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Donald Trump said that Iran was taking ‘too long to negotiate’ after he previously believed a peace deal could be arranged this week
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Donald Trump is weighing fresh strikes on Iran’s power plants, according to a report, after warning Iran will “have to pay the price” for taking “too long” to negotiate a peace deal.
In a fresh rant on Truth Social, the US president accused Tehran of being “all talk and no action” in its negotiations as conflict amps up in the region.
He followed up in a second post that the US naval blockade was “the most successful Blockade in the history of Naval Warfare”.
Iran threatened to carry out “even more severe and widespread attacks” if the US military continues to strike the country, with the foreign ministry warning peace talks could no longer continue with the ceasefire violated – throwing into doubt the possibility previously touted by Donald Trump that a deal could be agreed this week.
Trump’s military launched strikes against Iran after accusing the country of shooting down an American Apache helicopter.
In response, Tehran’s forces fired at least four ballistic missiles and several drones at US bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said its Aerospace Force launched long-range missiles at an airbase in Jordan, which hosts US military personnel. The Guard said the attack damaged critical command centres and F-35 fighter jet hangars.
Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi held separate phone calls with his Turkish and Saudi counterparts to discuss regional developments after the US struck southern Iran.
Araghchi condemned the US strikes in the calls and said they violated Iran’s national sovereignty and territorial integrity, according to reports.
It was not clear whether the calls took place before or after Iran launched its own strikes on US bases in Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan has lashed out at Israel for its attacks on Syria and Lebanon had reached a point where they also threaten Turkey.
In comments made to lawmakers from his ruling AK parliament in parliament, he said Israel’s “aggression” posed a threat to the whole world and must be stopped.
The Nato member has been one of the fiercest critics of Israel’s assaults on Iran, Gaza, and Lebanon, saying Israel was the biggest obstacle to regional peace. It has halted all trade with Israel and called for measures against it at international courts.
“The attacks by (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and his newtork of murder on Lebanon and Syria have brought the issue to a point where it also threatens Turkey,” Erdogan said.
He added that Ankara’s security was tied to that of these two countries.
Erdogan also said Israel was leading a “sneaky effort” to destabilise African countries and the Mediterranean by igniting “the fire of discord” on the ethnically-split island of Cyprus.
“These small entities, whose ambitions far exceed their size, have boarded Israel’s boat of mischief, taken on the role of Zionist subcontractors, and are pursuing some pipe dreams in the Eastern Mediterranean,” he said, without elaborating.
The UN human rights office will deploy a team of investigators to Lebanon next week to assess potential violations of international law, UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Wednesday.
Mr Turk said the office will assess actions of all involved parties in its investigations.
Lebanon was drawn into the wider Middle East conflict on 2 March when the Tehran-backed Hezbollah militia fired rockets at Israel in solidarity with Iran, which was under US-Israeli attack, prompting a major Israeli air and ground campaign.
Turkish president Tayyip Erdogan has lashed out at Israel for its attacks on Syria and Lebanon had reached a point where they also threaten Turkey.
In comments made to lawmakers from his ruling AK parliament in parliament, he said Israel’s “aggression” posed a threat to the whole world and must be stopped.
The Nato member has been one of the fiercest critics of Israel’s assaults on Iran, Gaza, and Lebanon, saying Israel was the biggest obstacle to regional peace. It has halted all trade with Israel and called for measures against it at international courts.
“The attacks by (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and his newtork of murder on Lebanon and Syria have brought the issue to a point where it also threatens Turkey,” Erdogan said.
He added that Ankara’s security was tied to that of these two countries.
Erdogan also said Israel was leading a “sneaky effort” to destabilise African countries and the Mediterranean by igniting “the fire of discord” on the ethnically-split island of Cyprus.
“These small entities, whose ambitions far exceed their size, have boarded Israel’s boat of mischief, taken on the role of Zionist subcontractors, and are pursuing some pipe dreams in the Eastern Mediterranean,” he said, without elaborating.
Donald Trump is weighing up fresh strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure, Fox News is reporting.
The US president is considering striking Iran’s power plants and bridges as he accuses Tehran of taking too long to make a deal, Fox News reported on Wednesday following a phone interview.
The US, UK and other European countries have just issued a statement condemning Iran for “lethal plotting”.
The statement accused Tehran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps-Intelligence Organisation, Quds Force and Ministry of Intelligence and Security for plotting and other actions in Europe, North America, and Australia.
We’ve heard some mixed messages from the White House regarding the Apache helicopter crash near the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump told The Wall Street Journal during a phone call on Tuesday that the helicopter incident “wasn’t a big deal” and stressed that “the pilot is fine”.
But the US president also said a response would be necessary. Speaking to ABC News on Tuesday, he said: “I believe the response should be very strong, very powerful, and that’s what this one is.”
The episode could well add further strain to efforts to broker a peace deal to end the wider Middle East war and reopen Hormuz.
As Israeli warplanes pounded Beirut’s southern suburbs last March and residents fled in panic, one man found his opportunity. Amid the chaos, he slipped out of his imprisonment in a Hezbollah cell and made his way to the green hills overlooking the Lebanese capital.
There, in the posh diplomatic quarter of Baabda, he disappeared inside the gates of the Ukrainian Embassy.
Where he is now is a mystery, tangled up in an ongoing spy game as Hezbollah attempts to root out Israeli intelligence operatives that have infiltrated the militant group.
Read more:
Donald Trump has denied reports that the US naval blockade is ineffective.
Speaking on Truth Social: “The Fake News Media refuses to report how EFFECTIVE the U.S. Naval BLOCKADE is, the most successful Blockade in the history of Naval Warfare. NOTHING GETS THROUGH unless we want it to. IT IS A STEEL WALL!
“Iran is doing ZERO business, not paying their military, or any of their bills, and quickly becoming a FAILED NATION! Lots of oil is getting out. Praise be to Allah!”
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