Iran is preparing to unveil a new weapon described as the “father of all bombs,” a spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Wednesday. “We are in the stage of preparing to unveil the ‘father of all bombs.’ This is something new for the enemy,” Hossein Mohebi said in statements carried by Iran’s Young Journalists Club news agency. He did not provide further details about the weapon. On Friday, US President Donald Trump had hinted at the possible use of the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb, also known as the “mother of all bombs,” to target Iranian nuclear facilities. Weighing around 9,800 kilograms (21,600 pounds), the GBU-43/B is one of the largest non-nuclear conventional bombs in the US arsenal. It was first used in April 2017, during Trump’s first presidential term, against a tunnel complex belonging to the ISIS (Daesh) terrorist organisation in Afghanistan. Mohebi also said Iran’s missile stockpile has increased by 1.5 times following the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June 2025, without providing specific figures. “The quality of the missiles has improved significantly, and their range, destructive power and accuracy in hitting targets have increased,” he added. Pezeshkian says Washington cannot expect dialogue with Tehran while issuing threats Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Wednesday that the US could not expect dialogue with Iran while at the same time issuing threats. Washington “must recognise the rights of our nation and stop their bullying and aggression; then we can sit together and talk,” Pezeshkian said in remarks carried by the state-run IRNA news agency. “You cannot block all the roads and threaten and at the same time want to talk,” he added. Accusing the US of “reneging” on its commitments, Pezeshkian said: “I believe that one should not enter into a pact lightly, but once a pact is made, one must remain committed to it until the end – even if it proves disadvantageous.” Tensions in the Middle East have remained high since the US and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28. Tehran responded with missile and drone attacks across the region and effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, while Washington later imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports. The US and Iran subsequently signed a memorandum of understanding in June concerning freedom of navigation in the strait, but implementation stalled over disagreements related to security in the strategic waterway US-Iran talks continue through Pakistan, Qatar: Iranian FM Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said negotiations with the United States were continuing without interruption through mediators, including Pakistan and Qatar, IRNA reported on Wednesday. According to the post on X, Iranian media stated, "Speaking to Iraqi media, FM Araghchi stated that negotiations with the United States, conducted via mediators such as Pakistan and Qatar, remain ongoing without interruption." Iranian media further added that Major General Mostafa Izadi, deputy commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said that Iran's Armed Forces control the battlefield in the Strait of Hormuz and would continue to do so for as long as the Islamic Republic desires. Addressing a gathering in the central Iranian city of Khomain on Tuesday, Izadi claimed that the IRGC Navy and Aerospace Forces maintained operational and intelligence superiority over the strategic waterway. He said that Iran's enemies sought to push the people away from the scene, adding that the people’s presence and support for the country were key to safeguarding achievements and thwarting the enemies’ plots. Referring to Iran's missile capabilities, Izadi claimed that American forces were “dawdling at sea” and had moved approximately 700 kilometres away to avoid being targeted by IRGC missiles. Read: Pakistan, Turkiye, Qatar, and Indonesia to ink defence industry pact The IRGC deputy commander also referred to the 12-day and 40-day wars, claiming that Iran had emerged victorious despite its adversaries deploying their full military capabilities. He said Iran's armed forces, supported by the country's people, had delivered a firm response during both conflicts. Izadi maintained that neither psychological warfare nor propaganda could change the outcome on the battlefield, arguing that Iran's victories were the result of the steadfastness of its people. Iran's FM says his country is ready for diplomacy, but will 'defend ourselves' Iran is ready for diplomacy but will defend itself, FM Araghchi wrote in an article published in the Financial Times on Wednesday. "While Iran is firmly committed to seeking a dignified peaceful resolution to the conflict, we are also fully prepared to defend ourselves," he wrote. He said the White House had shown no willingness to reach an understanding and that there was little reason to expect progress now. US engaging multiple countries over possible Iran talks: Rubio US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Washington was engaging with multiple countries over possible negotiations with Iran, but insisted that any agreement must prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, Al Jazeera reported on Wednesday. Iraq closes Sheeb border crossing with Iran to review security, sources say Iraq has closed the busy Sheeb border crossing with Iran to review security and install detection equipment to stop the smuggling of prohibited materials, an Iraqi border official said on Wednesday. Sheeb would be closed to passengers, vehicles and commercial trucks until further notice, two other sources at the crossing said. A security official from Iran's southwestern Khuzestan province also said that the Sheeb crossing, known in Iran as Chazabeh, will be closed until further notice, adding that the decision was taken by the Iraqi government, the Iranian labour news agency reported on Wednesday. The Iranian official, Valiollah Hayati, said consultations to resume operations at the border crossing were ongoing between Iran's Interior Ministry and Iraqi provincial authorities. Hayati advised passengers and trucks to use Shalamcheh crossing, also in Khuzestan province, which Iraq closed temporarily in September as a precaution after drone attacks on Saudi Arabia, two security sources said at the time. Riyadh said the drones had been launched from Iraq, which did not comment on the matter. The current security measures at Sheeb are weak and inadequate, the Iraqi border crossing official told Reuters. Iran says Saudi Arabia, Houthis have not answered mediation offer Iran has not received a response from Saudi Arabia or Yemen's Houthis to its offer to help broker talks to end the fighting between them, Iranian foreign minister said in a television interview aired on Tuesday. He offered to help facilitate dialogue as the Houthis intensified strikes on Saudi Arabia earlier this month. In the interview with Iraq's Al Ekhbariya TV, Araghchi also responded to the possibility of Egypt joining Saudi Arabia in the war against the Houthis. "Any foreign intervention would complicate matters," he said, adding Cairo has previously told Tehran that it would "not directly" interfere in the Yemeni conflict. Egypt has said it is ready to provide Saudi Arabia with the support it needs to defend its security, potentially raising the stakes ​in the Middle East. A vote in the Egyptian parliament on a possible move against the Houthi fighters by the country's military, one of the Arab world's largest, was delayed until October 26. Pak-Iran border reopens as CDF visits Tehran The Pakistan-Iran border was reopened on Tuesday as Chief of Defence Forces and Army Chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir held a series of high-level talks in Tehran at the time when Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia added a new and potentially difficult dimension to Islamabad's regional balancing act. Field Marshal Asim Munir, accompanied by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, met Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and General Mohsen Rezaei, representative of Iran's Supreme Leader and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, during his fifth visit to Iran in recent months. Read more: Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted, destroyed drones in Madinah, eastern province Unlike his previous trips, which were largely driven by Pakistan's efforts to defuse tensions between Iran and the United States, the latest visit came against the backdrop of repeated attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis on Saudi energy, airport and other infrastructure. The development presents a delicate challenge for Islamabad. Pakistan has pledged to defend Saudi Arabia under the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, while at the same time maintaining close engagement with Tehran and attempting to revive stalled Iran-US diplomacy. There was no official statement from the Pakistani side until the filing of this report. However, an official familiar with the visit told The Express Tribune that the talks went "very well", without sharing specifics. The official also confirmed that the Pakistan-Iran border had reopened. Iranian readouts also quoted Field Marshal Asim Munir as saying that issues concerning the border had been resolved. "The issues concerning the Iran-Pakistan border have been resolved, and the border has been reopened as of this morning," the CDF was quoted as saying during a meeting with General Rezaei.