PARIS: Iran plans to submit a draft nuclear proposal following recent&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iran-us-hold-new-geneva-talks-as-khamenei-warns-of-sinking-us-warship" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">negotiations in Geneva</a>, as the United States increases its military presence in the region. US President Donald Trump sent the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-aircraft-carrier-located-near-iran-as-washington-increases-military-pressure" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">aircraft</a> carrier USS Abraham Lincoln to the region, while a second, the USS Gerald R. Ford, is en route via the Mediterranean.&nbsp;The US has also redeployed dozens of other warplanes to the Middle East, where it maintains several bases, while boosting its air defenses. <figure class="fr-media"><img src="https://paktv-assets-7d41fab8.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/d266b201-8c85-4f2b-bf24-516b956cabd7-AFP__20260220__98DC7YG__v7__MidRes__SpainUsIranMilitaryDefenceConflictDiplomacy.jpg" alt="This handout image released and taken by David Parody on February 20, 2026, shows the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford heading through the Strait of Gibraltar as seen from Gibraltar. (AFP)" class="fr-fic fr-dib"><figcaption class="caption-cover-image text-sm text-gray-600 italic">This handout image released and taken by David Parody on February 20, 2026, shows the US aircraft carrier USS Gerald Ford heading through the Strait of Gibraltar as seen from Gibraltar. (AFP)</figcaption></figure> The build-up seeks to pressure Iran&#39;s authorities as the two sides pursue nuclear talks. Iranian Foreign Minister&nbsp;Abbas Araghchi&nbsp;told US media this week that, following the latest round of negotiations in Geneva, Iran would submit a draft agreement proposal, which would be released in a matter of days. <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iranian-fm-araghchi-in-geneva-for-second-round-of-us-talks" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">Araghchi</a> also said the &quot;US side has not asked for zero enrichment&quot; of uranium, contradicting statements from American officials. Iran denies it is trying to produce nuclear weapons, but insists on its right to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iran-defies-us-threats-to-insist-on-right-to-enrich-uranium" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">enrich uranium</a> for civilian purposes. The US media outlet Axios reported this week, citing an unnamed senior US official, that Washington was prepared to consider a proposed deal that would permit only &quot;small, token enrichment.&quot; Trump has suggested that &quot;bad things&quot; will happen if Tehran does not strike a deal, saying Thursday that it had 15 days to agree. Fears of a conflict have prompted several foreign countries to urge their citizens to leave Iran, including Sweden, Serbia, Poland, and Australia, which warned, &quot;Commercial flights are currently available, but this could change quickly.&quot; A previous round of nuclear diplomacy last year was interrupted by Israel&#39;s surprise bombing campaign against the Middle Eastern nation. The United States ultimately joined its ally, striking nuclear facilities before declaring a ceasefire. Iran has maintained that it will defend itself in the event of any new attack. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, in remarks to athletes carried by state television, said the country would &quot;not yield to any trial, even if the powers of the world stand against us with injustice and try to force us into submission.&quot;

A woman walks near a banner depicting Iran's late and current supreme leaders (R to L) Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei along a main street in Tehran on February 21, 2026. (AFP)

Middle East

The US has deployed aircraft carriers and warplanes to pressure Iran during nuclear talks. Tehran insists on its right to civilian uranium enrichment.

Iran to submit draft nuclear proposal as US military presence grows

TEHRAN: Iranian authorities have arrested Javad Emam, the spokesperson for the main coalition of the reformist camp, on charges of attempting to &ldquo;disrupt the country&rsquo;s political and social order,&rdquo; and for working&nbsp;&nbsp;&ldquo;for the benefit&rdquo; of Israel and the United States during the <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iran-says-3117-killed-in-protests-sparked-by-economic-grievances" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">anti-government protests</a> last month, local media reported on Monday.&nbsp;The arrest comes weeks after authorities cracked down on a mass protest movement, with several other reformist and dissident figures also detained.&nbsp;&quot;Agents of the Revolutionary Guards went to Javad Emam&#39;s home ... in the early hours of Sunday morning and arrested him,&quot; wrote Shargh, a reformist daily, as well as the Fars news agency.&nbsp;The arrest of Reformist Front spokesman Emam follows the Sunday arrests of three other figures, including Azar Mansouri, who has led the coalition since 2023.&nbsp;She served as an adviser to former reformist president Mohammad Khatami.&nbsp;After the start of the most recent protest movement in December, initially triggered by economic stagnation, she expressed support for the demonstrators.&nbsp;Authorities also arrested Ebrahim Asgharzadeh, a former member of parliament, and Mohsen Aminzadeh, a former foreign affairs official.&nbsp;Mizan, the judicial news agency, reported on Sunday that several arrests had been made, but did not provide names.&nbsp;They took place after &quot;an investigation into the ... activities of certain important political elements supporting the Zionist regime and the United States,&quot; according to Mizan.&nbsp;The reformist camp largely backed incumbent&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iranian-president-says-war-neither-in-interest-of-iran-nor-us" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" rel="noopener noreferrer">president Masoud Pezeshkian</a>&nbsp;in the 2024 presidential election.&nbsp;Several prominent activists have also been arrested in recent days for their contribution to a statement critical of the authorities, written in the wake of the January crackdown on protests.&nbsp;Filmmaker Mehdi Mahmoudian, co-screenwriter of the film &quot;It Was Just an Accident,&quot; winner of the Palme d&#39;Or at Cannes in 2025, is among them.&nbsp;Iranian filmmakers Jafar Panahi and Mohammad Rasoulof, as well as Narges Mohammadi, the 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, are also signatories to the text.

A man walks past a mural depicting the US Statue of Liberty with the torch-bearing arm broken, painted on the outer walls of the former US embassy, in Tehran on February 6, 2026. (Photo: AFP/File)

The arrests come weeks after authorities cracked down on a mass protest movement, with several other reformist and dissident figures also detained.


Iran arrests four political figures over disruption of ‘political, social order’

PARIS: Iran&#39;s president on Tuesday warned US &quot;threats&quot; against the Islamic Republic would only cause instability, as a US naval strike group led by an aircraft carrier took up position in Middle Eastern waters. Washington has not ruled out military intervention against Tehran over its crackdown on protests &mdash; which rights groups say left thousands of people dead &mdash; and President Donald Trump has dispatched the USS Abraham Lincoln to the area &quot;just in case.&quot; Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian hit out at US &quot;threats&quot; in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, saying they were &quot;aimed at disrupting the security of the region and will achieve nothing other than instability.&quot; The US also maintains several bases in the Middle East, prompting a Revolutionary Guards commander to issue a warning to Iran&#39;s neighbors on Tuesday. &quot;Neighboring countries are our friends, but if their soil, sky, or waters are used against Iran, they will be considered hostile,&quot; Mohammad Akbarzadeh, political deputy of the IRGC naval forces, was quoted as saying by the Fars news agency. Since Iran launched its crackdown on protests earlier this month, accompanied by a blanket internet blackout, Trump has given mixed signals on intervention, which some opponents of the clerical leadership see as the only way to bring about change. &quot;We have a big armada next to Iran. Bigger than Venezuela,&quot; Trump told the Axios news site on Monday, weeks after the US military captured the Latin American nation&#39;s president, Nicolas Maduro. But he added, &quot;They want to make a deal. I know so. They called on numerous occasions. They want to talk.&quot; Tehran has previously said a channel of communication is open between Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and US envoy Steve Witkoff, despite the lack of diplomatic relations between the two foes. Axios said Trump declined to discuss the options presented to him by his national security team, or which he prefers. Analysts say options include strikes on military facilities or targeted attacks against the leadership under Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a bid to bring down the system that has ruled Iran since the 1979 Islamic revolution that ousted the shah.

Americas

Washington has not ruled out military intervention against Tehran over its crackdown on protests — which rights groups say left thousands of people dead — and President Donald Trump has dispatched the USS Abraham Lincoln to the area "just in case."


Iran warns against 'instability' after US strike group arrives

PARIS: A senior Iranian official said on Monday that he hoped internet access for businesses would be restored within the next two days, after <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iran-ready-to-respond-decisively-to-any-hostile-move-warns-irgc-commander" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">authorities</a>&nbsp;imposed a blackout during a wave of anti-government protests. Rights groups say the internet blackout has provided cover for a deadly crackdown that has&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-president-warns-iran-of-blowing-in-response-to-the-assassination-threats" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">resulted</a> in the death of several protesters and military officials. &quot;We hope that companies&#39; access to the international internet will be restored within the next day or two,&quot; Hossein Rafieian, a senior official on digital economy matters, told Iran&#39;s Mehr news agency. He noted that the final decision was outside his office&#39;s &quot;direct authority,&quot; but said &quot;the issue is being followed up continuously through consultations with the relevant bodies.&quot; Internet monitor Netblocks said Iran had been cut off from the global internet for 18 days. &quot;Gaps in the filternet are being tightened to limit circumvention while whitelisted regime accounts promote the Islamic Republic&#39;s narrative,&quot; it added. Protests over economic grievances began in late December, but turned into a mass movement against the Islamic Republic, with huge street demonstrations for several days from Jan. 8, the day the shutdown was imposed. NGOs tracking deaths from the ensuing crackdown have said their task has been impeded by the blackout, warning that confirmed figures are likely to be far lower than the actual toll. Giving their first official toll from the protests, Iranian authorities&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iran-says-3117-killed-in-protests-sparked-by-economic-grievances" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">last week</a> said 3,117 people were killed, the majority of whom they described as members of the security forces or innocent bystanders killed by &quot;rioters.&quot; Iran&#39;s deputy telecommunications minister, Ehsan Chitsaz, was recently quoted in local media as saying the shutdown was estimated to have cost between 4 trillion&nbsp;and 6 trillion rials per day &mdash; around $3 to $4 million. NetBlocks has provided a much higher estimate, saying each day costs Iran more than $37 million.

Iran's deputy telecommunications minister says the shutdown is estimated to have cost between four and six trillion rials per day — around $3 million to $4 million; NetBlocks has provided a much higher estimate, saying each day costs Iran more than $37 million.

Iran official says businesses' internet access may be restored in coming days

PARIS: Iranian authorities on Wednesday said 3,117 people were killed during&nbsp;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/un-human-rights-council-to-hold-urgent-iran-meeting-on-friday" style="color:#0073e6;">protests</a> that first erupted in late December, sparked by economic grievances. Demonstrations and strikes eventually turned into a mass movement against the clerical leadership that has ruled Iran since the 1979 revolution, with people pouring into the streets in mass protests for several days from January 8. The clerical authorities have condemned the protest wave as a &quot;terrorist&quot; incident characterized by violent &quot;<a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iran-says-internet-to-gradually-return-to-normal" style="color:#0073e6;">riots</a>&quot; fueled by the United States.&nbsp; In the first official toll from the authorities, a statement by Iran&#39;s foundation for veterans and martyrs, cited by state television, said a total of 3,117 people were killed during protests. Of these, 2,427 people in that toll, including members of the security forces, were considered under Islam to be &quot;martyrs,&quot; with the statement calling them &quot;innocent&quot; victims. &quot;The 690 people who are not among the martyrs are terrorists, rioters, and those who attacked military sites,&quot; Ali Akbar Pourjamshidian, secretary of Iran&#39;s National Security Council, told state TV. He said the high number of &quot;martyrs&quot; showed the &quot;restraint and tolerance of the security forces&quot; during protests. &#39;World is watching&#39;&nbsp;All organizations monitoring the toll have said that efforts to give a precise figure are being severely impeded by the ongoing Internet blackout imposed by authorities in the Islamic republic, which, according to monitor Netblocks, has now lasted over 300 hours. The statement by the foundation for veterans and martyrs, quoted by state television, said &quot;many of the martyrs were bystanders&quot; shot dead during the protests. It also said that &quot;some were protesters who were shot by organized terrorist elements in the crowd,&quot; without providing evidence or details. Rights groups, including Amnesty International, have alleged that security forces deliberately targeted protesters from rooftops, seeking to shoot protesters. Rights group Hengaw, also based in Norway, said it had verified the killing of eight more women by security forces in the protests and said it could now confirm a total of 42 women had been killed. The Veterans and Martyrs Foundation condemned the &quot;treacherous hand of Iran&#39;s enemies,&quot; accusing the &quot;criminal leaders&quot; of the United States of &quot;supporting, equipping and arming&quot; those who carried out the violence. &#39;No turning back&#39; In a bid to show the damage caused by the protests, Tehran municipality on Wednesday showed journalists on an escorted official tour roughly a dozen charred buses lined up in the parking lot of a bus depot in the capital. A key protagonist in the protest movement was Reza Pahlavi, the son of the ousted shah. The US-based Pahlavi called for nightly protests and said he was ready to return to Iran. In a rare interview, his mother, the former empress Farah Pahlavi, told AFP from her home in Paris in written answers to questions that there was &quot;no turning back&quot; after the wave of protests. US President Donald Trump has never ruled out military action over the crackdown, although expectations of a swift American response have now receded. Iranian General Abolfazl Shekarchi, the spokesperson of the Iranian armed forces, warned Trump that Tehran would attack him if Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was targeted. In a News Nation interview that aired Tuesday, Trump <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/us-president-warns-iran-of-blowing-in-response-to-the-assassination-threats" style="color:#0073e6;">responded</a>: &quot;I have very firm instructions. Anything happens, they&#39;re going to wipe them off the face of this earth.&quot;

Clerical authorities have condemned the protest wave as a "terrorist" incident characterized by violent "riots" fueled by the United States; among the dead, 2,427 people, including members of the security forces, considered under Islam to be "martyrs," with the statement calling them "innocent" victims.





Iran says 3,117 killed in protests sparked by economic grievances

GENEVA: The United Nations Human Rights Council will hold an urgent special session this week on &quot;the deteriorating human rights situation in the Islamic Republic of Iran,&quot; a spokesperson said on Tuesday. It follows a request from Britain, Germany, Iceland, Moldova, and North Macedonia and will take place on Friday, council spokesperson Pascal Sim told reporters in Geneva. In a letter addressed to the council&#39;s president and seen by AFP, the five countries highlighted &quot;credible reports of alarming violence, crackdowns on protesters and violations of international human rights law across the country.&quot; The request had received backing from more than one-third of the council&#39;s 47 members, who needed to hold a special session. So far, 21 members are supporting the request, including Bulgaria, Chile, Colombia, France, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain, and Switzerland. The request is also supported by 30 observer countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and Ukraine. Iran is reeling from some of the biggest anti-government protests in its history and a crackdown that monitors said has killed numerous people. The scale of the crackdown has emerged piecemeal as Iran remains under an unprecedented internet shutdown. Iranian officials have not given an exact death toll. The Human Rights Council is already scrutinizing Iran. In November 2022, the UN&#39;s top rights body decided to launch an independent international fact-finding mission on Iran to investigate alleged human rights violations related to the protests that began there in September that year. Its mandate was renewed in April last year to investigate allegations of &quot;recent and ongoing serious human rights violations in Iran.&quot; The probe said earlier this month it was reviewing open-source materials, including video footage and photos of the recent protests and crackdown. This will be the 39th special session of the Human Rights Council since its founding in 2006. The last was in November in El-Fasher, Sudan, and the previous one in February last year in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. The Human Rights Council holds three regular sessions a year, totaling at least 10 weeks. The next regular session is scheduled from Feb. 23 to April 2.

The request has the backing of more than one-third of the council's 47 members, the number needed for a special session to go ahead; 21 members support it, and it is also supported by 30 observer countries.

UN Human Rights Council to hold urgent Iran meeting

PARIS: Iran&#39;s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday said authorities &quot;must break the back of the seditionists&quot; and blamed US President Donald Trump for &quot;casualties&quot; after a crackdown on a protest wave against the country&#39;s clerical authorities. &quot;We do not intend to lead the country to war, but we will not spare domestic criminals,&quot; he told supporters during an address marking a religious holiday, adding that &quot;international criminals&quot; would also not be spared punishment. &quot;By God&#39;s grace, the Iranian nation must break the back of the seditionists&nbsp;just as it broke the back of the sedition.&quot; Iran was rocked by weeks of demonstrations sparked by anger over economic hardship that exploded into the biggest protests against the Islamic republic in more than three years despite a deadly crackdown rights groups say left thousands dead under an internet blackout. Iranian authorities have blamed the United States for the mass demonstrations they have called &quot;riots&quot; and &quot;terrorist&quot; operations. Khamenei lashed out at Trump, who had threatened military action against Iran if protesters were killed, accusing him of being &quot;guilty for the casualties, damages and accusations he has levelled against the Iranian nation&quot;. &quot;This was an American conspiracy,&quot; he said, adding that &quot;America&#39;s goal is to swallow Iran... the goal is to put Iran back under military, political and economic domination&quot;.

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday said authorities "must break the back of the seditionists" and blamed US President Donald Trump for "casualties" after a crackdown on a protest wave against the country's clerical authorities

Iran's Khamenei says authorities 'must break the back of the seditionists'

PARIS: Protests in Iran have subsided a week after the start of the largest demonstrations in years, challenging the country&#39;s theocratic system, whereas Washington on Thursday said that &quot;all options remain on the table for the president.&quot; Protests sparked by economic grievances started with a shutdown in the Tehran bazaar on December 28 but turned into a mass movement demanding the removal of the clerical system that has ruled Iran since the 1979 revolution. People started <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iranian-ambassador-says-recent-unrest-was-foreignbacked-terrorism-not-protest" style="color:#0073e6;">pouring </a>into the streets in big cities on January 8, but authorities immediately enforced a shutdown of the internet that has lasted over a week. Trump, who backed and joined Israel&#39;s 12-day war against Iran in June, had not ruled out new military action against Tehran and made clear he was keeping a close eye on if any protesters were executed. But a senior Saudi official told AFP on Thursday that Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman led &quot;a long, frantic, diplomatic last-minute effort to convince President Trump to give Iran a chance to show good intention.&quot; While Washington appeared to have <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/trump-says-thank-you-to-iran-for-not-hanging-protesters" style="color:#0073e6;">stepped back</a>, the White House said Thursday that &quot;all options remain on the table for the president.&quot; Attention had focused on the fate of Erfan Soltani, a 26-year-old protestor who rights activists and Washington said was set to be executed as early as Wednesday. The Iranian judiciary confirmed Soltani was under arrest but said he had not been sentenced to death and his charges meant he did not risk capital punishment. Security officials cited by the Tasnim news agency on Friday said around 3,000 people were arrested. Rights groups have estimated that up to 20,000 people have been arrested.&nbsp; Separately, the US Treasury on Thursday announced new sanctions targeting Iranian officials, including Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran&#39;s Supreme Council for National Security. Russian President Vladimir Putin, meanwhile, held telephone talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in what the Kremlin described as &quot;efforts to facilitate de-escalation.&quot; At the UN Security Council in New York, Iran&#39;s representative, Gholamhossein Darzi, accused Washington of &quot;exploitation of peaceful protests for geopolitical purposes.&quot;

Senior Saudi official says Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman led "a long, frantic, diplomatic last-minute effort to convince President Trump to give Iran a chance to show good intention"; Russian president talks with Iranian president in what the Kremlin described as "efforts to facilitate de-escalation."

Iran protest movement subsides as White House says ‘all options’ on table for Trump

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump thanked Iran&#39;s leadership on Friday after saying Tehran had called off the executions of <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/iranian-ambassador-says-recent-unrest-was-foreignbacked-terrorism-not-protest" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">hundreds of protesters</a> arrested in a brutal crackdown. &quot;I greatly respect the fact that all scheduled hangings, which were to take place yesterday (Over 800 of them), have been cancelled by the leadership of Iran. Thank you!&quot; Trump wrote on his Truth Social network. Trump repeatedly threatened military action against Iran over the past two weeks to <a href="https://www.pakistantv.com/article/trump-says-iran-killings-stopped-tehran-says-no-plan-for-hanging" target="_blank" style="color:#0073e6;" rel="noopener noreferrer">help protesters</a>, where rights groups say Iranian forces have killed thousands of people. But he is now holding off on intervening after saying on Wednesday that he had been told the killings had stopped. Trump also dismissed comments by Gulf officials on Thursday that Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman led efforts to talk him out of an attack, and said that it was Iran&#39;s actions that swayed him. &quot;Nobody convinced me -- I convinced myself,&quot; Trump told reporters later Friday as he left the White House to head to Florida for the weekend. &quot;They didn&#39;t hang anyone. They cancelled the hangings. That had a big impact.&quot;

Europe

Central Asia

Trump thanked Iran for cancelling executions of hundreds of protesters, saying halted killings influenced his decision to pause military action, dismissing Gulf mediation claims and insisting Iran’s actions alone convinced him to hold back temporarily.

Articles tagged with "Iran Protests"