IAEA chief meets Swiss foreign minister to discuss Iran

The head of the judiciary in Iran’s central province of Isfahan said 4,044 cases were opened over protests in January unrest, with 2,899 indictments issued and 1,975 cases resulting in final rulings.

He said 890 cases were filed in the provincial capital and that rulings had been issued in more than 2,000 cases at preliminary, revolutionary and criminal courts.

The rulings included acquittals, fines, prison sentences ranging from one to 30 years and death sentences in cases involving accusations of moharebeh, or “waging war against God.” Some of the verdicts are under review at the Supreme Court, he said.

Iran foreign ministry spokesperson said on Sunday that the US failure to ensure a ceasefire in Lebanon would be a central issue at the meeting with US officials in Burgenstock, Switzerland.

Esmaeil Baghaei also said the one-day meeting was a follow-up to implementation of a memorandum of understanding with the United States and would include a joint afternoon session between Iran, the US, Qatar and Pakistan.

He said other issues would also be discussed, including waivers for the sale of Iranian oil and the release of Iran’s frozen assets.

Talks between a US delegation led by Vice President JD Vance and an Iranian delegation led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf are set to begin on Sunday morning in Burgenstock, with mediators also present, the Swiss foreign ministry said.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defense Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir were also in Switzerland for the talks.

The IRGC Navy’s deputy commander for political affairs said the Islamic Revolution was entering a phase of “new birth” after what he described as the consolidation of its victories.

“After the consolidation of victories, major reforms should be pursued in the economic and governance spheres,” Mohammad Akbarzadeh said.

He also said Iran was negotiating with the US to secure its rights, not to make concessions, adding that Tehran would not retreat even if the US failed to uphold its commitments.

A military adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned on Sunday against optimism over talks with the United States, saying Washington had turned to negotiations after failing to force Iran into surrender.

“The United States was supposed to use its ‘peace through strength’ strategy to force Iran to surrender,” Mohsen Rezaei said in a post on X. “Now that they have failed, they are insisting on negotiations out of desperation.”

The former IRGC commander added that that “any optimism will be exploited by the enemy.”