Pezeshkian to Al Jazeera: Houthi Attacks on Saudi Arabia “Not Linked to Iran” — Hormuz Crisis Solved by Diplomacy, Not Force

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Al Jazeera that Yemen’s Houthi rebels’ attacks on Saudi Arabia “are not linked to Iran,” claiming Tehran is not instigating the war in Yemen. “What is happening in Yemen is not linked to Iran,” he said, adding that the Houthis and Saudi Arabia “should resolve their disputes through dialogue” and that Iran “can help resolve the dispute.” “One brother should not fight his brother,” Pezeshkian said.

In the same interview, the Iranian president blamed the United States for the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. “It was America that blocked our routes,” he said, calling the strait’s closure “a natural response when Iran’s routes are blocked.” “The solution to the Strait of Hormuz crisis is possible through negotiations, not the use of force,” Pezeshkian said, adding that the waterway “will remain open for trade if negotiations lead to the resolution of the dispute.”

Pezeshkian also said Iran “no longer trusts talks with Washington” after “repeated attacks and sanctions after every negotiation.” He revealed that Qatar and Pakistan are currently mediating between Iran and the U.S. and conveying Tehran’s messages to Washington. According to him, the negotiations are based on the previous memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries — and now, he said, “the Americans must declare their position on it.”

The statements come as Tehran awaits Washington’s official response to the seven-day plan for reopening Hormuz and stopping the fighting on all fronts, including Lebanon — a plan President Trump, according to The Wall Street Journal, has rejected.