US is in dialogue with Iran, envoy Witkoff says

The United Kingdom, France and Germany last month triggered the so-called "snapback" of international sanctions on Tehran which are set to take effect on September 28.

"We need our European allies to step up and agree that these sanctions are critical," Cornyn told Iran International.

"Iran is the number one state sponsor of terrorism. Thank goodness President Trump disrupted their nuclear weapons program. But their attitude and conduct remain unchanged, and these sanctions are entirely justified," the Texas senator said.

Cornyn’s push follows a letter led by Senator Jim Risch and signed by 50 Senate Republicans last week. The letter praised the UK, France, and Germany for re-activating the UN sanctions on Iran and urged sustained pressure until Tehran’s nuclear program is fully dismantled.

The move reflects growing United States concerns over Iran’s nuclear progress and its support for proxy groups across the region.

At the UN General Assembly on Wednesday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the US of betraying trust, particularly after its 2018 withdrawal from the JCPOA nuclear deal, and stressed Iran’s willingness to pursue diplomacy to resolve the crisis.

Pezeshkian denied that Iran has ever sought nuclear weapons, despite the US and Israeli assertions in June that Tehran was racing toward a bomb.

"I hereby declare once more that Iran has never sought and will never seek to build a nuclear bomb," Pezeshkian said.

Addressing European powers, Pezeshkian accused Germany, Britain, and France of acting in bad faith by reinstating UN sanctions.

"The three European states, having failed through a decade of bad faith and by supporting military aggression to subdue the proud people of Iran, at the behest of the United States, sought to reinstate terminated UN Security Council resolutions through pressure, coercion, and blatant abuse," the Iranian president said.

French President Emmanuel Macron also met with Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the UN meeting, warning that time was running out. "An agreement remains possible — only hours left; it is up to Iran," Macron posted on X.

The broadcast featured a series of video files that reportedly contain material from inside Israeli nuclear and other sensitive facilities, including the Dimona site. It also presented alleged details about personnel working on Israel’s nuclear program.

“We identified 189 Israeli nuclear and proliferation scientists and top officials, along with their networks,” Intelligence Minister Esmaeil Khatib said during the presentation, which included names and ID cards of alleged nuclear personnel.

“I tell Netanyahu … your employees collaborated with us for money and still do,” Khatib, a cleric and veteran military and intelligence official, added.

Israel is widely believed to have an undeclared nuclear arsenal.

Tehran's nemesis killed nuclear scientists and hundreds of military personnel in a surprise 12-day military campaign in June, underscoring Iranian intelligence failures.

Iran has said it too has infiltrated its enemy, and Israel has arrested several of its citizens on charges of spying for Tehran.

One alleged employee was introduced with a photo and described as working across seven Israeli nuclear sites under the cover of a company called ROTEM.

Another was identified as a nuclear scientist allegedly involved in "proliferation projects" between Israel and the United States.

It also mentioned the Chaim Weizmann laboratory, which it described as Israel’s leading proliferation program and was targeted by Iranian ballistic missiles during a 12-day war in June.

Additional documents shown in the broadcast suggested alleged nuclear cooperation between Israel and France under a project called SARAF.

One batch of the alleged material included private and family photos of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi it alleged was obtained from Israeli intelligence sources.

The video, published on Tasnim’s Telegram channel, showed images of Grossi with his family at Disneyland, at home during birthdays and in gatherings with colleagues and friends.

According to the intelligence ministry, the material demonstrated that Israeli intelligence spies “on everyone,” including the IAEA chief, and that the data it had obtained proves this claim.

French President Emmanuel Macron said he met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, demanding the immediate release of French nationals held in Iran and reiterating that Tehran must never acquire nuclear weapons.

Macron said that during his meeting with Pezeshkian he set out three non-negotiable demands: full access for International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors in Iran, transparency regarding enriched uranium stockpiles, and the immediate resumption of negotiations.

“An agreement remains possible. Only a few hours are left. It is up to Iran to respond to the legitimate conditions we have set,” Macron said on X.

“The clock is ticking,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told Al Jazeera in an interview at the United Nations on Wednesday.

Kallas and envoys from France, Britain and Germany met with Iran's delegation to the annual UN General Assembly after the three countries triggered the so-called snapback of international sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program last month.

The sanctions are due to return on Sunday barring any diplomatic breakthrough.

“There are just a few hours left,” she added. “We have sat down and really tried to find diplomatic solutions. There are still a few hours left, and hopefully we get there.”

“The death sentence of Peyman Farahavar, which had been issued by Branch 1 of the Revolutionary Court of Rasht, was reviewed in Branch 39 of the Supreme Court following an appeal. The appeal was rejected and the death sentence of my client was upheld,” defense lawyer Ramin Safarnia wrote on X.

“A request for a retrial will be submitted to the Supreme Court, and we hope that through legal means, this prisoner’s death sentence will be overturned,” he added.

Farahavar, from Gilan province in northern Iran, was arrested by security forces in 2024.

He was sentenced to death on April 30, this year on alleged charges of baghi (armed rebellion) and moharebeh (waging war against God).

The US-based rights group Human Rights Activists News Agency, citing an informed source close to the family, said the charges were based on his poems and protest activities related to social justice and civil rights.

Iran has executed at least 1,000 people so far this year, according to Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR).

At least 30 people have been executed this year on security-related charges such as baghi (armed rebellion) and moharebeh (waging war against God), according to IHR.