Iran | Pakistan

Iran will offer no leniency to “rioters,” though the public has a right to demonstrate, the head of the judiciary said on Monday, following more than a week of protests. The demonstrations began last Sunday in Tehran when shopkeepers staged a strike over high prices and economic stagnation, but they have since spread to other regions and expanded to include political demands. “I instruct the attorney general and prosecutors across the country to act in accordance with the law and with resolve against the rioters and those who support them… and to show no leniency or indulgence,” Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said, according to the judiciary’s Mizan news agency. He added that Iran “listens to the protesters and their criticism, and distinguishes between them and rioters”. Protests have taken place in 25 out of Iran’s 31 provinces and affected, to varying degrees, at least 45 different cities, most of them small or medium-sized and concentrated in the west, according to an AFP tally based on official statements an...

New deadly clashes between protesters and security forces erupted in Iran over the weekend, rights groups and local media said on Sunday, as demonstrations first sparked by anger over the rising cost of living entered a second week. At least 12 people, including members of the security forces, have been killed since the protests kicked off with a shopkeeper’s strike in Tehran on December 28, according to a toll based on official reports. Overnight, protests featuring slogans criticising the Islamic republic’s clerical authorities were reported in Tehran, Shiraz in the south, and in areas of western Iran where the movement has been concentrated, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) monitor. The demonstrations are the most significant in Iran since a 2022-2023 movement sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code for women. The latest protests have been concentrated in parts of the west with large populatio...

Several people were reportedly killed during unrest in Iran on Thursday, an Iranian news agency and a rights group reported, as the biggest protests to hit the country for three years over soaring inflation sparked violence in several provinces. The semi-official Fars news agency cited a “source with knowledge” as saying several people were killed in clashes on Thursday morning between police and what it said were armed protesters in Lordegan in western Iran. The rights group, Hengaw, also reported deaths in Lordegan. Violence reported in several cities Thursday’s clashes in Lordegan, along with reported deaths of a security services member overnight and another protester on Wednesday, mark an escalation in the unrest since shopkeepers began protesting on Sunday. The Revolutionary Guards said on Thursday morning a member of its affiliated Basij volunteer paramilitary unit had been killed in the western city of Kuhdasht, naming him as Amirhossam Khodayari Fard. Thirteen other militiamen were wounded, it added....

ISLAMABAD: Findings of UNHCR’s “Afghanistan post-return monitoring survey report” released on Tuesday highlighted different challenges for Afghan returnees from Iran versus Pakistan: those from Iran often have more education, better food security, and housing, while returnees from Pakistan face severe economic hardship, relying more on daily wages, and carrying heavier debt burdens. The returnees from Iran were less likely to have income-generating employment, and more often reported barriers to girls’ education. Those returning from Pakistan after April found more casual income opportunities but struggled to afford rent and maintain sufficient food. According to the survey, across all groups, returnees continue to settle in areas with fragile conditions marked by deepening poverty and limited access to essential services. Many cannot return to their areas of origin due to lack of shelter, land, or livelihoods. Over half of households surveyed reported missing essential civil documentation, restricting access...

Students join Iran shopkeepers' protests

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived at US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence on Monday to hold crucial talks on Gaza and Iran. The US president will push the Israeli leader to move to the next stage of his fragile Gaza truce plan. Netanyahu is also expected to try to shift some focus onto Iran, amid reports he will call for more US strikes on the Islamic republic’s nuclear program. The meeting, the fifth between the two leaders to be held in the United States this year, comes as some White House officials fear both Israel and Hamas are slow-walking the second phase of their ceasefire. Trump, who said Netanyahu had asked for the talks, is reportedly keen to announce as soon as January a Palestinian technocratic government for Gaza, and the deployment of an international stabilisation force. Netanyahu’s office said he met US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Florida ahead of his talks with Trump, which are scheduled for 1pm (1800 GMT). Israeli governme...

TEHRAN: Iranian authorities on Saturday halted electricity production at one of the country’s biggest dams due to a marked drop in the reservoir’s water level, state media reported. “Due to the drop in the Karkheh Dam reservoir level, its power plant’s units were removed from the production circuit,” Amir Mahmoudi, the head of the dam and its power plant, said, according to state news agency IRNA. He added that the water was subsequently released from the lower valves of the dam to meet the needs of people living downstream. He said that the reservoir behind the dam is currently holding about one billion cubic metres of water, adding that “the current water level is 180 meters, which is 40 meters lower than the natural operating level” for electricity production. The Karkheh Dam is one of the biggest earthen dams in the world and the largest in Iran and the Middle East, according to IRNA. Built on the Karkheh River, it is located 22 kilometres (14 miles) northwest of the city of Andimeshk in the southwestern ...

ISLAMABAD - Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani yesterday said that the recent 12-day conflict “imposed on Iran” was the outcome of what he described as a long-term “US-Israeli conspiracy,” allegedly designed and planned many years in advance.

ISLAMABAD - Ali Ardeshir Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, met with Chief of Army Staff, Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, at General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.

Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir on Wednesday met with Iran’s top security official Ali Ardeshir Larijani in Rawalpindi, where he stressed the need for counter-terrorism cooperation between their countries. Larijani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Secu­ri­­ty Council (SNSC), called on the army chief at the General Headquarters in the garrison city, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in a statement. Reiterating Pakistan’s commitment to regional peace and stability, COAS Munir emphasised the “need for closer collaboration with Iran to combat terrorism”. “He also highlighted the growing importance of strategic cooperation in light of the evolving geopolitical situation,” the ISPR said. The military’s media affairs wing described Larijani as Iran’s NSA (national security adviser). Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Field Marshal Asim Munir meets with Ali Ardeshir Larijani, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Secu­ri­­ty Council, at GHQ in Rawalpindi on Nov 26, 2025. — ISPR I...

PM Shehbaz Sharif, Iran’s top security advisor Ali Ardeshir Larijani discuss regional, international developments in Islamabad meeting PM orders top-quality execution of Jinnah Medical Complex n Reiterates Pakistan’s proposal for joint investment company with Azerbaijan.

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan and Iran yesterday reaffirmed their resolve to strengthen bilateral relations and expand cooperation across multiple sectors, as senior leadership from both countries held wide-ranging talks in Islamabad.

Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar met Ali Lari­ja­­ni, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Secu­ri­­ty Council, on Tuesday, with the two sides reaffirming their commitment to “enhancing cooperation on regional and international issues of mutual interest”, according to the Foreign Office (FO). The two also agreed to “deepening bilateral ties in diverse areas” between Islamabad and Tehran, the FO posted on social media platform X. Lari­ja­­ni reached Pakistan on Monday and is expected to meet Pakistan’s political and military leadership during the visit. His trip follows Speaker of Iranian Parliament Bagher Ghalibaf’s visit to Islamabad last month, marking the second high-level Iranian delegation to Pakistan in weeks. In a post on X before landing in Pakistan, Larijani said: “Iran and Pakistan are two important and influential countries in ensuring lasting security in the region, and we always pay close attention to the brotherly relations between the countries of the region.” He also said that “Iranians wil...

Pakistan and Iran on Tuesday reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening bilateral ties and enhancing cooperation on regional and international issues of mutual interest.

Pakistan’s Ambassador to Iran, Mudassir Tipu, has confirmed that Iran’s National Security Adviser and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, is visiting Pakistan as part of ongoing high-level engagement between the two neighbouring countries.

Iran must “cooperate fully” with the UN’s nuclear watchdog, according to a draft resolution submitted to the agency’s board by Britain, France, Germany and the United States, and seen by AFP on Wednesday. Tensions between Iran and the UN nuclear watchdog have repeatedly flared in recent years, with relations being further strained in the wake of a 12-day war in June that saw Israeli and US strikes on key Iranian nuclear facilities. Since the war, agency inspectors have not been granted access to key nuclear sites such as Fordo and Natanz, which were hit in the strikes in June, but they have been able to visit other sites. The draft, which is expected to be voted on by the board of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) during its meeting this week, stresses that it is “imperative” for Iran to comply with its obligations under the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. It also urges Iran to provide “access that the agency requests”. Last week, the IAEA called on Iran to allow it to verify its enriched uraniu...

Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Tahir Hussain Andrabi said on Sunday that Pakistan welcomed Iran’s offer of mediation between Islamabad and Kabul and would “not shy away from” it. “Iran is a brotherly, friendly country. Pakistan is always in favour of finding peaceful resolutions of issues through dialogue and diplomacy, and we appreciate the offer of mediation of our brotherly country, Iran,” Andrabi told Dawn upon a query about reports that Tehran was working to convene a regional meeting for mediation between Islamabad and the Afghan Taliban. “We believe that Iran can play an important role. We would not shy away from any mediatory role by Iran. Mediations are always welcome,” Andrabi said, adding that Pakistan had a “very strong case”. He further stated: “Generally, mediations are resented by a country or a side which is on a weak legal or a political case. Pakistan’s case on this issue, on terrorism emanating from Afghanistan, is very strong. So, obviously we will not shy away from mediation.” Pakistan,...

The foreign ministers of Iran and Russia have called for continued dialogue between Pakistan and Afghanistan to resolve their ongoing disputes on cross-border terrorism. Last week, a third round of talks between Islamabad and Kabul, which were taking place in Istanbul in the presence of mediators, broke down without any agreement, as negotiators failed to bridge deep differences over how to prevent cross-border terrorism. The talks had followed deadly border clashes between the two neighbours in October. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi spoke on the telephone on Wednesday, during which the two sides exchanged views on the latest bilateral and regional developments. In its statement on Telegram, the Russian foreign ministry said the two ministers “welcomed the agreement reached between Kabul and Islamabad, mediated by the authorities of Qatar and Türkiye, on a mutual ceasefire and an end to cross-border shootings along the Afghan-Pakistani frontier”. “The sides...

Iran was laying plans on Saturday to cut off water supplies periodically to Tehran’s 10-million-strong population as it battles its worst drought in many decades. Rainfall in the capital has this year been at its lowest level in a century, local officials say, and half of Iran’s provinces have not seen a drop fall in months. Now, to save water, the government is planning water cuts in Tehran — and several local news outlets have already reported pipes running dry overnight in some areas. “This will help avoid waste even though it may cause inconvenience,” Iran’s Energy Minister Abbas Ali Abadi said on state television. In a speech broadcast on Friday, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian had warned that Tehran might have to be evacuated if no rain falls before the end of the year. But he gave no details about how such a vast operation would be conducted. Tehran nestles on the southern slopes of the Alborz mountains and has hot, dry summers usually relieved by autumn rains and winter snowfall. Iranians drink wat...

WASHINGTON: The United States accused Iran on Friday of “plotting to assassinate” Israel’s ambassador to Mexico, in what would be the latest attempt to take the two countries’ conflict to another region. A US official said the Revolutionary Guards’ elite Quds Force initiated the plot late last year and that it was disrupted this year. “The plot was contained and does not pose a current threat,” the US official said. The US official did not provide detailed evidence or say how the plot was contained. The Iranian mission to the United Nations declined to comment. According to the US official, the alleged plot would have taken place after April 1 last year, when Israel attacked the Iranian embassy complex in Damascus, killing several top officers of the Revolutionary Guards. Israel carried out a much more extensive bombing campaign in Iran this year that killed more than 1,000 people. The United States joined by bombing key nuclear sites. Iran has been a critical supporter of Hamas, which has ruled the Gaza Stri...