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Iran to Enrich Uranium to 20% Even after Nuclear Deal, Says Nuclear Chief

The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters in Vienna, Austria May 23, 2021. (Reuters)
The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters in Vienna, Austria May 23, 2021. (Reuters)
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Iran to Enrich Uranium to 20% Even after Nuclear Deal, Says Nuclear Chief

The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters in Vienna, Austria May 23, 2021. (Reuters)
The Iranian flag waves in front of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters in Vienna, Austria May 23, 2021. (Reuters)

Iran will continue to enrich uranium to 20% purity even after sanctions on it are lifted and a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers is revived, Iranian news agencies quoted the country's nuclear chief as saying on Friday.

"(Uranium) enrichment ... continues with a maximum ceiling of 60%, which led Westerners to rush to negotiations, and it will continue with the lifting of sanctions by both 20% and 5%," the head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organization, Mohammad Eslami, was quoted by the semi-official news agency Fars as saying.

The 2015 deal restricts the purity to which Iran can enrich uranium to 3.67%, far below the roughly 90% that is weapons-grade or the 20% Iran reached before the deal. Iran is now enriching to various levels, the highest being around 60%.

Eslami did not elaborate or explain how 20% enrichment would be acceptable under the 2015 nuclear deal which Iran has been trying to revive through indirect talks with the United States.

Iranian officials had told Reuters earlier that Iran had agreed to suspend its 20% and 60% enrichment if an agreement is reached in the Vienna talks to salvage the 2015 pact Separately, a senior Iranian cleric said earlier that ending Iran's economic isolation by lifting banking and oil trade sanctions was Tehran's most important demand in talks with world powers in the Austrian capital Vienna.

Iran on Wednesday urged the West to be "realistic" in the talks, as its top negotiator returned to Tehran for what might be final consultations ahead of a possible accord following months of indirect talks with the United States.

"Our negotiators... do their best to ensure the nation's interests, and know that the final point is the lifting of all sanctions, especially on banking and trade," Ahmad Khatami said at Friday prayers in Tehran.

"If these sanctions are not lifted, it is as if there were no talks," state media quoted him as saying.

The general content of sermons delivered at Friday prayers is set by the office of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who has the final say on Iran's nuclear policy and all other matters of state.

After 10 months of talks in Vienna, progress has been made toward the restoration of the pact to curb Tehran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief, but both Tehran and Washington have cautioned that still there are some significant differences to overcome.

A majority of Iran's hardline-led parliament demanded in a letter last week that the United States should guarantee that they would not abandon a restored agreement. The assembly has not voted on the letter.

A senior Iranian official has told Reuters that Iran has shown flexibility by agreeing to "inherent guarantees" that the US administration will not quit an agreement, as Washington says it is impossible for President Joe Biden to provide the legal assurances Iran has demanded.

Iran insists on the immediate removal of all sanctions imposed under former US President Donald Trump in a verifiable process, including those imposed under terrorism or human rights measures.

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World

Man Arrested After Spraying Unknown Substance on Rep. Ilhan Omar at Minneapolis Town Hall

A man shouts at US Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) after spraying an unidentified liquid in her direction, during a town hall meeting days after a man identified as Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal immigration agents trying to detain him, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US, January 27, 2026 in a still image from video. (Reuters)
A man shouts at US Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) after spraying an unidentified liquid in her direction, during a town hall meeting days after a man identified as Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal immigration agents trying to detain him, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US, January 27, 2026 in a still image from video. (Reuters)
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Man Arrested After Spraying Unknown Substance on Rep. Ilhan Omar at Minneapolis Town Hall

A man shouts at US Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) after spraying an unidentified liquid in her direction, during a town hall meeting days after a man identified as Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal immigration agents trying to detain him, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US, January 27, 2026 in a still image from video. (Reuters)
A man shouts at US Representative Ilhan Omar (D-MN) after spraying an unidentified liquid in her direction, during a town hall meeting days after a man identified as Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal immigration agents trying to detain him, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US, January 27, 2026 in a still image from video. (Reuters)

A man sprayed an unknown substance on Democratic US Rep. Ilhan Omar and was tackled to the ground Tuesday during a town hall Minneapolis, where tensions over federal immigration enforcement have come to a head after agents fatally shot an intensive care nurse and a mother of three this month.

The audience cheered as the man was pinned down and his arms were tied behind his back. In video of the incident, someone in the crowd can be heard saying, “Oh my God, he sprayed something on her.”

Just before that Omar had called for the abolishment of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement and for Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to resign or face impeachment.

Calls are mounting on Capitol Hill for Noem to step down after the shooting deaths in Minneapolis of two people who protested deportations. Few Republicans have risen to her defense.

“ICE cannot be reformed,” Omar said, seconds before the attack.

Minneapolis police said officers saw the man use a syringe to spray an unknown liquid at Omar. They immediately arrested him and booked him at the county jail for third-degree assault, spokesperson Trevor Folke said. Forensic scientists responded to the scene.

Police identified the man as 55-year-old Anthony Kazmierczak. It was not immediately clear if Kazmierczak had an attorney. The county public defenders’ office could not immediately be reached.

Omar continued speaking for about 25 more minutes after the man was ushered out by security, saying she would not be intimidated.

There was a strong, vinegarlike smell after the man pushed on the syringe, according to an Associated Press journalist who was there. Photos of the device, which fell to the ground when he was tackled, showed what appeared to be a light-brown liquid inside. There was no immediate word from officials on what it was.

Minneapolis Council Member LaTrisha Vetaw said some of the substance also came into contact with her and state Sen. Bobby Joe Champion. She called it a deeply unsettling experience.

No one in the crowd of about 100 people had a noticeable physical reaction to the substance.

Omar says she is OK and ‘a survivor’

Walking out afterward, Omar said she felt a little flustered but was not hurt. She was going to be screened by a medical team.

She later posted on the social platform X: “I’m ok. I’m a survivor so this small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work. I don’t let bullies win.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Tuesday night.

President Donald Trump has frequently criticized the congresswoman and has stepped up verbal attacks on her in recent months as he turned his focus on Minneapolis. During a Cabinet meeting in December, he referred to her as “garbage."

Hours earlier on Tuesday, the president criticized Omar as he spoke to a crowd in Iowa, saying his administration would only let in immigrants who “can show that they love our country.”

“They have to be proud, not like Ilhan Omar,” he said, drawing loud boos at the mention of her name.

He added: “She comes from a country that’s a disaster. So probably, it’s considered, I think — it’s not even a country.”

Omar is a US citizen who fled her birthplace, Somalia, with her family at age 8 as a civil war tore apart the country.

The Minneapolis-St. Paul area is home to about 84,000 people of Somali descent — nearly a third of Somalis living in the US.

Officials condemn the attack

Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz expressed gratitude that Omar was safe, adding in a post on X: “Our state has been shattered by political violence in the last year. The cruel, inflammatory, dehumanizing rhetoric by our nation’s leaders needs to stop immediately.”

US Rep. Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican, also denounced the assault.

“I am deeply disturbed to learn that Rep. Ilhan Omar was attacked at a town hall today,” Mace said. “Regardless of how vehemently I disagree with her rhetoric — and I do — no elected official should face physical attacks. This is not who we are.”

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat, called the attack “unacceptable.” He said he was relieved that Omar “is OK” and thanked police for their quick response, concluding: “This kind of behavior will not be tolerated in our city.”

The city has been reeling from the fatal shootings of two residents by federal immigration agents this month during Trump's massive immigration enforcement surge. Intensive care unit nurse Alex Pretti was killed Saturday, less than three weeks after Renee Good was fatally shot behind the wheel of her vehicle.

Lawmakers face rising threats

The attack came days after a man was arrested in Utah for allegedly punching US Rep. Maxwell Frost, a Democrat from Florida, in the face during the Sundance Film Festival and saying Trump was going to deport him.

Threats against members of Congress have increased in recent years, peaking in 2021 in the aftermath of that year’s Jan. 6 attack on the US Capitol, before dipping slightly only to climb again, according to the most recent figures from the US Capitol Police.

Lawmakers have discussed the impact on their ability to hold town halls and public events, with some even citing the threat environment in their decisions not to seek reelection.

Following the assault on Omar, US Capitol Police said in a statement that the agency was “working with our federal partners to see this man faces the most serious charges possible to deter this kind of violence in our society.”

It also released updated numbers detailing threats to members of Congress: 14,938 “concerning statements, behaviors, and communications directed against lawmakers, their families, staff and the Capitol Complex" in 2025.

That is a sharp increase from 2024, when the number of cases was 9,474, according to USCP. It is the third year in a row that the number of threats has increased.

Capitol Police have beefed up security measures across all fronts since Jan. 6, 2021, and the department has seen increased reporting after a new center was launched two years ago to process reports of threats.

World

Iran Executes Man Accused of Spying for Israel

A photograph shows an anti-US and anti-Israel banner hanging on a building in Palestine Square in Tehran on January 27, 2026. (AFP)
A photograph shows an anti-US and anti-Israel banner hanging on a building in Palestine Square in Tehran on January 27, 2026. (AFP)
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Iran Executes Man Accused of Spying for Israel

A photograph shows an anti-US and anti-Israel banner hanging on a building in Palestine Square in Tehran on January 27, 2026. (AFP)
A photograph shows an anti-US and anti-Israel banner hanging on a building in Palestine Square in Tehran on January 27, 2026. (AFP)

Iran executed a man on Wednesday who was accused of ​spying for Israel, the Iranian judiciary's media outlet Mizan reported, naming him as Hamidreza Sabet Esmaeilipour.

Entangled in a decades-long shadow war with Israel, ‌Iran has executed ‌many people ‌it ⁠has ​accused ‌of having links with the Israeli intelligence service and facilitating its operations in the country.

"Hamidreza Sabet Esmaeilipour who was arrested on ⁠29 April 2025, was hanged for ‌the crime of ‍espionage and ‍intelligence cooperation in favor of ‍a hostile intelligence service (Mossad) through ... the transfer of classified documents and information, after the verdict ​was confirmed by the Supreme Court and through legal ⁠procedures," Mizan said.

Executions of Iranians convicted of spying for Israel have significantly increased since last year following a direct confrontation between the two regional enemies in June, when Israeli and US forces struck ‌Iran's nuclear facilities.

World

US Intelligence Casts Doubts about Venezuela Leader's Cooperation

Vice President Delcy Rodriguez attends her swearing-in ceremony as Venezuela’s interim president at the National Assembly, after the US launched a strike on the country and captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 5, 2026. (Reuters)
Vice President Delcy Rodriguez attends her swearing-in ceremony as Venezuela’s interim president at the National Assembly, after the US launched a strike on the country and captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 5, 2026. (Reuters)
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US Intelligence Casts Doubts about Venezuela Leader's Cooperation

Vice President Delcy Rodriguez attends her swearing-in ceremony as Venezuela’s interim president at the National Assembly, after the US launched a strike on the country and captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 5, 2026. (Reuters)
Vice President Delcy Rodriguez attends her swearing-in ceremony as Venezuela’s interim president at the National Assembly, after the US launched a strike on the country and captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, in Caracas, Venezuela, January 5, 2026. (Reuters)

US intelligence reports have raised doubts about whether interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez will cooperate with the Trump administration by formally cutting ties with US adversaries, four people familiar with the reports told Reuters in recent days.

US officials have said publicly they want the interim president to sever relations with close international allies like Iran, China and Russia, including expelling their diplomats and advisers from Venezuela.

But Rodriguez, whose swearing-in ceremony was attended by representatives of those countries early this month, has yet to publicly announce such a move. She became president after the US captured former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3.

The US intelligence reports said it was not clear if she is fully on board with the US strategy in her country, according to the sources, who declined to be identified by name.

CIA Director John Ratcliffe traveled on January 15 to Caracas, where he discussed the country's political future with Rodriguez. Reuters could not determine if those conversations changed the intelligence agencies' opinion.

Washington wants to rein in its foes' influence in the Western hemisphere, including in Venezuela, where Trump is seeking to exploit the OPEC nation’s vast oil reserves.

If Rodriguez were to break ties with the US rivals, it would open more opportunity for US investment in Venezuela’s energy sector. But failure to control Rodriguez could undercut Washington’s efforts to direct the country’s interim rulers from afar and avoid a deeper US military role.

The Central Intelligence Agency and the Venezuela government did not respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

Asked for comment, a senior Trump administration official, who declined to be identified, said Trump “continues to exert maximum leverage” over Venezuela's leaders and “expects this cooperation to continue.”

Abandoning longtime allies?

The CIA has previously assessed that officials loyal to Maduro, including Rodriguez, were best positioned to govern the country following his ouster.

But critics of Trump's Venezuela strategy have expressed doubts about the wisdom of keeping Maduro's loyalists in place as the country's interim leaders.

The concerns about Rodriguez' reliability were present prior to the US military operation, said two sources.

For Venezuela, the US directive means abandoning its closest allies outside the region. Iran has helped Venezuela repair oil refineries while China has taken oil as repayment for debt. Russia has supplied weaponry, including missiles, to Venezuela's military.

Trump has also cited communist-led Cuba as another US foe he wants Venezuela to abandon. Havana has provided security and intelligence support while receiving cut-rate Venezuelan oil.

Since Maduro's removal, Rodriguez, whose deep ties to the oil sector are crucial to keeping the country stable, has taken steps to stay in favor with Washington including releasing political prisoners and authorizing the sale of 30 million to 50 million barrels of oil to the United States.

In a speech on Sunday, Rodriguez said she has had “enough” of US intervention.

Still, US officials have also held positive calls with her in recent days, according to two of the sources.

The Trump administration does not see an immediate alternative to working with Rodriguez, given it has publicly backed her so strongly, two of the sources said.

But US officials are developing contacts with senior military and security officials in case they decide to change their approach, a source briefed on Venezuela policy said.

Machado

The recent intelligence reports also found that opposition leader Maria Corina Machado is not currently able to run the country successfully in part because she lacks strong ties to the country’s security services or oil sector, the sources said.

Some observers and Machado's movement say it won a 2024 election that year by a huge margin, though the state backed a Maduro victory. She remains popular with Venezuelans.

Trump told reporters last week he wanted Machado “involved” in the country’s leadership, without providing details.

One person familiar with the administration’s discussions with Machado said she is well-liked by the White House and is considered a longer-term option for a leadership position in Venezuela.

The separate source briefed on Venezuela policy suggested that for now, Machado could be considered for an advisory role, but no firm decision had been made. Representatives for Machado did not respond to a request for comment.