Leaked Mohammad Javad Zarif audiotape

In April 2021, more than three hours of audiotape was leaked from a seven-hour interview between economist Saeed Leylaz and Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. The taped conversation was connected to an oral history project, titled "In the Islamic Republic, the military field rules," that documents the work of then-president Hassan Rouhani and his government.^[2][3][4] The tape was obtained by the London-based news channel Iran International and publicized by The New York Times.^[5] Zarif did not dispute the authenticity of the leaked tape, but questioned the motive.^[3] Iran International noted^[6] that Zarif's claim was "not very credible."^[7]

Although the tape has not been authenticated, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman did not deny its validity, and critics of Zarif were calling for his resignation, saying that "he had threatened Iran’s national security by revealing to the world the country’s inner politics".^[8][9] Iran's president Hassan Rouhani ordered an investigation to identify who leaked the tape. He stated that it was "stolen for clear reasons".^[10] On May 2, 2021, in an Instagram post, Zarif apologized for the remarks that he made against Soleimani.^[11]