The New Yorker reported that following the killing of Ali Khamenei in Israeli airstrikes backed by U.S. intelligence, hardline figures from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have taken control, leading to heightened uncertainty in negotiations with the United States. Talks between the Iranian delegation, led by Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and the U.S. in Pakistan ended without resolution, with the U.S. announcing a naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.