Pezeshkian says deal possible if US ‘respects rights of Iranians'

A source close to him told Iran International that Forouhari is under severe pressure to give a forced confession.

Forouhari's wife, Minou Mehrbani—a Zoroastrian researcher and cultural activist—was also arrested during the first week of Nowruz.

The couple ran a Telegram channel called “Poyandegan Rah Asha,” which focused on teaching Zoroastrian religious content.

The charges against them have not been announced, and there is no information about their health or current condition.

As a fragile ceasefire holds between the United States and Iran, former CIA analyst and former National Security Council director Ken Pollack is warning that the greatest risk may be a war that ends with the Islamic Republic still intact.

“I don't see anything from the Trump administration that indicates an interest in absolutely getting rid of this regime,” Pollack said, referring to the prospect of regime change.

“The initial rhetoric about regime change is just gone. In fact, the president is constantly talking about how wonderful this leadership is, that it's better, that it is more reasonable than we had at the beginning, which I just see as absolutely fantastical.”

US-Iran talks were held in Pakistan on Saturday but ended without a deal.

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US Representative Yassamin Ansari criticized Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after he referred to the Persian Gulf as the “Arabian Gulf.”

“Last summer, I introduced the Persian Gulf Act after Trump threatened to rename it. Today, Pete Hegseth referred to it as the Arabian Gulf,” Ansari wrote on X.

“The Persian Gulf has been recognized as such by international bodies for centuries. Trump and Hegseth can’t change that now.”

Ansari had introduced legislation last year aimed at affirming the historic name “Persian Gulf” after former President Donald Trump suggested renaming the body of water.

President Donald Trump is considering resuming limited military strikes on Iran following the collapse of US-Iran talks, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing officials and people familiar with the deliberations.

According to the report, the option under discussion would involve targeted strikes rather than a broader military campaign, aimed at increasing pressure on Tehran.

The deliberations come after marathon negotiations between Washington and Tehran ended without a deal, despite raising hopes that the talks could produce a framework to de-escalate the war.

The report said the White House is weighing military steps alongside other pressure measures, including a planned US naval blockade targeting maritime traffic linked to Iranian ports.

Former EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, who played a central role in negotiating the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, cast doubt on expectations that the latest US-Iran talks could quickly produce an agreement.

“It took us 12 years and an immense amount of technical work — anyone seriously thought an agreement could be reached in 21 hours?” Mogherini wrote on X.

Her comments came after marathon negotiations between Washington and Tehran ended without a deal, despite raising hopes that the talks could produce a framework to de-escalate the war.