Iran speaker warns talks could collapse over Israeli attacks on Lebanon

Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has warned that Tehran could abandon negotiations and move towards direct confrontation after Israel’s continued attacks on southern Lebanon and Beirut.

Ghalibaf said Iran “will not only halt the path of negotiations, but we will also be in direct confrontation with the enemy” if the escalation continues.

He accused the US and Israel of sabotaging diplomacy, saying “they are neither committed to a ceasefire nor believe in dialogue and by demonstrating through the naval blockade and violation of agreements regarding Lebanon that they only understand the language of power”.

In a post on X, Ghalibaf, who also serves as Iran’s main negotiator in talks with the US, said “the naval blockade against the Iranian nation and America’s green light today to the Zionist regime turn American and regime bases and assets in the region into legitimate targets”.