live Trump Concludes Situation Room Meeting On Possible Iran Deal

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has claimed that the United States and Israel were seeking to destabilize the Islamic republic through war, economic pressure, and social divisions.

In a written message published by Iranian media and read on state television on May 28, Khamenei said the "enemy’s blind plan” was to create “divisions and disintegration” in Iran following months of conflict and sanctions pressure.

He called on Iranians to preserve “unity” and avoid turning disagreements into “conflict and division.”

The statement came a day after Iran’s Intelligence Ministry warned that economic hardship, shortages, and rising prices caused by US pressure could trigger fresh unrest.

The Wall Street Journal also reported on May 28 that analysts feared the continuing US naval blockade and falling foreign currency reserves could increase the likelihood of renewed protests in Iran.

Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, succeeded his father, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on February 28 in the opening US-Israeli strikes on Iran. He has not appeared in public since.

With reporting by RFE/RL’s Radio Farda and Agence France-Presse.

WASHINGTON -- As Washington and Tehran weigh diplomacy against the risk of renewed conflict, former US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Middle East Michael Patrick Mulroy, says both sides now have strong incentives to prevent the crisis from escalating again if they are prepared to compromise.

In an interview with RFE/RL, Mulroy, who served under the first administration of President Donald Trump, said there is “hope” for an agreement because both Washington and Tehran “have an interest in seeing this come to an end,” while cautioning that negotiations could still collapse if either side overplays their hand.

RFE/RL: President Trump said during the cabinet meeting that Iran “very much wants to make a deal,” but also warned that “maybe we’ll just have to finish the job.” He ruled out sanctions relief in exchange for uranium concessions. From your perspective, how close are we to either a diplomatic breakthrough or direct military escalation?

Michael Patrick Mulroy: I think we are closer than we have been. I know a lot of people have seen the comments that keep coming out that we're on the verge, and we never get there, so they're very skeptical -- and I think that's fair.

But it's clear to me that President Trump does not want this to go into a stalemate that just continues

and continues. Although I think he is willing to use military escalation, he understands that would come with significant consequences.

Iran, of course, is not just going to absorb another round of air strikes. They're going to launch a counterattack. Obviously, it would be against US forces, but also against Gulf countries, as they have already proven both their willingness and capability to do.

That would further exacerbate the very issue Iran believes gives it leverage -- dramatically increasing the cost of energy around the world, including in the US, at a time when the US is heading into midterm elections.

At the same time, the [US] blockade and naval pressure have put serious strain on the regime’s ability to fund itself. So both sides have an interest in seeing this come to an end. I think there is hope. But the question is whether both sides are willing to compromise, because that’s how negotiations work.

Read more here

Iran has tightened restrictions on international media operating in the country, ordering foreign news organizations to bar Israeli outlets and Persian-language broadcasters abroad from using their content, according to instructions seen by The Associated Press.

The directive, issued by Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, requires international media organizations in Tehran to include mandatory language on “all submitted content, including photos, videos, reports, and other media productions,” AP reported on May 27. The outlets in question are now supposed to say that the relevant content cannot be used by Israeli media or Persian-language TV stations based outside Iran.

The ministry warned that responsibility for noncompliance would rest with the news outlet involved.

Only a limited number of international news organizations, including AP, continue to maintain bureaus or correspondents in Iran under tight state restrictions.

Iran has long restricted cooperation with Persian-language outlets such as VOA Persian, Iran International, and BBC Persian. Despite the controls, many overseas broadcasters continue accessing Iranian state media material online.

A spokesman for AP said its journalists in Iran would continue producing “strong, independent journalism under challenging conditions.”

The NetBlocks Internet monitoring group said on May 28 that connectivity in Iran had "largely returned" three months after Tehran “shut off access to the global internet.”

However, the group said network data showed users still faced “heavy filtering,” similar to restrictions imposed during a deadly crackdown on protests that erupted in January before the start of the war on February 28.

Read more here

The United States has imposed sanctions on Iran’s so-called Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the body Tehran created to regulate passage through the Strait of Hormuz, escalating pressure over Iran’s tightening control of one of the world’s most critical energy routes.

The authority was established after Iran closed the strait following the outbreak of war with the United States and Israel on February 28. Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas supplies usually pass through the narrow waterway, and Iran’s restrictions on shipping have disrupted global energy markets.

The US Treasury warned on May 27 that anyone cooperating with the authority or paying transit fees “may be providing support to and receiving services from” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and could face sanctions.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said “the Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury” -- the US administration’s sanctions campaign targeting Iran’s economy and oil revenues -- “has left the regime desperate for cash.”

Iran claims it is charging ships for “navigational services,” not imposing tolls.

On May 20, the authority published a map asserting Tehran’s “regulatory jurisdiction” over broad sections of the strategic waterway.

Iran and the United States launched fresh strikes on targets in the Persian Gulf region highlighting a precarious cease-fire amid a diplomatic push to reach a compromise deal to end their three-month old war.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it struck a US airbase in Kuwait early on May 28 after American forces hit a site near Bandar Abbas airport in southern Iran.

The IRGC said in a statement that its retaliatory strike came at 4:50 a.m. local time, targeting the base it identified as the origin of a US aerial assault on a point near Bandar Abbas airport using "aerial projectiles." It described the operation as “a serious warning,” adding that if further attacks were carried out against Iran, “our response will be more decisive.”

Earlier in the evening, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said that American forces had shot down four Iranian drones that "posed a threat" near the Strait of Hormuz and struck a launch unit near Bandar Abbas in Hormozgan Province before it launched a fifth drone.

It said its actions were "measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the cease-fire."

Read more here

Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said on May 28 that it had targeted a US air base after what it described as an early morning US attack near Bandar Abbas airport in southern Iran, according to the IRGC-linked Tasnim news agency.

In a statement released by Tasnim, the IRGC said it targeted the US air base with "aerial projectiles" at 04:50 a.m. (01:20 GMT).

The Revolutionary Guards did not specify the location of the base, although Kuwait's military said its air defenses were responding to "hostile" missile and drone attacks on May 28.

Kuwait, which hosts a US air base, did not specify whether the threats were Iranian.

The IRGC warned that any further US attacks would draw a "more decisive" response, adding that Washington bears responsibility for the consequences.

WASHINGTON -- The US military carried out new strikes on an Iranian military site and intercepted multiple drones near the Strait of Hormuz, US officials said on May 27, in the latest exchange of military action despite signs of progress in diplomatic efforts to reach a deal to end their conflict.

Senior US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters that the targeted site was assessed to pose a potential threat to US forces and commercial shipping operating near the strategic waterway, a route for about one-fifth of the world's oil transit before the war broke out at the end of February.

One official said US forces also shot down four Iranian one-way attack drones and struck a ground control facility in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas that was preparing to launch a fifth drone.

Bandar Abbas lies on Iran’s southern coast along the Persian Gulf near the Strait of Hormuz -- one of the world’s most critical shipping chokepoints.

“The Iranian drones posed a threat around the Strait of Hormuz,” the official said, adding that the waterway had faced repeated disruption due to Iranian activity. “These actions were measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire.”

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) later confirmed the strikes in a statement saying that the Iranian one-way attack drones that "posed a threat" around the Strait of Hormuz and that "actions were measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire."

The latest military activity comes as Washington and Tehran continue discussions aimed at stabilizing the situation following months of heightened regional tensions.

Earlier this week, the US said it had conducted what it described as “self-defense strikes” targeting vessels allegedly involved in laying naval mines.

Iran condemned those operations, calling them a violation of what it described as a fragile ceasefire arrangement.

The latest exchanges underscore continued volatility in the Gulf region in addition to remarks by US President Donald Trump that hinted at progress in diplomatic efforts to reach a deal. The United States and Iran have been trading proposals via Pakistani mediators.

Iranian media has reported that two separate incidents occurred in Asaluyeh and at Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport.

According to domestic media reports on May 27, one person was killed and two others injured in an incident at the air separation unit of Damavand Energy in Asaluyeh, the center of Iran’s massive South Pars gas and petrochemical complex. Damavand Energy supplies industrial utilities such as oxygen, electricity, and water to petrochemical facilities in the region.

According to a statement from Damavand Energy, rescue and safety teams were dispatched to the site after the incident occurred, and the injured were transferred to medical centers after receiving initial treatment. The cause of the incident has not yet been announced.

At the same time, the semiofficial Mehr news agency reported that an administrative customs building in the Imam Khomeini Airport City complex had caught fire.

Firefighters and emergency teams brought the blaze under control, but no details have yet been released regarding the cause of the fire, the extent of the damage, or possible casualties.

Based on reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Farda

Iran’s Intelligence Ministry has warned that following the recent war “some shortages and rising prices” caused by US economic pressure could lead to fresh unrest in the country.

In a statement issued on May 27, the ministry claimed that the United States and Israel were seeking to exploit “some shortages and price increases” caused by mounting economic strain by encouraging social unrest through “enemy agents” and foreign Persian-language media outlets.

The warning comes amid soaring inflation, sharp increases in consumer prices, and reports of steep declines in Iranian government revenues following weeks of a US naval blockade and a major drop in the country’s oil exports.

The remarks also come as memories remain fresh of the protests in January this year, which erupted after a sustained rise in the exchange rate in Iranian markets and commercial centers. As the demonstrations spread over several days, security forces responded with severe violence, reportedly killing thousands.

The ministry also warned of possible “terrorist operations and border aggressions,” particularly in northwestern and southeastern Iran, as well as acts of “assassination and sabotage.”

It alleged that the United States and Israel were attempting to smuggle “weapons, ammunition, and illegal communications equipment, especially Starlink,” into Iran.

The statement came after authorities began partially restoring Internet access following an 88-day nationwide shutdown.

With reporting by RFE/RL's Radio Farda