Iran and Russia launched a joint naval drill in the Caspian Sea this week, signaling closer military ties just days before Tehran resumes talks with the United Kingdom, France, and Germany in a bid to prevent the reinstatement of UN sanctions.

The joint maritime rescue and security drill, dubbed CASAREX 2025, marks a show of force and cooperation between Iranian and Russian forces, coming just weeks after Israel — with support from the United States — launched an airstrike campaign targeting Iran’s nuclear facilities.

The three-day exercise, which began Monday, includes participation from the Iranian Navy, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, Iran’s Law Enforcement Command, and the Russian Navy, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

On Friday, Iran is expected to resume nuclear talks with Germany, France, and Britain — collectively known as the E3 — after the trio threatened to reinstate UN sanctions on Tehran by activating the “snapback” clause of the 2015 nuclear deal if no new agreement is reached by the end of August.

Officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the 2015 nuclear accord between Iran and several world powers, from which the US withdrew in 2018, imposed temporary restrictions on Tehran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.

Iran has warned it will take action if sanctions over its nuclear program are reinstated, without specifying what those measures might be.

“The snapback mechanism is meaningless, unjustifiable, unethical, and illegal,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said during a press conference.

Baghaei also reaffirmed that the Islamist regime has “no plans to hold talks with the US in the current situation.”

Following the 12-day war with Israel, Iran has sought to rebuild its damaged nuclear sites and strengthen its military capabilities by relying on support from Russia and China amid growing international pressure.

On Tuesday, Tehran held talks with Russia and China to bolster their alliance as sanctions threats mount and nuclear negotiations approach.

“We are in constant consultation with these two countries to prevent activation of the snapback or to mitigate its consequences,” Baghaei said during a Monday press briefing. “We have aligned positions and good relations.”

In a Fox News interview aired Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reaffirmed that Iran will not abandon its uranium enrichment program, despite recent Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear facilities.

“We cannot give up enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists. And now, more than that, it is a question of national pride,” the top Iranian diplomat said. “Our enrichment is so dear to us.”

Last week, Araghchi met with Russian and Chinese officials at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) security forum, where he called for closer strategic coordination and collective resistance to counter mounting pressure from the West.

China, a key diplomatic and economic backer of Tehran, has moved to deepen ties in recent years — signing a 25-year cooperation agreement, holding joint naval drills, and continuing to purchase Iranian oil despite US sanctions.

Russia has also expanded its ties with Iran to counter Western influence in the Middle East and mitigate the impact of US sanctions. For example, Russia pledged earlier this year to fund the construction of new nuclear power plants in Iran as part of a broader energy partnership that also includes a major gas deal between the two countries.

However, both China and Russia largely held back more concrete and robust support for Iran during the recent conflict with Israel, opting for cautious diplomacy rather than direct backing.

The post Iran, Russia Conduct Naval Drills, High-Level Talks as Tehran Seeks Support Ahead of Nuclear Talks With the West first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Israeli mixed martial artist Natan Levy challenged Muslim YouTuber and lightweight professional boxer Adam Saleh to a fight after videos circulated online of the latter chasing a Jewish, Israeli man through a New York City park while wearing boxing gloves and shouting “Free Palestine.”

The incident in Washington Square Park began when the Zionist Israeli, live streaming his interaction with Saleh, twice told the boxer “I f–king hate Palestine, I hope they [Palestinians] all get murdered.” He further said about Palestine: “They’re losers; we are going to win.” When Saleh accused Israel of committing genocide during the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, the Israeli replied, “Genocide? It’s a war. It’s not a genocide.”

The angry boxer then offered to fight the man in the park, but his opponent declined and said he would only fight Saleh in a gym instead of illegally in the park. Saleh agreed to take their altercation to a gym, but the man shortly afterward backed out of the fight. Saleh then rallied together a group of locals and told them the Israeli man “supports people killing kids, he hates Palestine.” Saleh and his group of supporters chanted “Free Palestine” repeatedly and Saleh again challenged the man to a fight in the park. He also accused the man of being “definitely Israeli” because the latter said he felt like Saleh was trying to assault him.

As seen in multiple videos on social media, Saleh then put on a pair of boxing gloves and told the Jewish man, “Fight me now or get the f–k out of here.” The man tried to get away from Saleh but the boxer ran after him, chasing him throughout the park. One of Saleh’s teenage family members, who was among the people who chased the Israeli through the park, said: “This is what Israelis do — they run.” Park officials eventually intervened to stop the incident and help the Israeli man exit the park safely, but not before Salah gathered together even more parkgoers – roughly 15 people – to chant “Free Palestine.”

In response to the incident, Levy asked in an Instagram post on Monday: “Adam Saleh, Are you man enough to fight when you don’t outnumber an untrained guy at the park? Let me know where and when. Am Israel Chai.” 

Levy’s post included a video with footage from the incident in Washington Square Park and also another incident from December, in which Salah tried to remove an Israeli flag from a Jewish-owned coffee shop in New York City and chanted “Free, free Palestine” inside the establishment. Levy’s video on Monday also shows private messages that he and Saleh exchanged on Instagram about last week’s incident before the Muslim boxer blocked Levy.

“Adam Saleh, I see it makes you feel like a big man to chase Israelis in the park and harass older people at a kosher restaurant,” Levy said in the clip he shared on Instagram this week. “I tried to talk to you civilly on Instagram but you played the victim and then blocked me. Now, you’re a boxer and I’m a real fighter. So I got an offer for you. If you have a problem with Israelis, Jews, Zionists … you tell me where and when, and I’ll meet you. See you soon [sic].”

On Tuesday, Levy repeated his challenge to Saleh in a video he filmed while walking in Washington Square Park. Levy shared the video on his Instagram page.

“Saleh, I’m in your city, man. I’m in New York at the park, but you’re nowhere to be found,” Levy said. “I called you out but no response. You were brave when it was five-on-one but now that it’s just one-on-one, man-t0-man. Let me know where and when we can meet and settle this.”

The post Israeli MMA Fighter Wants to Fight Muslim Boxer Who Chased Jewish Man in NYC first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Iran has agreed to allow a technical team from the UN nuclear watchdog to visit in the coming weeks to discuss relations between the International Atomic Energy Agency and Tehran, Iran‘s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Wednesday.

“The delegation will come to Iran to discuss the modality, not to go to the [nuclear] sites,” he told reporters during a visit to New York for meetings at the United Nations.

The IAEA had no specific comment on his remarks, but said IAEA chief Rafael Grossi was “actively engaging with all parties involved in the Iran nuclear issue.”

The IAEA has said it is essential for it to be able to resume inspections in Iran following air strikes by Israel and the US last month that aimed to destroy the country’s nuclear program in a bid to stop Tehran building a nuclear weapon.

Tehran denies seeking a nuclear weapon and says its nuclear program is solely meant for civilian purposes.

“Our Atomic Energy Organization is assessing, actually, the damages to the nuclear installations, and we are waiting to receive their report. In this regard, it’s a very dangerous work. We do not know what has happened there … because of the risks of the radiation,” Gharibabadi said.

Diplomats have in particular raised concerns about the fate of some 400 kg of highly enriched uranium stocks, which Iran has not updated the IAEA on.

Gharibabadi said the IAEA has not officially asked about the fate of those stocks and that Tehran “cannot say anything now because we do not have any valid and credible report from [Iran‘s] Atomic Energy Organization.”

Any negotiations over Iran‘s future nuclear program will require its cooperation with the IAEA, which angered Iran in June by declaring on the eve of the Israeli strikes that Tehran was violating non-proliferation treaty commitments.

Gharibabadi said he would travel to Istanbul to meet with Britain, France, and Germany on Friday. They, along with China and Russia, are the remaining parties to a 2015 nuclear deal that the US quit in 2018. Under the deal, sanctions on Iran were eased in return for restrictions on its nuclear program.

Separately, Tehran and Washington have this year held five rounds of nuclear talks mediated by Oman. Gharibabadi said these are focused on negotiating transparency measures by Iran with regard to its nuclear program and the lifting of US sanctions.

The post Iran Says It Agrees to Visit by IAEA Technical Team in Coming Weeks first appeared on Algemeiner.com.