Trump Says He's Paused Planned Iran Strike As Peace Negotiations Continue
US President Donald Trump says he has paused a planned military strike on Iran to allow negotiations over ending the conflict in the Middle East, after Tehran submitted a new peace proposal through Pakistan.
Trump said in a Truth Social post on May 18 that he had told the military that “we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow, but have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on a moment’s notice, in the event that an acceptable Deal is not reached.”
Facing pressure to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and reduce the war’s economic impact, Trump said leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates had urged him to hold off on the attack because “a Deal will be made.”
Iran confirmed its views had been relayed to Washington via Pakistan, though a Pakistani source warned: “We don't have much time.”
Speaking to journalists hours after saying he had postponed a military attack planned for Tuesday, Trump said the United States would be satisfied if it could reach an agreement with Iran that prevents Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
Trump added that there "seems to be a good chance that a deal can be worked out," while Pakistan described the talks as "difficult."
Iran’s proposal reportedly prioritizes ending the conflict, reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and easing sanctions, while deferring disputes over Tehran’s nuclear program.
Iranian sources also claimed Washington had shown greater flexibility on frozen assets and civilian nuclear activity, though the US has not confirmed any concessions.
With reporting by Reuters
As Iran Prepares Elaborate Funeral For Khamenei, Many Recall A Brutal Leader
Iran's government is preparing a multiday funeral ceremony for late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US and Israeli strikes in February. But many Iranians are not mourning his loss, and are instead sharing complex reactions to the death of a man who led an oppressive theocratic regime.
Foreign Dignitaries Arrive In Tehran For Khamenei Funeral Ceremonies
Foreign dignitaries arrived in Tehran on July 3 ahead of official mourning ceremonies for former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Iranian state television reported.
Delegations from China, Belarus, Iraq, and Turkmenistan were shown arriving as Khamenei's coffin lay in state at Tehran's Grand Mosalla prayer complex.
The weeklong ceremonies will begin in Tehran before continuing to Qom and Iraq, culminating in Khamenei's burial at the Imam Reza Shrine in his hometown of Mashhad on July 9.
With reporting by dpa
Iranian State Media Shows Revolutionary Guards Chief Making First Public Appearance Since War Began
Ahmad Vahidi, the commander-in-chief of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), appeared publicly for the first time since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war with Iran, paying his respects at the coffin of late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran on July 3, according to footage broadcast by Iranian state media.
Vahidi, who has kept a low profile since the conflict began amid concerns that senior Iranian commanders could be targeted for assassination, placed his hand on Khamenei's coffin and prayed, images published by the semiofficial Fars news agency showed.
A day earlier, the IRNA state news agency reported that Vahidi had appeared at an official government meeting that was also attended by President Masud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, and Tehran Mayor Alireza Zakani among others. The agency also published photographs from the meeting.
A veteran IRGC commander and former defense minister, Vahidi took over as head of the Revolutionary Guards in March after his predecessor, Mohammad Pakpur, was killed during the war.
He had previously served as deputy commander following the death of the previous IRGC chief, Hossein Salami, in Israeli strikes in 2025, making him the third commander to lead the force in less than a year.
The IRGC is Iran's powerful ideological military force, operating alongside the country's regular armed forces and wielding significant influence over national security, foreign policy, and large parts of the economy.
With reporting by AFP and RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Khamenei's Body Moved To Tehran Prayer Complex For Funeral Ceremonies
Iranian authorities have begun special funeral and burial ceremonies for former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, more than four months after he was killed alongside several associates and family members during the first day of the US-Israeli war with Iran.
According to Iranian domestic news agencies, Khamenei's body was transferred to Tehran's Grand Mosalla, the capital's main prayer complex, on the morning of July 3.
The reports said that foreign delegations are expected to "pay their respects to the former leader of the Islamic republic" later in the day.
Iranian authorities have planned a weeklong program comprising a "farewell, funeral procession, and burial" for Khamenei and say they hope "millions of people" will take part in the ceremonies.
Khamenei ruled Iran for more than three decades, a period marked for many Iranians by repression, intimidation, arrests, and severe political and social restrictions.
After his death in US-Israeli air strikes on February 28 was announced, some Iranians publicly expressed satisfaction at the news, prompting arrests, heavy sentences, and, in some cases, the threat of execution.
With reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Farda
Waltz Warns Iran Against Holding The World's Economy 'Hostage'
The United States and Iran exchanged sharp accusations at the United Nations Security Council on July 2 over Tehran's recent attacks on Bahrain, Kuwait, and commercial shipping in the Persian Gulf, amid growing strain on a US-Iran cease-fire agreement.
US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz accused Iran of violating its June 17 memorandum of understanding with Washington by attacking its Gulf neighbors and disrupting traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
"Iran cannot and we cannot allow it to hold the world's economy hostage," Waltz said, urging Tehran to halt attacks on neighboring states and keep the strategic waterway open.
Warning that diplomacy could falter, he added: "I cannot stress enough the possibility of real transformative positive opportunity for the nation and people of Iran is on the table, but President [Donald] Trump's patience is not unlimited."
Bahrain's Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al-Zayani accused Iran of "deliberately" targeting civilian facilities, critical infrastructure and residential areas, saying the attacks killed three civilians and wounded 465 others.
Iran's UN ambassador, Amir-Saeed Iravani, rejected the accusations and argued that countries hosting US military bases had become targets because they had facilitated US and Israeli military operations.
The "presence of American bases in their countries not only does not bring security to their countries but also make their countries vulnerable," he said.
Waltz dismissed Iran's justification for the attacks, calling them "a cynical, sad, and sick attempt at global blackmail. Plain and simple."
UN Assistant Secretary-General Elizabeth Spehar said the US-Iran memorandum offered "a measure of hope that dialogue and diplomacy can regain momentum."
Mojtaba Khamenei Did Not Attend Funeral For His Late Wife
Iranian media have reported that the funeral and memorial service for Zahra Haddad Adel, the daughter-in-law of the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the wife of his son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, was held in Tehran on July 1.
According to the Iranian daily Hamshahri, "a number of colleagues and friends" of Zahra Haddad Adel attended the ceremony.
A written tribute described by Iranian state media as a "heartfelt message" from Mohammad Baqer Hosseini Khamenei, the son of Mojtaba Khamenei and Zahra Haddad, was also read during the service.
News reports described Zahra Haddad Adel as a teacher.
Along with other members of her family, the ceremony was attended by Gholamali Haddad Adel, Zahra's father and a member of Iran's Expediency Discernment Council -- an unelected body that advises the supreme leader.
Mojtaba Khamenei did not attend. He has not been seen in public since being reportedly injured in the air strike that killed his father in February at the start of the US-Israel war with Iran.
The funeral for the supreme leader's daughter-in-law was held more than four months after her death in the same air strike on Ali Khamenei's residence.
Other members of Ali Khamenei's family were also killed in the attack, including his daughter, granddaughter, and son-in-law.
Prisoner Health Worsening At Iran's Evin Prison
According to Radio Farda sources, the health and medical situation in Evin Prison has worsened in recent months.
In the most recent case, political prisoner Mohammad Mehdipour was transferred to the hospital after months of bleeding, severe weight loss, frequent coughing, and digestive problems. He was diagnosed by doctors with gastrointestinal and pulmonary tuberculosis.
The delay in diagnosing Mehdipour has put a number of his fellow prisoners at risk of contracting tuberculosis.
The sources told Radio Farda that restrictions on prisoner visits to medical facilities, a shortage of medicine, and a lack of adequate facilities in the prison have led to an increase in kidney, heart, digestive, skin, and infectious diseases in Evin Prison.
The prison is a notorious high-security facility in northwestern Tehran, which is known for holding political prisoners, journalists, activists, and for its widespread reports of torture and human rights abuses.
Armed Clashes In Kurdish Cities Leave Several Dead
According to reports from Iran, there have been armed clashes around the northwestern cities of Sardasht and Piranshahr on July 1 between groups opposing the Islamic republic and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).
Both cities have a dominant Kurdish majority.
Two human rights organizations, Hana and Hengaw, which cover the Kurdish regions of Iran, reported that several people were killed in the clashes. According to Hana, the IRGC used heavy weaponry and the clashes took place near residential areas full of civilians.
News outlets close to the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (KDPI) reported that on the evening of July 1, five members of the party were killed during an armed clash with the IRGC near the village of Qazqapan, close to Piranshahr.
The KDPI, one of the oldest and largest Iranian Kurdish opposition groups, has engaged in armed struggle against the Iranian regime, which has designated the party as a terrorist organization and banned it. The party operates out of Iraq.
The Fars news agency, which is close to the IRGC, reported that six members of the KDPI were killed in the clashes, although gave no further details.
The Saberin News Telegram channel, which is close to Iranian security apparatus, also confirmed the clashes, claiming that 11 members of the Kurdish opposition were killed in two separate clashes.
RFE/RL has not been able to independently verify the details of these reports.
Earlier on the evening of July 1, the KDPI said that one of the group's camps in the Iraqi Kurdistan region had been attacked by drones.
There were other clashes earlier in the week. Iranian media reported that two members of the IRGC were killed in a shooting outside their homes in the city of Paveh in the Kermanshah Province, a predominantly Kurdish region, on the evening of June 29.
Qatari Foreign Ministry Says 'Positive Progress' In Doha Talks
Majed al-Ansari, spokesman for the Qatari Foreign Ministry, has said that US and Iranian negotiators made "positive progress...on issues related to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding" in talks on July 1.
With Qatari and Pakistani mediation, Iranian and US negotiators have been holding indirect, technical talks in the Qatari capital, Doha.
Writing on X, al-Ansari also said that "The parties agreed to continue discussions over the coming period, with the next meeting to be scheduled at the earliest possible time following the funeral processions of the former Iranian Supreme Leader."
From July 4-9, several Iranian cities will hold processions and funeral ceremonies for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a US-Israeli strike on February 28.
His body will lie in state in Tehran and the former leader will be buried in the Imam Reza Shrine in the city of Mashhad.
Tehran Rejects US Assertions About IAEA Access To All Iranian Nuclear Sites
Iranian parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Qalibaf has dismissed reports of expanded nuclear inspections concessions as "lies," asserting that International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors will not be granted access to damaged nuclear facilities despite the push from US President Donald Trump administration.
Speaking on state television on July 1, Qalibaf emphasized that under the existing laws ratified by Iranian parliament and the Supreme National Security Council, inspectors are strictly barred from accessing any bombed or damaged sites "under any circumstances." He specified that access remains tightly restricted to just two locations: the Bushehr nuclear power plant and the Tehran research reactor.
By labeling contrary reports as falsehoods, Qalibaf signaled a rigid baseline for upcoming talks with US, underscoring that Tehran will offer "no concessions" beyond its current domestic legal framework, effectively blocking any broader oversight demands from Washington.