Pezeshkian says Iran's Supreme Leader ordered end to 'no war, no peace'

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that the country's Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, instructed that Iran's situation of "no war, no peace" be brought to an end, according to two Hebrew-language news channels. Pezeshkian also said Iran was able to negotiate while keeping its dignity, and that its leaders had no right to disregard or ruin the country's future.

Abu Ali Express, a Hebrew-language Telegram channel that follows Arab and Iranian affairs, carried the remarks under a heading presenting them as a sign that Tehran wants talks with Donald Trump. News.co.il, an Israeli news service, reported the same statement and described it as an unusual signal from Iran about leaving the deadlock with the West.

What Pezeshkian is reported to have said

Both outlets attribute three core points to the Iranian president. The first is that the Supreme Leader gave an order to end the "no war, no peace" condition. The second is that Iran can conduct negotiations honourably and reach a good outcome. The third is that Iran's leadership may not ignore the country's future or destroy it.

The two accounts differ in detail. Abu Ali Express rendered the second point as reaching a "desired outcome". News.co.il's version spoke of an honourable solution and added that this would involve changing the current approach and working to improve Iran's economic and social conditions. News.co.il also reported that Pezeshkian said it was unacceptable for citizens to suffer from poverty and hunger in a country rich in resources. That passage does not appear in the Abu Ali Express posts.

The outlets also frame the order slightly differently. News.co.il said the Supreme Leader directed officials to act to end the situation, while Abu Ali Express reported only that he ordered it to end, without saying who was tasked with carrying it out.

Who holds power in Iran

In the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Supreme Leader is the highest authority in the state. The office sits above the elected president and has the final word on major questions of foreign and security policy, including any decision on negotiating with Western powers. The president heads the government and runs day-to-day administration, but works within limits set by the Supreme Leader.

That hierarchy is why the wording matters. A president describing his own wish to negotiate is one thing; a president saying the Supreme Leader himself has ordered an end to the standoff presents the shift as coming from the top of the system. The reports carry this only as Pezeshkian's account of the leader's instruction, not as a statement issued by the Supreme Leader's office.

What "no war, no peace" means

The phrase describes a prolonged condition in which a country is neither in open conflict nor in a settled agreement with its adversaries. In Iran's case it refers to the standoff with the West, and News.co.il used the word "deadlock" to describe it. Pezeshkian's reported comments link that condition to economic hardship at home, with his references to poverty, hunger and the need to improve living conditions.

How the Israeli outlets read it

Both Hebrew-language outlets treated the statement as a message aimed outward. Abu Ali Express headlined its post as Iran signalling to Trump that it wants negotiations. News.co.il called it an unusual signal and framed it as Khamenei moving to advance an exit from the impasse with the West. These headlines are the outlets' own interpretation; the remarks attributed to Pezeshkian, as reported, do not name the United States, Trump or any specific negotiating partner.

For Israeli readers, any change in Tehran's posture toward talks with the West is closely watched, because Iran is Israel's principal regional adversary and the outcome of any negotiation would bear directly on Israel's security.

What the reports do not say

• Neither outlet says where or when Pezeshkian made the remarks, or links to the original Persian-language statement or broadcast.
• There is no reported statement from the Supreme Leader's office confirming the order Pezeshkian described.
• The reports do not say which negotiations are meant, with whom, or whether any talks have been proposed or scheduled.
• No response from Washington, from other Western governments or from Israel has been reported.
• The passage on poverty and hunger appears in only one of the two outlets' accounts.