Netanyahu seeks to persuade Trump to end Iran enrichment, diplomats say

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will seek during his visit to Washington to persuade the Trump administration to push for the complete dismantling of Iran’s uranium enrichment program, diplomatic sources in the Middle East told Iran International.

Israel believes that if the Islamic Republic is allowed to retain even a small part of its nuclear program, the sources added, it could rapidly resume enrichment once Trump’s presidency ends or anytime it deems conditions favorable.

The diplomats told Iran International that Israel assesses that Tehran’s sole aim in pursuing talks with the United States is to preserve its enrichment program.

Netanyahu will not advise American officials against engaging in negotiations with Iran, the diplomats added, but he will urge them to make any talks conditional on the enrichment program's total end.

The Revolutionary Court also sentenced Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghaddam to one year of imprisonment on charges of “producing obscene content” and ordered the confiscation of all related equipment.

Both sentences will be suspended for five years, according to Iranian media outlets.

My Favorite Cake tells the story of an elderly woman living alone in Tehran, navigating the loneliness of old age while seeking new experiences. The film explores themes of personal freedom, love, and human connection.

Authorities have taken issue with the film’s portrayal of life outside state-imposed social restrictions, particularly its depiction of women without mandatory hijabs and scenes that hint at relationships outside conservative norms of unmarried couples.

The film also features scenes where the characters consume alcohol—an act that, while common in private homes, is illegal under Iran’s strict laws.

In Iran, the production, sale and consumption of alcohol have been prohibited since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Despite the ban, alcohol consumption persists underground, with many Iranians producing homemade wine and spirits.

The film was awarded the FIPRESCI Jury Prize at Berlinale and the Silver Hugo at the Chicago Film Festival.

The film crew's trial comes amid an intensified crackdown on independent filmmakers and artists in Iran, particularly those who challenge state-imposed restrictions.

“We believe in negotiations, but not at any price,” Masoud Pezeshkian said during a meeting with political party representatives late Sunday, according to the official news agency IRNA.

“We are not seeking war, unrest or nuclear weapons. But how can we talk when the US puts us under maximum pressure and threatens us daily?”

US President Donald Trump has extended an offer to Iran for direct negotiations aimed at addressing concerns over its nuclear program.

But the overture was accompanied by a stern warning: failure to engage would result in bombing "the likes of which they (Iran) have never seen before."

Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, swiftly rejected the proposal for direct talks, deeming them meaningless under the prevailing circumstances. Instead, Tehran expressed openness to indirect negotiations facilitated by intermediaries such as Oman.

In response to the US threats, Iran elevated its military readiness and cautioned neighboring countries against supporting any US military actions, warning of repercussions for neighbors who might facilitate an attack.

The escalation has raised international concerns, prompting nations like Russia to offer mediation.

During the meeting, Pezeshkian added that he had phone conversations with all the regional leaders, saying that Tehran’s relations with these countries have improved significantly compared to the past. However, he distinguished the US as a separate case, citing Washington’s longstanding sanctions and coercive policies.

“We negotiate with the world and we are not looking for conflict,” he said. “But we will not submit to humiliation.”

Pezeshkian once again said Iran's nuclear program is not geared toward military purposes. “This isn’t just my personal assurance,” he said. “It’s a religious ruling by the Supreme Leader.”

In 2003, at the onset of Iran's nuclear crisis, Khamenei first said the production, stockpiling, and use of nuclear weapons are forbidden. Six years later, during a more complex phase of the crisis in February 2008, he announced the prohibition in a public speech.

The fatwa by Ali Khamenei prohibiting nuclear weapons has frequently been cited by Iranian officials as evidence of the peaceful nature of the country’s nuclear activities.

However, critics have pointed out that legal opinions can be reversed and public figures in Iran are more frequently mooting the desirability of seeking a bomb.

The official government newspaper - Iran - said on Monday that Khamenei’s alleged fatwa against atomic weapons does not necessarily ban their production – only their deployment and use.

“The issue of nuclear weapons generally involves three components: production, stockpiling, and use or deployment,” the newspaper wrote—drawing a distinction that is rarely considered meaningful in academic or military discussions on nuclear strategy. The article went on to assert, “In the modern era, the possession of nuclear weapons—rather than their use—is inherently deterrent in nature.”

The government’s official newspaper appears to be suggesting that producing and stockpiling atomic bombs is not a big issue as long as Iran says it has a fatwa prohibiting their use.

The supervisory board announced that it had issued an official warning to Kayhan’s managing editor following the publication of a provocative, anonymous daily column in Kayhan’s Saturday edition, written in a satirical style, that openly supported violent revenge against Trump. The piece mocked the US president’s past threats and invoked Soleimani’s death, declaring, “A few bullets are going to be fired into that empty skull of his.”

The board’s statement reiterated that the Islamic Republic’s official policy regarding revenge for Soleimani is the legal prosecution of his killers, particularly Trump, in an international tribunal.

The rhetoric was escalated further in a follow-up column on Sunday. "The shot hasn’t even been fired yet, and already a bunch of local lackeys and US bootlickers are totally freaking out …They’ve gotten scared because their skulls are as empty as Trump’s," the outlet wrote on Sunday referring to extensive criticisms voiced by public figures on social media.

Trump and several of his aides were placed on an Iranian hit list after Soleimani's killing. However, in recent months, the issue had somewhat faded amid Trump’s renewed 'maximum pressure' campaign and growing calls to renegotiate a new nuclear deal.

Though unattributed, the column, which often voices very controversial views, is widely believed to have been written by Kayhan’s ultra-hardliner editor-in-chief, Hossein Shariatmadari.

As the Supreme Leader’s official representative at Kayhan Publications, Shariatmadari’s statements are often seen—both inside and outside Iran—as indicative of the thinking of at least some elements within Ali Khamenei’s inner circle. He has held the position for 32 years and is widely known for his hardline views, including repeated calls to close the Strait of Hormuz and frequent threats against the United States, Israel, and regional countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

"Such threats ring hollow the demands of Iranian officials for there to be ‘mutual respect’ during future negotiations with the United States," Jason Brodsky, the policy director of United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), was quoted as saying in an article published by Fox News Digital on Saturday.

“Kayhan has been aligned with the regime’s past plots that US law enforcement has disrupted,” Brodsky added. He urged US officials to make it clear that negotiations are impossible while Iran is “threatening and plotting to kill American citizens.”

Referring to the Fox News article, Iranian media and public figures have widely criticized Kayhan newspaper and Shariatmadari for what they say is very damaging rhetoric to Iran's possible talks with the United States.

A commentary titled “Causing crisis, Shariatmadari style”, published by Rouydad 24 website in Tehran on Sunday, said when Shariatmadari speaks, “the story is different, and it boils down to creating a crisis." Another commentary described his statements as a "shooting diplomacy in the heart".

Ettela’at newspaper, also overseen by Khamenei's office, also sharply criticized Kayhan and other hardline media outlets for advocating nuclear armament, the assassination of Trump, and retaliatory attacks following Israel’s strike on Iran in October. “At such a critical juncture in Iran’s confrontation with the United States, these calls are damaging the credibility and stature of the armed forces and the government in both the media and public opinion,” the commentary said. “If this trend continues, we may find ourselves fighting a domestic fifth column masquerading as super-revolutionaries.”

The recent warning against Kayhan is notably mild compared to actions taken against reformist publications. In these cases, the board has suspended or revoked licenses and referred journalists for prosecution under national security charges. Such unequal enforcement has long fueled criticism that the board operates with double standards, cracking down harshly on reformist voices while tolerating or excusing hardline rhetoric.

Kayhan and Ettela’at, which is also under Khamenei's control, are among Iran’s oldest newspapers.

Both newspapers have a circulation of less than 5,000 and are mainly distributed to government offices, but carry political weight.

The report said that the move signals the potential for a more aggressive US stance in the coming days and weeks, amid rising tensions between Iran and Yemen's Houthis which continues to target US vessels amid its blockade of the Red Sea.

The imagery showed that the USS Carl Vinson, originally deployed in the western Pacific, has now moved into the Indian Ocean, on its way to join the USS Harry S. Truman in the Middle East, which has specifically come under fire from the Houthis.

The two aircraft carriers were deployed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Associated Press (AP) reported last month citing a US official.

AP's report said that Hegseth signed orders on March 20 to keep the USS Harry S. Truman in the Middle East for at least an additional month and ordered the USS Carl Vinson, which had been operating in the Pacific, to make its way toward the Middle East, extending its scheduled deployment by three months.

The rare deployment intended to bolster US strikes against the Houthis, whose primary benefactor is Iran. This buildup follows persistent Houthi attacks on commercial and military vessels in the Red Sea, which the group frames as a response to the Israeli war in Gaza.

Last month, the US military deployed long range bombers at a strategic Indian Ocean airbase, a spokesperson told Iran International, as Washington ramped up rhetoric against Iran and continued strikes against Houthi fighters in Yemen.

"B-2 Spirit bombers have arrived at Naval Support Facility Diego Garcia," a US Strategic Command spokesperson said, referring to the strategic British territory.

Trump recently said that all military actions carried out by the Houthis will be attributed to Iran, though Tehran denies it controls the group.

The US has launched multiple strikes on Houthi infrastructure, which has stepped up in recent weeks as Trump vows to end the blockade which, while intended to target Israeli-linked ships, has disrupted global shipping on the key maritime route.