Putin urges Iran to accept 'zero enrichment' nuclear deal with US - Axios

“Close cooperation and coordination between law enforcement and the judiciary led to the formation of around 50 cases in Tehran within less than two weeks,” Jahangir said at a press conference, adding that the charges involve “rumor-mongering” and spreading public anxiety.

Jahangir said the judiciary is determined to prosecute those accused of acting “for the enemy” and would not allow the cases to be delayed. “We will show no leniency,” he said. “We will not allow these cases to be dragged out.”

According to Jahangir, 32 online accounts were flagged; most edited their content after receiving warnings and avoided further legal action, but ten individuals were formally charged. Some remain in custody, while others were released on bail.

Jahangir said several people had also been arrested on espionage charges, but added that court rulings had not yet been issued.

“Some have been informed of their charges as spies, but until a court ruling is issued, no one can be legally labeled a spy,” he said.

He declined to specify how many were charged with spying for Israel. “Every one of these traitors holds valuable information that must be extracted thoroughly before any sentencing,” he said. “This process is essential for identifying others involved.”

Aftermath of Evin prison strike

Responding to questions about the Israeli airstrike on Evin prison, Jahangir confirmed that five inmates convicted of financial crimes were killed and others injured. He said all prisoners were relocated to other facilities within hours and denied reports that some detainees had gone missing or failed to contact families.

Jahangir admitted a small number of inmates had escaped. “A few took advantage of the situation and fled, but the number is not significant. They will be recaptured and returned,” he said.

Images taken on July 9 show that all three tunnel entrances at the Isfahan Nuclear Complex remain blocked by earthen backfill and bomb damage, according to David Albright, the institute’s president, and other researchers.

“To access these stocks, the Iranians would have to dig through and clear about 20 meters of rubble or backfill,” the team wrote. “The July 9 image shows no earth moving equipment or other heavy machinery present at any tunnel entrance.”

The tunnels are suspected of housing parts of Iran’s remaining enriched uranium stockpile, but analysts said that any effort to access them would be highly visible to overhead surveillance and could trigger further US or Israeli strikes.

In addition, satellite imagery of the main Isfahan complex — which includes the destroyed uranium conversion and metal production facilities — shows no activity. According to the institute, Iran would likely need to conduct drone or HAZMAT surveys before removing rubble or beginning any rebuilding.

“This is a lengthy and complicated process,” the group said. “Iran may also be holding off on any such activities as they are easily spotted via overhead imagery.”

Israel says Iran did not move 60% enriched uranium before strikes

A senior Israeli official told Reuters this week that Iran did not relocate its 60% enriched uranium stockpile before last month’s US airstrikes on its nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan. The material — estimated at around 400 kilograms — “was not removed and has not been moved since,” the official said.

The official added that while Iran may still be able to reach the stockpile at Isfahan, removing it would be difficult due to the extent of the bomb damage. “The Iranians might still be able to gain access to Isfahan but it would be hard to remove any of the material there,” the official said, according to Reuters.

Before the strikes, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) had assessed that most of Iran’s 60% enriched uranium was stored at the Isfahan complex. Since the attacks, IAEA inspectors have left the country following a new Iranian law that bars cooperation with the UN watchdog.

Tehran has accused the agency of leaking sensitive information to Israel and the United States and has said future coordination will be managed by its Supreme National Security Council. The IAEA has not been able to verify the location or status of the uranium stockpile since the strikes.

Prosecutors said Ostovari is the founder and CEO of a Tehran-based engineering company that supplied signaling and communications systems to the Iranian government, including on projects for the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways.

From at least May 2018 to July 2025, Ostovari and his co-conspirators “obtained and shipped sophisticated computer processors, railway signaling equipment, and other electronics and electronic components to Company A in Iran,” according to the indictment unsealed Friday. “Many of these items were controlled under federal regulations, and their export to Iran without a license was prohibited.”

He is charged with one count of conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and three counts of violating the IEEPA. Prosecutors say Ostovari acted in knowing violation of the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations (ITSR), which, alongside the IEEPA, prohibit the export, sale, or supply — directly or indirectly — of certain US-origin goods to Iran without authorization from the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

The Justice Department said Ostovari used two front companies in the United Arab Emirates — MH-SYS FZCO and Match Systech FZE — to carry out the scheme. He and others “intentionally concealed from electronics suppliers in the United States and elsewhere that the goods were destined for Iran,” falsely listing the UAE companies as end users.

Prosecutors allege that after becoming a lawful US permanent resident in May 2020, Ostovari continued the exports. “Ostovari knew of the US sanctions against Iran,” the indictment states, “mentioning them in emails to co-conspirators and directing one co-conspirator to provide false information to a federal export control officer.”

Neither Ostovari nor his companies applied for or received a license from OFAC to export the equipment, according to the Justice Department.

If convicted, Ostovari faces up to 20 years in prison for each count. Homeland Security Investigations and the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security are investigating the case.

Taeb was Ali Khamenei’s representative at Sarallah Headquarters, one of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ most critical domestic security commands—and a target of Israeli strikes during the recent conflict.

Ali Taeb’s brothers—Hossein Taeb and Mehdi Taeb—are two of the most influential operatives in the Islamic Republic establishment.

Hossein served as the long-time head of the IRGC Intelligence Organization (IRGC-IO), directly under the control of the Supreme Leader. Known for his ruthlessness, clerical ties, and proximity to Mojtaba Khamenei, Hossein was widely viewed as one of the most powerful figures in the Islamic Republic—until his ousting in 2022.

Ali Taeb’s role at Sarallah Headquarters placed him at the heart of Tehran’s security response to unrest and foreign threats. That position—and his familial ties to Hossein and Mehdi Taeb—make his sudden death significant.

According to Iranian state media, Ali Taeb was a veteran of the Iran-Iraq War and a deeply embedded cleric in the Islamic Republic’s ideological apparatus.

Though he originally studied mechanical engineering at Iran University of Science and Technology, he was reportedly persuaded by leading clerics such as Ayatollah Bahjat and Allameh Tabatabaei to enter the seminary. Early in his religious studies, he operated under an alias while evading the Shah’s intelligence services.

He later rose through the ranks of the IRGC, serving as deputy head of propaganda during the war, commander of the Ramadan Base, and head of the Motahari University in Qom.

He held multiple top roles including advisor to the Joint Chiefs of the IRGC, president of the Foundation for Martyrs and Veterans in Qom, and director of Al-Mustafa International University.

He was also a member of the board of trustees at the Noor Computer Research Center and ran the Ghadir Information Center.

"Under the wise leadership of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, we silenced Trump," Ali Larijani, the former Speaker of the Iranian Parliament and current advisor to Khamenei, said on Friday.

Larijani made his remarks during a memorial event for Saeid Izadi, a senior Revolutionary Guards commander killed in an Israeli airstrike in Qom on June 21.

Israel’s Defense Minister, Israel Katz, said on the same day that Izadi had coordinated financial and weapons transfers to Hamas ahead of the October 7, 2023, attacks.

The surprise 12-day campaign killed military commanders along with hundreds of civilians and pounded military and nuclear sites. Iranian missiles killed 27 Israelis.

Tehran officialdom swiftly declared the conflict a victory, in a narrative which jarred many war-weary Iranians.

Donald Trump said on June 27th he personally stopped a final, massive Israeli airstrike on Tehran and had previously alleged the United States was aware of Khamenei's wartime hiding place but had held off killing him.

Larijani condemned Israel’s assassination of Revolutionary Guard commanders inside Iran and said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not understand Iran's culture or people.

In response to comments by Benjamin Netanyahu promoting the joint US-Israel doctrine of "peace through strength," Larijani said: "You made so much noise claiming Hamas and Hezbollah have been eliminated, but Hamas is still alive and continues to carry out operations."