Apr 21, 2026 19:45 pm IST

Opinion | Iran's Game Of Thrones: Inside The 'Group' That Wants Ghalibaf Gone, And No Deal

A section of the IRGC is firmly opposed to any negotiations and wants the key negotiator, Ghalibaf, gone. Here's why

Naresh Kaushik Naresh Kaushik Columnist

Naresh Kaushik Columnist

Amid uncertainty over the second round of talks between Tehran and Washington, Iran's President, Masoud Pezeshkian, made a comment on Monday morning in support of negotiations. "War benefits no one, and while standing firm against threats, every rational and diplomatic route should be used to reduce tensions," said Pezeshkian. His comment came shortly after Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, told reporters in Tehran: "We have no plan for the next round of negotiations."

Hours later, Tasnim News Agency, which is close to the Iranian Republican Guards Corps (IRGC), insisted that Iran had not "altered its decision to abstain" from the talks in Islamabad. It wasn't long before Pezeshkian issued a social media statement questioning the usefulness of any dialogue with the US, accusing it of seeking Iran's surrender. "Iranians do not submit to force," he added in the post on X. His first comment was ignored by Iran's semi-official media, but they all reported his post on X.

Monday's developments showed how helpless the Iranian president is. They also echoed a dispute last Friday over a social media post by the country's Foreign Minister, Abbas Aragchi, in which he declared the Strait of Hormuz "completely open". President Trump quoted the post, distorting and exaggerating it to suggest Tehran was ready to compromise. A furious IRGC attacked Araghchi through its loyal news agencies. Later, Tehran's military and the IRGC reinforced the blockade of the waterways with even greater determination. On Monday, speculation grew that Araghchi could soon be replaced by the Islamic regime.

These two developments suggest that some factional fighting, if not a full-fledged power struggle, is underway within the current Iranian regime. Hardliner clerics and IRGC commanders, on the one hand, and moderate civilian politicians, on the other, disagree on the terms and conditions of negotiations with the US, if not on the conduct of the war itself. Araghchi, a career diplomat with limited decision-making authority, is the weakest of the three internationally known public faces of Iran. The other two are President Masoud Pezeshkian and the speaker of Iran's parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.

Pezeshkian, a reformist, was elected in 2024 following the death of hardline........

© NDTV