IranWatch Daily: August 29, 2025

Brief Notes

Germany Advises Citizens to Leave Iran: Germany has urged its citizens to leave Iran and to avoid travel there due to the potential for retaliatory action from the Islamic Republic following the E3 (Germany, France, and the UK) triggering of UNSCR 2231’s snapback mechanism yesterday. The German Foreign Office said in a statement on its website: “Since Iranian government officials have repeatedly threatened consequences in the past, it cannot be ruled out that German interests and nationals will be affected by countermeasures in Iran…Currently, the German Embassy in Tehran can only provide limited consular assistance on site.” This move came following a statement from Islamic Republic Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying the regime “will take appropriate action in response to this provocative and improper act by the three European countries.” Parliament to Debate NPT Withdrawal: The Majles (Parliament), as a matter of “triple urgency,” will fast-track debate on a bill calling for withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and its Additional Protocol, suspension of nuclear talks with the U.S. and the E3, and an end to all cooperation with the IAEA. The bill, due for review on August 30, would also require the Foreign Ministry and Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) to report back to the Majles within a week on its implementation. However, former AEOI chief Ali Akbar Salehi today told Entekhab news website that any decision to withdraw from the NPT lies in the Supreme Leader’s hands alone, stressing that parliament does not hold the authority to decide on a matter with both “religious and governmental dimensions.” Russia Rejects Accusations of Cooperation With Israel: Russia rejected allegations that it shared intelligence with Israel during the 12-Day War. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said such claims were “obviously” pushed by actors hostile to both Moscow and Tehran. She suggested the leaks were part of a disinformation campaign aimed at undermining the “comprehensive strategic partnership” between Russia and the Islamic Republic and discrediting Moscow’s support for Tehran. Zakharova stressed the allegations were “doomed to failure.”

Chamber of Commerce: Snapback Could Crash Iran Economy

The Iran Chamber of Commerce, run by the private sector but with heavy state oversight, briefly published a now-deleted report warning that UN snapback sanctions could trigger a “deep crisis” in which the dollar potentially surges to 1.65 million rials (currently at 1,009,500 rials), inflation hits over 90%, unemployment reaches 14%, GDP growth falls to –3%, and the stock market loses $65 billion. IRGC-affiliated Tasnim News condemned the assessment as “dangerous and inflammatory,” which can lead to a surge in expected inflation and disrupt markets. IRGC Intelligence agents reportedly entered the Chamber yesterday after the report was published, interrogated staff in the International Affairs Department, and pressured the body to retract the report and silence board members on the potential impact of snapback sanctions. Today, Tasnim and other state-owned media reported that the Chamber denied publishing the report. Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy Hamid Qanbari today said that Iran’s "economy is so big and self-sufficient that it will not break under sanctions.” He acknowledged some damage but said decades of experience with sanctions will allow Tehran to adapt, vowing to challenge the measures “in every conceivable forum” to render them ineffective. Elsewhere, Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad acknowledged that activation of the snapback mechanism could impose fresh restrictions on Tehran’s oil exports. However, he insisted that the Islamic Republic remains capable of navigating the renewed pressure, declaring, "Our hands are not tied."

Islamic Republic Reactions to Snapback

Regime officials have sought to project defiance while downplaying the impact of renewed UN sanctions. President Masoud Pezeshkian said that the Islamic Republic “does not welcome” snapback, but warned that domestic disunity is a graver threat than renewed sanctions. In a pre-recorded state TV interview that aired today, he argued that many of the regime’s challenges stem from sanctions. In the same breath, he rejected European claims of nuclear non-compliance as “unfounded.” He accused certain voices in parliament and state media of undermining cohesion, adding that “the threat of injustice and disunity” outweighs the sanctions’ impact. At the UN Security Council, Ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani called the E3’s triggering of the snapback mechanism “unlawful and politically motivated,” dismissing the notification as “null and void” for, according to him, failing to follow proper dispute mechanisms. He warned Tehran remains open to diplomacy but “will not negotiate under coercion.” Tehran Friday Prayer Imam Mohammad Javad Haj Ali Akbari denounced the E3’s decision to trigger the snapback mechanism as an “illegal, immoral, and fully political action” carried out under U.S. and Israeli pressure. He claimed the E3 have become “proxy forces of the Zionist regime,” calling the move “a symbolic action to cover up” what he described as the U.S. and Israel’s defeat in the 12-Day War. Tehran’s Friday Prayer Imams are handpicked by the Supreme Leader, and their talking points are pre-approved by the Ayatollah’s office. Russia’s Foreign Ministry condemned the E3’s decision to trigger the snapback mechanism as “highly destabilizing.” The Foreign Ministry statement described the move as an “unceremonious attempt” to interpret UNSCR 2231’s provisions “as it suits them,” saying the E3 are misleading other countries in an attempt to legitimize political pressure on Tehran. It added that the E3 had “no right” to invoke paragraph 11 of Resolution 2231 without first using the JCPOA’s dispute resolution mechanism.

On the Radar

• Reports this morning falsely indicated that Saeed Toosi was shot in Mashhad. A prominent Quran elocutionist with ties to the Supreme Leader’s office, Toosi is a confessed perpetrator of child sexual abuse. Later today, Deputy Governor-General of Razavi Khorasan Hassan Hosseini told ISNA that no such incident had been reported to any law enforcement bodies. Additionally, Ali Sarabi of the Quran Servants Association said he personally spoke with Toosi, who confirmed he was in good health. It seems initial confusion stemmed from conflicting now-deleted reports from state broadcaster IRIB, which initially claimed Toosi had been shot and hospitalized, and Khorasan Daily, which cited his brother regarding a physical attack.
• Israeli media voiced optimism after Israeli airstrikes in Sanaa targeted senior Houthi leaders, with speculation that some of the group’s top officials may have been killed. Channel 12 News reported that Houthi leaders had gathered in an apartment to watch a speech by Abdelmalek al-Houthi when Israel launched 10 strikes, in an operation named “Drop of Luck.”
• Jaish al-Adl’s official and affiliated Telegram channels posted media commemorating members “martyred” in recent clashes with Islamic Republic security forces in Sistan and Baluchestan and encouraging recruitment and donations. The posts additionally claimed 36 new recruits had joined since the deaths.