Five Iranians dead, dozens injured in Arbaeen pilgrimage bus crash

Joseph Aoun criticized certain remarks by Islamic Republic officials and stressed that no group has the right to bear arms or seek foreign support, according to Al Arabiya.

Larijani responded by affirming the Islamic Republic’s support for the decisions of Lebanon’s government.

Saudi website Al Hadath quoted Larijani as telling Aoun that Iran does not interfere in the country’s affairs, while Al Sharq website cited him pledging to strengthen ties with the Lebanese state on all levels.

"Any decision taken by the Lebanese government in consultation with the resistance is respected by us," he said after separate talks with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, whose Amal movement is an ally of Hezbollah.

He said Lebanon should not "mix its enemies with its friends. Your enemy is Israel, your friend is the resistance. I recommend to Lebanon to always appreciate the value of resistance."

By "resistance", Larijani was referring to the Shi'ite militant group Hezbollah, which grew into a so-called state-within-a-state force better armed than the Lebanese army and has repeatedly fought Israel over the decades.

"Iran didn't bring any plan to Lebanon, the US did. Those intervening in Lebanese affairs are those dictating plans and deadlines," said Larijani.

The US submitted a plan through President Donald Trump's envoy to the region, Tom Barrack, setting out the most detailed steps yet for disarming Hezbollah, which has rejected mounting calls to disarm since its devastating war with Israel last year.

During his meeting with the president, Larijani also spoke of deep historical and cultural links, Iran’s Guards-linked Tasnim reported.

“If one day the people of Lebanon are in distress, we in Iran will also feel that pain. We will stand by the dear people of Lebanon in all circumstances,” Tasnim quoted Larijani as saying.

In the same meeting, Larijani said he had renewed his invitation for Aoun to visit Tehran and emphasized Iran’s readiness to help Lebanon in the field of reconstruction, Iranian local media reported.

Messages for Hezbollah and parliament backing

The visit came with messages urging Hezbollah to align with the Lebanese government’s positions, the news site This is Lebanon reported, linking the trip to wider regional arrangements.

According to the outlet, the messages were part of political maneuvers that could be used as bargaining tools, including demands for Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanese territory and the launch of reconstruction in war-damaged areas. It said the aim was to secure the “Hezbollah card” for potential negotiations with the United States.

Founded in 1982 by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, Hezbollah has long been Israel’s principal military adversary in Lebanon. Fighting late last year left the group weakened.

The Lebanese cabinet last week ordered the army to disarm Hezbollah, prompting sharp criticism from Tehran.

Ali-Akbar Velayati, senior foreign policy adviser to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, called the disarmament “a dream that won’t come true,” describing it as a policy dictated by Israel and Washington.

Lebanon’s foreign ministry condemned the comments on X as “a flagrant and unacceptable interference in Lebanon’s internal affairs.”

Larijani’s stop in Iraq

Before arriving in Beirut, Larijani traveled to Baghdad, where he signed a security memorandum with the government. According to information obtained by Iran International, one goal was to encourage Shi’ite factions to push for parliamentary approval of a Popular Mobilization Forces bill.

The PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi, is an umbrella organization of Shi’ite militias formed under the direct supervision of Qasem Soleimani, the late commander of the IRGC Quds Force.

On Monday, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani met Larijani and, according to Arab media, expressed support for US-Iran dialogue.

Iraqi sources told Iran International the tour reflected Tehran’s concern over Baghdad yielding to US pressure on the PMF.

In a letter to UN Secretary-General António Guterres and the Security Council, the foreign ministers of the three European nations — known as the E3 — said they were ready to trigger the “snapback” mechanism under the 2015 nuclear deal if Tehran did not agree to talks before the end of August, or accept an extension to the deadline.

“We have made it clear that if Iran is not willing to reach a diplomatic solution before the end of August 2025, or does not seize the opportunity of an extension, E3 are prepared to trigger the snapback mechanism,” the ministers wrote.

The letter was first reported by the Financial Times and France's Le Monde newspaper.

The letter was signed by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, Germany’s Johann Wadephul, and Britain’s David Lammy, and comes two months after US and Israeli strikes on nuclear sites in Iran. The Iranian mission to the UN did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Under UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the nuclear accord, any signatory can trigger the reimposition of sanctions if Iran is deemed in breach. The sanctions — including arms embargoes, cargo inspections and restrictions on missile development — are set to expire on Oct. 18 unless renewed.

Extension for discussion

The Financial Times said the E3 told Iranian negotiators at talks in Turkey last month they would extend the August deadline if Tehran resumed discussions with Washington and restored cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency before September. One Western diplomat described those talks as “difficult.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told the newspaper in July that the European powers had no “legal or moral grounds” for a snapback and warned they would be excluded from future nuclear talks if they went ahead.

Iran bracing for snapback

Separately, Iran International reported earlier this week that Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence has issued confidential guidance to ministries and major companies to prepare for the possible return of punitive UN measures.

The leaked document said renewed sanctions would target arms sales, freeze overseas assets, and reimpose restrictions on industries such as oil, petrochemicals, banking, shipping, insurance and sensitive technologies.

The ministry warned of “severe currency fluctuations, reduced purchasing power, increased unemployment, layoffs and heightened social discontent” if sanctions return, and urged companies to seek alternative suppliers in countries including China, Russia and Iraq. It also cautioned about heightened cyber threats to economic infrastructure.

Iran suspended cooperation with the IAEA in June following a brief war with Israel. A senior from the nuclear watchdog met with Iranian counterparts in Tehran on Monday.

'Iran has hand on trigger for NPT exit'

A senior Iranian lawmaker warned on Wednesday that parliament could move to withdraw Iran from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if Western powers reimpose the UN sanctions.

“If the other side takes steps toward operationalizing the snapback mechanism and using it, the Iranian parliament will definitely respond,” Manouchehr Mottaki, a member of parliament’s economic committee, was quoted as saying by Iranian media.

He said lawmakers were “ready to pull the trigger” on an NPT exit, adding that the West had no legal grounds to restore sanctions under the 2015 nuclear deal and was using the threat only as leverage.

“If they make their threat a reality, in line with the guidance of the Supreme Leader, we will also make our threat a reality,” Mottaki said.

“A fabricated and fake dossier created by Israel fuels accusations and pretexts — nothing but an attempt to stop our peaceful nuclear program,” Mohammad Eslami said on Tuesday.

Eslami also included the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in his criticism, saying the agency must condemn the killing of individuals involved in Iran's nuclear program in Israeli attacks, Revolutionary Guards-affiliated Tasnim News reported.

"The assassination of Iran's nuclear scientists, who had no military affiliations, is among their crimes, and such actions by the regime must be strongly condemned by the IAEA,” Eslami said.

Israel launched a surprise military campaign on June 13 targeting military and nuclear sites, assassinating senior Iranian commanders and killing hundreds of civilians.

The war, which lasted for 12 days, saw Israel kill more than 30 senior security officials and 11 senior nuclear scientists.

According to an Iranian government spokesperson, 1,062 Iranians were killed during the conflict, including 786 military personnel and 276 civilians. Iran retaliated with missile strikes that killed 32 people, including 31 civilians and one off-duty soldier.

On June 22, the United States carried out airstrikes on Iran’s key nuclear sites at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan.

"During the 12-day war, several registered facilities under continuous IAEA monitoring, with 130 inspectors, were repeatedly attacked with missiles and other projectiles,” Eslami added.

Iran also criticized the IAEA on Monday for what it called a failure to act over Israeli and US attacks in June, after talks in Tehran with the UN nuclear watchdog’s deputy director general earlier in the day.

“The Islamic Republic expressed its objection to the failure of the agency to fulfill its responsibilities regarding the Israeli and US attack, and raised its demands for correcting the agency’s improper processes,” Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said.

The Supreme Leader-affiliated newspaper Kayhan accused the IAEA in July of acting as a tool for Western intelligence.

“Of respondents, 89% rated their agreement with the government’s economic policies as ‘low’ or ‘very low.’ 72% expressed dissatisfaction or strong dissatisfaction with government policies,” according to the poll results published on Monday.

The poll also indicated that the economy is the top priority for 53% of respondents, while 36% prioritized foreign policy.

The poll consisted of three questions, conducted via the paper’s Telegram channel with an average of 2,130 respondents per question.

Iran is currently grappling with water shortages and widespread power outages amid high summer temperatures, while also dealing with recovery efforts following a 12-day war with Israel and its aftermath.

Sanctions, corruption and economic mismanagement have contributed to widespread economic hardship and market instability as Iran's currency the rial has lost over 90% of its value since US sanctions were reimposed in 2018.

Tehran faces another challenge from European countries Germany, France and the United Kingdom who may be poised to trigger United Nations sanctions per the so-called the snapback mechanism.

Snapback refers to a clause in UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which endorsed the a 2015 deal on Iran's disputed nuclear program dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA).

Under Resolution 2231, any party to the accord can file a complaint accusing Iran of non-compliance. If no agreement is reached within 30 days to maintain sanctions relief, all previous UN sanctions would automatically “snap back,” including arms embargoes, cargo inspections and missile restrictions.

Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence issued secret guidance on Monday, warning ministries and major companies to prepare for the likely return of punishing United Nations sanctions, documents reviewed by Iran International show.

Iran’s state-run English-language newspaper Tehran Times reported on August 8 that Tehran and Washington may start Norway-mediated indirect talks in August, covering Iran’s nuclear program and compensation demands over its June war with Israel and the United States.

Washington has called Iran’s compensation demand “ridiculous,” urging Tehran to stop funding militias and its nuclear program.

“Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam will convey the Lebanese government’s displeasure with Iranian officials’ statements rejecting Hezbollah’s disarmament, seen as blatant interference in Lebanon’s internal affairs,” Hona Lebanon reported, citing sources.

Founded in 1982 by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hezbollah has long been a formidable opponent of Israel but was mauled by its arch-foe in fighting late last year.

The Lebanese government last week tasked the military with disarming the Iran-backed group, leading to sharp criticism by the Islamic Republic.

Another Lebanese media outlet, Al-Liwaa, reported that the Lebanese Foreign Minister will not meet Larijani and prefers he not visit Beirut.

Larijani is due to arrive in Lebanon on Wednesday after visiting Iraq where he signed a security agreement on Monday.

Ali-Akbar Velayati, a senior foreign policy advisor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, called Hezbollah’s disarmament "a dream that won’t come true" on Saturday describing it as a policy dictated by Israel and the United States.

The Lebanese Foreign Ministry, in a statement on X, condemned the remarks as "a flagrant and unacceptable interference in Lebanon’s internal affairs," saying it would not tolerate such “unacceptable conduct."

The Lebanese government has long been under international pressure to assert a monopoly on arms, particularly from Western states that view Iran-backed Hezbollah’s military structure as a parallel force within the state.

“Hezbollah has no choice but to negotiate with the Lebanese government, as failure to do so would mean preparing for war,” Qassem Mohabaali, former Middle East Director at the Iranian Foreign Ministry, told the news outlet Khabarfori.