Iran Executes 2 More Political Prisoners
Iran's judiciary announced that it executed two men on May 21 as part of an intensified campaign of political hangings amid the ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel.
According to the Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the men were accused of forming a group intended to disrupt country's security and of membership in what authorities described as a "terrorist" organization.
Tasnim identified them as Ramin Zaleh and Karim Maroufpour.
Iran's judiciary claimed the two men confessed to collaborating in a plot to assassinate an IRGC commander in western Iran and storing weapons for the attack.
The circumstances surrounding the alleged confessions remain unclear.
Rights organizations have condemned such trials of those executed. The Oslo-based Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has said many of the trials have been marked by "torture, forced confessions, and the complete absence of due process."
The executions come amid a broader surge in hangings that has escalated since March 18, weeks after the start of the war with the United States and Israel.
Norway-based Iran Human Rights and Paris-based Together Against the Death Penalty reported that at least 1,639 people have been executed in Iran in 2025, including 48 women, marking one of the highest execution rates in the world.
Iran Executes 2 More Political Prisoners
Iran's judiciary announced that it executed two men on May 21 as part of an intensified campaign of political hangings amid the ongoing conflict with the United States and Israel.
According to the Tasnim news agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the men were accused of forming a group intended to disrupt country's security and of membership in what authorities described as a "terrorist" organization.
Tasnim identified them as Ramin Zaleh and Karim Maroufpour.
Iran's judiciary claimed the two men confessed to collaborating in a plot to assassinate an IRGC commander in western Iran and storing weapons for the attack.
The circumstances surrounding the alleged confessions remain unclear.
Rights organizations have condemned such trials of those executed. The Oslo-based Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) has said many of the trials have been marked by "torture, forced confessions, and the complete absence of due process."
The executions come amid a broader surge in hangings that has escalated since March 18, weeks after the start of the war with the United States and Israel.
Norway-based Iran Human Rights and Paris-based Together Against the Death Penalty reported that at least 1,639 people have been executed in Iran in 2025, including 48 women, marking one of the highest execution rates in the world.
FIFA's Reported Ban On Iran's Pre-1979 Flag At World Cup Stirs Controversy
Iranian monarchist groups are voicing anger over reports that FIFA intends to ban the so-called Lion and Sun flag, often carried as a symbol of resistance to the theocratic rule that took over the country in 1979.
Called a "political" symbol by the soccer association and thus not officially allowed at matches, the Lion and Sun is still likely to be flown at World Cup matches, its defiant proponents say.
Trumps Says War Could Escalate If Tehran Doesn't Have 'Right Answers'
US President Donald Trump said on May 20 that he is willing to wait "a few days" for Iran's response to Washington's latest proposal aimed at ending the war, but warned the situation could escalate quickly if Tehran fails to provide "the right answers."
Speaking to reporters after addressing a graduating class of military cadets in New London, Connecticut, Trump said: "Believe me, if we don't get the right answers, it goes very quickly. We're all ready to go."
Asked how long he was prepared to wait, Trump replied: "It could be a few days, but it could go very quickly."
Earlier in the day, during his commencement address at the US Coast Guard Academy, Trump said the United States might carry out additional strikes against Iran if negotiations fail.
"We hit them very hard. We may have to hit them even harder -- but maybe not," he said, before reiterating his administration's stance on Iran's nuclear program. "We will not let Iran have a nuclear weapon. It's very simple."
The comments came shortly after Iran's Foreign Ministry said Tehran was reviewing a new US proposal reportedly delivered through Pakistani intermediaries during a visit to Tehran by Pakistan's interior minister.
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps later warned that any renewed US attacks could expand the conflict "beyond the region."
We are now closing the live blog for the day. We'll be back at 7:30 a.m. Central European time to cover the latest events across the Middle East.
Iran Says Pakistani Minister's Visit Aimed At Facilitating Communication With US
Iran's Foreign Ministry said on May 20 that Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi had returned to Tehran to facilitate the exchange of messages between Iran and the United States.
Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei told Iranian state television that message exchanges between the two sides were continuing "on the basis of Iran's 14-point text" and outlined Tehran's core demands as including an end to the war "on all fronts, including Lebanon," the release of Iran's frozen assets, and a halt to what he called "disruptive measures" against Iranian shipping.
Naqvi, who visited Tehran on May 16 and met with senior Iranian officials, returned to the city just four days later.
Tasnim News Agency, which is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), quoted a source "close to Iran's negotiating team" as saying that the United States had sent its own text to Tehran via the Pakistani intermediary following receipt of Iran's 14-point proposal three days ago.
Iran is currently reviewing the American text and has not yet responded, the source said.
Pakistan has hosted the only formal round of Iran-US peace talks held so far and has since served as the primary channel for communications between the two sides.
CENTCOM Says US Marines Board Iranian Tanker
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that US military forces boarded the Iranian-flagged commercial tanker M/T Celestial Sea in the Sea of Oman on May 20.
CENTCOM, in a post on X that included video footage of US Marines entering the tanker, said the vessel was suspected of intending to head to an Iranian port and violate the US naval blockade.
"U.S. Marines from the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit boarded M/T Celestial Sea, an Iranian-flagged commercial oil tanker suspected of attempting to violate the U.S. blockade by transiting toward an Iranian port," CENTCOM reported.
The statement continued that US forces "released the vessel after searching and directing the ship’s crew to alter course."
"U.S. forces continue to fully enforce the blockade and have now redirected 91 commercial ships to ensure compliance.," said CENTCOM, which oversees and commands US military operations in the Middle East.
The naval blockade of Iran, ordered by US President Donald Trump, began a few days after the cease-fire was established and is still ongoing.
42 US Aircraft Lost Or Damaged In Iran War, Congressional Report Reveals
A Congressional Research Service report released on May 13 provides the first official US government accounting of aircraft losses during Operation Epic Fury, documenting 42 airframes lost or damaged since the US-Israeli war with Iran began on February 28.
The figures were compiled from Department of Defense statements, US Central Command (CENTCOM) releases, and publicly available reporting, and may be subject to revision as investigations continue.
The list includes four F-15Es, one F-35A, one A-10, seven KC-135 tankers, one E-3 AWACS, two MC-130Js, one HH-60W, 24 MQ-9 Reapers, and one MQ-4C Triton. The losses occurred through a mix of enemy action, friendly fire, and accidents -- among them three F-15Es lost on March 2 in friendly fire incidents over Kuwait and five KC-135s destroyed on the ground in an Iranian missile strike on a US airbase.
During a search-and-rescue operation for a downed F-15E on April 5, two MC-130Js were intentionally destroyed on the ground in Iran after becoming unable to depart; all aircrew were safely evacuated. One HH-60W also sustained damage from small-arms fire during the same operation.
The Department of Defense estimated the cost of aircraft losses at $2.6 billion, though acting Pentagon comptroller Jules W. Hurst declined to confirm replacement costs at the May 13 Senate hearing. The broader cost of operations, he said, has reached $29 billion, a figure that US media contend is still lower than outside projections.
Afghan Migrants In Iran Face Growing Hardship Amid War Fallout
Every morning, Faisal stands along a road on the outskirts of the Iranian capital, Tehran, waiting for a day job.
The 27-year-old migrant from neighboring Afghanistan used to find manual work on most days, earning up to 10 million rials ($7.50), most of which he sent to his wife and five children back home.
But the informal manual work Faisal relied on to eke out a living has dried up since the United States and Israel launched a bombing campaign of Iran on February 28. The 11-week war has devastated Iran's already-battered economy, left much of the country's infrastructure and industries in tatters, and seen prices for basic food items skyrocket.
The economic fallout from the conflict has hit the estimated 4 million Afghan refugees and migrants in Iran -- many of whom fled war, poverty, and persecution in Afghanistan -- especially hard. Many Afghans have no legal status and are deprived of basic rights in the Islamic republic.
To read the full report, click here.
Trump Says Negotiations In 'Final Stages,' Threatens Renewed Attacks If Iran Talks Collapse
US President Donald Trump says negotiations with Iran are approaching a conclusion, while warning of military action if Tehran fails to reach an agreement.
"We're in the final stages of Iran. We'll see what happens. Either have a deal or we're going to do some things that are a little bit nasty, but hopefully that won't happen," Trump told reporters on May 20.
The comments came six weeks after Trump paused Operation Epic Fury for a cease-fire, with talks to end the war having shown little progress since.
Trump said this week he had come close to ordering a resumption of strikes but held off to allow more time for diplomacy -- including, he said on May 19, calling off attacks just one hour before they were to be launched, in response to appeals from Gulf Arab neighbors.
"We're going to give this one shot. I'm in no hurry," Trump said. "Ideally I'd like to see few people killed, as opposed to a lot. We can do it either way."
Iran, for its part, rejected Trump's characterization of the talks. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, Tehran's top negotiator, said in an audio message posted to social media that "overt and covert moves by the enemy" indicated the United States was preparing new strikes. Separately, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) issued a warning that any resumed attacks would trigger a response extending beyond the Middle East.
Iran submitted a new offer to Washington this week. Tehran's own descriptions of the proposal suggest it largely repeats terms Trump has previously rejected, among them demands for Iranian control of the Strait of Hormuz, compensation for war damages, sanctions relief, the release of frozen assets, and a US military withdrawal from the region.
Pakistan's Interior Minister was in Tehran on May 20 in the latest diplomatic push. Islamabad hosted the only formal round of peace talks held so far and has served as the primary conduit for messages between the two sides.
FIFA To Ban Pre-Revolutionary Iranian Flag From World Cup Stadiums
The world soccer governing body, FIFA, reportedly plans to again prohibit fans from displaying Iran's pre-revolutionary flag at the 2026 World Cup, renewing a controversy that shadowed the tournament in Qatar four years ago and drawing immediate backlash from the Iranian diaspora and opposition figures.
The ban was reported by The Athletic on May 19 after FIFA pointed to its stadium code of conduct, which bars "banners, flags, apparel, and other paraphernalia that are of a political, offensive, and/or discriminatory nature" from venues. Unlike in Qatar, where enforcement was inconsistent, the 2026 ban is expected to be applied as a blanket policy.
The report said the Iranian soccer federation had submitted a list of demands to FIFA related to the team's participation, including "respect for the Iranian flag," and FIFA described recent talks with Iranian soccer officials as "excellent" and "constructive."
To read the full report, click here.