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Iran threatens response without ‘full implementation’ of US deal

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf warned of Iran’s reaction if the United States and Israel violate the interim peace agreement, as Tehran prepares to bury former religious leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

“We strongly demand the full implementation of the agreements, and Iran will continue proportionate actions if the United States and the Zionist regime fail to fulfill their commitments,” Qalibaf said in a meeting with Belarusian lawmaker Igor Sergeyenko on Friday, according to the semi-official Iranian Student News Agency (ISNA).

Qalibaf and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi have been Iran’s leading negotiators in high-level talks with the United States to finalize a deal that would permanently end hostilities in the region, fully reopen the critical Strait of Hormuz and resolve outstanding issues related to Tehran’s nuclear program, among other goals.

The renewed tension comes after the United States and Iran exchanged fire in the conflict, which flared up for the first time since the signing of a 60-day memorandum of understanding (MOU) in the Persian Gulf last week.

President Trump threatened last weekend to “finish the job militarily” following suspected drone attacks on ships trying to pass through Iran’s oil corridor. The U.S. military responded with retaliatory strikes on Iran’s missile and drone storage sites and coastal radar locations.

But a US official told The Hill on Sunday that both sides agreed to “stand down for now” and allow ships to pass freely through the strait. They said that technical discussions regarding the Memorandum of Understanding will continue.

Qalibaf also said that the US cannot counter Tehran militarily and consider Israel’s threats as “baseless propaganda”, according to ISNA.

He was reported to have said that “the USA and the Zionist regime failed to achieve any of their goals in the Ramadan War, and today everyone has concluded that the military operation against Iran has failed, and they have finally personally requested a ceasefire.”

The New York Times reported Thursday U.S. officials, citing current and former American officials, said they believed there may have been an Israeli plot to assassinate Iran’s leading negotiators during earlier talks this spring on a temporary ceasefire agreement.

Israeli attacks Destroyed many top Iranian soldiers and political leaders in the first weeks of the war, including Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, and Gholamreza Soleimani, commander of Iran’s Basij paramilitary force.

Khamenei was also killed in targeted attacks on his compound on the first day of a joint US-Israeli military operation and will be buried on July 9, following a week of funeral ceremonies.

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