet” that transports oil products across international waters in violation of global sanctions.

The vessel was previously detained in Istanbul in January 2025 for 13 safety deficiencies, according to port inspection data.

Authorities said 25 of the 26 crew members have been accounted for, while one remains missing. The ship has no known insurer and is not currently listed on any international sanctions or blacklist databases.

Houthi-linked media outlets on Telegram and X denied any involvement in the incident, citing unnamed sources in the group’s defense ministry.

The Falcon had earlier signaled Djibouti as its next destination and made recent port calls in Iraq and Oman’s Sohar, in a pattern similar to that of the Clipper (IMO 9102198), which was struck off Yemen in August.

Since November 2023, Houthi forces have attacked commercial shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, saying the campaign is a show of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.

The armed group, which governs around two-thirds of Yemen’s population, has claimed responsibility for dozens of missile and drone strikes on Israel-bound targets and vessels linked to the Jewish state.

According to figures compiled by the Associated Press, nearly 100 international ships have been attacked in the region since the campaign began, resulting in the sinking of four vessels and the deaths of several mariners.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said troops fired warning shots before hitting the vehicle when it continued to approach “in a threatening manner.”

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei called the incident a violation of the ceasefire with Hamas and urged governments that brokered the truce to ensure its enforcement.

Israel’s actions, including the continued closure of the Rafah crossing, he said, "represented serious breaches of international obligations."

Gaza officials said the victims, including seven children and three women, were members of the Abu Shaban family, who were returning to their home in Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood on Friday when their vehicle was struck.

Hamas described the attack as a “deliberate crime against civilians." The Gaza Civil Defense agency said the bodies were later recovered with the UN's help.

The IDF said the car had crossed into the so-called Yellow Line — a buffer zone separating Israeli-held areas from the rest of Gaza — and refused to stop after warning shots.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said his country's military would install clearer physical markers along the boundary to prevent future incidents, warning that “any violation of the line will be met with fire.”

Baqaei urged the international community to act to stop what he called further civilian deaths and to secure access to food and humanitarian aid for Gaza’s population.

The ceasefire mediated in early October by the United States, Egypt, Turkey and Qatar put an end to over two years of Israeli attacks on Gaza, which started in response to Hamas's October 7 attack.

Gaza’s media office says Israel has breached the ceasefire with Hamas 47 times since it took effect, leaving 38 Palestinians dead and 143 others injured.

The event titled "Human Rights in Iran After the Islamic Republic" was hosted by the Oslo-based Iran Human Rights Organization, which said its goal was to foster a “respectful and neutral space” for discussion among diverse opposition voices.

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Shirin Ebadi told the gathering that building an effective coalition for change in Iran required agreement on concrete principles rather than abstract ideals.

“Using broad terms like democracy and freedom as a basis for unity has not worked,” she said. “We must ask what kind of democracy we want, define what we mean by freedom of expression, and see where we truly agree.”

Iranians should not fear transition, Ebadi added, rejecting comparisons between a post–Islamic Republic future and the turmoil that followed the 1979 revolution.

“People should not be afraid of change.”

Respectful dialogue among opposition groups

Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights, told Iran International that the Oslo meeting for the first time invited representatives from a range of political parties and civic movements opposed to the Islamic Republic.

“The aim is not to form a new alliance or enforce political uniformity, but to enable respectful dialogue among all groups on the foundations of human rights,” he said. “Whatever form the next political system takes, all Iranians must enjoy equal rights.”

Recognizing diversity was essential to preventing the return of authoritarianism, Asso Hassanzadeh of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan said. “The key to avoiding future tyranny is political justice and acceptance of plurality.”

Abdullah Mohtadi of the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan told the conference that any transition must follow today’s international standards.

“It should not turn into bloodshed or political revenge,” he said. “Transitional justice must be based on global norms.”

Fouad Pashaie, secretary-general of the Constitutionalist Party of Iran, said democracy starts today, warning that decades had already been lost.

“Every political group that cares about a united Iran must now cooperate, despite differences,” he said, stressing that opposition efforts should focus on how to end the Islamic Republic without allowing it to rebrand itself under a new guise.

The conference continues Sunday behind closed doors with addresses by party representatives and policy experts.

Iranian opposition figures have stepped up calls to rally against Tehran following a punishing 12-day war with Israel in June, but there have been no significant protests.

Iranian exiled prince Reza Pahlavi urged unity among Iran's opposition during a pro-monarchy conference in Munich in July, saying the Islamic Republic's downfall would lead to sustainable peace and prosperity in the Middle East.

Later that month, Maryam Rajavi, the leader of exiled opposition group the National Council of Resistance of Iran, vowed the armed ouster of its decades-old nemesis the Islamic Republic and the founding of a democratic, non-nuclear state in its place.

Ghalibaf issued the notification under Article 123 of the constitution, which requires the speaker to forward approved legislation to the president for enforcement.

The law is part of Iran’s effort to meet Financial Action Task Force (FATF) standards requiring countries to monitor and report financial transactions to curb money laundering and terror funding.

Mohsen Dehnavi, spokesman for the Expediency Council, said Iran’s accession was approved with two safeguards. Parliament attached a clause requiring the government to act within the framework of the constitution, and the council added that the Islamic Republic would implement the treaty only insofar as it aligns with domestic laws.

“If any part of the convention conflicts with Iran’s internal legislation, national laws will take precedence,” Dehnavi said. “The Expediency Council approved joining the convention based on these two conditions.”

The move came days after lawmakers voted down a bid to block the government from joining the United Nations convention against terror financing. Lawmakers rejected the motion with 150 votes in favor, 73 against and nine abstentions out of 238 members present. The proposal, introduced by conservative lawmakers, sought to halt Iran’s conditional approval to join the convention.

Earlier this month, the Expediency Council, which resolves disputes between parliament and the Guardian Council under Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, gave conditional approval for joining the treaty after years of delay, saying implementation would depend on guarantees that Iran’s economic and security interests are protected.

Backers see relief, opponents fear exposure of financial networks

Hardline lawmakers say joining the UN anti-terror finance convention could expose Iran’s financial networks used to bypass US sanctions and support regional allies. Supporters argue that compliance could reconnect the country’s banks to global systems and attract investment amid a deep economic crisis.

Mohammad-Mehdi Shahriari, a member of parliament’s national security committee, said on Saturday that reopening debate on the Countering Financing of Terrorism bill was illegal and would deepen Iran’s isolation, ILNA reported.

He said President Masoud Pezeshkian’s government had obtained the Supreme Leader’s consent to review the measure after expert study. “The CFT was approved with conditions and safeguards after a long process involving parliament, the Guardian Council, and the Expediency Council,” he said.

Shahriari criticized ultraconservative lawmakers for trying to block progress. “Our revolutionary brothers said it was not the right time to discuss this,” he said. “But with so many barriers in trade and banking, the Palermo and CFT bills can ease the burden created after years of sanctions.”

Revisiting the bill in parliament was illegal because the Supreme Leader had already authorized its review, he said.

Regional ties and economic impact

Failure to adopt global financial rules has worsened Iran’s economic problems and strained ties even with friendly states, Shahriari said. “Russia and China have both said that our refusal to join FATF conventions complicates trade with them,” he said. “When most countries have joined and only Iran and North Korea stand apart, what purpose does it serve except more isolation?”

The United States has for decades accused Tehran of using its regional allies to fund and organize attacks, labeling Iran the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism for 39 consecutive years.

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a letter to the UN secretary-general and the president of the Security Council that the resolution’s termination on October 18 was “in full accordance with its explicit provisions.”

He added that all related restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program had now lapsed and that the Council’s involvement in Tehran’s peaceful nuclear activities had formally ended.

Araghchi said Iran had “implemented the JCPOA in good faith and with full precision” while the United States “grossly violated international law” by withdrawing in 2018 and reimposing unilateral sanctions.

The three European signatories, he wrote, “failed to meet their obligations and instead imposed additional unlawful measures.”

Referring to the European decision in August to trigger the deal’s snapback mechanism—which reimposed UN sanctions on Iran without the possibility of a veto—Araghchi called the move “unilateral and arbitrary” and said it had “no legal, procedural, or political basis.”

He warned that any claim to reinstate expired resolutions was “null and void.”

The same position was echoed on Saturday by Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei, who said Iran believes “no decision has been taken in the Security Council to bring back the lifted resolutions,” citing opposition from Russia, China, and several other Council members.

Russia, for its part, said on Friday it was ready to help defuse tensions over Iran’s nuclear program and urged all parties to avoid escalation.

Moscow’s foreign ministry said Western efforts to restore UN sanctions were “legally null and void,” adding that after the expiration of Resolution 2231, Iran’s nuclear program should be treated like that of any other non-nuclear-weapon state under the Non-Proliferation Treaty.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov earlier described Iran’s acceptance of the snapback clause in 2015 as “a legal trap,” but said Moscow remained firmly committed to a political and diplomatic settlement of the dispute.