Lack of documentation hampers search for missing Baluch workers - Paper

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said Saturday, "If we engage in negotiations, create calm, and improve our relations, we will achieve very good outcomes."

However, he added, "it’s not the case that if the negotiations reach a deadlock, we ourselves will be at a dead end."

One major blaze broke out at a cardboard manufacturing factory in the city of Nazarabad.

Stormy weather in the area caused the fire to spread to 12 nearby units, a local governor said, adding that efforts are underway to bring the blaze under control.

The cause of the fire is not yet known, and there have been no reports of casualties.

Around the same time, another fire was reported near the Montazer Ghaem power plant in the city of Fardis.

The state-run YJC news agency initially released a video that purportedly showed no fire at the facility.

However, Iranian officials later confirmed the report. Hossein Ashouri, head of the Fardis fire department, said the fire began around 8:41 p.m. in a portable cabin next to a waste platform near the power station.

Strong winds caused the flames to spread over approximately 2,000 square meters. Nine additional fire trucks were deployed, and the blaze was brought under control.

Preliminary findings suggest the fire was caused by negligence on the part of the person stationed in the cabin.

Reports of explosion

Iranian officials have denied any link between the fire and the power plant's operation. However, widespread power outages were reported in several areas of the province.

Residents across Alborz Province told Iran International they heard an explosion shortly before 9 p.m., moments before experiencing an earthquake.

Iran’s Seismological Center confirmed that the 4.0-magnitude quake struck at a depth of 8 kilometers near Mahdasht, on the border of Alborz and Tehran provinces.

A senior official at Shahid Rajaei port has dismissed media reports suggesting the presence of explosives or hazardous materials at the facility, calling the reports exaggerated and aimed at stirring public concern.

Behzad Faraji, deputy for operations and dangerous goods at the port, emphasized that the port adheres strictly to international maritime regulations for handling dangerous cargo, known as the IMDG Code.

“Dangerous goods are divided into nine categories under these guidelines,” Faraji said. “Explosives (Class 1) and radioactive materials (Class 7) are not stored in any port under these rules. I can say with certainty that there are no explosives at Shahid Rajaei Port.”

He added that the rumors being circulated are baseless and intended to create unnecessary public alarm.

US President Donald Trump dismissed national security adviser Michael Waltz after a series of clashes that included Waltz’s behind-the-scenes talks with Israel about striking Iran, the Washington Post reported on Saturday.

Two people familiar with the matter said Waltz held “intense coordination” with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on military options against Iran before Netanyahu’s early-February Oval Office meeting with Trump.

One of those people said, “It got back to Trump and the president wasn’t happy with it,” and added that Waltz “wanted to take US policy in a direction Trump wasn’t comfortable with because the US hadn’t attempted a diplomatic solution.”

The Israeli prime minister’s office on Saturday rejected the Washington Post report, saying, “Netanyahu had a cordial meeting with Mike Waltz and Steve Witkoff at Blair House in February before his meeting with President Trump at the White House.”

The statement adds that Waltz later joined VP JD Vance for another meeting with Netanyahu before departing Washington.

“Since then, the Prime Minister, the former national security adviser, and Steve Witkoff have had one phone call, which did not concern Iran.”

A top clerical official warned Saturday that casting doubt on decisions made in the name of national interest can weaken the Islamic Republic’s leadership and serve hostile agendas.

“Creating suspicion about expediency-based decisions weakens the leadership’s standing and is against the interests of the system,” said Ali Saeedi, head of the Ideological-Political Office of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

He emphasized that throughout Islamic history, leaders—including the Prophet and Imams—made pragmatic choices to protect the broader mission of Islam.

Saeedi outlined a list of consequences for failing to grasp the logic behind such decisions, including weakening unity, spreading rumors, and empowering adversaries. He warned elites against misinterpreting the leadership’s judgments or politicizing sensitive decisions.

His remarks come amid an alignment among clerical and political figures who have recently pushed back against criticism of indirect Iran-US negotiations.

Former minister Mostafa Pourmohammadi said Saturday that dismissing the talks as desperate or imposed stems from poor historical understanding—adding that national survival must guide current strategy.