Second supertanker explodes after hitting naval mine in Hormuz

🔹The IRGC Navy announced that this morning, a second violating supertanker struck a naval mine and burst into a massive fire.

🔹The vessel, carrying over 2 million barrels of crude oil, had turned off all positioning and radar systems—deceived by the aggressor US army—and attempted to pass through an unauthorized route. After hitting the mine, a massive explosion occurred in the engine room, halting the ship in place.

Araghchi at OIC: We presented our seven-day plan; the choice is America's

🔹Addressing the OIC Council of Foreign Ministers, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said: "Keeping the path of dialogue open is not a sign of weakness but a responsibility. There is no contradiction between defending our rights and pursuing peace."

🔹"Security cannot be restored by repeating past mistakes and crimes. You cannot bomb a country, threaten its destruction, impose a blockade, and then expect maritime security to return to normal."

🔹"Through Qatar, we conveyed a specific seven-day plan and said that if conditions are met, the Strait can reopen and normal maritime traffic can resume within seven days. The choice is now America's."

International Archaeology Day: Iran’s Paleolithic Legacy

Iran’s Paleolithic heritage spans the longest chapter of human history, from Kashafrud and Dehtal to the Zagros caves. These sites illuminate Neanderthal behavior, modern human dispersal, and adaptation across the Iranian Plateau. Iranian archaeologists, including Dr Marjan Mashkour and Dr Sonia Shidrang, have advanced this research and secured UNESCO recognition for the Khorramabad Valley in 2025. Museums in Tehran, Kermanshah, and Lorestan connect these discoveries with the public, while salvage projects like Darian Dam document threatened landscapes. Sustained fieldwork, curation, and outreach remain essential to preserving this shared past.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/531154/Intl-Archaeology-Day-A-glimpse-of-Iran-s-Paleolithic-heritage

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met and held discussions on the sidelines of the OIC Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Baghdad.

Araghchi meets with Algeria's minister of state for Foreign Affairs

🔹 Continuing his diplomatic consultations in Baghdad, Iran's Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi met and held consultations this afternoon with Algeria's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.

In Paris, the capital of France, as demonstrations continue and smoke fills the square, protesters are climbing the Statue of the Republic and draping a yellow vest over it.

Gharibabadi: Resolution condemning the attack on Iran will be approved at the Council of Ministers meeting

Deputy Foreign Minister:

🔹 Documents are set to be approved at the meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and we will also have a final report named "Baghdad."

🔹 The documents had been agreed upon by experts nearly a year ago, including the resolution issued by the foreign ministers condemning the attack by the Zionist regime and America against our country.

🔹 Those resolutions are set to be approved again at this meeting as the approved measures of the OIC's regular Foreign Ministers' Meeting.

🔹 The resolution that had previously been issued regarding the 12-day war will be approved at this meeting.

Message of congratulations from the Leader of the Revolution following the championship of Iran's national Greco-Roman wrestling team

The text of the message of the Supreme Leader is as follows:

🔹 I congratulate the championship of Iran's national Greco-Roman wrestling team under 23 at the international U23 World Championships in America to these honor-creating champions, the hardworking coaches, and the entire Iranian nation.

🔹 The brilliance of the youth of the homeland, the raising of Iran's inspiring flag, and the echoing of the national anthem of the Islamic Republic in various arenas are the radiance of the nation's hopes in its youth on the path toward realizing a bright and glorious future.

🔹 My good prayers accompany the path of all the youth of proud Iran.

Araghchi meets with the Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation

🔹 Iran's Foreign Minister met and held consultations with Ismaïl Ould Cheikh, the Secretary-General of the Organization, on the sidelines of the OIC Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Baghdad.

🔹 This is Ould Cheikh's first appearance as the new Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation at the Council of Ministers meeting.

Increase in the number of damaged oil tankers in the Sea of Oman area

Public Relations of the Navy of the Army:

🔹 This afternoon, surveillance teams of the Army Navy, constantly monitoring the eastern Strait of Hormuz, discovered a violating oil tanker that had caught fire and stopped moving in the Sea of Oman area.

🔹 In recent days, a number of violating oil tankers that caught fire while attempting to pass through prohibited areas without keeping electronic equipment switched on were also reported by the valiant men of the Army and the IRGC.

🔹 We have full control and intelligence dominance over the eastern Strait of Hormuz, the Arabian Sea, and the Sea of Oman, and are aware of the dangers of traffic in prohibited areas. Despite the propaganda of the criminal president of America, the Strait of Hormuz is not open, and countries must not be deceived by these lies.

Peace with Israel: A Lebanese Illusion?

Israel's new security doctrine treats war as permanent and peace as temporary, undermining Lebanese assumptions that a deal would bring withdrawal. Unlike the Camp David and Wadi Araba treaties, when Israeli leaders saw peace as strategic, today's regime views conflict as a managed condition. Lebanese advocates of peace rely on outdated thinking. Before offering concessions, Lebanon must ask whether Israel still values peace at all. The framework agreement's logic is fundamentally flawed.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/531160/Peace-with-Israel-A-Lebanese-illusion

'Either security together or insecurity together': Iran's FM tells OIC

In Baghdad, Foreign Minister Araghchi told the OIC that security in the region is indivisible. He accused the US of choosing "aggression, threats, assassination" over diplomacy, citing 5,000 Iranian martyrs and the Minab and Kuhestak attacks. He said the Hormuz Strait was open until February 28, and Iran's seven-day reopening plan now awaits Washington's choice.

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/531171/Either-Security-Together-or-Insecurity-Together

Trump's White House chaotically turns on itself as Republicans brace for defeat

A press secretary hired on Friday was gone within days; her only briefing announced an ambassador's ouster. Loyalists feud over money, the chief of staff's family faces scrutiny, and aides reportedly expect to lose the House. With approval at its lowest and the Iran war dragging, one ally described the mood as "the new Wild Wild West."

https://www.tehrantimes.com/news/531169/Trump-s-White-House-chaotically-turns-on-itself-as-Republicans

📰 Nationwide "No Kings" protests against Trump held across US cities

🔹Protesters gathered Saturday in cities across North Texas—including Dallas, Arlington, Frisco, Plano, Denton, and Southlake—while thousands marched in Los Angeles and Southern California, chanting against Donald Trump and his administration's policies.

🔹Demonstrators in Los Angeles and Boston protested immigration policies, federal enforcement actions, and threats to voting rights.

🔹The rallies were part of a nationwide "No Kings" day of action ahead of November's midterm elections, with organizers framing the events as a push for early voting and election protection.