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Tehran split over talks
Iran’s internal debate over whether to negotiate with the United States intensified as Deputy Parliament Speaker Hamidreza Haji Babai told lawmakers that Iran would "never reach an understanding with the United States."
During a virtual parliamentary session, Haji Babai said, "We should not allow America to wage war whenever it wants and declare a ceasefire whenever it wants."
Former vice president Mohsen Mansouri, who served under the late President Ebrahim Raisi, argued in a social media post that Iran was discussing negotiations precisely when its military position had strengthened.
Mansouri wrote that Iran "struck several ships, closed the strait and fought even harder than before," and he warned: "Do not restart this flawed cycle."
The hardline pushback came as President Donald Trump said Washington was engaged in "very serious negotiations" with Iran while warning the United States would resume "very powerful military action" if diplomacy failed.
Pause fuels competing claims
As the U.S. and Iran maintained a pause in hostilities for a third day, Al Jazeera reported that mediators were continuing to work to bridge the gap between Washington and Tehran.
The outlet said Trump claimed Iran had requested a meeting "through their surrogates and directly, and we’re meeting," adding, "We’re talking with Iran right now."
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei denied that Tehran had asked to restart peace talks, insisting that "mediators may convey messages to us from the American side" and that there were "no direct negotiations."
The same reporting tied the pause to the U.S. halting attacks after targeting Iranian coastal areas and infrastructure in a nearly two-week escalation sparked by Iran’s firing at ships trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
Al Jazeera also said the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) redirected 17 commercial vessels transiting the strait, disabled two others, and boarded a further two to ensure compliance with its blockade on Iran.
What’s at stake next
The dispute over the Strait of Hormuz remained central to the next phase, with the CNBC report saying Iran’s Baghaei stated the situation in the Strait of Hormuz "has "not changed and it is still closed.""
CNBC also reported that Oman emerged as a key player in negotiations and that Baghaei described talks on Friday and Saturday as "useful discussions."
In parallel, the Guardian reported that Tehran said it would pause what it called "retaliatory" attacks against US allies in the region after the Americans stopped their attacks.
The Guardian also framed the stakes as a choice between diplomacy and continued pressure, quoting the Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei saying, "Mediators are working and trying to prevent tension from escalating."
NBC Los Angeles added that the off-ramp depended on whether the U.S. and Iran could reach a stable equilibrium on "under whose control" the Strait of Hormuz transit would operate, even as the conflict approached its five-month point.
