US Senator Lindsey Graham on Tuesday expressed disappointment that Washington had not more clearly committed to toppling Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, calling his continued rule a boon to Iran and terrorism.
Graham, a veteran foreign policy hawk representing South Carolina, was speaking to reporters after being briefed along with dozens of other senators on Venezuela strategy by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
"If, after all this Maduro is still in power. That's the worst possible signal you could send to Russia, China, Iran," said Graham, "I want to reassert again, you cannot allow this man to be standing after this display of force."
The United States has ramped up a military deployment in the Caribbean as part of a pressure campaign on Venezuela and its leader Nicolas Maduro. US attacks on alleged drug boats there and in the Pacific have killed at least 87 people, in strikes which Democratic opponents and rights groups say violate the laws of war.
The Trump administration has branded Maduro a narco-terrorist and said drug flows from Venezuela kill innocent Americans and justify a wartime approach.
Trump has vowed to extend US attacks to the mainland and said in an interview last week that Maduro's "days are numbered," without elaborating.
His influential chief of staff Susie Wiles told Vanity Fair in an interview published on Tuesday that "(Trump) wants to keep on blowing boats up until Maduro cries uncle."
"I want clarity right here," Graham added in his remarks to reporters. "I want us to be level with the American people on what we're doing. I think we're doing a good thing. I think we're making us safer as a nation. We're cleaning up our backyard."
"Too many Americans have died ... he's aligned with Hezbollah. There's a million reasons you want Maduro to go, but just say it. Just say, this man in our backyard runs a narco-terrorist state along with international terrorists."
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio last week cast Venezuela as a regional platform for Iranian influence, describing Maduro’s government as a narcotics transit hub that hosts Iran’s Revolutionary Guards and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah.
Little public evidence exists about the security relationship Venezuela has with Iran or its armed allies. Tehran and Caracas boosted ties under Maduro's predecessor Hugo Chavez, who cast himself as a bulwark against what he called American imperialism.
Maduro has rejected US accusations that he runs a drug cartel and calls the military buildup in the region a bid to impose Washington's will on his oil-rich country.
Trump has presented himself as a peacemaker, as a leader who is ending wars as he puts it through a so-called peace through strength strategy.
The Trump administration's new National Security Strategy (NSS), released earlier this month, makes an argument for a hands-off approach to the Middle East, while showing clear willingness to lean into tensions with Venezuela.
While the Trump administration maintains their main efforts are about combatting alleged drug smuggling, Graham sees US posturing as signaling regime change, demanding clarity.
"I want clarity right here, President Trump is saying his days are numbered. That seems to me that he's got to go," Graham said.
The message emerged at a joint meeting between media and tourism officials hosted by the strategic council of Iran’s Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts and the media affairs department of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, according to ISNA.
Participants said tourism increasingly depends on professional narrative-building to counter negative perceptions and present Iran’s security and cultural capacity to foreign audiences.
Officials argued that media should move beyond a passive role and become an active partner in promoting tourism and related industries.
Mohammadreza Norouzpour, deputy media affairs minister, said tourism cannot gain visibility without media engagement and that effective communication requires sustained, credible storytelling.
He said developing a participatory model between media and tourism actors was essential to reposition the sector domestically and internationally.
Speaking at the meeting, Mohsen Haji Saeid, head of the tourism working group and chairman of the national association of tour guides, said restoring Iran’s image abroad – especially following the recent conflict – was now the core issue facing the tourism industry.
He criticized traditional promotional approaches and called for a comprehensive information bank to present data on safety and tourism potential.
Other speakers emphasized the role of private-sector participation, health tourism, visual content, and the use of tour guides as cultural ambassadors.
Officials also discussed leveraging major international events, such as the World Cup, to amplify Iran’s narrative.
The meeting concluded with agreement to continue the tourism working group’s activities on a permanent, issue-driven basis, aimed at strengthening media-tourism coordination and improving perceptions of Iran among domestic and international audiences.
The messaging emerged even as Iran's foreign ministry issued a formal condemnation of the shooting at a Hanukkah event in Sydney that killed 16 people and injured 40 others.
Tasnim News, which is affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, ran the story under the headline “At Least 10 Zionists Slain in Hanukkah Festival in Australia,” in what appeared to be a celebration of the deaths.
The IRGC-affiliated Sabereen News also hailed the killing of British-born Rabbi Eli Schlanger, calling him "a staunch supporter of Gaza genocide who had met Zionist soldiers to voice his support for their war against Gaza."
Fellow IRGC outlet Fars News described the incident as a “murky story,” questioning the plausibility of a lone or independent attack. The outlet wrote: “It's not normal for individuals to open fire on hundreds of people at a public celebration,” framing the shooting as a product of “widespread anti-Zionist sentiments” and invoking the October 7 attack on Israel.
State-run Mehr News Agency advanced a more explicit accusation. Its headline read: “The primary suspect in the attack on Jews in Australia is the Zionist regime,” presenting the violence as a “false-flag” operation allegedly designed to serve Israeli interests.
IRGC general calls Israel 'sole beneficiary'
The narrative was reinforced by comments from Mohammad Reza Naghdi, a senior IRGC general and top adviser to the force’s chief commander, who publicly argued that Israel was the sole beneficiary of the attack.
In a lengthy statement published by Fars News, Naghdi asked: “Who benefits from the Sydney incident?” before asserting: “The answer is clear. The only one who benefits from the Sydney incident is the Zionist regime.”
Naghdi framed the shooting as a strategic move to suppress pro-Gaza activism in Australia, claiming Sydney had become one of the most prominent centers of “anti-Zionist” demonstrations in the West.
He questioned whether the attack would “facilitate anti-Zionist protests by the people of Sydney or open the hand of the Australian police to suppress them,” and suggested that portraying Jewish communities as unsafe would serve Israeli political goals.
He also raised a series of rhetorical questions about why the attackers targeted civilians and a place of worship rather than Israeli-linked businesses, shipping interests, or Israeli soldiers visiting Australia. “Why were ordinary people and a place of worship targeted?” Naghdi asked, concluding that any act diverting attention from Gaza ultimately “helps the Zionists.”
Outlets often labeled as moderate echoed similar themes in their reporting. Tabnak portrayed the shooting as a “false flag” meant to “revive Israel's antisemitism narrative” and warned of possible repercussions for Tehran, accusing Israel of “seeking to exploit the situation.”
Beyond official outlets and senior figures, Islamic Republic supporters and online commentators circulated celebratory and openly antisemitic reactions, according to social media posts monitored on Sunday. These responses praised the attack or dismissed it as staged, amplifying hostility toward Jews while denying responsibility for the violence.
Australia severed diplomatic ties with Tehran in August, accusing Iran of involvement in threats and attacks against Jewish communities.
Also in November, the country officially designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a state sponsor of terrorism.
