Iranian American comedian Max Amini sheds light on ‘unimaginable’ oppression in Iran ahead of historic show
As Max Amini prepares to become the first Iranian American comedian to headline Madison Square Garden on Sunday, he spoke with Fox News Digital about what he described as the “unimaginable” oppression facing the Iranian people under the Islamic Republic’s regime.
Born in Tucson, Arizona, in 1981 to a Persian family, Amini has always felt a deep connection to the country his parents grew up in and to the culture in which he was raised.
“I was born into this family who… promoted the Iranian culture in a very positive way to us,” he told Fox News Digital. “So I learned all the best things about my culture. And I was very lucky to be raised in America — in an environment that was very patriotic.”
LEAKED DOCUMENTS EXPOSE KHAMENEI’S SECRET DEADLY BLUEPRINT FOR CRUSHING IRAN PROTESTS
Iran’s citizens have taken to the streets in mass protests against Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s regime in recent weeks, with reports claiming thousands of people have been killed as the regime cracks down on the protests. The protests come as the nation faces unrest over economic grievances and political repression.
As arguably the most popular Iranian American comedian in the world, Amini has taken it upon himself to advocate against the horrors facing the people of Iran, and to “promote the idea [of] how important it is to respect human rights.”
“Freedom is something that today we understand is the most important thing for any human. If you can imagine how hard it is to be in any country as someone who lives in this beautiful country, can you imagine that they strip away all your rights?” he questioned.
“You’re afraid of what you’re saying. You can’t do simple things in life – singing, dancing. You know, basic, basic things that we take for granted. Women cannot sing or dance in public. They cannot go out with their significant other freely and people cannot exercise their beliefs, certain religions,” Amini continued. “It’s very unimaginable for people who live in a free country, like the U.S. or European countries, that have so much respect for human rights.”
IRAN RAMPS UP REGIONAL THREATS AS TRUMP CONSIDERS TALKS, EYEWITNESS ACCOUNTS OF REGIME VIOLENCE EMERGE
The comedian argued that there’s nothing “Islamic” or anything resembling a “Republic” in Iran under the Islamic Republic’s leadership, and that “Iranian people are very different” from the government that rules over them.
“They’re a terrorist group, they’re a mafia, and they’re absolutely brutal. They’re killing their own people,” he said of the Iranian government.
Amini described the Iranian people as vibrant and modern, despite how they are sometimes portrayed by the media.
“They’re fun, they’re hip, they’re fashion forward. When you understand just their taste of music and the way they enjoy their gatherings and how they live, you’ll be surprised [by] what the media shows and what the reality is,” he told Fox News Digital. “So I hope everybody gets a chance to see that soon.”
IRAN STAGES KHAMENEI PHOTOS TO MASK CRACKS IN IRGC, OPPOSITION GROUPS SAY
Amini described the solution to the situation unfolding in Iran as a “rescue mission,” and said, “We need to go in that country and rescue the kidnapped people by a terrorist regime.”
“The number [of protesters killed] is massive and for a human to be living in a country where if they go out, they’re guaranteed to be murdered, foreign countries should take this seriously,” he contended.
“Historically, when a country is held in this situation, they are held hostage. There is a regime that is absolutely brutal and they are killing their own people. The intervention is a must. And the rescue mission is the most beautiful act a country can do for these people,” Amini continued. “They’re screaming. They’re screaming out for help.”
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Although those living outside Iran may feel that what’s happening hundreds or thousands of miles away has no impact on their lives, Amini argued that history suggests otherwise.
“We think the other side of the world is not going to affect us, but now if you look at the history of just the last 20–30 years, as Americans, we’ve been so affected by some of the most corrupt things [that are] happening on the other side of the world,” he maintained. “I hope soon we reach much better connections with humanity.”
Global protests call for Iran regime change in major cities worldwide after bloody crackdown
Anti-Iran regime protesters gathered in major cities across the globe Saturday calling for a leadership change in a Global Day of Action Rally.
Over 250,000 protesters rallied in Munich, Germany, Saturday with the Munich Security Conference as a backdrop.
“With the number of participants recorded, this gathering is one of the largest rallies held in Munich in recent years,” the Munich Police reported in a press release. “The peaceful atmosphere is particularly noteworthy, despite the high number of participants in the meeting.”
IRAN REGIME REPORTEDLY ISSUED NATIONWIDE SHOOT-TO-KILL ORDERS AS PROTEST DEATH TOLL SURGES
Crowds reportedly chanted “change, change, regime change” and “democracy for Iran” with green, white and red flags with lion and sun emblems waving in the air with a few “Make Iran Great Again” red hats spotted.
Exiled Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi was among the hundreds of thousands protesting, telling Reuters a possible attack on Iran will either weaken the regime or accelerate its fall.
“It’s a matter of time. We are hoping that this attack will expedite the process, and the people can be finally back in the streets and take it all the way to the ultimate regime’s downfall,” said Pahlavi.
He said he hopes President Trump will have the United States intervene and “have the people’s back.”
UPROAR AFTER IRAN NAMED VICE CHAIR OF UN BODY PROMOTING DEMOCRACY, WOMEN’S RIGHTS
On Friday, President Trump said regime change in Iran would be the “best thing” to happen while speaking to troops at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.
“People are hoping that, at some point, the decision will be made that there’s no use, there’s no point, we’re not going to get anywhere with negotiations,” said Pahlavi. “Intervention is a way to save lives.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., was present in Munich for the security conference and echoed a similar sentiment in a sideline interview Friday.
NIKKI HALEY URGES TRUMP TO MAKE IRAN ACTION A ‘LEGACY-DEFINING MOMENT’ BEFORE LEAVING OFFICE
“There’s no negotiating with these people in my view. They’re hell-bent on enacting an agenda based on religion that teaches them to lie, teaches them to destroy in the name of God,” said Graham.
He shared that the regime is the weakest it has been since 1979, adding, “It is a regime with American blood on its hand.” And he called on protesters to “keep protesting.”
The senator also took the stage at the Global Day of Action, speaking to the crowd and holding up a black “Make Iran Great Again” hat.
Large demonstrations were also held in Toronto, Melbourne, Athens, Tokyo, London and Los Angeles.
An estimated 350,000 people marched on the streets of Toronto, the city’s police spokesperson, Laura Brabant, told The Associated Press.
Iranian American activist and Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Sheila Nazarian told Fox News Digital the protests across the globe represent a universal truth.
“When regimes silence their people, the people eventually find their voice. Whether in the streets of Tehran or in diaspora communities around the world,” she said.
Nazarian left Iran when she was 6 years old along with her family.
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“As someone who came to this country from Iran, I know firsthand that these protests are not about politics. They’re about basic human dignity, women’s rights and the fundamental freedom to live without fear,” she added.
Iran regime accused of killing 19 Christians in anti-regime protests as persecution continues: watchdog
The Islamic Republic of Iran’s atrocities against demonstrators opposed to the regime has reportedly resulted in security forces killing at least 19 Iranian Christians, according to Article 18, an organization that promotes religious freedom in Iran.
Article 18 reported on Feb. 9 that “The total number of Christians confirmed to have been killed during the protests is at least 19, including members of Iran’s recognized (Armenians and Assyrians) and unrecognized (converts) communities.”
According to the Article 18 statement, the Islamic Republic’s “brutal response to last month’s mass demonstrations” resulted in the security forces murdering Iranian Christians Nader Mohammadi, 35, and Zahra Arjomandi, 51, who were both shot dead on Jan. 8 in separate protests 1,000 miles apart.
INSIDE TRUMP’S IRAN WARNING — AND THE UNEXPECTED PAUSE THAT FOLLOWED
Mohammadi was the father of three young children, and was killed in Babol in northern Iran. Arjomandi, who was a mother of two children, died in her son’s arms on the Persian Gulf island of Qeshm, in southern Iran, noted Article 18.
The Iranian Christian website Mohabat News stated that regime security forces refused to release Arjomandi’s body for six days. Mohabat reported that her body was only released for burial under “strict security measures”, which included a media blackout and prohibiting a memorial service.
Mansour Borji, the executive director for Article 18, told Fox News Digital that, “Today, Christians, like millions of other Iranians, seek the freedom and justice that they have been denied for nearly five decades, and they know well that this comes at a price. Every year many Christians are arrested and imprisoned under torturous conditions for practicing their right to religious freedom, where a simple act like praying together in house-churches seems like an act of civil disobedience.”
IRAN WILL RETALIATE ‘WITH EVERYTHING WE HAVE’ IF US ATTACKS, SENIOR DIPLOMAT WARNS
He continued, “Our organization considers the Islamic Republic’s massacre of all peaceful protesters a crime against humanity that should not go unpunished. There must be an end to the impunity that, for far too long, has enabled this regime to commit crimes like at home and abroad. Branding peaceful protesters as ‘terrorists,’ and Christians that are persecuted every year as ‘Zionist mercenaries,’ is nothing but scapegoating.”
He warned that “The Islamic Republic’s regime has, since its inception, demonstrated all traits of a totalitarian state. Most Iranians have now come to realize that their fundamental rights have been taken away from them, including the freedom to choose one’s own religion or belief, political self-determination and even their lifestyle choices. Christians were some of the earliest to experience this, when an Anglican priest and convert to Christianity, Rev. Arastoo Sayyah, was killed in his church office less than 200 hours after the 1979 revolution.”
A comprehensive 2025 report titled, “The Tip of the Iceberg” about the persecution of Iranian Christians was released by Article 18 in collaboration with Open Doors, Christian Solidarity Worldwide and Middle East Concern.
According to the “The Tip of the Iceberg” report, Mohammad Nasirpour, the deputy prosecutor of Tehran and head of the 33rd District Prosecutor’s office, stated in his indictment against four Iranian Christians on June 2022: “Armenian and Assyrian Christians in the Protestant denomination, with their evangelical nature and mission to Christianize Iran, are perceived as a security threat to the Islamic Revolution, aimed at undermining the Islamic foundation of the Islamic Republic. It could be said that Persian-speaking evangelical movements are supported by fundamentalist evangelical Christians and Zionists.”
According to a Feb. 10 report on the website of Christianity Today, Iranian Christians want President Trump to intervene to stop the Ayatollah’s regime from continuing with its massacre of Iranians.
RUBIO REVOKES IRANIAN OFFICIALS’ US TRAVEL PRIVILEGES OVER DEADLY PROTEST CRACKDOWN KILLING THOUSANDS
“That’s probably one of the most frustrating aspects of the whole situation right now,” said Shahrokh Afshar, founder of Fellowship of Iranian Christians. “Everyone was hoping he would do something,” Afshar told the outlet after the Iranian authorities killed thousands of protesters in January, according to some estimates.
Fox News Digital has reported over the decades on the Islamic Republic’s high-intensity persecution of Iranian Christians in the wake of the growing popularity of Christianity in the Muslim-majority country. Iran’s regime targets diverse groups of Christians, including Evangelicals and Catholics. In 2017, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) arrested two Christians – a mother and her son – as part of a brutal crackdown on Catholicism in the country’s West Azerbaijan Province.
STATE DEPARTMENT DEMANDS IRAN HALT EXECUTION OF 19-YEAR-OLD WRESTLING STAR AS IOC REMAINS SILENT
The family’s bibles and literature on Christian theology were also seized during the raid.
The United States State Department has designated Iran as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC)” because the Islamic regime has “engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom” with respect to violations of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998.
The Iranian regime -controlled statistical center of Iran claims there are 117,700 Christians of recognized denominations as of the 2016 census, according to the most recent U.S. State Department report on the plight of Iranian Christians.
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However, the State Department noted that, “The Christian advocacy NGO Article 18 estimates there are 500,000 to 800,000 Christians in the country, while the Christian advocacy NGO Open Doors International estimates the number is 1.24 million. Christian NGOs report many Christians are converts from Islam or other recognized faiths.” The population of Iran is roughly 92 million.
USS Ford ordered to the Middle East, the second aircraft carrier being sent to the region
The USS Gerald R. Ford has been ordered to move from the Caribbean Sea to the Middle East, as President Donald Trump weighs whether to take military action against Iran amid tensions in the region, a U.S. official confirmed to Fox News.
This will put two aircraft carriers and their accompanying warships in the region. The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier and three guided-missile destroyers arrived in the Middle East more than two weeks ago.
The USS Ford, which set out on deployment in June 2025, was sent from the Mediterranean Sea to the Caribbean last fall as the administration established a significant military presence ahead of the operation to strike Venezuela and capture its president, Nicolás Maduro.
SCOTT BESSENT SAYS IRAN UNDERSTANDS ‘BRUTE FORCE’ AS TRUMP WEIGHS OPTIONS AMID NUCLEAR STANDOFF
On Thursday, Trump warned Iran that failure to reach a deal with the U.S. regarding its nuclear program would be “very traumatic” after the two countries held indirect talks in Oman last week.
“It should happen quickly. They should agree very quickly,” he told reporters.
Trump held talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday and said he insisted to the Israeli leader that negotiations with Iran must continue.
TRUMP SAYS IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER KHAMENEI SHOULD BE ‘VERY WORRIED’ AMID TENSIONS
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Netanyahu is calling on the Trump administration to push Tehran to scale back its ballistic missile program and end its support for terror groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah as part of any deal.
Uproar after Iran named vice-chair of UN body promoting democracy, women’s rights
UNITED NATIONS: Iran’s election as vice-chair of the United Nations Commission for Social Development is being slammed by human rights advocates and policy analysts, who have condemned the U.N.’s hypocrisy when it comes to its treatment of undemocratic regimes.
The leadership role was approved without objection during a meeting of the commission, where delegates adopted agenda items and organizational decisions by consensus.
The United Nations has faced continued criticism over its inaction towards the regime’s violent crackdown against protesters in December and January. On Wednesday, U.N. Secretary General António Guterres faced criticism for congratulating Iran on the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution.
UN CHIEF BLASTED AS ‘ABJECTLY TONE-DEAF’ OVER MESSAGE TO IRAN MARKING REVOLUTION ANNIVERSARY
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz criticized the development, writing on X: “Yet another reason why we are not a member of, nor do we participate in, this ridiculous ‘Commission for Social Development.’”
Alireza Jafarzadeh, author of The Iran Threat and deputy director of the U.S. office of the National Council of Resistance of Iran, also criticized the decision. “Having the Iranian regime in the leadership of a U.N. body tasked with promoting democracy, gender equality, tolerance and non-violence is appalling and like fox guarding the hen house,” Jafarzadeh said. “The vast majority of the Iranian people are calling for regime change because the mullahs are the world’s leading human rights violators, misogynist to the core, and they slaughter the voices of dissent by thousands.”
He argued that Iran should face scrutiny rather than institutional advancement. “Instead, the Iranian regime must be a subject of intense investigation and accountability by all U.N. bodies for crimes against humanity and genocide, from the 1980s to January 2026 uprisings,” Jafarzadeh said. “Decades of inaction by Western governments have emboldened the regime. This must stop now.”
G7 THREATENS IRAN WITH NEW SANCTIONS OVER NATIONWIDE PROTEST CRACKDOWN KILLING THOUSANDS
“By electing Iran to help lead a commission devoted to democracy, women’s rights and non-violence, the U.N. makes itself into a mockery,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch. “This is a regime that brutalizes women for not covering their hair, and that just massacred tens of thousands of its own civilians in two days.”
Neuer argued that governments had the ability to block the appointment but chose not to act. “The EU states know how to stop abusive regimes from winning these seats — they’ve done so in the recent past with Russia — but this time on Iran, they chose silence and complicity,” he said. “By rewarding the Mullahs right after their slaughter of innocents, the U.N. has now sent a very dangerous message to Tehran.”
Lisa Daftari, an Iran analyst, said the optics of Iran holding a leadership role in a commission centered on social development and rights were deeply troubling.
US AMBASSADOR WARNS IRAN AT EMERGENCY UN MEETING THAT TRUMP IS ‘MAN OF ACTION,’ ‘ALL OPTIONS ARE ON THE TABLE’
“For Iranian women who risk prison or worse just for taking off a headscarf, watching Tehran get a vice-chair on a U.N. social-development commission feels like a slap in the face.”
She added that broader patterns in U.N. voting and resolutions contribute to perceptions of bias.
“When the same U.N. system has spent the last decade passing roughly 170-plus resolutions against Israel and only around 80 on all other countries combined, you don’t need a PhD to see there’s a bias problem,” Daftari said. “When the U.N. has churned out well over a hundred anti-Israel resolutions in recent years while managing a fraction of that number on the world’s worst dictatorships, it looks less like moral leadership and more like political theater.”
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Daftari rejected that procedural nature of United Nations committees and committees.
“Some diplomats will wave this away as a procedural formality, but at the U.N. nothing is ever purely symbolic,” she said. “The bottom line is that handing Iran’s regime a gavel on ‘social development’ confirms yet again that the place is biased and deeply hypocritical.”
MORNING GLORY: President Donald Trump’s most important decision is coming
One door is marked “Truman/Reagan” and the other door is marked “Carter/Obama/Biden.”
President Donald Trump has to choose one. Again. And this time, the choice will define Trump’s place in history.
On three different occasions, the 45th and 47th president of the United States has walked through the first door.
Trump ordered the assassination of General Qasem Soleimani, the head of the Quds Force of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, on January 3, 2020.
IRAN POSES A FAR MORE DANGEROUS MILITARY TEST FOR THE US THAN VENEZUELA, EXPERTS WARN
Trump followed that up with his second-term order to conduct Operation Midnight Resolve against Iran’s nuclear weapons facilities in June of last year and again with Operation Absolute Resolve to snatch Venezuelan dictator Nicholas Maduro in January of this year.
President Trump ventured boldly three times and won big for the United States three times, restoring American deterrence along the way.
Trump had to restore American deterrence in 2020 because the Iranian regime had thoroughly worked over former President Barack Obama with the infamous “Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action” of 2015, a plan that secured for Iran billions in cash, hundreds of billions in sanctions relief and a guaranteed path to nuclear weapons. It was a surrender of the Middle East to the mullahs disguised in dense language and absurd timelines. But the Iranian theocrats knew they had won.
TRUMP’S LEADERSHIP CREATES ‘RARE OPPORTUNITY’ FOR CHANGE IN IRAN, FORMER IRANIAN POLITICAL PRISONER SAYS
President Trump has called the JCPOA the “worst deal in history” scores of times, and he’s always been right. It was the equal of the “Munich Agreement” between Neville Chamberlain and Hitler. The damage to the world was immense.
While President Joe Biden’s disastrous and chaotic retreat from Afghanistan did not concern Iran directly, it did deeply damage America’s standing in the world and define the Biden presidency as one mired in catastrophic failure from the jump.
President Trump worked to reverse the damage created by the JCPOA with the strikes on Soleimani and the Iranian nuke facilities.
IRAN PROTESTS PROMPT NEW TRUMP WARNING OVER DEADLY GOVERNMENT CRACKDOWNS
Now, however, the Iranians are countering with thousands of ballistic missiles which already threaten American bases across the Middle East, Israel and our Gulf allies. The nature of the regime has been fully revealed even to the appeasers on Team Obama and Team Biden: The ayatollahs ordered tens of thousands of their citizens gunned down or murdered with machetes this January. Does anyone doubt they would turn their missiles on American cities as soon as they develop the range? Crazed killers are going to kill, again and again and again.
Because of Presidents Obama and Biden, Ayatollah Khamenei and his IRGC thugs believe America always “blinks” in the end. They still don’t believe Trump is different from Obama and Biden. They see the one-day missions from Trump as brief aberrations from the Obama-Biden pattern of appeasement. The Iranians do not fear Trump. Yet.
The Iranians build enormous missiles with enormous warheads. There are more than a thousand missiles in their arsenal already, and they have accelerated the production of thousands more after the Trump strike on their nuclear weapons facilities last year.
IRAN RESPONDS TO TRUMP PRESSURE WITH WARNING OF RETALIATION: ‘FINGERS ON THE TRIGGER’
The Iranians are working to extend the range of their missiles. The longest range Iranian missiles can probably reach Europe now. They will threaten the U.S. sooner rather than later, and we don’t have Trump’s “Golden Dome” — yet.
So Trump must decide now what to do about those missiles and about the mass murderers who run Iran. Trump has ordered an immense build-up of American military assets build-up of American military assets within striking range of Iran, and deployed the defensive systems that we have to protect our bases and our allies.
Now he has to decide which door to walk through.
HEGSETH SAYS DEPARTMENT OF WAR ‘WILL BE PREPARED TO DELIVER’ WHATEVER TRUMP WANTS FOLLOWING IRAN WARNING
Truman and Reagan (and both Bushes) would order the strike.
Carter, Obama and Biden would back down and pretend they had defused a crisis when, in fact, they had decapitated American deterrence.
Rarely do we see such a stark choice presented to a president — a fork in his personal road as far as history is concerned, and very much a fork in America’s road for its future.
Trump can be remembered as the man who brought help to the Iranian people after nearly 50 years of fanatical dictatorship and secured America from an unfolding threat, or as the president who backed down more spectacularly than any president before him.
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On August 26, 1990, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher talked to President George H.W. Bush about Saddam Hussein’s invasion of Kuwait. “This was no time to go wobbly,” the PM told the president.
That was probably the least necessary encouragement ever, as the old fighter pilot from WWII was not the sort of man to back down. (HW was shot down twice and back flying his missions after both.) But Thatcher’s line went down in history because it is both so very British and so very useful in many contexts.
IRAN’S COLLAPSE OR SURVIVAL HINGES ON ONE CHOICE INSIDE THE REVOLUTIONARY GUARD
It is useful now. President Trump simply cannot go wobbly no matter how attractive the Carter/Obama/Biden door looks as an exit. Put another way, Trump “cannot go Obama.”
To repeat: President Trump’s choice will define his place in history. Everything else in his eight years will be secondary to what he decides in the near term.
Every other achievement will be secondary. Every criticism will be irrelevant when destroying the Iranian regime’s threat to the world is put on the table.
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President Trump can choose to do what no other president since Jimmy Carter has dared to do: Cripple or end the fanatical regime in Iran that already works to threaten and destabilize the Middle East every day and which will soon be able to threaten the U.S. if not stopped.
Pray he chooses wisely. America’s national security and the hope of the Iranian people and the future of the Middle East depends upon this decision.
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Iranian brutality: Nobel laureate fighting for life after barbaric assault at notorious prison
The Norwegian Nobel Committee is calling on Iran to stop its physical abuse and life-threatening treatment of Nobel peace laureate Narges Mohammadi, who has been imprisoned since December.
The committee said it had received “credible reports” of “life-threatening mistreatment” of Mohammadi, an activist arrested by plain-clothes agents while peacefully attending the funeral of the late human rights lawyer and advocate Khosrow Alikordi.
Mohammadi has been beaten by wooden sticks and batons and dragged across the ground by her hair, tearing sections of her scalp and causing open wounds, the committee said.
US AMBASSADOR WARNS IRAN AT EMERGENCY UN MEETING THAT TRUMP IS ‘MAN OF ACTION,’ ‘ALL OPTIONS ARE ON THE TABLE’
Furthermore, she was repeatedly kicked in the genitals and pelvic region, leaving her unable to sit or move without severe pain and raising serious concerns of bone fracture, it said.
“The Committee is horrified by these acts, and reiterates that Ms. Mohammadi’s imprisonment is arbitrary and unjust,” committee Chair Jorgen Watne Frydnes said in a statement. “Her only ‘offence’ is the peaceful exercise of her fundamental rights – freedom of expression, association and assembly – in defence (sic) of women’s equality and human dignity.”
TOP IRANIAN GENERAL THREATENS TO ‘CUT OFF’ TRUMP’S HAND OVER POTENTIAL MILITARY STRIKES
An Iranian prosecutor at the time of the arrest told reporters that Mohammadi made provocative remarks at the memorial ceremony in the northeastern city of Mashhad and encouraged those present “to chant norm‑breaking slogans” and “disturb the peace,” Reuters reported.
Mohammadi, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023, has spent much of the last two decades in Iran’s infamous Evin prison.
The committee is calling on Tehran to release Mohammadi and guarantee her access to medical care.
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“Mohammadi’s ordeal is yet another grim example of the brutal repression that has followed the mass protests in Iran, where countless women and men have risked their lives to demand freedom, equality and basic human rights,” it said.
Scott Bessent says Iran understands ‘brute force’ as Trump weighs options amid nuclear standoff
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent discussed whether President Donald Trump may need to pull another Operation Midnight Hammer against Iran as its leadership refuses to negotiate over its nuclear program.
Joining “America Reports” Wednesday, Bessent discussed the U.S. economy, midterm elections and ongoing nuclear talks with Iran.
“What the Iranians understand is brute force, whether it’s in the financial markets, whether it’s on the military field and at Treasury, we have exercised maximum pressure,” he told Fox News. “We’re continuing to do that.”
Bessent’s remarks come after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the president at the White House earlier Wednesday, where the two had what Bessent described as “very detailed talks.”
RETIRED GENERAL ARGUES MILITARY ACTION AGAINST IRAN IS ‘BEST OPTION’ AS TRUMP FACES ‘HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY’
Trump said “nothing definitive” was reached with Netanyahu in a post on Truth Social after an hours-long meeting.
“There was nothing definitive reached other than I insisted that negotiations with Iran continue to see whether or not a deal can be consummated,” Trump wrote. “If it can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference. If it cannot, we will just have to see what the outcome will be… Last time Iran decided that they were better off not making a deal, and they were hit with Midnight Hammer — That did not work well for them.”
The president has been steadily increasing pressure on Iran to agree to the United States’ demand that it dismantle its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
NIKKI HALEY URGES TRUMP TO MAKE IRAN ACTION A ‘LEGACY-DEFINING MOMENT’ BEFORE LEAVING OFFICE
Trump issued a warning to Iran in January if it refused to negotiate a nuclear deal.
“As I told Iran once before, MAKE A DEAL! They didn’t, and there was ‘Operation Midnight Hammer,’ a major destruction of Iran. The next attack will be far worse! Don’t make that happen again,” the president wrote Jan. 28 on Truth Social.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has rejected the United States’ nuclear demands, maintaining that the country will not negotiate over its ballistic missile program.
TRUMP SAYS IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER KHAMENEI SHOULD BE ‘VERY WORRIED’ AMID TENSIONS
Bessent said he has received clear orders from the president to keep pressure on the Islamic regime, telling Fox News Trump ordered him last March to exert maximum pressure against Iran, including sanctions, and the strategy has “worked.”
When asked whether Trump may have to resort to military action similar to last summer’s Operation Midnight Hammer, Bessent said he didn’t want to get ahead of current talks, but that administration officials are positioning assets and weighing options.
“The president and Secretary Hegseth are moving military assets toward Iran, and they’re going to have some decisions to make,” he said.
TRUMP PRESSURES IRAN TO ‘COME TO THE TABLE’ AS ‘MASSIVE’ US ARMADA DRAWS NEAR
The secretary also revealed that Trump feels more confident about securing U.S. nuclear demands on Iran after Operation Midnight Hammer decimated the nation’s nuclear facilities.
“He believes that he can get a much better deal from the Iranians now after Operation Midnight Hammer on June 22, but it’s up to the Iranians,” Bessent said.
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Bessent also detailed what he may do at the Treasury to continue pressure on Iran.
“We are tracking the Iranian leadership, the money that they’re sending around the world,” he said. “And if we are called upon, we will recover it for the Iranian people.”
Trump meets Netanyahu, says he wants Iran deal but reminds Tehran of ‘Midnight Hammer’ operation
Iran dominated the agenda in Wednesday’s White House meeting between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with both leaders signaling that diplomacy with Tehran remains uncertain and that coordination will continue if talks fail.
In a post on Truth Social following the meeting, Trump said he pushed for continued negotiations but left open other options.
“There was nothing definitive reached other than I insisted that negotiations with Iran continue to see whether or not a deal can be consummated. If it can, I let the Prime Minister know that will be a preference. If it cannot, we will just have to see what the outcome will be… Last time Iran decided that they were better off not making a deal, and they were hit with Midnight Hammer — That did not work well for them.”
Netanyahu’s office said the leaders discussed Iran, Gaza and broader regional developments and agreed to maintain close coordination, adding that the prime minister emphasized Israel’s security needs in the context of negotiations.
FROM GAZA TO IRAN: WHAT’S AT STAKE IN TRUMP-NETANYAHU MAR-A-LAGO TALKS?
Earlier in the day, Netanyahu formally joined the U.S.-backed Board of Peace, signing onto the initiative ahead of the meeting after weeks of hesitation. The move places Israel inside a forum that includes Western partners as well as Turkey and Qatar, whose involvement in Gaza has drawn criticism in Jerusalem.
Experts say the decision reflects strategic calculations tied to both Gaza and Iran.
Dr. Dan Diker, president of the Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs, said Netanyahu’s participation is directly linked to cooperation with Washington and to shaping postwar arrangements in Gaza.
“It is in Israel’s interest for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to join the Board of Peace. He needs a place at that table even alongside adversarial powers such as Muslim Brotherhood-aligned countries Qatar and Turkey. Netanyahu’s membership in the Board of Peace is an important element in his cooperation with President Trump to help implement the 20-point plan, with deradicalization, disarming Hamas and demilitarization as the first three non-negotiable actions.”
ISRAELI OFFICIALS REPORTEDLY WARN IRAN’S BALLISTIC MISSILES COULD TRIGGER SOLO MILITARY ACTION AGAINST TEHRAN
Diker said the decision is also tied to Iran. “More strategic reason that Netanyahu’s membership on the Board of Peace is important is that it represents an element of cooperation to counter the Iranian regime. Netanyahu is likely counting on action against the Iranian regime from the Iranian people themselves and from the United States in the coming weeks. In exchange, Netanyahu continues to cooperate in implementing the 20-point plan in Gaza as part of a quid pro quo.”
Blaise Misztal, vice president for policy at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, described Israel’s move as a pragmatic choice shaped by the incomplete implementation of the Gaza deal and the broader regional threat environment.
“The implementation of the Gaza peace deal leaves much to be desired. Hamas, despite being given 72 hours to release all hostages, took over 100 days to do so; Hamas has still not disarmed; there is neither an International Stabilization Force nor any countries jumping at the chance to join it; and the Board of Peace comprises countries that have shown themselves enemies of peace with Israel.”
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He said Israel ultimately chose engagement over isolation. “Proceeding with the deal — including joining the Board of Peace — is Israel’s least bad option. Israel has a better chance of countering or balancing Turkish and Qatari influence on the Board of Peace by being in the room with them, rather than outside it.”
Misztal also linked the timing to Iran. “With the United States having a real chance to disarm, or even topple, the Iranian regime and the risk that Tehran might yet lash out at Israel, there is no interest in doing anything that would risk restarting the war in Gaza.”
UN chief blasted as ‘abjectly tone-deaf’ over message to Iran marking revolution anniversary
UNITED NATIONS: U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres sent a congratulatory message to Iran marking the anniversary of the 1979 Islamic revolution, a move that drew sharp criticism from anti-regime Iranian voices and human rights advocates.
In a letter addressed to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Guterres “extended his warmest congratulations on the National Day of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” describing such anniversaries as an opportunity to reflect on a country’s path and contributions to the international community, according to Iranian state and regional reporting published Wednesday.
The message comes weeks after the U.N.’s top human rights body condemned Iran over abuses tied to a violent crackdown on anti-government protests and mandated further investigation into alleged violations, with some reports citing casualty figures that could reach 30,000, pending verification.
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Furthermore, according to the NGO U.N. Watch, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, is expected to address the U.N. Human Rights Council on Feb. 23.
Against that backdrop, critics said the secretary-general’s congratulatory message risked sending a conflicting signal.
“The U.N. secretary-general’s congratulatory message is not merely diplomatic routine — it is abjectly tone-deaf,” said Iran analyst Banafsheh Zand. “At a time when the Iranian people continue to endure executions, repression and systemic abuse at the hands of the Islamic Republic, offering formal congratulations to the architects of that suffering reads as a moral failure.”
Zand added that such gestures “erode [the U.N.’s] credibility and deepen the wound for those still fighting for freedom inside Iran.”
Andrew Ghalili, policy director at the National Union for Democracy in Iran (NUFDI), said the message amounted to legitimizing a repressive system.
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“The United Nations is legitimizing a regime built on repression, executions and the systematic destruction of basic freedoms,” Ghalili said. “Offering celebratory recognition to the Islamic Republic on the anniversary of its revolution ignores the bloodshed, the repression of protesters and the ongoing hostage-taking of innocent people.”
Human rights groups have repeatedly warned that impunity has enabled ongoing abuses in Iran, urging U.N. member states to pursue accountability for what they describe as systemic violations and mass killings of protesters.
Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the secretary-general, told Fox News Digital during a press briefing that the message to Tehran was part of a long-standing U.N. protocol.
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“The letter that came out from the secretary-general is a standard letter. Every year, each member state gets the exact same letter… congratulating them on the national holiday and conveying best wishes to the people of that country.”
The spokesperson added that similar letters were sent the same day to other countries marking national holidays and “should not be interpreted… as an endorsement of whatever policies may be put in place by the government.” He said the message “doesn’t change the secretary-general’s view” on Iran, noting Guterres has previously spoken out against the crackdown and violence.
On reports that Iran’s foreign minister is expected to address the Human Rights Council later this month, the spokesperson said the matter falls under the council’s authority.
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“That’s a decision of the Human Rights Council,” he said. “This is a membership organization. Every member state has a right to address legislative bodies… It’s not within the secretariat’s authority to bar member states from addressing a legislative body.”
Vance warns Iran that ‘another option on the table’ if nuclear deal not reached
Vice President JD Vance warned Iran that there is “another option on the table” if the regime does not make a nuclear deal with the U.S.
Vance made the statement while speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force Two on Tuesday. A reporter referenced President Donald Trump‘s musings about potentially deploying a second aircraft carrier strike group to the Middle East.
“How confident are you in going the diplomatic route? Do you think that is still going to be successful or are we leaning more towards a military strike?” the reporter asked.
“The president has told his entire senior team that we should be trying to cut a deal that ensures the Iranians don’t have nuclear weapons,” Vance responded.
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“But if we can’t cut that deal, then there’s another option on the table. So I think the president is going to continue to preserve his options. He’s going to have a lot of options because we have the most powerful military in the world. But until the president tells us to stop, we’re going to engage in these conversations and try to reach a good outcome through negotiation,” he continued.
Vance went on to downplay pushes for regime change in Iran, saying a removal of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei‘s regime would be up to “the Iranian people.”
He said the Trump administration’s only focus is preventing the current Iranian regime from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
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Vance’s comments come a day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to meet with Trump at the White House on Wednesday, with Iran expected to take center stage in the meeting.
In a phone interview with Axios, the president said Tehran “very much wants to reach a deal,” but warned, “Either we make a deal, or we’ll have to do something very tough — like last time.”
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Netanyahu, speaking before departing Israel for Washington, said he intends to present Israel’s position.
“I will present to the president our concept regarding the principles of the negotiations — the essential principles that are important not only to Israel but to anyone who wants peace and security in the Middle East,” he told reporters.
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U.S. and Iranian officials resumed talks in Oman this week for the first time since last summer’s 12-day war. The United States continues to maintain a significant military presence in the Gulf, a posture widely viewed as both deterrence and for holding leverage in negotiations with Tehran.