Officials tell Americans in one country to ‘leave now’ due to major safety concerns
The U.S. Virtual Embassy in Iran issued a security alert Friday about land crossings — telling Americans to “leave Iran now.”
“Increased security measures, road closures, public transportation disruptions and internet blockages are ongoing,” the alert says.
“The Government of Iran continues to restrict access to mobile, landline and national internet networks. Airlines continue to limit or cancel flights to and from Iran.”
TRAVEL WARNING ESCALATES FOR TOURISTS AS US STATE DEPT FLAGS ‘ARMED CONFLICT’ RISKS
The embassy warned that Americans there should expect continued internet outages. It advises citizens to plan alternative means of communication and to depart by land to Armenia or Turkey.
The Armenian land border at Agarak/Norduz and Turkish land border crossings with Iran are open (Gürbulak/Bazargan, Kapıköy/Razi and Esendere/Serow). Turkmenistan’s land borders are also open.
Azerbaijan’s land borders are closed to routine traffic — and U.S. citizens should not travel to Afghanistan, Iran or the Pakistan-Iran border area, the alert advised.
Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are part of a U.S. delegation scheduled to meet with Iranian officials on Friday in Oman as part of diplomatic talks between the United States and Iran.
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American officials are seeking to press for an end to Iran’s nuclear enrichment program, curbs on ballistic missiles and a halt to support for proxy groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah.
President Donald Trump has also demanded an end to the regime’s violent crackdown on protesters.
The State Department issued a “Level 4 – Do not travel” advisory for the Islamic Republic of Iran in December.
At the time, it urged Americans not to visit the country “due to the risk of terrorism, unrest, kidnapping, arbitrary arrest of U.S. citizens and wrongful detention.”
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Officials reiterated that the U.S. government does not have diplomatic or consular relations in Iran.
The Swiss government, acting through its Embassy in Tehran, serves as the protecting power for United States interests in Iran.
The State Department has four travel advisory levels to help travelers assess safety risks before visiting other countries.
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The advisory levels are: Level 1 – Exercise Normal Precautions; Level 2 – Exercise Increased Caution; Level 3 – Reconsider Travel; and Level 4 – Do Not Travel.
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Iranian official says nuclear talks will continue after US, Tehran negotiations had ‘a good start’ in Oman
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that indirect nuclear talks with the U.S. in Oman were “a good start” and that there was a “consensus” that the negotiations would continue.
“After a long period without dialogue, our viewpoints were conveyed, and our concerns were expressed. Our interests, the rights of the Iranian people, and all matters that needed to be stated were presented in a very positive atmosphere, and the other side’s views were also heard,” Araghchi said.
“It was a good start, but its continuation depends on consultations in our respective capitals and deciding on how to proceed,” he added.
IRAN’S KHAMENEI STAYS AWAY FROM TALKS AS JD VANCE SAYS DYNAMIC MAKES DIPLOMACY ‘MUCH MORE COMPLICATED’
Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi met with both Iranian and American officials on Friday, the Foreign Ministry of Oman said on X. The ministry said that al-Busaidi held separate meetings with Araghchi and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.
“The consultations focused on preparing the appropriate conditions for resuming diplomatic and technical negotiations, while emphasizing their importance, in light of the parties’ determination to ensure their success in achieving sustainable security and stability,” the Foreign Ministry of Oman said.
Oman reportedly put out a public statement acknowledging the talks after journalists with The Associated Press saw Iranian and American officials separately visit the palace, the outlet reported. The AP said it was not immediately clear if talks were done for the day, but noted that the palace was empty after the convoys left.
The Iranian representatives reportedly met with al-Busaidi first, and only after their convoy left the palace did another set of vehicles arrive, one of which had an American flag, according to the AP. The outlet said the SUV flying the American flag stayed at the palace for an hour and a half.
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The talks were initially set to take place in Turkey, but were later moved, according to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who confirmed the change in venue on Wednesday.
“We thought we had an established forum that had been agreed to in Turkey. It was put together by a number of partners who wanted to attend and be a part of it,” Rubio said when taking questions from reporters on Wednesday.
“I saw conflicting reports yesterday from the Iranian side saying that they had not agreed to that. So, that’s still being worked through. At the end of the day, the United States is prepared to engage in, has always been prepared to engage with Iran.”
Iranian officials also reportedly tried to limit the talks to a bilateral U.S.-Iran format, excluding other Arab and regional countries, according to Axios.
RUBIO CONFIRMS IRAN DEMANDED VENUE CHANGE FOR NUCLEAR TALKS
Tensions between Iran and the U.S. have been high since Washington bombed Tehran’s nuclear facilities in the summer of 2025. Things escalated further as the U.S. condemned Iran’s treatment of anti-regime protesters, with President Donald Trump threatening to act if government actors used violence against demonstrators.
Trump recently said in an interview with NBC News that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei “should be very worried,” though the president acknowledged that the two countries were “negotiating.”
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When pressed about why he has not followed through on threats to take action if the regime used violence against protesters, Trump said that the U.S. “had their back” and that the “country’s a mess right now because of us,” referring to the strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities. Trump also told NBC News that the U.S. had learned that Iran was attempting to build a new nuclear site in a different part of the country.
The president said that he issued a threat that if Iran were to build a new nuclear facility, the U.S. would “do very bad things.”
It is not immediately clear whether there will be more discussions over the course of the weekend or if there are any plans for direct discussions between Iranian and American officials.
The State Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
Russian military intelligence official shot in Moscow: report
A Russian military intelligence figure was shot in the nation’s capital city on Friday, according to The Associated Press.
Lt. Gen. Vladimir Alekseyev was shot multiple times by an unidentified attacker at an apartment building and was hospitalized, Investigative Committee spokesperson Svetlana Petrenko noted in a statement, according to the AP.
President Vladimir Putin was informed about the attack, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who added that law enforcement agencies need to step up protection of senior military officers during the conflict in Ukraine.
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The AP reported that the business daily Kommersant indicated that the shooter posed as a delivery person, shooting Alekseyev twice in the stairway of his apartment building, injuring him in the foot and arm. The Russian figure attempted to wrest the weapon away and was shot again in the chest before the perpetrator fled, the report noted, according to the AP.
President Donald Trump’s administration has been striving to help broker peace between Russia and Ukraine.
The warring nations agreed to a prisoner swap this week, according to readouts posted on X by U.S. special presidential envoy for peace missions Steve Witkoff and Ukraine’s national security and defense council minister Rustem Umerov.
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“Over February 4 and 5, delegations from the United States, Ukraine, and the Russian Federation met for the second trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi to advance efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The discussions were constructive and focused on how to create the conditions for a durable peace,” the readouts state.
US SPECIAL ENVOY WITKOFF ANNOUNCES US, UKRAINIAN AND RUSSIAN DELEGATIONS AGREE TO PRISONER SWAP
“The delegations reached agreement whereby the Russian Federation and Ukraine will each release 157 Prisoners of War. This is the first exchange in the last five months,” the readouts note.
Iran’s Khamenei stays away from talks as JD Vance says dynamic makes diplomacy ‘much more complicated’
As indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran started on Friday in Oman, remarks from Vice President JD Vance earlier in the week questioning the absence of the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei from talks have raised a core dilemma for Washington — the person with ultimate authority in Tehran is not sitting at the negotiating table.
In the interview, Vance said, “It’s a very weird country to conduct diplomacy with, when you can’t even talk to the person who’s in charge of the country. That makes all of this much more complicated… It is bizarre that we can’t just talk to the actual leadership of the country. It really makes diplomacy very, very difficult,” he said on Megyn Kelly’s podcast.
IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER BLAMES TRUMP FOR INCREASINGLY INTENSE DEMONSTRATIONS
The Supreme Leader has no equals
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, has served as Iran’s supreme leader since 1989 and remains the country’s highest political and religious authority, with ultimate control over military, security and strategic decisions. That concentration of power means any diplomatic outcome must ultimately pass through him.
Sina Azodi, the director of the Middle East Studies Program at George Washington University, told Fox News Digital that Khamenei’s authority stems from direct control over Iran’s core power centers. “He is very powerful because he is the commander in chief of the armed forces and appoints the heads of the IRGC, the Artesh (conventional military), the judiciary and other important institutions.”
Azodi added that protocol and hierarchy also explain Khamenei’s absence from negotiations. “Iranians are very adamant about diplomatic protocols — that since other countries don’t have the equivalent rank, he does not participate in any negotiations because his ‘equal’ rank does not exist,” Azodi said. “Even when foreign heads of state visit him, there is only the Iranian flag, and foreign flags are not allowed.”
Iranian sources familiar with internal discussions described Khamenei as operating from a legacy mindset at this stage of his life. “The supreme leader sees the confrontation with Washington as defining his historical role and believes Iran can retaliate against U.S. interests in the region. Khamenei is not focused on personal risk and views strategic confrontation as part of preserving his legacy,” a Middle Eastern source speaking on the condition of anonymity told Fox News Digital.
Behnam Ben Taleblu, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that Khamenei remains the decisive figure in Iran’s system even as the regime faces pressure at home and abroad.
“He wields great influence in Iran but also exercises the greatest veto in Iran’s political hierarchy”
“He wields great influence in Iran but also exercises the greatest veto in Iran’s political hierarchy,” Ben Taleblu said.
He added, “The Iranian strategy… is to raise the cost of war in the thinking of the adversary,” he said, describing a system that signals willingness to talk while simultaneously preparing for confrontation.
He warned that “regimes that are afraid and lethal and weak can still be dangerous,” and said Tehran may believe threatening U.S. assets could deter a broader war even if such escalation risks triggering a stronger American response.
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“Very difficult to say what Khamenei’s mindset is, but I think that he, along with other senior officials, think that the current conflict is not an isolated phenomenon but rather the continuation of the June 2025 conflict and the recent protests, which he called ‘an American coup,’” Azodi told Fox News Digital.
“I think that he thinks that the U.S. is definitely after a regime change and that needs to be resisted at all costs,” he added.
Inside Iran, frustration with Khamenei has become increasingly visible, according to a journalist reporting from within the country.
TRUMP SAYS IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER KHAMENEI SHOULD BE ‘VERY WORRIED’ AMID TENSIONS
“What people want more than anything else is for Khamenei to die… I hear it every day, everywhere I go — why doesn’t he die?” the journalist told Fox News Digital.
“He is perceived as God’s representative, while leaders of enemy states are viewed as representatives of Satan, which is why he never meets with them.”
“You just open the Twitter of Iranians… the tweet is, why don’t you die? And everybody knows who we are talking about. So a nation is waiting for him to die.”
The journalist said many Iranians no longer believe political reform is possible and instead see generational change as the only turning point.
An Iranian journalist in exile, Mehdi Ghadimi, told Fox News Digital that, “The Islamic government considers itself obligated to enforce Islamic law across the entire world. They harbor hatred toward Iranians and Jews, whom they regard as enemies of Islam,” he explained, “In such a structure, the leader is seen as more than a political ruler; he is perceived as God’s representative, while leaders of enemy states are viewed as representatives of Satan, which is why he never meets with them. If dialogue or compromise were to take place, his sacred image would collapse in the eyes of his supporters.”
He continued, “For this reason, groups labeled as ‘moderate,’ ‘reformist’ or ‘pro-Western’ are created so that the West can negotiate with them,” Ghadimi added. “No one within the structure of the Islamic Republic thinks about anything other than defeating the Western world and establishing Islamic dominance globally. The diplomats presented to Western politicians as moderates are tasked with using diplomacy to buy time for Khamenei.”
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The negotiations come amid heightened regional tensions, U.S. military deployments and unresolved disputes over Iran’s nuclear program and missile capabilities.
Regional analysts say that for the U.S., the central challenge remains unchanged. Diplomats can negotiate, but the final decision rests with one man — a leader shaped by decades of confrontation with the United States, focused on regime survival and determined to preserve his legacy even as Iran enters a new round of talks.
Iran seizes oil tankers, threatens ‘massacre’ in Strait of Hormuz, hours before US talks
Iran seized two foreign oil tankers in the Persian Gulf Thursday, accusing them of smuggling fuel and detaining 15 foreign crew members ahead of high-stakes U.S.–Iran talks Friday in Oman.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy said it intercepted the two ships near Farsi Island, claiming they were carrying about 1 million liters of smuggled fuel, Reuters reported.
The crews, made up of 15 foreign nationals, were taken into custody and referred to Iran’s judicial authorities, according to Iranian state media.
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The IRGC alleged the vessels were part of an organized fuel-smuggling network that had been operating in the region for several months.
Iranian officials said the ships were identified through intelligence monitoring and seized during coordinated naval operations in the Persian Gulf, a vital artery for global energy markets.
According to The Jerusalem Post, Iranian authorities framed the operation as a significant blow to illegal fuel trafficking, though they did not immediately disclose the vessels’ nationalities or destinations.
US MILITARY WARNS IRAN IT WILL NOT TOLERATE ANY ‘UNSAFE’ ACTIONS AHEAD OF LIVE-FIRE DRILLS IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ
The seizures come as Iranian rhetoric toward the U.S. has grown hostile.
Ezzatollah Zarghami, a former Iranian minister and ex–state broadcaster chief, issued a warning, threatening violence in the Strait of Hormuz, through which around one-fifth of the world’s oil and petroleum product consumption passes.
“I am sure that the Strait of Hormuz will be the place of massacre and hell for the U.S.,” Zarghami said Thursday.
“Iran will show that the Strait of Hormuz has historically belonged to Iran. The only thing the Americans can think of is playing with their vessels and moving them from one place to another.”
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Zarghami later repeated the threat, calling the Strait a potential “killing field” for American forces and signaling Iran’s willingness to escalate amid mounting regional pressure.
Special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are scheduled to meet Iranian officials in Oman Friday.
The pair are traveling from Abu Dhabi after two days of talks related to Russia and Ukraine.
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Thursday that Friday’s talks were still on, stating “diplomacy is always [Trump’s] first option.”