Trump says Iran ‘really wants’ deal with US

Two Iranian protesters were executed on Monday after they were arrested during nationwide demonstrations in January, the judiciary’s Mizan News reported.

Mehrdad Mohammadinia and Ashkan Maleki had been sentenced to death on accusations of setting fire to a mosque in Tehran’s Gisha neighborhood, damaging public property, clashing with security forces and blocking streets.

The judiciary said their sentences had been upheld by the Supreme Court before being carried out.

Mizan published what it described as Maleki’s confession, alleging that the two entered the mosque courtyard and set fire to gasoline that had leaked from overturned motorcycles.

Rights groups have repeatedly warned that Iran’s government uses forced confessions and fast-tracked trials in politically charged cases.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have been urging Hezbollah to escalate war with Israel so that Tehran can gain leverage in talks with the US, Axios reported on Monday, citing a Lebanese official.

The report also said Washington’s latest push for a ceasefire in Lebanon had faltered as Israel expanded its ground offensive and sought US approval for major strikes on Hezbollah targets in Beirut.

The Trump administration’s effort to de-escalate in Lebanon was partly driven by its push for a deal with Iran, according to the report.

The memorandum of understanding under negotiation between Washington and Tehran includes an end to fighting in Lebanon, it added.

An Iranian lawmaker urged officials on Monday to preserve unity and support the negotiating team despite differing views over talks with the United States.

“We may have different views on the negotiations, but we must all help the negotiating team,” Mehrdad Lahouti said.

He added that the country had paid heavy costs in the war, making unity an “undeniable necessity.”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said its Aerospace Force targeted the air base from which a recent US attack was launched after what it described as an American strike on a telecommunications tower on Sirik Island in Hormozgan province.

In a statement, the IRGC said the retaliatory operation destroyed pre-designated targets linked to the attack.

The force warned that any further US military action would trigger what it described as a “completely different” response.

The statement came after the United States said it had carried out strikes on Iranian radar and drone command-and-control sites over the weekend, citing self-defense and the protection of regional shipping.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it conducted strikes on Iranian radar installations and drone command-and-control sites in Goruk and on Qeshm Island over the weekend in response to what it described as aggressive Iranian actions.

According to CENTCOM, the strikes took place on Saturday and Sunday after Iran allegedly shot down a US MQ-1 drone operating over international waters.

The US military said fighter aircraft subsequently targeted Iranian air defenses, a drone ground control station and two one-way attack drones that it said posed threats to ships transiting regional waters.

CENTCOM described the strikes as measured and deliberate acts of self-defense.