Internet blackout in Iran enters ninth day
Iran’s nationwide internet blackout has entered its ninth day, with residents still limited to a tightly controlled domestic intranet despite technical infrastructure remaining operational.
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Iran oil sites burn as Israel threatens Khamenei successor
Summary
Missile strikes and explosions continued to be reported in several Iranian cities on Sunday, including Tehran, Tabriz, Isfahan and areas near Yazd.
Iranian clerics said the Assembly of Experts has already chosen a new supreme leader, though disagreements remain over when and how to publicly announce the decision.
President Trump said on Saturday he does not want the Kurds to "go in" and get killed while fighting Iran's regime, when asked about a possible ground operation of Kurdish opposition groups against Iran.
Israel on Saturday night initiated attacks on 30 oil storage tanks throughout Iran, Israeli media reported citing officials, with videos showing massive fires in several facilities in Tehran and other cities.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran would continue responding to attacks despite earlier remarks apologizing to regional countries and saying Iran did not intend to strike them.
Trump praises Meloni as Italy steps up support in Iran war
US President Donald Trump praised Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and said she was willing to help the United States and Israel in their war with Iran, according to remarks reported by Italy’s Corriere della Sera.
“I love Italy, I think she is a great leader,” Trump said in a telephone interview with the newspaper, describing Meloni as a friend who “always tries to help.”
Italy has said it plans to send air-defense aid to Persian Gulf countries facing Iranian strikes, while an Italian navy vessel is preparing to sail to Cyprus as part of a European mission to help protect the island after it came under Iranian fire.
Iranians rally in Seattle, chanting in support of Iran
US presses Sri Lanka not to repatriate Iranian sailors after warship sinking
The United States is pressing Sri Lanka not to repatriate Iranian sailors rescued after a US submarine sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean last week, according to an internal State Department cable seen by Reuters.
A US submarine torpedoed the Iranian frigate Dena about 19 nautical miles off Sri Lanka’s southern port city of Galle on Wednesday, killing dozens of sailors.
The strike marked the first time the United States has sunk a naval vessel in combat since World War Two and showed the widening geographic scope of the war involving Iran.
Sri Lankan authorities rescued 32 survivors from the Dena, with about 20 later moved to an air force camp after being treated in hospital, sources told Reuters.
At the same time, Sri Lanka has taken custody of the Iranian naval auxiliary vessel Bushehr, which had become stranded inside the country’s exclusive economic zone. Colombo began offloading its 208 crew members on Thursday.
According to the US cable, Washington asked Sri Lanka to ensure that neither the Bushehr crew nor the Dena survivors are sent back to Iran during the conflict.
Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said his country had a “humanitarian responsibility” to assist the sailors, while US officials said the ultimate decision rests with Sri Lanka under its own laws and international obligations.
Video: Damage at Isfahan provincial police command building
Cleric says Iran’s next leader has been chosen
Ahmad Alamolhoda, Friday prayer leader of Mashhad, said the vote on Iran’s next leader has already taken place and a new leader has been selected.
He said reports suggesting the Assembly of Experts had not yet reached a decision were “completely false” and added that, under the constitution, no one – including members of the Assembly – has the right to change that decision.
Alamolhoda said the matter now rests with Ayatollah Hosseini Bushehri, the official responsible for the Assembly’s secretariat, who he said is tasked with conveying and publicly announcing the body’s decision.
Iranian media say blasts heard in parts of Tehran
Iranian media reported that the sound of explosions was heard in several areas of Tehran.
The reports did not immediately provide details on the cause of the blasts or possible damage.
Israeli military says it will pursue any successor to Khamenei
Israel’s military warned that it would pursue any successor to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, as well as anyone involved in appointing the next leader.
In a statement, the Israeli military said Iran’s ruling system was trying to rebuild itself and choose a new leader after Khamenei’s killing, and said the Assembly of Experts was expected to convene soon in Qom.
The military said Israel would continue to track “every successor” and “every person who seeks to appoint a successor,” and issued a direct warning to those planning to take part in the meeting.
“We warn all those who intend to participate in the meeting to choose a successor that we will not hesitate to target you as well,” it said.
Several explosions reported outside Iran’s central city of Yazd
Iranian media reported that several explosions were heard near the central city of Yazd.
The reports said the blasts occurred outside the city limits and did not immediately provide further details on the cause or possible damage.
Iran parliament speaker warns prolonged war could halt oil sales and production
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned that a prolonged war could leave the country unable to sell or even produce oil.
“If the war continues like this, there will be neither a way to sell oil nor the ability to produce it,” Ghalibaf wrote on social media.
He also criticized US President Donald Trump’s comments about oil prices, saying that the conflict risks harming not only US interests but also those of countries across the region and the world.
“Trump said oil prices would not rise very much, now that they have risen, he says they will soon be corrected.”
Iran says it is exercising right to self-defense
Iran said it is exercising its right to self-defense after what it described as an “unlawful US-Israeli war of aggression.”
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said the attacks had “torpedoed diplomatic efforts” and “shattered the very foundations of international law.”
“Silence and indifference in the face of such flagrant violations and atrocities will only further erode the credibility of the global legal order and embolden future aggressors,” he wrote on X.
Two Kuwait fire officers killed on duty, Fire Force says
Kuwait’s Fire Force said two of its officers were killed while performing their duties, without giving details on the circumstances of their deaths.
The announcement came as Kuwait has been intercepting drones and missiles launched from Iran following US and Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic.
Multiple missile strikes reported in Isfahan
Iranian media reported that several missile attacks were carried out in the city of Isfahan.
Trump shrugs off Larijani’s threat: 'I couldn’t care less’
US President Donald Trump dismissed threats from Iran’s top security official Ali Larijani, telling CBS News he had no idea who Larijani was and that he “couldn’t care less.”
Trump was responding after Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said earlier on Saturday that Trump must “pay the price” for the US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
“I have no idea what he’s talking about, who he is. I couldn’t care less,” Trump said, adding, "He intended to take over the Middle East and he's conceded and surrendered to all of those countries because of me."
Trump also said US strikes would continue as he presses Iran for what he called an “unconditional surrender.”
Iran’s leadership choice made but split remains over going public
A senior member of Iran’s Assembly of Experts said a majority consensus has been reached on a successor to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, but that obstacles remain before the choice can be formally announced.
Mohammad Mehdi Mirbagheri, a member of the clerical body tasked with appointing the country’s leader, said the Assembly had broadly agreed on a candidate but that “some obstacles regarding the process need to be resolved,” according to remarks reported by Mehr News.
Separately, Mohsen Heidari AleKasir, a representative from Khuzestan province in the Assembly of Experts, said current security conditions prevented members from gathering in person to formally select the new leader.
“Due to the current conditions, it is not possible to hold an in-person meeting to select the leader,” he said, adding that the “most suitable option” had already been chosen and had the backing of a majority of the Assembly.
“Even the Great Satan (the United States) has mentioned his name,” Heidari said of the chosen successor, appearing to confirm Iran International’s report that Mojtaba Khamenei had been selected – days after US President Donald Trump said Khamenei’s son was “unacceptable.”
Guards push fast Mojtaba Khamenei announcement amid dissent over hereditary rule
A wartime succession in Iran: why the IRGC backed Mojtaba Khamenei
Haidari also said that the late Supreme Leader had not designated a successor and had left the decision to the Assembly of Experts.
Under Iran’s constitution, the Assembly – an 88-member clerical body – is responsible for selecting and overseeing the country’s supreme leader.
Sources familiar with internal discussions, however, say the Assembly has already selected Mojtaba Khamenei, a son of the late supreme leader, though divisions remain over how and when to publicly announce the decision.
According to those sources, the vote took place during an online session of the Assembly held last week amid heightened security tensions and ongoing military strikes targeting Iranian facilities.
The session, convened after damage to government buildings and security concerns, was held remotely and under pressure to quickly resolve the leadership question.
Several members of the Assembly have expressed objections to Mojtaba Khamenei’s selection, warning that appointing the son of the late leader risks reinforcing perceptions of hereditary rule in the Islamic Republic.
Critics have also raised questions about Mojtaba Khamenei’s clerical standing and whether his religious credentials meet the traditional requirements for the position of supreme leader.
Sources said some Assembly members threatened to boycott a follow-up meeting or challenge the legitimacy of the process if the announcement proceeds without further discussion.
The Assembly’s leadership has delayed a formal public declaration while attempting to manage disagreements over the process and timing of the announcement.
Israel says it struck F-14 fighter jets at Iran’s Isfahan airport
Israel’s military said its air force struck Iranian F-14 fighter jets at Isfahan airport during a broad wave of airstrikes on Saturday.
The Israel Defense Forces said the strikes targeted Iranian military compounds at the airport, as well as detection and air defense systems that it said posed a threat to Israeli aircraft.
The Israeli military said the operation followed another strike two days earlier that it said destroyed 16 aircraft linked to the Quds Force at Tehran’s Mehrabad airport.
The IDF said it would continue targeting Iranian military systems across the country and seek to expand what it described as its aerial superiority.
Bahrain says Iranian drone attack damages desalination plant, injures three
Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said an Iranian drone attack caused damage to a water desalination plant, while three people were injured and a university building in Muharraq sustained material damage following what authorities described as “Iranian aggression.”
Desalination plants are critical infrastructure in Persian Gulf states, supplying most of the region’s drinking water.
Suspected missile fuel shipments sail from China to Iran
Two cargo ships owned by a sanctioned Iranian shipping company have departed a Chinese chemical-storage port carrying cargo and are heading toward Iran, the Washington Post reported citing an analysis of ship-tracking data, satellite imagery and sanctions records.
The vessels – the Shabdis and the Barzin – are operated by the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), a state-owned carrier under sanctions by the United States, Britain and the European Union. Washington has accused IRISL of transporting materials used in Iran’s ballistic missile program.
The ships recently docked at Gaolan port in Zhuhai on China’s southeastern coast, a facility experts say handles large volumes of industrial chemicals, including sodium perchlorate, a key precursor used to produce solid rocket fuel.
Experts tracking the vessels said the cargo likely includes sodium perchlorate, which Iran requires for missile propellants.
Pezeshkian says Iran’s retaliation does not mean dispute with neighboring states
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday that his remarks had been “misinterpreted by the enemy” and insisted Iran still sought good relations with neighboring countries, even as retaliatory strikes continued, according to state TV.
Pezeshkian said Tehran had repeatedly made clear that it viewed neighboring states as brothers and wanted strong ties with them. But he said Iran was compelled to respond to attacks launched from another country’s territory, adding that such retaliation did not mean Tehran had a dispute with that country or wanted to upset its people.
He accused the “enemy” of trying to sow division between Iran and its neighbors.
Iran war power rift exposed as Guards keep striking Arab neighbors
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards continued launching attacks on neighboring countries despite President Pezeshkian’s apology to regional states and his order for the armed forces to halt such strikes, highlighting tensions over who controls wartime decisions.
Iran's Revolutionary Guards started launching attacks against the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the Iraqi Kurdistan shortly after President Pezeshkian said in a televised speech he had instructed them to halt such attacks.
The IRGC strikes followed unusually sharp verbal attacks by hardliners which highlighted the limited influence Pezeshkian exercises within Iran’s power structure despite his membership in the temporary three-member leadership council that is currently exercising powers normally held by the country’s supreme leader in wartime.
