Tehran has laid out fresh conditions to end the war with the US, security chief Mohsen Rezaei has said.

The conditions include ending the war on all fronts, unfreezing Iranian funds and ending the naval blockade, he said in an interview according to Al Jazeera.

Iran is now awaiting a response from Donald Trump, Rezaei added.

Discussions with Qatari and Pakistani mediators are ongoing, he added, as the delegations work to bring an end to the stalemate which has seen the war drag past the six-month mark.

Turkey’s banking watchdog, the Banking Regulation and Supervision Agency, revoked the operating license for the Istanbul branch of Iran’s Bank Mellat.

The agency said Saturday that it made the decision to protect depositors or the stability of the Turkey’s financial system.

The announcement comes as the United States is demanding other countries tighten economic measures against Iran.

Bank Mellat has been subject to Western sanctions for years and was named in 2019 as having links to the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps.

The U.S. Treasury Department earlier this month imposed sanctions on a Turkish investment bank and two subsidiaries over alleged ties to Iran.

Donald Trump said on Friday he is banning three major news outlets – CNN, MS NOW and Politico – from the White House in his latest threat to the independent press.

The move is almost certain to face legal challenges as free speech experts said it conflicts with the US Constitution’s First Amendment protections for free speech and a free press.

Trump accused the outlets of “reporting FAKE NEWS” in a social media post, and said they “shouldn’t be able to constantly ⁠write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States.”

Trump added, “Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow.”

Representatives of all three outlets could be seen working in the White House on Friday afternoon following Trump’s post.

The White House was informing all three they would be banned from the White House grounds as of Saturday, Fox News reported, citing an unnamed senior White House official.

Trump said there was no specific incident that prompted the ban, telling reporters in the Oval Office, “It’s really just cumulative stories over the past few years.”

Trump added, “I don’t have to let them into my, into the people’s house.” When asked what he meant by ⁠others “to follow,” Trump mentioned the New York Times and the Washington Post as what he called “fake news.”

Dissidents, activists and journalists were targeted by state actors that impersonated their contacts on messaging apps to trick them into downloading spyware called Chosen Brick, the National Cyber Security Centre, part of GCHQ, warned.

The malware gave agents access to the person’s contacts, emails and social media messages as well as a device’s microphone and content on the screen.

Iran’s state TV reported on Saturday that a man identified as Hossein Pedram was executed after being convicted on charges of spying for Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad.

The report said Pedram passed on to Israel classified information on “sensitive military sites” in Iran’s Isfahan province. It didn’t say how he accessed the classified information.

Pedram was reportedly arrested after those sites, which included missile bases, were targeted in the 12-day air war by the U.S. and Israel against Iran in June last year.

A recent surge of executions in Iran prompted an international outcry by human rights groups.

The UN’s most powerful body said late Friday that the Houthis’ military escalation, attacks and threats “risk further expanding the conflict, threatening maritime security and international trade,” while undermining regional and international efforts to secure peace in Yemen.

It warned that continued escalation would exacerbate the already dire humanitarian situation in the country.

The council’s 15 members called for “practical cooperation” to prevent the Iran-backed Houthis from acquiring arms, military training, financing and other military-related assistance needed to carry out their attacks.

They stressed that all countries must enforce the UN arms embargo against the rebel group.

Varying reports emerged regarding the headcount of volunteers enlisting for limited military instruction to safeguard the nation in an initiative dubbed “Janfaday-e Iran,” or the “ones who sacrifice their lives for Iran.” Dressed in combat uniforms and waving flags, participants marched through central Tehran as onlookers cheered.

A large plume of black smoke was seen near ⁠Riyadh’s main airport on Saturday after booms were heard, amid an escalation in attacks by Yemen’s Houthi group.

Saudi Arabia sent alerts overnight warning of potential danger around the capital and the city of Al-Kharj, before issuing an all-clear on Saturday morning.

A Reuters journalist in Riyadh’s Olaya area heard booms before the all-clear, as video and photographs showed a huge pillar of black smoke rising in the area.

The Houthis, who control the most populous parts of Yemen and much of the north, have been launching attacks towards Saudi Arabia since declaring a naval blockade against Riyadh in July, with strikes targeting Saudi vessels in the Red Sea.

Turkey, Romania and Hungary are out – while Albania, North Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia are in.

Varying reports emerged regarding the headcount of volunteers enlisting for limited military instruction to safeguard the nation in an initiative dubbed “Janfaday-e Iran,” or the “ones who sacrifice their lives for Iran.” Dressed in combat uniforms and waving flags, participants marched through central Tehran as onlookers cheered.