A rare live broadcast scandal erupted on Iranian state television when lawmaker Mahmoud Nabavian, a member of parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, was cut off after reading what he described as highly secret correspondence from Mojtaba Khamenei. The incident, reported on June 20, 2026, quickly triggered an official backlash.
Nabavian claimed the supreme leader was unhappy with negotiations with the United States and a recently signed memorandum of understanding. Quoting Khamenei on air, he said Iran was in no rush to reach a deal, that the priority should be ending the war and obtaining compensation, and that nuclear talks were not the main issue. He also said Khamenei ordered Iran’s negotiating team not to discuss the nuclear program and to remove it from the agenda “forever,” unless Iran achieved a full “victory.”
According to Nabavian, Khamenei also viewed the Strait of Hormuz as “a very important key” for pressuring Washington, and argued that if the Americans wanted relief from pressure they would need to pay compensation and debts. Nabavian further alleged that Khamenei demanded exclusive Iranian control over the strait.
State television condemned the remarks as a criminal disclosure of classified documents and said legal and disciplinary action would follow. Conservative figures countered that Nabavian had selectively and tendentiously read only parts of the material.
