Weekly Roundup from Kayhan Life: February 6th – February 13th

The Iran Talks: Cutting Deals With the Executioner

Artist: Behnam Mohammadi

President Trump says he hopes talks with Iran will lead to Tehran agreeing to no nuclear weapons and no missiles. At the same time, he is considering sending another aircraft carrier group toward Iran. Since he has dropped earlier demands that the theocracy end support for regional proxy forces and stop executions at home, is this real leverage or just a show?

As Mr. Trump negotiates and uses targeted pressure, he surely recognizes who he is dealing with: the Islamic Republic, and not Iran.

The clerical state has not hidden its brutality. It fires into peaceful crowds, blinds protesters, rapes detainees, and executes people of all ages. If the U.S. attacks, the regime will likely kill more detainees and call the victims “collateral damage.” It will use these deaths as propaganda.

Today, with a weakening economy, eroding legitimacy, escalating clashes with Israel and the US, and the loss of key regional allies, the Islamic Republic is more exposed than ever. The clerical state is driven not by confidence, but by fear of collapse.

Fear works both ways. The regime’s harsh response to dissent is meant to scare people into submission, but it actually weakens the state. Paranoia is now policy, and “infiltration” is its obsession.

This is Khamenei’s state of panic: rash decisions, growing divisions, and a weakening core. Instead of stopping the collapse, it accelerates it.

Iran will eventually be free. The countdown has started. The real question is how many innocent lives the world will watch this regime destroy as it collapses into the annals of history.

Welcome to the Kayhan Life Week in Review

This week, Kayhan Life focused on renewed U.S.-Iran diplomacy alongside clear military preparations. International risk alerts are growing and affecting daily travel. At the same time, Iran faces more scrutiny for its crackdowns, while cultural life continues and debate over the country’s political future grows.

►President Donald Trump told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the U.S. would continue nuclear talks with Iran to see if a deal can be reached. At the same time, Mr. Trump signed an executive order threatening to impose a 25% tariff on countries trading with Iran and signaled sending another aircraft carrier to the region. Iran said it might dilute its most enriched uranium if sanctions are removed, but made clear it will not negotiate over its missile program.

Trump Tells Netanyahu He Will Continue Talks With Iran to See if Deal Possible

►As tensions rose, satellite images showed U.S. forces at al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar placing Patriot missiles into mobile truck launchers, in case of an Iranian strike or rapid deployment.

US Used Mobile Launchers for Missiles at Qatar Base as Iran Tensions Rose, Satellite Pictures Show

►Europe’s aviation safety regulator advised EU airlines to avoid Iranian airspace through March 31. It cited risks from a mix of weapons, air-defense systems, and unpredictable state responses. The warning reflects broader fears that a breakdown in U.S.-Iran negotiations could spill into a regional conflict.

Safety Body Urges EU Airlines to Avoid Iran Airspace Until March 31

►The Norwegian Nobel Committee called on Iran to immediately free Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, citing reports that she was violently arrested in December and faces ongoing, life-threatening mistreatment.

Nobel Committee Calls on Iran to Free Peace Prize Laureate Mohammadi

►France said it will increase visas for Iranians seeking refuge following the recent crackdown, in support of the Iranian people amid the country’s internal repression.

France to Increase Visas for Iranian Seeking Refuge Amid Crackdown, Minister Says

►Kayhan Life’s Firoozeh Nordstrom interviewed four Tehran residents who were on the streets and survived. They described ordinary neighborhoods, hospitals, and metro stations that turned into war zones, with live gunfire, pellet guns, and tear gas used at close range.

EXCLUSIVE: Tehran Protest Survivors Describe Live Gunfire, Bloodshed

►Even under pressure, Iranian culture continued to shine. A feature film shot covertly in Iran and smuggled out won a special jury award at the Sundance Film Festival. Set after the June 2025 Iran–Israel “Twelve-Day War,” it portrays Tehran’s underground arts scene, with street concerts, galleries, and avant-garde theater persisting despite tighter crackdowns.

Movie Shot Covertly in Iran, Smuggled Out, Wins Sundance Festival’s Special Jury Award

►In his opinion piece, Kambiz Zare argued that even if U.S.-Iran talks resume, the deeper obstacle is the gap between Washington’s push for a broad deal that includes missiles, proxies, and human rights, and Tehran’s insistence on a narrow nuclear-only agenda. The piece argues that without regime change in Iran, any agreement is unlikely to hold.

OPINION: No Deal With Tehran Will Hold Without Regime Change

►Another opinion piece by Nima Hoseinzadeh said debate over the monarchy’s place in Iran’s future has returned with new intensity, as protest cycles since 2019 have shown growing public support for the monarchy.  Hosseinzadeh argues that the institution can re-enter a democratic future by redefining its role for a modern political horizon.

OPINION: How Monarchy Can Have a Future In a Democratic Iran