US aims to hold fourth round of talks with Iran this weekend, White House envoy says

The man, whose family reportedly owns prominent businesses in Iran, is described as “very well connected” to Tehran’s leadership.

His arrest was part of a coordinated national operation involving Counter Terrorism Policing and UK Special Forces that resulted in raids across several cities, including London, Rochdale, Manchester, Stockport, and Swindon, according to the Met Police.

Authorities believe the group was just hours away from launching an attack on what police described as a “specific premises.”

Four of the men, aged between 29 and 46, continue to be held under the Terrorism Act 2006 after police secured extended detention warrants. A fifth man, aged 24 and arrested in Manchester, has been released on conditional bail.

The potential involvement of the Iranian suspects in a plot marks a concerning shift in Iran’s tactics, which have typically relied on criminal proxies to carry out operations abroad.

This case, if confirmed, could point to a more direct engagement in overseas activities by Iranian nationals themselves.

Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said the investigation remains in its early stages but stressed its complexity and national scale.

“We are working incredibly hard, with public safety at the forefront of our ongoing efforts,” he said, urging the public to avoid speculation and report any suspicious activity.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper praised the work of security services, calling it one of the most significant counter-terrorism and counter-state threat operations in recent years.

“A fundamentalist group runs state TV behind the scenes,” moderate cleric and former MP Rasoul Montajabnia asserted last week, pointing to a recent broadcast that insulted Sunni Muslims. “(They) deliberately seek to sow discord among Muslims.”

On a daytime live show last week, a guest recited a derogatory poem about Abu Bakr, the first caliph of Islam. The network later issued an apology, removed the episode from all its platforms and opened an investigation.

The measures were deemed too little too late by several prominent clerics who accused the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) of insulting religious sanctities.

Leading theologian Hossein Nouri Hamadani questioned the decisions made at IRIB. “There are many learned clerics at the seminary … It is unclear why the network invites those who make unfounded statements about Islam,” he said late last week.

At least two more prominent clerics, Hossein Ansarian and Hashem Hosseini Bushehri, weighed in on the subject, urging the broadcaster to change course.

This level of public criticism from within is rare—and significant—because the head of Iran’s state television is directly appointed by the Supreme Leader, and its political output is closely monitored by his office.

Even the IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News denounced certain broadcasts as “examples of bad taste,” leaving little choice for IRIB officials to issue rare public apologies—to viewers, authorities, and even neighboring countries.

“I do not deny there are oversights and mistakes,” IRIB chief Payman Jebelli told moderate conservative outlet Khabar Online, affirming his reverence for the clergy and their concerns.

Curiously, Khabar Online had carried an editorial alleging that “radical groups have infiltrated the national network,” and are driving the public away with their biased coverage of politics, especially the nuclear talks with the administration of US president Donald Trump.

Shortly after the second round of talks last month, state TV aired a live show in which an ultraconservative commentator warned of dire consequences including civil war if Tehran's engagement with the Trump administration continued.

“We have tried to deliver accurate news and stay aligned with the negotiators,” Jebelli told Khabar Online when asked about the show, adding IRIB backed the government in general even though some programs may contradict official policy.

Much of the criticism against the broadcaster has centered on Vahid Jalili—a senior IRIB official whose brother Saeed Jalili is the face and voice of Iran’s ultraconservatism and once led Tehran’s nuclear negotiations.

The brothers are seen by moderates as key to IRIB’s vision and direction.

The backlash against the state broadcaster, amplified by religious authorities and hardline outlets, suggests a growing divide not just between factions within the political elite, but potentially within the very institutions that project and preserve the state’s ideological authority.

“This should never have happened on a platform that’s under the leader’s supervision,” Montajabnia told Khabar Online, accusing the hardline faction of defying Ali Khamenei.

Asked if IRIB chief Jebelli could intervene to stop the broadcaster’s drive against the administration of president Masoud Pezeshkian, he said: “Only the supreme leader can resolve this.”

As Tehran and Washington cautiously inch forward their nuclear negotiations, the United Kingdom is positioning for a stronger hand in shaping any potential agreement amid Iranian-linked security threats and a standoff over detained Britons.

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy’s high-level meetings with Omani officials on April 27—just one day after Iran and the United States held indirect talks in Rome under Omani mediation—underscored the United Kingdom's efforts not to remain a bystander in one of the region’s most consequential diplomatic processes.

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Almost twenty Israeli fighter jets engaged in the attack and dozens of targets were pounded, the Israeli military said in a statement on Monday.

"The terrorist infrastructure attacked in the Hodeidah seaport serves as a major source of income for the Houthi regime. The seaport in Hodeidah is used to transfer Iranian weapons, equipment for military needs and other terrorist needs," the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) added.

The raid was carried out in response to repeated drone and ballistic missile attacks by the Houthi rebels against Israel, it said.

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On Saturday the Houthis fired a ballistic missile that hit near Israel's main Ben Gurion Airport. Shortly after, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed retaliation.

The Houthis "have been operating for the past year and a half with Iranian guidance and funding to harm Israel and its allies, undermine regional order, and disrupt global freedom of navigation," the Israeli military said, adding it is "determined to continue to act and strike with force anyone who poses a threat to the residents and citizens of Israel, and at whatever distance is required."

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Iran has denied involvement in Houthi attacks on Israel and international shipping, and foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei saying Monday that Tehran does not operate through regional proxies.

“The decisions made by the people of Yemen reflect their own will, and all such accusations against Iran are baseless.”

The Israeli airstrikes also targeted a concrete factory east of the city of Hodeidah, which the the Israeli military says "serves as an important economic resource for the Houthi government and is used to build tunnels and military infrastructure."

Israel's Channel 14 reported that the airstrikes were carried out independently, without US participation or assistance. However, Israeli outlet Walla News reported that the attacks were coordinated with the United States.

Galloway traveled to Iran to attend the third edition of the Sobh International Media Festival, organized by the foreign media division of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), the country's state media organization.

Organizers awarded him the "Ismail Haniyeh Prize" in recognition of his outspoken defense of Palestine and alignment with Iran-backed resistance groups.

Haniyeh, the head of Hamas's political bureau, was assassinated by Israel in a bomb blast targeting his residence in Tehran last year.

"No country on the planet has worked harder than the Islamic Republic of Iran to liberate the people of Palestine from bondage, suffering and endless sacrifice. That is simply a fact," said Galloway in his address to the festival. 

The former MP, now leader of the Workers Party of Britain, is no stranger to Iranian state media. He previously hosted programs on Iran’s English-language broadcaster Press TV, which is overseen by IRIB and has been sanctioned by Western governments for allegedly spreading propaganda.

Galloway has also appeared on Russian state media and was expelled from the UK Labour Party over remarks it deemed antisemitic.

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In his speech, Galloway praised Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a key supporter of the Palestinian people and said Yemen was second only to Iran in providing meaningful support for their struggle.

“I thank the revolutionary people of Iran, your leadership, your heroes, and your martyrs for standing firm in support of the Palestinian people," said Galloway.

Galloway also recounted a personal story about his ties to the Palestinian cause, recalling a humanitarian convoy to Gaza. He said the late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh once promised to issue him a Palestinian passport. When none were available, Haniyeh instead gave him his own—a gift Galloway described as “one of my most treasured possessions.”

The Sobh International Media Festival is part of the Iranian government’s broader effort to rally international media voices that support its regional narrative and opposition to Israel.

The event drew dozens of foreign participants, many of whom are affiliated with media outlets sympathetic to Iran’s worldview.