Iraq says it backs Oman-hosted Iran-US negotiations

Israeli security forces have arrested two Israeli citizens in their 20s on suspicion of carrying out missions for Iranian intelligence in exchange for digital payments, following a joint investigation by police and the Shin Bet, Israel’s domestic security agency, authorities said on Thursday.

The suspects, residents of the Jerusalem area, were arrested in January on suspicion of committing serious security offenses involving contact with Iranian intelligence operatives.

Israeli police said the investigation found the two had been in direct contact with Iranian intelligence elements for several months and carried out security-related missions while fully aware they were acting under Iranian direction. Authorities said the suspects allegedly received payments transferred to digital wallets.

Prosecutorial statements were filed on Thursday by the Jerusalem District Attorney’s Office at the Jerusalem Magistrate’s Court, and formal indictments are expected to follow.

The former official, who spoke on condition of anonymity and previously also served in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, said preparations dating back to 2022 included “marking and identifying elevated locations for sniper deployment” and “ideological theoretical training and psychological preparation to kill, including firing final shots at protesters.”

He said the planning also involved “training and educating criminal elements to play the role of leaders in gatherings, both to identify people and to steer street movements.”

Verified video of the protests showed security forces firing live ammunition from elevated positions, using pellet guns, raiding hospitals and shooting wounded protesters.

The former official said the Jan. 8-9 crackdown was not a short-term response but the result of long-term structural and operational preparation by security bodies.

A major US air base in Germany has moved to round-the-clock operations amid increased military activity, BBC Verify reported on Thursday.

Spangdahlem Air Base, a Nato facility operated by the US Air Force, is now operating 24 hours a day, according to a message sent to a US military aircraft monitored by BBC Verify.

A text communication to a USAF C-17 transport plane said the base “is currently open 24 7 due to tempo,” BBC Verify reported, citing aircraft communications data.

Talks between the United States and Iran set for Friday in Oman will focus mainly on Tehran’s nuclear program but will also include discussions on ballistic missiles and Iran-backed militant groups, officials familiar with the plans told i24NEWS.

The negotiations, which had appeared close to collapse earlier this week, will take place in Oman after last-minute diplomatic efforts by regional states, according to the officials.

Iran had warned it would walk away if Washington pushed to broaden the agenda beyond the nuclear file, but both sides agreed to what one official described as a compromise that would allow talks on missiles and regional activity alongside nuclear issues, with the aim of setting out a framework for a future deal.

The United States and Iran each made concessions to arrange talks in Oman that would focus mainly on Iran’s nuclear program while also covering missiles and militant groups, the New York Times reported.

The newspaper cited three Iranian officials and one Arab official as saying the US agreed the talks would take place in Oman and exclude regional actors, while “Iranian officials agreed to face from their American counterparts.”

Both sides agreed the talks would focus mainly on Iran’s nuclear program and aim to produce a framework for a possible deal, the report said.