Senior Iranian official says Geneva talks with US were intense, gaps remain

The United States entered nuclear talks with Iran in Geneva with demands that Tehran dismantle its main nuclear facilities and transfer its enriched uranium stockpile, officials familiar with the discussions told the Wall Street Journal.

According to the report, US negotiators were expected to make clear that sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan must be dismantled and that any agreement should not include sunset clauses. “Iran must dismantle its three main nuclear sites … and deliver all of its remaining enriched uranium to the US,” officials told the newspaper.

The officials also said Washington is insisting on zero enrichment, though it could allow Iran to operate a Tehran reactor at very low enrichment levels for medical purposes. The US is offering limited sanctions relief at the outset, with broader easing possible if Iran complies over time, the report said.

The talks come as President Donald Trump has warned of military action if no deal is reached, while Iran has said it would treat any attack as the start of a wider conflict.

Iranian protesters demonstrated against the Islamic Republic outside the United Nations Office in Geneva on Thursday as a new round of US-Iran talks took place in the Swiss city, waving pre-Islamic Republic Lion and Sun flags and holding pictures of exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi.

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Several Iranian universities announced that classes will be held online until the end of the term following days of student rallies across campuses.

Institutions including Islamic Azad University, Parand Branch, Islamic Azad University, Kerman Branch, Isfahan University of Art, Islamic Azad University, North Tehran Branch, University of Damghan, Islamic Azad University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Islamic Azad University, Gilan Branch and Islamic Azad University, Tabriz Branch confirmed the shift in separate notices.

The student group Daneshjuyan Motahed criticized the decision, saying in a statement that “the Islamic Republic has once again proven its fear of students,” and reported that some students were boycotting online classes in response.

Sohrabi underwent surgery to remove his eye after being transferred to hospital and subsequently fell into a coma. His family later donated his organs.

Videos circulating on social media show Sohrabi participating in a southeast Tehran provincial bodybuilding competition earlier that same afternoon, hours before he joined the protests.

Sohrabi had worked from the age of 14 and later became a bodybuilding coach. Following his death, images of him circulated widely online, with some users comparing his appearance to Turkish actor Can Yaman and others calling him “Iran’s Brad Pitt.”

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His brother announced on Instagram that their mother had been hospitalized due to the physical and psychological toll of her son’s death. Minutes after the post was published, the story was deleted and all images related to Davoud and his funeral were removed from the account. The page later became inaccessible.

IranWire reported that the family has been under heavy pressure from security authorities and was asked to describe Davoud as a Basij member.

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Abolfazl Zohrevand said the latest round of negotiations between Iran and the United States is unlikely to end well, citing recent remarks by President Donald Trump.

“Given the course of events so far, and especially Donald Trump’s two-hour speech in Congress, it seems the negotiations will not have a good outcome,” Zohrevand, a member of parliament’s national security and foreign policy committee, said, according to state media.

He said Washington was still seeking guarantees from Iran “from a perspective it has defined itself,” adding that in his view the United States was seeking Iran’s “surrender.” Zohrevand also said Tehran should respond more forcefully to remarks about regime change or threats against its leadership and suggested negotiations could even have been halted.