Reports are emerging that Ali Larijani, a key Iranian security official, was allegedly targetted in an Israeli airstrike, escalating tensions in the region.
Israel has for more than two decades and several US presidencies worked to draw the United States into a full-scale war with Iran. Having finally achieved that, the last thing it wants is Trump declaring victory and going home, as he is prone to do. Ali Larijani was the figure most capable of handing Trump a negotiated exit with something to show for it. Without Larijani, the road to an exit gets considerably narrower. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Zolqadr's appointment comes through a presidential decree, endorsed by Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
The assassination of Ali Larijani, Iran's top security official, in an alleged Israeli strike has sent shockwaves through the region, prompting vows of revenge and raising concerns about escalating tensions.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened to continue targeting Iranian leaders, claiming recent successes in eliminating key figures. He asserted that Israel, with US support, aims to undermine the Iranian regime and empower the Iranian people.
The West Asia conflict escalated sharply as Iran launched missiles towards Israel, while Tehran confirmed the killing of its intelligence minister in Israeli strikes, marking the third assassination of a senior Iranian official in two days.
To be sure, Trump is furious, as the trajectory of the war is in a state of Zugzwang, as chess players call it. Trump and Netanyahu stare at two choices -- retreat in humiliation and concede Tehran's demands -- recognition of its rights, reparations, and binding security guarantees -- or perish in a quagmire, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'Mojtaba Khamenei supervised the most recent repression in December 2025 and January 2026 which remains ongoing.'
In the video, the Supreme Leader can be seen teaching religious studies to a group of pupils who are listening attentively. The IRIB said that the video of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei was published for the first time.
For weeks, the war skirted the edge of catastrophe without tipping over. Missiles flew, there was much destruction, commanders were assassinated, cities across the Gulf and even in Israel struggled to absorb the shock. But one line held: Energy infrastructure, the arteries of the global economy, remained largely untouched. That is no longer true. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Referring to local sources, IRNA shared a video clip that it claims shows the downing of the American F-15 fighter jet in Kuwait.
Taking Kharg would give the US control over virtually all of Iran's oil exports and thus provide significant leverage, notes Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War. It would also put American troops within range of Iran's remaining missiles, drones, and artillery on a piece of real estate that is just eight square miles in size, and just 15 miles from the Iranian mainland.
'Much will depend on the position of the United States.' 'It will have to be seen to what extent the US will be more interested in achieving some form of a deal and to what extent Israel will be allowed to continue to carry out both airstrikes and the killing of Iranian officials.'
'Was the five-day pause ever meant to hold, or was it simply another instrument of signaling, of positioning, of buying time in a war where even the pauses are tactical?' asks Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Alliances fight wars effectively only when they share an endgame. If Israel acted without US knowledge, then the military alliance is operating without real coordination at the level of strategic targeting. Neither picture is reassuring in a war that is no longer regional in its consequences. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
The pause gives the US time to breathe, to regroup, to move its expeditionary force into position without risk of interception along the way. It gives Iran nothing -- on the ground, attacks against its infrastructure continue apace. Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
The question is no longer whether the war will expand. It has. The next few days will tell us whether the war stabilises around Hormuz or whether the Strait itself becomes the trigger for a far larger rupture. What to watch for over the next 48 hours is simple: Any move by the US toward direct naval control of the Strait; any credible Iranian attempt to disrupt or mine shipping lanes and, critically, whether energy infrastructure in the Gulf continues to be targeted.If those lines are crossed in tandem, the war will no longer be containable within the region.
The threat of wars hovers over the negotiations in Oman, but the good part is that Trump called the talks to be 'very good' and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian responded that they 'constitute a step forward', points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani arrived in Islamabad on Wednesday to seek Pakistan's support for the continuation of its nuclear programme as well as to discuss the progress on the India-Pakistan-Iran gas pipeline project.
Iran's top nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani held talks with External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh on Wednesday in New Delhi on strategic partnership, particularly in the field of energy.
India asserted that it was a responsible nuclear weapon state and has always been in compliance with its obligations under international treaties and agreements. \n
... and there is no stopping its pan-Islamic agenda, cautions Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
'A top Russian diplomat, Ambassador Alexander Aksenyonok told me in Sochi, Moscow is keen on a political settlement in Syria "as early as possible -- which is also our exit strategy",' says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
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