Iran army official says US would lose war with Iran

A Panama-flagged oil tanker managed by Japan's Eneos passed through the Strait of Hormuz safely, the second Japan-linked vessel to do so since the war disrupted shipping through the waterway, ship-tracking data showed on Thursday.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said she had directly contacted Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to allow the vessel's transit. The tanker has four Japanese crew members onboard.

Eneos Chief Executive Miyata Tomohide said the tanker was carrying crude from Kuwait and the UAE and was expected to arrive in Japan in late May or early June.

Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi said Japan did not pay Iran a toll for the transit. Takaichi said 39 Japan-related vessels remained stranded in the region.

His death occurred during the January Massacre, a nationwide crackdown on anti-establishment protests that resulted in the deaths of thousands of people across Iran.

Witnessing the shooting from just a few meters away, Parham's father immediately retrieved his son’s body.

To prevent security forces from seizing the remains — a frequent occurrence during the crackdown — the father carried the teenager in his arms for hundreds of meters through the protest zone to reach his vehicle, eventually transporting him directly to the family home.

Security forces demand 'rioter' narrative for burial

The day after the killing, security officials refused to grant burial permits unless the family agreed to their terms.

According to sources familiar with the matter, officials coerced the father into signing a written commitment saying his son had been killed by "rioters" rather than state forces.

Authorities threatened to withhold the body indefinitely if the family did not comply with the official narrative.

Conscience over safety

Family and friends remember Parham as a kind and soft-spoken teenager who was deeply devoted to his parents.

His family said that on the night of the protest, his father had tried to convince him to stay home, promising to buy him a PlayStation 5 if he avoided the streets.

In an exchange that has since defined his legacy, Parham replied: "If I don't go, what am I supposed to do with my conscience?"

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday that the Strait of Hormuz remained open to commercial vessels cooperating with Iran, while blaming the United States for disruptions in the waterway.

He told the state media on the sidelines of a BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi that Tehran had not created obstacles for shipping and called Washington’s blockade on Iran illegal.

“As far as we are concerned the Strait of Hormuz is open for all commercial vessels, but they need to cooperate with our navy forces,” he said.

A vessel at anchor has been taken over by unauthorized personnel and is now heading toward Iranian territorial waters after an incident northeast of the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said on Thursday.

UKMTO said it received a report of an incident 38 nautical miles northeast of Fujairah in the UAE and that the vessel was subsequently taken and redirected toward Iranian territorial waters.

The agency did not identify the vessel or say who may have taken control.

Iranian judicial authorities have ordered the seizure of assets belonging to dozens of people, many living abroad, over allegations of cooperation with Israel and actions against national security, state-linked news agency ANA reported on Thursday.

ANA, citing judicial authorities, said the move was taken under a law increasing penalties for alleged espionage and cooperation with Israel. It said confiscated assets would be used to rebuild sites damaged during the war.

The report said cases involving the individuals were under review and that those targeted included people residing in Britain, Germany, Iraq, Turkey and the United States, among other countries, as well as six people inside Iran.

Iran did not provide evidence supporting the allegations.