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Did you earn tips last year? See how much this new tax break could save you.

February 23, 2026 / 12:49 PM EST / CBS News

Locksmiths, tattoo artists and pedicab drivers are among those who could benefit from a new deduction this tax season that lowers the burden on workers who received tips as part of their income last year.

Eliminating taxes on tips, accomplished through the 2025 passage of the “big, beautiful bill,” allows eligible workers to deduct up to $25,000 in tips from their federal taxable income. Deductions reduce a filer’s taxable income, so the new tax break will benefit workers in industries where tipping is common.

The Tax Policy Center, a nonpartisan joint venture of the Urban Institute and Brookings Institution, estimates that those who claim the deduction will receive an average tax cut of around $1,400.

Andrew Lautz, director of tax policy for the Bipartisan Policy Center, a nonpartisan think tank, told CBS News that some tipped workers could get an even larger tax cut depending on their income.

“If someone is claiming the maximum tip deduction and they are in the top tax bracket that is eligible for that maximum tax deduction, which is the 24% bracket, they’re going to see a tax cut of up to $6,000,” he said.

Nearly a month into tax season, Americans are receiving higher refund checks compared with last year. Early data from the IRS shows the average tax refund is nearly 14.2% higher than in 2025.

Who is eligible to deduct tips from their taxes?

Workers can claim the “no tax on tips” deduction regardless of whether they claim the standard deduction or itemize.

Taxpayers with a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) of $150,000 ($300,000 for joint filers) can claim the full deduction — up to $25,000 each year for tax years 2025 through 2028. (Your MAGI is your adjusted gross income plus tax-exempt income.)

For single filers who earn more than $150,000 and $300,000 for joint filers, the deduction phases out by 10 cents for every dollar they make over those thresholds.

The tax deduction is also limited to specific industries where tipping is common. That list (outlined in the Federal Register) includes nearly 70 different eligible occupations. The IRS says that in order to claim the deduction, a taxpayer must work in one of the occupations on the list and receive what it refers to as “qualified tips.”

Simply, qualified tips are those that customers voluntarily offer to workers. Automatic service charges, which restaurants sometimes impose on large parties, do not qualify, according to that definition.

Tips must also be paid in cash or another medium that can be exchanged for cash, such as a check. That means digital assets, like cryptocurrency, would not qualify for the new deduction. Taxpayers can visit the IRS’s website for the agency’s complete definition of “qualified tips.”

The new deduction only affects federal income taxes on tipped income. As TurboTax notes in an online explainer, “Tips are still subject to payroll taxes and may also be taxed at the state or local level.”

How do I know the amount of “qualified tips” I received?

According to the IRS, workers can see the “qualified tips” paid to them in 2025 on a Form W-2, Form 1099-NEC, Form 1099-MISC, Form 1099-K or Form 4137.

How do I claim the tips deduction?

Workers must fill out and submit a new IRS form introduced this tax season called the Schedule 1-A. Filers can also use a Schedule 1-A to claim several other new tax deductions this year for auto loan interest, overtime pay and for Americans age 65 and older.

How many people will benefit from the deduction?

The Internal Revenue Service says in an online notice that the new deduction will benefit most taxpayers who earn tips, including veterans and people working in lower-wage jobs. Around 6 million workers report tipped wages, according to the agency.

However, some experts say the tax deduction will only help a narrow slice of tipped workers. That’s in part because many lower-paid workers who get tips and claim the standard deduction already do not owe federal income taxes.

“If you’re a very low-wage earner, you’re probably not going to benefit, certainly not substantially, from this deduction,” he told CBS News.

High earners who get tips may also not benefit if their income exceeds a certain amount. The benefit fully phases out for single filers who earn more than $400,000 and for people filing jointly who earn above $550,000, according to Congress.gov.

According to the Tax Policy Center, roughly 3% of taxpayers are expected to claim the tips deduction this year.

Trump halts Angel families speech to check on woman in audience

President spoke with Patty Morin about upcoming eye surgery he funded

By Ashley Carnahan
Fox News

Published February 23, 2026 2:36pm EST

President Donald Trump briefly paused an Angel Families Remembrance Ceremony at the White House on Monday to speak with Patty Morin, the mother of Rachel Morin, asking about her health and an upcoming surgery for her eyes.

“I gave her money to get her eyes fixed. A lot of money to get her eyes fixed. That doctor ripped me off. But that’s OK,” Trump joked.

Morin said her surgery was scheduled for Wednesday after being delayed. “It was postponed because they said the grief caused me to have a heart attack,” she said.

Her daughter, Rachel, was brutally raped and murdered by Salvadoran national Victor Martinez-Hernandez in August 2023. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in the summer of 2025.

A picture of Patty Morin (left) and her daughter Rachel Morin (right) who was killed by a Salvadoran national in August 2023.(Dillon Mullan/Baltimore Sun/Tribune News Service via Getty Images | Fox News / Hannity)

“You’re going to have 20/20 vision. You know she’s almost blind. Cataracts. She’s almost blind,” Trump said. “He’s an expensive doctor. Top of the line, right? But you know what? You’re going to have 20/20 vision.”

During the ceremony in the East Room of the White House, Trump honored families who have lost loved ones to crimes committed by illegal immigrants.

“Throughout this hall, I am joined by heartbroken Americans who have lost parents, siblings, children, grandchildren, and treasured loved ones to the scourge of illegal immigration, let in by the past administration,” the president said.

RACHEL MORIN’S MOTHER EXPLAINS PAINSTAKING PROCESS OF WRITING STATEMENT TO READ AT KILLER’S SENTENCING

President Donald Trump speaks during an event proclaiming “Angel Family Day” in the East Room of the White House on Feb. 23, 2026, in Washington.(Evan Vucci/AP)

“Under the Trump administration, their suffering is forgotten no longer,” he told attendees.

Laken Riley’s mother, Allyson Phillips, spoke at the event remembering her daughter, the 22-year-old nursing student who was killed by Venezuelan national José Ibarra while jogging on the University of Georgia campus in February 2024.

Several other family members also spoke during the ceremony, sharing personal stories about their loved ones.

GRIEVING FATHER SAYS DAUGHTER’S DEATH BY ILLEGAL ALIEN SHOWS COST OF SANCTUARY POLICIES

Allyson Phillips, the mother of Laken Riley, speaks as President Donald Trump listens during an event proclaiming “Angel Family Day” in the East Room of the White House on Feb. 23, 2026.(Alex Brandon/AP)

Steve Ronnebeck, whose 21-year-old son Grant was shot and killed by an illegal immigrant in Arizona, said the deaths were “preventable” and urged stronger enforcement of immigration laws.

“They could have been stopped. We could have done so much more,” Ronnebeck said.

Steve Ronnebeck, father of Grant Ronnebeck, speaks next to President Donald Trump during an event proclaiming “Angel Family Day” in the East Room of the White House on Feb. 23, 2026(Evan Vucci/AP)

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At the conclusion of the event, Trump signed a proclamation designating Feb. 22 as “National Angel Family Day.”

“We stand with the Angel Families, many of whom continue to be left without justice,” the White House said in a statement. “And we recommit to carrying out the largest mass-deportation effort in our Nation’s history, getting the worst of the worst out of our country, and putting a stop to the violence targeting the brave men and women of law enforcement.”

Ashley Carnahan is a writer at Fox News Digital.

Dow slides nearly 800 points as AI and tariff risks rattle investors

February 23, 2026 / 1:54 PM EST / CBS News

Stocks slid on Monday as jittery investors digested President Trump’s plan to raise global tariffs to 15% and amid renewed concerns about the impact of artificial intelligence apps on the technology industry.

The Dow Jones slid 794 points, or 1.6%, as of 12:35 p.m. EDT. The S&P 500 fell 78 points, or 1.1%, while the Nasdaq dropped 1.3%.

Gold, regarded as a safe haven in periods of market turbulence, rose 2.9% to $5,230, according to FactSet.

Wall Street analyst Adam Crisafulli, head of Vital Knowledge, pointed to concerns about the AI impact on the software sector and other industries as the main reason stocks were slumping in morning trade.

AI — which until recently had propelled the stock market to a succession of record highs — is “increasingly a net negative for the equity market,” he told investors in a research note.

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The Free Press:[Are We at an AI Precipice?]

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Tariffs “aren’t helping”

Mr. Trump’s move to immediately hike tariffs after the Supreme Court on Friday struck down his administration’s emergency tariffs also injected fresh uncertainty into financial markets, analysts noted. Mr. Trump initially said he would impose a 10% global tariff, but on Saturday upped that levy to 15%.

“Stocks got a boost Friday from the Supreme Court’s tariff ruling, but it quickly became clear that the decision was simply going to open a new chapter in the trade saga — not end it,” according to Chris Larkin, managing director of trading and investing at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley.

Despite today’s drop, Wall Street’s response was far milder than in April 2025, when stocks nosedived after Mr. Trump announced a sweeping set of reciprocal tariffs and a baseline 10% tariff on U.S. trading partners.

“Tariffs really aren’t driving the Mon[day] price action, but the enormous uncertainty and confusion associated with the SCOTUS decision and Trump’s subsequent actions and threats (including several social media posts) certainly aren’t helping equity sentiment,” Crisafulli said.

The U.S. dollar’s value edged only a bit lower against other currencies on Monday, while bitcoin briefly fell below $65,000 but remained above its low point reached earlier this month. Gold continued to rise thanks to its reputation as something safer to own during uncertain times.

Most of the president’s previous levies hinged on a law called the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, or IEEPA. Mr. Trump is now turning to Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to implement his next round of global tariffs, which are scheduled to take effect starting Feb. 24.

While the new round of tariffs may introduce more uncertainty, they are unlikely to have a meaningful impact on economic activity, Angelo Kourkafas, a senior global investment strategist at financial firm Edward Jones, said in an email note.

“We advise investors not to overreact to headlines…” he said.

Edited by Alain Sherter

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/how-the-supreme-courts-tariff-decision-impact-global-economy/

Lindsey Vonn says surgery saved her leg from amputation after Olympics crash

Updated on: February 23, 2026 / 11:27 AM EST / CBS News

American skierLindsey Vonn, who crashed seconds into her downhill race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, said on Monday that surgery saved her leg from amputation and that she is finally out of the hospital as she continues to recover.

“I’m finally well enough to move to a hotel. It’s not home yet, but it’s a huge step!” she posted on Instagram.

In a video message describing her injuries, Vonn credited her surgeon, Dr. Tom Hackett, for saving her leg from being amputated and said he performed a fasciectomy — a surgery that “filleted” her leg open.

Vonn said she had a complex tibia fracture and other fractures, and that “everything was in pieces.” She also had compartment syndrome, which the Cleveland Clinicdescribes as a painful buildup of pressure around muscles that can lead to permanent damage.

She also said she broke her right ankle, had a blood transfusion and was in a wheelchair.

“It has been quite the journey and by far the most extreme and painful and challenging injury I’ve ever faced in my entire life, times 100,” she said.

She said she has spent nearly two weeks lying in a hospital and was “almost completely immobile.”

“Now I will focus on rehab and progressing from a wheelchair to crutches in a few weeks,” she wrote. “It will take around a year for all of the bones to heal and then I will decide if I want to take out all the metal or not, and then go back into surgery and finally fix my ACL.”

U.S. skier Lindsey Vonn lies in a hospital bed after surgery for a broken leg following her crash at the Winter Olympics in Italy, in this picture obtained from social media on Feb. 11, 2026. @lindseyvonn via Instagram/via REUTERS

The 41-year-old American, who lives in Colorado,decided to compete in the Olympics despite rupturing her left ACL in a prior crash during a World Cup event in the Swiss Alps. She lost control in her Olympic race after appearing to clip a flag marking the side of the course, flew sideways through the air, and hit her head on the ground. She was responsive but did not get up. Medical personnel put her on a stretcher and airlifted her from the course.

She said she has no regrets and that she’d “rather go down swinging than not try at all.”

Haley Ott contributed to this report.

A Utah mom accused of poisoning her husband is on trial for murder. Here’s what to know.

Updated on: February 23, 2026 / 1:49 PM EST / CBS News

Opening statements begin Monday in the trial of Kouri Richins, the Utah mother accused of killing her husband before publishing a children’s book about grief in the wake of his death.

Richins, 35, is charged with multiple felonies for allegedly poisoning her late husband, Eric Richins, in March 2022. She has been accused of spiking his drink with a deadly dose of fentanyl at their home near Park City, placing nearly five times what would be considered a lethal amount of the opioid into a Moscow Mule cocktail that she mixed and proceeded to serve to him.

In addition to counts of aggravated murder and attempted aggravated murder, Richins faces charges for mortgage fraud and forgery. She has pleaded not guilty to all counts. If convicted of murder, she could be sentenced to life in prison.

Richins’ trial is taking place in Summit County, Utah, and is expected to last until the end of March. Here’s what to know about the case.

Alleged poisoning

In the early morning hours of March 4, 2022, the Summit County Sheriff’s Office received a call from Richins, who reported that her husband was not breathing, according to a search warrant affidavit. She told detectives that she had fallen asleep with the couple’s children in the room beside the one she shared with her husband, where he had gone to bed, and noticed only when she lay down next to him at around 3 a.m. that he was “cold,” the document said.

Although Richins told law enforcement that she attempted to perform CPR on her husband, the fire and medical personnel who responded to the scene said it appeared she had not given CPR based on the state of his body.

A toxicology report conducted after Eric Richins’ death showed that an enormous dose of fentanyl killed him. His friends and family, including his wife, later told detectives that he had no history of drug use. Kouri Richins told investigators that they had celebratory drinks that night to mark the sale of a property.

During the investigation into his death, Eric Richins’ family members said that they suspected his wife was involved and recalled him advising them while he was alive that, if something happened to him, she was to blame. Eric Richins’ sister told investigators that he had believed his wife tried to kill him during a trip to Greece several years earlier, apparently by serving him a drink that made him sick. Shortly before his death, on Valentine’s Day 2022, Eric Richins broke out in hives and had trouble breathing after eating a sandwich that his wife had brought to him, according to court filings.

Kouri Richins’ attorneys have challenged the claim that she laced her husband’s Moscow Mule with fentanyl, telling CBS affiliate KUTV that the prosecution has not officially documented that theory.

Fraud, forgery

Court filings show that Eric Richins was considering divorcing his wife when he was killed. Prosecutors have said Kouri Richins, meanwhile, was under significant financial pressure from her real estate company and was also the beneficiary of multiple life insurance policies on her husband, even though he had tried to remove her from both his life insurance and will not long before he died.

Although she claimed that the pair were celebrating a real estate purchase the night of her husband’s death, family members later told detectives that the couple had argued about whether or not to finalize the deal on a $2 million mansion that she wanted to “flip.” Kouri allegedly signed to close on the property the day after Eric died.

Children’s book

Kouri Richins authored a children’s picture book called “Are you with me?” within a year of her husband’s death. While promoting the book, which focused on coping mechanisms to deal with the death of a loved one, Richins appeared on a local television station in Utah and explained how difficult it was for her and her three sons to lose their husband and father unexpectedly.

Richins was arrested in May 2023 and has been denied bail multiple times.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

FIRST ON FOX:The family of a slain Louisiana police officer will have the chance to see President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address on Tuesday night after being invited by House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La.

The top congressional leader is bringing the mother and fiancée of Marc Tyler Brock to Trump’s primetime address, Fox News Digital learned on Monday.

“It is my profound honor to host Shirley Brock-Dennis and Kambreigh Smith — the respective mother and fiancée of Vivian Police Officer Marc Brock — as my guests for the State of the Union address. In November, Officer Brock was tragically killed in the line of duty,” Johnson told Fox News Digital.

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House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, left, and President Donald Trump shake hands during an Invest America roundtable in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, District of Columbia, on June 9, 2025.(Yuri Gripas/Abaca/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The speaker called Brock “an extraordinary young man who touched countless lives through his service and volunteer activities,” and said his death is a “somber reminder” of the risks that law enforcement officers take every day.

“I am grateful that Shirley and Kambreigh will join us and help share Officer Brock’s story with the nation,” Johnson said.

Brock, 25, was killed late last year while attempting to serve an arrest warrant against a man who at the time was charged with cyberstalking in Vivian, La., according to local outlet KLFY.

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The mother and fiancée of slain Louisiana Police Officer Marc Brock are invited to President Donald Trump’s State of the Union.(Courtesy of Shirley Brock-Dennis)

Vivian is located in Louisiana’s 4th congressional district, which Johnson represents.

JOHNSON PRAISES TRUMP’S ‘BOLD ACTION’ IN FORMAL STATE OF THE UNION INVITATION LETTER TO CONGRESS

The House speaker will be front-and-center when millions of Americans tune in to Trump’s State of the Union speech, his second address to a joint session of Congress since returning to the White House last year.

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He and the vice president will both be sitting behind Trump as he speaks to Americans and assembled officials about what he has done so far and what he has left to do in his final term.

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President Donald Trump delivers his joint address to Congress at the U.S. Capitol on March 4, 2025.(Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Brock was part of a six-person team serving a warrant in November 2025 when he was shot through a closed door and was later declared dead at the hospital.

He was described as a “hero” by Vivian Police Chief Ryan Nelson in comments to KSLA News.

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The man who killed him was charged with first-degree murder earlier this month.

Johnson himself has ties to public safety officers, his late father having been a firefighter in Shreveport, La.

Nick Reiner pleads not guilty in the killing of his parents Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner

Updated on: February 23, 2026 / 2:11 PM EST / CBS News

Nick Reiner pleaded not guilty in Los Angeles on Monday in the killing of his parents, Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner.

Nick Reiner, 32, was charged with two counts of murder in the first degree in the fatal stabbings at the couple’s home in LA’s Brentwood neighborhood in December. His public defender, Kimberly Greene, entered the not guilty plea on her client’s behalf.

Reiner sat in court behind his attorney in a glass-enclosed custody area. His head was shaved and he wore brown jail clothes.

Reiner spoke briefly during the arraignment, saying “yes” when Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Theresa McGonigle asked him to acknowledge waiving a speedy preliminary hearing in his case, as requested by his attorney. During a preliminary hearing, prosecutors present the main evidence supporting the charges and a judge decides if it’s enough for the case to move forward.

McGonigle scheduled Reiner’s next hearing for April 29 and ordered that he continue to be held without bail.

If convicted, Reiner could face the death penalty or a life sentence without the possibility of parole. Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said after Monday’s hearing that prosecutors were going through a process to determine whether to seek the death penalty.

“We take the process in which we determine whether or not the death penalty should be sought extremely seriously, and it goes through a very rigorous process,” Hochman said outside the courthouse. “We will be looking at all aggravating and mitigating circumstances.”

Nick Reiner appears with Deputy Public Defender Kimberly Greene during his arraignment in Los Angeles County Superior Court on February 23, 2026. Chris Torres-Pool / Getty Images

Hochman said Reiner’s attorney has been invited to present arguments for prosecutors to consider.

The case was proceeding on track, Hochman said. He said most of the evidence has been provided to Reiner’s attorney and that prosecutors were waiting for the coroner’s report.

Reiner is being represented by Greene after his defense attorney, Alan Jackson, unexpectedly withdrew from the case at what was supposed to be Reiner’s arraignment in January. Last year, Jackson successfully defended Karen Read against murder and manslaughter charges in the high-profile Massachusetts case over the death of her boyfriend, a Boston police officer.

In the Reiner case, Jackson told reporters outside the courthouse he had to step aside due to “circumstances beyond our control, but more importantly, circumstances beyond Nick’s control.”

Jackson didn’t elaborate on the reason, saying he was legally and ethically prohibited from doing so, but he said that Reiner wasn’t guilty of murder “pursuant to the law in California.” Hochman expressed confidence that a jury would convict Reiner.

Rob Reiner, 78, and Michele Singer Reiner, 70, died from “multiple sharp force injuries,” according to the LA County Medical Examiner.

Nick Reiner, the third of Rob Reiner’s four children, was arrested in the wake of his parents’ deaths, which sent shockwaves through Hollywood. Rob Reiner starred in the 1970s TV series “All in the Family” and went on to direct such hit movies as “This Is Spinal Tap,” “The Princess Bride” and “When Harry Met Sally.”

Emily Mae Czachor contributed to this report.

Pentagon raises serious concerns on US Senate aviation safety bill

By Reuters
February 23, 2026 7:51 PM UTC Updated 14 mins ago

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The Pentagon building is seen in Arlington, Virginia, U.S, April 6, 2023. REUTERS/Tom Brenner [Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab]

WASHINGTON, Feb 23 (Reuters) – The Pentagon raised significant concerns about an aviation safety bill set to be taken up later on Monday by the U.S. House of Representatives, saying it could create “significant unresolved budgetary burdens and operational security risks affecting national defense activities.”

The U.S. House is separately set to take up he ROTOR Act, legislation passed by the U.S. Senate unanimously in December that would require aircraft operators to equip their fleets with a safety system known as the automatic-dependent-surveillance-broadcast system, or ADS-B, by the end of 2031.

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The bill is aimed at addressing concerns about the January 2025 collision between an American Airlines (AAL.O), opens new tab regional jet and an Army Black Hawk helicopter that killed 67 people.

Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chris Reese

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For two of Washington’s most diametrically opposed political figures, there is a newfound common ground: whether the truth is out there.

President Donald Trump and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have butted heads since the former came to Washington, D.C. But now both want to expose whether there is life beyond the stars.

Their newfound unity on the subject conjoins a passion of Schumer’s and a moment of expedience for Trump.

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Trump, spurred by former President Barack Obama saying on a podcast that there was alien life — then walking it back shortly after — ordered Secretary of War Pete Hegseth late Thursday night to dump the government’s files on extraterrestrials.

“Based on the tremendous interest shown, I will be directing the Secretary of War and other relevant Departments and Agencies to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters,” Trump said on Truth Social.

The timeline for release of the documents and the breadth and scope of materials that could become public were unclear, but chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told Fox News Digital in a statement, “The Department looks forward to working with the interagency to fulfill the President’s directive.”

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For Schumer, it’s a passion project years in the making.

Seeking more transparency on UFOs and UAPs is a torch Schumer picked up from the late former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., a friend and mentor of the current top Senate Democrat. It’s also an issue he has prodded Trump to take up since last year.

“Now do UFOs,” Schumer said in response to Trump ordering files related to the assassinations of former President John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. to be declassified.

Reid gave the quest to unveil secrets surrounding UFOs and UAPs legitimacy in the late 2000s when he played a key role in funding the Pentagon’s Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program. That public program received millions to investigate unexplained phenomena.

Several years later, Schumer picked up where his predecessor left off. His most recent push came in 2023, when he served as Senate majority leader under former President Joe Biden.

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He and Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., introduced legislation modeled after the President John F. Kennedy Assassination Records Collection Act of 1992.

That bill, meant to be an amendment to the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), would have created a review board at the National Archives and Records Administration to collect the government’s trove of documents on UFOs and UAPs and established a presumption of disclosure for the records, requiring the government to provide a compelling reason why they shouldn’t be released to the public.

Ultimately, their original version did not pass muster, and a more watered-down iteration of the bill became law — an outcome Schumer blasted as an “outrage” at the time.

“It means that declassification of UAP records will be largely up to the same entities that have blocked and obfuscated their disclosure for decades,” Schumer said.

Iran protests surge at universities amid ongoing nuclear talks | Fox News

Iran president vows defiance as protests build against regime amid US military build up

President Masoud Pezeshkian says Tehran will ‘not bow down’ to pressure tied to nuclear negotiations

By Efrat Lachter
Fox News

Published February 23, 2026 11:17am EST

Anti-government protests are resurging across Iran, with videos showing students chanting slogans against the regime as nuclear negotiations with the United States are set to resume on Thursday.

A video translated by Reuters showed demonstrators shouting “We’ll fight, we’ll die, we’ll reclaim Iran,” reflecting growing anger towards the country’s leadership.

The renewed unrest follows months of frustration over economic hardship, repression and previous crackdowns, placing additional domestic pressure on the regime as talks unfold. Analysts say the convergence of protests at home, military pressure abroad and a stalled diplomatic track has hardened rhetoric on both sides rather than pushing them toward compromise.

Military members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in western Tehran, Iran.(Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The Iranian regime, meanwhile, is striking a defiant tone. President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran would “not bow down” to pressure tied to nuclear negotiations, warning that external coercion would not change Iran’s stance, according to Al Jazeera.

His remarks come ahead of a new round of U.S.–Iran talks set for Thursday in Geneva, confirmed by Oman, which is mediating the discussions. The negotiations aim to address Tehran’s nuclear program amid rising regional tensions, though major disputes remain over enrichment limits, sanctions relief and the scope of any deal.

In a February speech analyzed by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ruled out abandoning uranium enrichment and rejected U.S. demands to include Iran’s ballistic missile program and regional proxy activity in negotiations.

The analysis, authored by FDD research analyst Janatan Sayeh and Iran Program Senior Director Behnam Ben Taleblu, noted that Khamenei has escalated attacks on Washington’s leadership, calling President Donald Trump a “criminal” for backing Iranian protests and circulating rhetoric likening him to a tyrant.

US POSITIONS AIRCRAFT CARRIERS, STRIKE PLATFORMS ACROSS MIDDLE EAST AS IRAN TALKS SHIFT TO OMAN

An exercise aimed at assessing readiness and rehearsing responses to security threats comes during a second round of talks.(Press Office of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps / Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, the United States has expanded its military presence in the Middle East while signaling force remains an option. The deployments have shaped both the tone and urgency of the negotiations, reinforcing that diplomacy is unfolding under the shadow of potential escalation.

Special envoy Steve Witkoff warned Saturday that Iran could be “a week away” from having “industrial-grade bomb-making material,” citing enrichment levels he said are approaching weapons capability.

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Iran Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei addresses the public on the occasion of the 47th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution, according to Iranian state television in Tehran, Iran, on February 9, 2026.(Iranian Leader Press Office/Anadolu via Getty Images)

“It’s up to 60%,” Witkoff said. “They’re probably a week away from having industrial-grade bomb-making material.” He made the remarks on “My View with Lara Trump,” describing the situation as dangerous and accusing Iran of violating President Trump’s “zero enrichment” red line.

U.S. officials have warned that failure to reach an agreement could trigger serious consequences, while Tehran has signaled readiness to retaliate if attacked, reinforcing the sense that negotiations are taking place under intense pressure.

Reuters contributed to this report.

Related Article

Trump says Iran has 15 days to reach a deal or face ‘unfortunate’ outcome

Efrat Lachter is a world reporter for Fox News Digital covering international affairs and the United Nations. Follow her on X @efratlachter. Stories can be sent to efrat.lachter@fox.com.