Israel Criticizes Biden's 'Tolerance' with Iran

Defense Minister Benny Gantz with US secretary of State Anthony Blinken in Jerusalem (Reuters)
Defense Minister Benny Gantz with US secretary of State Anthony Blinken in Jerusalem (Reuters)
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Israel Criticizes Biden's 'Tolerance' with Iran

Defense Minister Benny Gantz with US secretary of State Anthony Blinken in Jerusalem (Reuters)
Defense Minister Benny Gantz with US secretary of State Anthony Blinken in Jerusalem (Reuters)

Officials in Tel Aviv condemned the US silence over Tehran's procrastination, accusing the administration of President Joe Bide of delaying the deadline on the nuclear talks.

Israeli sources said that the US, through its National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, had set a deadline for the talks last December.

Sullivan said that the United States and its partners would not accept continuing negotiations indefinitely and initially set February as the time to halt the talks, and then the deadline was moved to March, which has also passed.

Officials in Israel believe that the Iranians are having difficulty deciding whether to move toward signing the agreement and are also awaiting Biden's announcement on removing the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) from its terrorist list.

Israel continues to believe that Iran has taken advantage of the time during which it held talks with the world powers to strengthen its nuclear program.

According to Haaretz, Defense Minister Benny Gantz said earlier this month that while "treading water" in Vienna, Iran has completed the enrichment of about 50 kilograms of uranium to 60 percent and continues to advance its military nuclear program.

The newspaper confirmed conflicting positions within the Israeli government on the agreement.

Several officials in Tel Aviv believe the faltered negotiations are promising for Israel and evidence of the difficulty of reaching an understanding. It may lead the talks to a dead end.

They believe the agreement's failure will put the West, led by the US, in a military alliance that threatens clashes with Tehran, forcing it to reverse its policy.

Yair Golan, a former Deputy Israeli Chief of Staff and Israel's Deputy Minister of Economics and Industry, believes that reaching an agreement is the best option.

He said Washington is not interested in a military solution, as are the allies in Europe. They believe that the 2015 nuclear agreement, despite its many disadvantages, contains monitoring and accountability devices for the Iranians, and its duration is until 2031, which is not very long.

However, it is sufficient to limit Iranian nuclear activity and examine other means of pressure.

Golan says that relying on sanctions isn't right, adding that removing al-Quds Force from the terrorist list is not an issue.

Sources in Tel Aviv indicated that the pressure campaign launched recently by the Israeli government against withdrawing the IRGC from the US terrorist list is bearing fruit.

Biden now supports the Israeli position in this regard, unlike officials in the US State Department, and he will announce his position very soon.

Haaretz quoted high-ranking Israeli officials involved in talks with Washington saying that Israel is currently preparing for two scenarios.

One is an Iranian decision to retract its demand from the negotiating table, mainly to benefit from the skyrocketing global oil price due to the war in Ukraine. In that event, Israel would have a hard time scuttling the US plan to sign a new agreement with Iran within days.

The second scenario is that Iran insists that the Revolutionary Guards be removed from the terrorist organization list, which could delay and complicate signing a new agreement and lead the parties to further confrontation.



2 Men Deny Carrying Out Surveillance for Iran of Israeli Embassy in UK

FILE PHOTO: Armed police officers stand guard on a road outside the perimeter of the RAF Fairford airbase, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 28, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Armed police officers stand guard on a road outside the perimeter of the RAF Fairford airbase, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 28, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard/File Photo
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2 Men Deny Carrying Out Surveillance for Iran of Israeli Embassy in UK

FILE PHOTO: Armed police officers stand guard on a road outside the perimeter of the RAF Fairford airbase, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 28, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Armed police officers stand guard on a road outside the perimeter of the RAF Fairford airbase, in Fairford, Gloucestershire, Britain, September 28, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Shepheard/File Photo

Two Iranian nationals accused of being tasked by Iran to carry out hostile surveillance on the Israeli Embassy in London, Britain's oldest synagogue and other Israeli or Jewish targets pleaded not guilty on Friday.

Nematollah Shahsavani, 41, and Alireza Farasati, 22, appeared at London's Old Bailey court and denied a single offence under the National Security Act.

They were remanded in custody ahead ⁠of their trial, ⁠which is due to begin in April, Reuters reported.

The pair are among several individuals who have been charged in separate cases with acting on behalf of Iran in Britain.

Britain has recently accused Iran of being ⁠behind a suspected plot targeting the US-linked RAF Fairford military base, with seven men arrested and then released on bail.

Iran has denied any involvement in hostile activity in Britain, including the alleged RAF Fairford plot, after which the US removed its B-1 bombers from the base.

Shahsavani, a dual Iranian-British national, and Iranian national Farasati are alleged to have gathered ⁠information ⁠and undertaken reconnaissance in July and August 2025 on behalf of the Iranian intelligence services.

Their list of alleged targets included the Israeli Embassy, the Israeli Consulate and London's Bevis Marks Synagogue. Judge Bobbie Cheema-Grubb said one alleged target also included an unnamed individual "of intelligence interest" to Iran.

After they were charged in March, Britain's Foreign Office said it had summoned Iran's ambassador to the UK.


Iran President: Peace Talks Will Only Succeed Without 'Threats'

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attends an expanded format meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Council of Heads of State at the Avaza national tourist zone outside Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan, 09 October 2026.  EPA/SERGEY BOBYLEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attends an expanded format meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Council of Heads of State at the Avaza national tourist zone outside Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan, 09 October 2026. EPA/SERGEY BOBYLEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL
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Iran President: Peace Talks Will Only Succeed Without 'Threats'

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attends an expanded format meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Council of Heads of State at the Avaza national tourist zone outside Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan, 09 October 2026.  EPA/SERGEY BOBYLEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian attends an expanded format meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Council of Heads of State at the Avaza national tourist zone outside Turkmenbashi, Turkmenistan, 09 October 2026. EPA/SERGEY BOBYLEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN POOL

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday at a regional summit in Turkmenistan that peace negotiations will only succeed without "pressure and threats,” with the months-long Middle East war locked in a stalemate.

"Dialogue holds meaning and a chance of success only when based on mutual respect and mutual commitments, and when devoid of pressure and threat," he said during his speech at the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) summit.

President Donald Trump ruled out Thursday attacking Iran before the US midterms on November 3, saying Washington was holding "productive discussions" with Tehran.

"I want to make it clear to everybody that, while Iran is in very bad condition, both Economically and Militarily, and while the Blockade will remain in full force and effect...we will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the Midterm Elections," he wrote.

"We are having productive discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran," he added.

The Atlantic magazine reported on Wednesday that the White House had asked the Pentagon to develop options to strike Iranian targets that could be used before the midterms.

The New York Times said Thursday the plans were being developed despite Trump's "ambivalence."


UN: Livestreaming US Execution Would Amount to Torture

The new Department of War logo is seen inside the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US. (AFP)
The new Department of War logo is seen inside the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US. (AFP)
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UN: Livestreaming US Execution Would Amount to Torture

The new Department of War logo is seen inside the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US. (AFP)
The new Department of War logo is seen inside the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, US. (AFP)

A decision by US officials to livestream the execution of convicted killer Nidal Hasan would amount to torture, the UN said Friday.

US defense officials said US Army psychiatrist Hasan, who shot and killed 13 people at a military base in 2009, would face a firing squad and the execution would be broadcast live, adding that details would come later.

"The livestreaming of an execution is tantamount to a public execution and would breach the absolute prohibition of torture," the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights said in a message sent to AFP.

The UN body said it had made similar statements about public executions in Afghanistan and Iran, saying they "constitute a form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment".

Hasan's execution will be the first by the US military since 1961, and the first it has carried out by firing squad since World War II.

According to rights group Amnesty International, at least 17 public executions are known to have been carried out in 2025 -- six in Afghanistan and 11 in Iran.