Iran mined tunnel entrances of nuclear sites amid fears of US seizure plan - CNN

Iranian daily Khorasan said a possible agreement between Tehran and Washington would only delay what it described as a final confrontation between Iran and the United States, rather than resolve the underlying conflict.

In a commentary, the newspaper said any deal at this stage should be seen as an agreement to end the current war, not a settlement of the core disputes between Tehran and Washington.

“The issues between Iran and America, and especially Iran and Israel, have reached the level of an existential battle that will in practice end only with the decisive victory of one side,” Khorasan wrote.

The paper argued that negotiations and agreements would have little effect on that trajectory, describing them as a temporary phase before what it called the “final battle.”

It said the main function of a deal would not be recognition of Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz, the release of blocked Iranian assets or any other real gain written into the text, but rather “postponing the final battle” and giving both sides time to rebuild.

“The main function of this agreement is a breathing space and a chance to rebuild offensive and defensive combat power and prepare for a full-scale and major battle,” the paper wrote.

Khorasan’s commentary adds to hardline criticism inside Iran of a possible memorandum of understanding with the United States, even as Iranian officials say the text is in final review and could be signed remotely if talks are completed.

The head of Isfahan’s judiciary said authorities have ordered the identification and seizure of assets belonging to 100 people accused of supporting Iran’s enemies.

Asadollah Jafari said the individuals were, in his words, “traitors to the homeland” who had supported enemy actions against Iran in different ways.

He said the process would continue across Isfahan province.

Hardline Iranian daily Kayhan warned against reopening the Strait of Hormuz through diplomacy with the United States, signaling resistance from Tehran’s hardline camp as Iran and Washington discuss a possible agreement.

In a front-page article titled “We closed the strait with power; we will not open it with diplomacy,” Kayhan said its message to Iran’s diplomatic apparatus and officials was that Hormuz should not be reopened until US forces are expelled from the region and Washington accepts the supreme leader’s red lines.

“The Strait of Hormuz is the strategic lock of our power,” Kayhan wrote. “This lock, closed by the heroic action of the nation’s sons, will never be opened with the key of deception and the false diplomacy of an American agreement.”

The newspaper said Iran should not give in to US threats or what it described as Washington’s “cycles of deception,” arguing that the United States is in a position of weakness, passivity and economic collapse.

“Until the complete expulsion of the last American terrorist soldier from the region and the enemy’s complete surrender to the leader’s red lines, we will preserve our power,” Kayhan wrote.

The article also warned that reopening Hormuz would allow Washington and its allies to resume attacks and assassinations, framing the strait as leverage that should not be traded away in a preliminary deal.

US Senator Eric Schmitt said on Friday on Fox President Donald Trump’s military action against Iran degraded Tehran’s nuclear and military capabilities, creating space for negotiations that he said could soon produce tangible results.

Schmitt said the expected outcome of a deal would be preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and ensuring the Strait of Hormuz remains fully open, describing both as major achievements for the Trump administration.

“The anticipation is that you’re going to get the Strait totally opened up. I think that'll be a relief for a lot of people in our country, and then also that they won't have their nuclear program. So these are major achievements by a president who is the master deal maker, he always has been, and he's brought those talents to the most important job in the world," he said.

Iran launched multiple one-way attack drones in an attempt to strike commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, US Central Command said on Friday.

"Iran launched multiple one-way attack drones in an attempt to strike commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. forces have downed all of them in recent hours as traffic flow through the strait continues unimpeded. The international trade corridor remains open for transit," CENTCOM posted on X.