Iran Supreme Leader opposes extending US talks, MP says

A plan on managing the Strait of Hormuz is under review in both Iran’s parliament and the country’s top security council, an Iranian MP said on Thursday.

Fadahossein Maleki said the plan had been formally registered in parliament, while the Supreme National Security Council also wanted to examine it.

Maleki, a member of Iran parliament’s national security and foreign policy committee, also said various proposals had been discussed in the committee and in other parliamentary meetings on Hormuz.

Iran executed a man on Thursday after accusing him of cooperation with Israel’s intelligence services, judiciary-affiliated Mizan News reported.

Soltanali Shirzadi Fakhr’s execution was carried out after the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence, according to the report.

It also alleged that he had confessed to taking part in “terrorist operations” against Iran.

Mizan claimed that Shirzadi Fakhr was also a member of the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MEK) and had traveled to Iraq illegally to work for the opposition group.

Panama’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday criticized Iran’s seizure of vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, calling it a “grave attack against maritime security.”

In a statement, the ministry said the seizure of the Panamanian-flagged MSC Francesca, along with another vessel, was contrary to international law and heightened tensions in the Persian Gulf.

The MSC Francesca, which is Italian-owned, and the ship Epaminondas were seized by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to the statement.

US Senator Ted Cruz said on Wednesday President Donald Trump “crippled” Iran’s military and economy, warning the country is approaching a breaking point under mounting pressure.

Speaking to Fox News, Cruz said Iran’s leadership would not respond to diplomacy alone and argued that military action and economic measures were having a decisive impact.

“Donald Trump is not bluffing. The Ayatollah and the mullahs are theocratic, religious radicals. They’re not given to reason,” Cruz said. “One of the most important things President Trump has done in this military conflict is he has utterly demolished their military.”

Iran’s state broadcaster has sparked ridicule after claiming that 87% of Iranians support continuing the war with the United States, in a curious turn from early in the conflict where pro-war sentiments of an alienated populace was branded treachery.

The controversy began following a Monday broadcast on the state television, where hardline commentator Mostafa Khoshcheshm asserted that the Iranian people overwhelmingly favor military confrontation over diplomatic efforts to end the war.

“According to polls conducted by academic centers regarding the war, 87% of the people said that once and for all, this decayed tooth should be pulled out,” he said, arguing that reopening the Strait of Hormuz could leave Iran unable to close it again if needed.

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