US warns citizens against Iran travel after Tehran repatriation drive

The Iranian security chief Ali Larijani “cites my 12-Day War report but skips the part where Iran lost: Iran’s missile and drone attacks were overwhelmingly defeated by US and Israeli defenses and Israel’s crushing strikes against Iran,” Ari Cicurel, Associate Director of Foreign Policy at JINSA and author of the report “Shielded by Fire,” wrote on X.

The Iranian official had written that “Iran's armed forces demonstrated power in the war against the Zionists,” invoking the JINSA study to back his argument. But the report, released in August 2025, found that Iran’s missile and drone attacks were mostly neutralized through integrated US-Israel air and missile defenses.

US defenses decisive

The 29-page study said Iran launched 574 ballistic missiles and more than 1,000 drones between June 13 and 24, yet only 49 missiles impacted populated areas or infrastructure. It attributed Israel’s limited damage to the combined interception network, which it said achieved an 85 percent success rate.

“The vast majority of the over 500 ballistic missiles fired by Iran did no damage to Israel, that success due in large part to ad hoc US-led air defense cooperation,” the report said.

The analysis credited Washington’s role as decisive, noting that the United States deployed two THAAD missile defense batteries and several Aegis-equipped destroyers to support Israel and provided over 230 interceptors -- around a quarter of its total stockpile.

Contrasting narratives

Israel’s counterstrikes destroyed hundreds of Iranian launchers and reduced its missile stockpile from 2,500 to roughly 1,000 - 1,500, forcing Tehran to scale back its offensives, according to the report.

While Iran’s security chief portrayed the conflict as a demonstration of military strength, the JINSA study described it as a costly confrontation that exposed Iran’s vulnerabilities.

The report concluded that Israel and the United States must expand interceptor production and formalize their missile defense coordination to prevent Iran from regaining its offensive capacity.

The suspect, identified as Mohammad Adil Hussaini, had travelled to several countries, including Pakistan, and was allegedly involved in sharing sensitive material abroad, India Today reported, citing police sources.

During questioning, Hussaini allegedly said he obtained nuclear-related designs from a Russian scientist and passed them to a contact in Iran, the report said.

Police said Hussaini earned large sums from the exchange, investing part of the money in property in Dubai. Officials are investigating whether any classified information was shared, saying the matter involves foreign contacts and remains under inquiry.

Delhi Police said Hussaini, also known by several aliases, was found with one original and two forged Indian passports. He is suspected of using fake documents to obtain multiple identity cards linked to sensitive installations.

Additional Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwah said the racket had been operating for years and was run from the eastern city of Jamshedpur, where forged passports were produced. “Several others are under the scanner,” Kushwah said on Tuesday.

Police said Hussaini’s brother, Akhtar Hussaini, had been arrested in Mumbai for helping secure fake IDs and travelling to Persian Gulf countries to expand the network. A cafe owner linked to the operation has also been detained.

Hussaini has been remanded in seven days of police custody for questioning, Delhi Police said.

"We do not see anything that would give rise to hypotheses of any substantive work going on there," IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi said in New York.

"These are big industrial sites where there is movement, there is activity going on and we are very quick to indicate that this does not imply that there is activity on enrichment," he added.

Iran suspended cooperation with IAEA inspectors after a 12-day war in June against Israel and the United States, codified via a new law passed by parliament.

Grossi told reporters that inspectors had no access to the to sites stricken in June, but confirmed that some inspection was under way.

"We are trying to build it back, and we are inspecting in Iran," he said, "not at every site where we should be doing it - but we are gradually coming back."

Respecting NPT

In September, Iran and the agency agreed in Cairo to restart inspections. However, after Germany, France and the United Kingdom triggered the reimposition of UN sanctions, it remained unclear whether Iran would comply.

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Tuesday that Iran's commitments under the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) safeguards agreement with the agency remain in place.

"In fulfilling these safeguards obligations, we are maintaining interactions with the IAEA while taking into account parliament's law, which designates the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) as the authority responsible for decisions on cooperation with the agency," official media cited Baghaei as saying.

Under the new law, inspections proceed via SNSC approval for limited IAEA access at non-stricken sites, maintaining safeguards obligations under conditional cooperation while excluding full reporting and NPT oversight.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) reported on Tuesday citing satellite imagery that Iran has continued construction at a major underground nuclear site near Natanz.

“We are trying to engage with the United States and with the Iranians to make sure that the talks come back on track between the two countries, because I believe once we have the talks started, we can achieve an agreement,” Al Thani said at an event hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations think tank in New York.

“We can achieve a deal that will be better for everyone. For us in the region, for Iran, and for the United States,” Al Thani said. “Iran is my neighbor... for me, the stability of Iran is key. It’s not a luxury... it’s very important.”

Qatar is separated from Iran's coast by about 120 miles across the Persian Gulf and shares ownership of the world's largest natural gas field, South Pars/North Dome.

"Iran has the right to develop their peaceful nuclear program for power generation or whatever within international law," Al Thani said, adding that there is need for a renewed diplomacy toward a nuclear-free Middle East.

Washington under US President Donald Trump has demanded Tehran quit all uranium enrichment but Iran has balked, saying its pursuit of peaceful nuclear technology is an international right.

In September Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei reportedly sought Qatari mediation to facilitate talks with the West and avert UN sanctions over Tehran’s nuclear program. Those efforts stalled after an Israeli airstrike in Doha shortly after which targeted Hamas leaders based in Qatar.

Iran sought the aid of Qatari leader Emir Tamim bin Hamad to mediate between Tehran and Western powers to avert the reimposition of UN sanctions under the so-called “snapback” mechanism.

Tehran continues to grapple with the aftermath of a punishing 12-day war in June against Israel and the United States and the the reimposition last month of UN sanctions triggered by Britain, France and the United Kingdom.

Weeks after the Israeli airstrike on Qatar, President Trump facilitated Israel's apology to Doha, paving the way for Qatar to help broker the first phase of a US-led Gaza ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on October 8 which currently holds.

The case is one of the most high-profile yet dealing with Iran's so-called transnational repression, or bid to deploy violence to silence its critics abroad.

Prosecutors had argued that Rafat Amirov, 46, of Iran and Polad Omarov, 41, of Georgia were senior figures in a Russian crime group enlisted by members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards to kill Alinejad.

The men were convicted in March after a two-week trial that included testimony from Alinejad and a hired gunman turned witness for the prosecution.

Alinejad, an author and Voice of America contributor, said she would attend the sentencing to deliver an impact statement.

Pleading guilty

The FBI disrupted the assassination attempt after surveillance footage revealed suspicious activity near Alinejad’s residence. She was away at the time, a factor that may have saved her life.

Khalid Mehdiyev, a member of the Thieves in Law gang who was allegedly due to carry out the killing, said he received orders from the two to kill the journalist who uses her platform to expose the Islamic Republic’s repression.

He pleaded guilty to attempted murder and gun charges.

Alinejad, who has long criticized Iran’s compulsory hijab laws and its treatment of women, said she will speak at the sentencing not just for herself, but "for every woman who refuses to be afraid.”

The FBI’s Counterintelligence Division and its Iran Threat Task Force led the investigation with support from the NYPD and Czech authorities.

The Justice Department said Alinejad has previously been the target of IRGC-backed plots to kidnap or kill her for her activism, which includes highlighting Iran’s human rights record and advocating against compulsory hijab laws.