Hardline MP urges arrest of Zarif and Rouhani over calls to end war
A hardline Iranian lawmaker has called on the judiciary to arrest former president Hassan Rouhani and his foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif after they advocated ending the war.
Hamid Rasaei urged the judiciary to issue what he described as a “judicial shot” to detain the two, following comments in which Rouhani called for preparations to end the war “honorably” and Zarif outlined a framework for de-escalation.
In an article published in Foreign Affairs, Zarif argued that any agreement must go beyond a temporary ceasefire and address the root causes of the conflict. He warned that a ceasefire alone would only delay further fighting.
Zarif proposed that Iran continue limited uranium enrichment under full international supervision as part of a multilateral agreement, while committing not to pursue nuclear weapons. He also called for the lifting of economic sanctions and the signing of a non-aggression pact between Iran and the United States.
Rouhani, for his part, said the country should be prepared to end the war in a way that serves national interests and the public, stressing the need to coordinate resources to prevent attacks on Persian Gulf islands and maintain control over the Strait of Hormuz. He added that preserving the country and the Islamic Republic requires immediate policy reforms.
