Iran & The Gulf

Blaze rages over facility in Neyshabur as widespread blackouts are recorded in the area. Reports of casualties remain conflicted; opposition media outlets say sabotage may have been at play.

Videos purportedly obtained by a self-described hacker group show abuses at the Islamic republic's notorious Evin prison, known for holding political prisoners and those with ties abroad who are often used as bargaining chips in negotiations with the West.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s representative says Jews "more evil than Satan." Jewish people "spread doubt and [wage] cultural warfare. This is how they can achieve their main goal of pillaging the world,” he says.

The International Atomic Energy Agency says Iran is now using a second cascade of advanced centrifuges to enrich uranium to up to 60% at its above-ground enrichment plant at Natanz.

Move is step three in a four-step plan by Iran, the fourth being producing a reactor fuel plate, International Atomic Energy Agency says. US State Department: Iran has no credible need to produce uranium metal, which has direct relevance to nuclear weapons development.

Ebrahim Raisi says Iran backs efforts to restore stability in Afghanistan and invites all groups in Afghanistan to reach a national agreement."

Recent operations in Persian Gulf, Lebanon reflect Ebrahim Raisi's desire for confrontation with the West, which he believes would imbue new government with prestige among Iran's radicals, according to Asharq Al-Awsat report.

“In any negotiation, the rights of the Iranian nation should be secured and guaranteed," Raisi says, criticizing the US for abandoning the accord and reimposing crushing sanctions under former President Donald Trump.