The United States and Iran have begun indirect talks in Geneva on Tuesday under Omani mediation, with the threat of military action hanging over diplomacy and both sides still far apart on uranium enrichment and missiles.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said the United States will never succeed in toppling the Islamic Republic and warned that even the world’s strongest military can suffer crippling blows.

Widespread rallies by Iranians abroad, held in response to a call by exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi, drew an outpouring of support from inside Iran, with many describing the gatherings as a renewed source of hope and unity.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards carried out naval drills in and around the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday and said parts of the strategic waterway were closed for several hours, as Iran and the United States held indirect nuclear talks in Geneva.

A 17-year-old protester wounded during Iran’s January protests was later killed after being taken into custody by security forces, according to testimony and forensic analysis gathered by the Iran Human Rights Documentation Center (IHRDC).

As President Trump weighs options against Iran, he faces a legacy‑defining choice that could reshape the century, with the Islamic Republic at its most precarious moment since 1979 after years of US pressure and a determined popular uprising.

About a quarter of cafés in parts of Iran have shut down in the past three months, according to a senior industry official who says protests, legal pressure and economic strain have severely affected the sector.

Reports from Tehran by a British Muslim commentator depicting normalcy and freedom after Iran’s violent crackdown on dissent have triggered a backlash, with critics accusing authorities of using foreign voices to legitimize their narrative.

Iran’s oil exports declined sharply at the start of 2026, new tanker-tracking data show, raising fresh questions about the durability of Tehran’s most important economic lifeline under renewed US sanctions pressure.

A tightening security atmosphere inside schools across several Iranian cities has prompted a new wave of student absences, according to messages sent to Iran International, with families saying classrooms no longer feel like safe spaces for their children.

President Massoud Pezeshkian’s increasingly public confrontations with Iran’s state broadcaster have exposed the limits of his authority, underscoring how one of the country’s most powerful institutions operates beyond the reach of its elected government.