Mojtaba Khamenei vows to avenge slain father as Trump threatens to 'decimate' Iran
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11/07/2026 - 22:15
11/07/2026 - 20:22
US lawmaker says he was 'detained' by Israeli settlers in West Bank
A prominent Democratic US lawmaker from California, Ro Khanna, said Saturday he was "detained" by armed Israeli settlers along with other Americans during a visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank -- and accused the military of being complicit.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) denied Khanna's claim that they were involved in blocking his path on Wednesday, in a statement to AFP.
"Israeli settlers, brandishing American made M4s, detained me & other Americans on my trip to Palestine," Khanna said in a post on X.
When the Israeli military arrived at the scene, he added, "they sided with the settlers & continued our detention. They made a huge mistake."
Footage and accounts provided to The New York Times by Khanna and his team show a group of armed men blocking the road outside a small village in the southern West Bank and swearing at them in Hebrew and Arabic.
Khanna told the Times that when the IDF arrived at the scene, the soldiers spoke to the settlers and subsequently blocked the road themselves when the settlers left.
"Imagine how people feel every day, Palestinians under the occupation, if they could make an American congressperson feel powerless for 90 minutes," Khanna told the Times.
After calls to the US embassy and Israeli police, the congressman, who represents a district in Silicon Valley, said he was allowed to pass.
The Israeli military said in a statement sent to AFP that it had received a report "regarding Israeli civilians who were unlawfully blocking the vehicles of foreign nationals and members of the media in the area of Khirbet Zanuta."
"Upon receiving the report, IDF troops were dispatched to the scene, quickly dispersed the Israeli civilians, and reopened the blocked road. The IDF soldiers operating in the area did not take part in blocking the road."
11/07/2026 - 19:11
Lebanon official confirms country's participation in Rome talks with Israel
A Lebanese official told AFP on Saturday that his country would take part in planned talks with Israel next week in Rome, after Beirut had previously conditioned participation on Israel withdrawing from certain areas it occupies in the south.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that "Lebanon will participate" without offering further details, as a US military delegation visited the country to discuss implementing a framework agreement between Lebanon and Israel.
11/07/2026 - 19:06
Iran, Oman discuss mechanisms for safe passage of ships through Hormuz strait, Tehran says
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and his Omani counterpart exchanged views on "appropriate mechanisms" for the safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz in accordance with Article 5 of the Islamabad memorandum of understanding, Araqchi said on his Telegram channel.
11/07/2026 - 18:08
Watch: Mojtaba Khamenei: Iran supreme leader vows revenge for father's killing
Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei on Saturday vowed revenge for the US-Israeli killing of his father and predecessor, hours after President Donald Trump warned against any attempt to assassinate him.
11/07/2026 - 16:47
Iran warns it will not be bound by deal with US if violations continue
Iran warned that it would no longer be bound by a deal with the US aimed at ending the Middle East war if Washington's violations of the agreement continued, state TV reported.
Referring to the deal struck with the help of Pakistani mediation, Tehran's UN ambassador said "that if the United States continues to violate its obligations under the Islamabad Understanding, Iran will no longer consider itself bound by its commitments under that understanding", according to a statement carried by state broadcaster IRIB.
11/07/2026 - 14:40
US delegation in Lebanon to discuss Israel 'pilot zone' withdrawal, official says
A US military delegation has met with Lebanon's army in Beirut to discuss the implementation of Israel's withdrawal from one of the "pilot zones" in occupied territory, a Lebanese military official told AFP on Saturday.
Under a framework agreement reached on June 26, Israel will gradually withdraw from areas of southern Lebanon where it has sent troops as part of its military campaign against Hezbollah.
11/07/2026 - 13:39
Mojtaba Khamenei absence signals shifting role for Iran leader
Mojtaba Khamenei's absence from the funeral ceremonies of his father and predecessor Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have raised questions about his health and fear of assassination.
They also indicate he may perform a quite different function as number one compared with his all-powerful father.
11/07/2026 - 13:15
Iran supreme leader says vengeance for predecessor's killing 'inevitable'
Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has warned that avenging his slain predecessor and father is "the demand of the nation" and "must certainly" take place, according to a written message released on his X account.
Khamenei issued the message following funeral ceremonies for his late father, held months after he was killed in the US-Israeli air strikes on February 28.
"We pledge to avenge your pure blood and the blood of all the martyrs of these two [recent] wars by taking revenge against the criminal, disgraceful murderers," Khamenei, who has not been seen in public since his father's killing, said in the message.
11/07/2026 - 12:38
Two soldiers killed in attack in northeast Iran
Two members of Iran's security forces were killed in an attack in the northeast city of Mashhad, where the funeral of late supreme leader Ali Khamenei was held, Iran's Tasnim news agency reported on Saturday.
The two people killed were "members of the Basij forces", a paramilitary force affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of the Iranian military, Tasnim said.
Tasnim did not specify the date of the incident or the identity of the attackers, but said that "the perpetrator or perpetrators of this act will be punished".
11/07/2026 - 12:11
Mediators try to salvage diplomacy after US-Iran strikes
Mediators were trying to salvage diplomacy aimed at ending the Middle East war after US President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire over, with a Qatari delegation in Iran and Tehran's top diplomat travelling to Oman.
An exchange of fire this week rocked an already fragile agreement that was supposed to help pave the way for a permanent end to the conflict, which broke out in late February with massive US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
While there have been no direct talks between Tehran and Washington since last month, Iranian media reported that a delegation from mediator Qatar travelled to Iran on Friday.
11/07/2026 - 11:15
Trump agrees to more Iran talks but insists truce is over
US President Donald Trump said Friday he had agreed to further negotiations with Iran, even as he repeated his assertion that the ceasefire between the long-time foes was over.
11/07/2026 - 08:49
Explosion heard in eastern part of Tehran province, Iran state media reports
Iranian state media reported that an explosion was heard in the eastern part of Tehran province, without providing a reason.
Residents of Pakdasht and Qiyamdasht reported hearing the explosion, while its source and exact location were not immediately known, state media said.
11/07/2026 - 08:20
- Trump says US will 'completely decimate' Iran if assassinated
- Iran state media reports explosion heard in eastern part of Tehran province
- Iran supreme leader says vengeance for predecessor's killing 'inevitable'
11/07/2026 - 07:17
Iran hits back at Trump after he insists truce over
Iran insisted on it had "kept its word" on a ceasefire with the United States, after President Donald Trump insisted the truce was over but that he had agreed to further negotiations with the Islamic republic.
The comments mark a new low in relations between the foes, after an exchange of fire this week rocked a shaky agreement aimed at turning the months-long ceasefire into durable peace and threatened a return to full-scale regional war.
11/07/2026 - 07:10
Trump says US will 'completely decimate' Iran if assassinated
President Donald Trump said Friday the United States would "completely decimate" Iran if it attempted or succeeded in assassinating the sitting president.
"1000 Missiles are Locked and Loaded and aimed at the Islamic Republic of Iran, with thousands of more to immediately follow, should the Iranian Government act on its threat, pronounced in many corners of the Globe, to assassinate, or attempt to assassinate, the sitting President of the United States of America, in this case, ME!," Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
"Orders have already been given, and the US Military is ready, willing, and able, for a one year period of time, subject to extension, to completely decimate and destroy all areas of Iran," he said.
Yesterday's key developments:
- Israel shared intelligence with the United States this week about a new and "specific" plan by Iran to assassinate President Donald Trump, US media reported Thursday.
- Iran on Friday laid to rest its former supreme leader Ali Khamenei over four months after his killing in an airstrike, as two days of US and Iranian attacks raised fears of a return to all-out war.
- Qatari negotiators were in Iran to meet Iranian officials in an effort to de-escalate tensions and create conditions for broader negotiations to continue, a source with knowledge of the situation told Reuters, adding that the talks were being conducted in coordination with the United States.
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters, AP and AFP)