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A draft agreement by the United States and Iran calls for Tehran to dilute its stockpile of highly enriched uranium and would waive, but not permanently end, sanctions on the country, according to US officials who read the language of the memorandum on ending the war to journalists. The agreement would also open the Strait of Hormuz toll-free for two months and affirm a commitment to Lebanon's territorial integrity in the face of Israel's invasion against the Hezbollah militant group. US officials dictated the language to journalists Wednesday after days of secrecy, speaking on condition of anonymity. Iranian state TV later released text that largely tracks what the US put out. Meanwhile, Iran suggested the document could be signed by Presidents Donald Trump and Masoud Pezeshkian. Such a signing ceremony would represent a major step for the two countries, which saw diplomatic relations break off in 1980 over the US Embassy hostage crisis in Tehran. According to the officials, the .
Pakistan says that the deal to end the war in Iran is taking immediate effect' after both sides have signed it, but that there will still be a formal signing ceremony on Friday. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said leaders of both the US and Iran had signed the agreement and endorsed him as a mediator. He said in a post on X that the deal "shall enter into force with immediate effect and as a first step, Islamic Republic of Iran will instantly reopen the Strait of Hormuz and the United States of America will immediately lift the naval blockade." Sharif said that Pakistan and co-mediator Qatar will still host an official signing ceremony on Friday in Switzerland. His post came shortly after President Donald Trump said he'd signed the agreement during a dinner at the Palace of Versailles.
Iran's state-run news agency said on Saturday funeral processions for its former Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would be held in July, as mediators say an agreement to end the war is close. The funeral, burial, and farewell ceremonies for Khamenei would take place between July 4 and 9, Iran's state-run television, IRIB, reported. Khamenei was killed in the opening salvo of the war that Israel and the United States launched against Iran in late February. He has since been replaced by his son, Mojtaba, who is seen as even less compromising. Khamenei to be buried at the holiest of Shiite shrines -------------------------------------------------------------- Funeral ceremonies for Khamenei are expected to begin in Tehran, and the procession will move to Qom, a stronghold of many senior Shiite clerics, and then to Mashhad, his birthplace, where he'll be buried at the Imam Reza Shrine, considered the holiest place among Shiite devotees. Funerals for Khamenei's daughter and ...
Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei on Friday criticised the US attacks on merchant ships with Indian crew, saying such actions "threaten global peace and security". Three vessels with Indian crew came under attack off the Oman coast this week. One of them led to the death of three Indian seafarers. Baqaei also extended condolences to the bereaved families and the Indian government in a post on X. "We extend our sympathies to the families and friends of the slain Indian sailors and offer our sincere condolences to the Indian people and government." He urged the international community to hold the US accountable, adding that its conduct "continues to threaten global peace and security while endangering the freedom of navigation." He further said that the incidents "stand as clear evidence of America's ongoing policy of armed robbery and State piracy." India on Friday summoned US charge d'affaires Jason Meeks and told him that the American military's "lethal and dead