Final Iran-US agreement must be approved by parliament, Iranian lawmaker says
A member of the Iranian parliament’s presiding board said any final agreement or document reached in negotiations between Tehran and Washington must be approved by parliament.
Alireza Salimi said the current Iran-US memorandum of understanding only sets out a framework, and that if it turns into a final agreement, it must be reviewed and approved clause by clause under Articles 77 and 125 of the constitution.
“No one will allow the trick that was played on us in the JCPOA to be played on us again,” Salimi said, referring to Iran’s 2015 nuclear accord with world powers, from which President Donald Trump withdrew in 2018.
Oman’s foreign minister said Muscat was committed to not imposing transit fees in the Strait of Hormuz, as officials from Tehran and Muscat discuss future management of the vital waterway under the US-Iran memorandum of understanding.
Badr al-Busaidi told Monte Carlo International Radio on Monday that Oman opposed transit fees, after Iran said the two countries had held talks on the future management of the strait.
“We are not in favor of imposing transit fees,” Busaidi said. “This is stipulated — meaning it is internationally prohibited — and we are committed to these regulations.”
He added that ensuring safe passage through the strait was mainly Iran’s responsibility.
“This is primarily a responsibility that falls entirely on Iran,” he said, “to ensure that the strait and internationally approved shipping lanes are free from any hazards related to mines.”
File photo: Supporters of Iran's ruling establishment hold portraits of slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his successor and son Mojtaba during a nighttime gathering in Iran.
Plans by Iranian authorities to hold funeral ceremonies for slain Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei from July 4 to July 9 have drawn satire over the delayed burial and the absence of his reported successor, alongside objections to efforts to boost turnout.
Iranian officials have announced a series of funeral and burial ceremonies scheduled for early July, months after Khamenei's death. The delay has become the subject of widespread discussion and satire on social media, where users have questioned the circumstances surrounding the burial and speculated about the condition of his remains.
One audience told Iran International: "A funeral for an empty coffin shows how frightened the remaining authorities are. They know they no longer have public support."
The Islamic Republic's second supreme leader was killed on the morning of February 28, in the opening hours of the war with Israel and the United States.
Others questioned the absence of Mojtaba Khamenei, who has been identified by Iranian authorities as the country's third supreme leader. Since his appointment, no public appearance, audio message or video statement has been released, with only written messages issued in his name.
Several also referred to earlier remarks by pro-government eulogist Mansour Arzi, who said during a gathering of supporters that "it will later be revealed what remained of our leader's body," adding to public speculation surrounding the burial.
‘Little significance’
Many messages also responded to comments by First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref, who described Khamenei's funeral on Sunday as "the most important event of the 21st century."
One dismissed the characterization, saying the burial held little significance even inside Iran, let alone internationally.
Another wrote that the delayed burial of "one of the century's biggest dictators" would instead be remembered as "one of the happiest events" for many Iranians.
The empty seat reserved for Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei at his compound in Tehran is draped in black mourning cloth during a ceremony.
Organized attendance
Many readers said that state institutions were preparing to boost attendance through administrative measures rather than voluntary participation.
A principal at a Tehran high school told Iran International that schools had received instructions two weeks earlier to prepare to accommodate visitors arriving from other cities and neighboring countries for the ceremonies.
"Our school lacks even basic facilities such as prayer hall carpets and air conditioning, yet we have been ordered to prepare for guests," the principal said.
Iran International also received messages saying that employees at state institutions, including municipal offices and the mobile operator Hamrah-e Aval, had been informed that leave and remote work would be suspended during the funeral period.
Several citizens said such measures suggested authorities expected limited spontaneous attendance and were relying on public-sector workers and organized transportation to increase turnout.
Others asaid that buses had been dispatched to rural areas with offers of free transport, meals and local incentives to encourage participation, describing the effort as a familiar method of increasing attendance at official gatherings.
Calls for protest
Some viewed the week-long ceremonies as an opportunity for peaceful protest.
One suggested people mark the funeral by blowing whistles, clapping or shouting from their windows during the evenings.
Others called for broader demonstrations, arguing that concentrating government supporters in one location could create an opportunity for nationwide protests.
The comments followed a call issued on Sunday by exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi's media office for Iranians abroad to take part in demonstrations between July 4 and July 9, describing the period as a "Global Week of Action for a Free Iran."
US President Donald Trump’s envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will attend an expected meeting with Iran in Doha on Tuesday, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said.
“Special Envoy Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be flying to Doha for high-level meetings this week, as we continue to discuss the memorandum of understanding,” Leavitt told Fox News on Monday.
“On the sidelines of those high-level talks, there will be the technical talks,” she said.
"As far as we're concerned, we're holding up our end of the ceasefire. Violence will be met with violence," Leavitt added.
Wildfire burns through the Khaiez protected area on Badil Mountain near Behbahan in Iran's Khuzestan province.
A wildfire continued to burn through protected Zagros forests near Behbahan for a fourth day on Monday, exposing persistent shortages of aerial firefighting equipment after similar blazes in southern Iran earlier this month.
The fire, which began on Friday on Badil Mountain in the Khaiez protected area of Khuzestan province, remained uncontrolled despite efforts by local volunteers, mountaineers and rescue teams, Iranian state media reported on Monday.
Officials said rugged terrain, strong winds and high temperatures have made firefighting operations difficult. Several active fire hotspots remain in remote mountain areas that require hours of hiking to reach.
The lack of dedicated aerial firefighting capacity has again drawn attention. Khuzestan province has no dedicated water-dropping helicopters or firefighting aircraft.
Khuzestan Governor Mohammadreza Mowlazadeh has requested that the central government dispatch a helicopter to assist with the operation.
The province's natural resources chief also stressed the urgent need for aerial support, saying most of the fire in accessible areas had been contained but blazes in hard-to-reach terrain continued to spread.
A local conservation volunteer died after suffering burns while helping to extinguish the fire on Saturday. One other person was injured.
Wildfire burns through the Khaiez protected area on Badil Mountain near Behbahan in Iran's Khuzestan province.
The Khaiez and Badil areas are protected ecosystems in Khuzestan containing rangelands, shrubs and sidr trees that are vulnerable to wildfires during the summer. Heavy rainfall last year increased vegetation growth, raising the amount of dry fuel available for fires this season.
The blaze follows weeks of forest fires across the Zagros range in Fars province, where volunteers and environmental activists said widespread fires, aging equipment, limited resources and weak management had severely hampered firefighting efforts despite official announcements that the fires had been brought under control.
Fars province experienced an unusually severe wave of forest fires between May and late June.
