Rubio cites progress in Iran talks, but casts doubt on breakthrough

The United States and Israel are debating whether removing Mojtaba Khamenei would destabilize the Islamic Republic or risk producing a more radical power structure and a fragile nuclear deal similar to the 2015 agreement, Israel Hayom reported.

The Israeli newspaper said the question had become a new point of discussion in political and security circles after the killing of Ali Khamenei, with officials weighing whether Mojtaba Khamenei’s survival provides a degree of manageable stability or whether his removal could weaken the system further.

The report described Mojtaba Khamenei as weak, wounded and lacking full authority, while saying Iran’s ruling structure still has a command system and can project continuity as long as a member of the Khamenei family remains at the top.

Israel Hayom said some officials believe removing him could trigger a succession crisis and create space for a more pragmatic faction to reach a deal with the West.

Others, the report said, warn there may be no real moderates ready to take power and that such a move could instead produce a more radical structure or another time-limited nuclear agreement viewed by Israel as insufficient.

Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf told Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir in Tehran that the Islamic Republic would not compromise on what he called the rights of the Iranian nation and country, state TV reported.

Ghalibaf said Iran’s armed forces had rebuilt their capabilities during the ceasefire and warned that if the United States “foolishly restarts the war,” the consequences would be “more crushing and bitter.”

Iranian state TV also reported that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held a second meeting with Munir after talks on Iran’s proposals.

A Foreign Ministry spokesperson has said gaps in the talks remain wide.

The prosecutor in Qazvin province said authorities had identified and seized assets belonging to 96 people accused of working for hostile actors, including individuals inside and outside Iran.

Ali-Asghar Asgari said indictments had been issued against three people on espionage accusations and six others on charges of carrying out intelligence activities. He said the cases had been sent to the Revolutionary Court.

“Any operational or intelligence action in favor of the enemy aimed at endangering security and national interests carries the punishment of seizure of all assets and execution,” Asgari said.

Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf in Tehran as part of ongoing diplomatic efforts over regional tensions, Iranian state media reported.

Munir also met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during his visit to Iran, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi present, according to the report.

Al Arabiya, citing informed sources, reported that Munir had carried US messages to Tehran and that the messages included a threat to resume the war.

Ayatollah Mohammad Javad Fazel Lankarani said Iranians should not be divided by issues such as hijab when the country and Islam were under threat.

He said the issue of hijab remained a religious duty, but argued that it would be wrong to tell women without proper hijab not to attend nightly gatherings organized in support of the war effort.

“When the country itself and the foundation of Islam are in danger, we should not deal with second- and third-tier issues... we should not ask the man who has taken up a weapon and entered the field whether he prays or not, let alone raise the issue of hijab,” Fazel Lankarani said.

The comments came as Nour News, affiliated with Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, published an essay calling for a return to “reason and moderation” in Iranian public life.

Marking the day honoring the philosopher Mulla Sadra, the outlet argued that Iran needed a form of rationality that sees religion “not as a tool of control, but as a light for illumination.”

The essay criticized what it described as emotional and irrational forms of religiosity, as well as currents that reject religion entirely in the name of modernity.

It said Iran needed dialogue instead of conflict, and a reinterpretation of tradition rather than either blind imitation or outright rejection.

The shift does not amount to a formal retreat from policies such as mandatory hijab, but it reflects a growing recognition inside parts of the system that ideological confrontation at home could weaken the wartime unity authorities are trying to preserve.