Iran and Israel traded attacks overnight, increasing tensions and complicating U.S. efforts to maintain a ceasefire with Iran. President Donald Trump said he is “not happy” about the strikes as he works to bring both conflicts to an end. A senior official told the Associated Press that Trump called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, urging him not to retaliate immediately. It appears Netanyahu ignored Trump’s request.On Monday morning, Trump posted on social media urging Israel and Iran to stop shooting. In a separate post he said Israel and Iran want a ceasefire. A ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran has been in effect since April 7, although back-and-forth attacks have continued.Israel’s ongoing war against the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon has disrupted peace negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. Iran insists that Lebanon must be included in any ceasefire agreement negotiated with the U.S. As the war with Iran enters its 15th week, Trump told Axios, “We are very close to a final deal with Iran. It is going to be a good deal. I don’t want it to blow up because of what is happening now.” Over the weekend, Iranian Foreign Minister spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei claimed that negotiating with the U.S. is difficult because of conflicting statements from the administration. “The main problem of negotiating with this administration is that you have to face so many changing positions, moving the goal post, different statements, contradictory remarks by different officials, so it makes the whole process very cumbersome, very unstable, and very uncertain, so the exchange of communication still are ongoing,” Baghaei said.During an interview on “Meet the Press with Kristen Welker” that was recorded on Friday in Wisconsin, Trump dismissed claims that he betrayed a campaign promise of “no new wars.”Trump said, “First of all, I didn’t guarantee no war. Why would I have built the strongest military in the world? I built our military. I inherited a terrible military. We had no equipment. We had nothing. I built a tremendous military. Biden gave a lot of it away, but it’s still a relatively small portion compared to what I built.” When Welker pressed him, saying, “But you said it over and over again,” Trump responded, “Why would I build a military now? I didn’t want to use this, but I’m doing you and everybody else a big favor.” Support for the U.S.-Iran conflict is slipping. A new Economist/YouGov poll shows nearly seven in 10 Americans want the U.S. to make a deal to end the war as quickly as possible.Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau:
WASHINGTON —
Iran and Israel traded attacks overnight, increasing tensions and complicating U.S. efforts to maintain a ceasefire with Iran.
President Donald Trump said he is “not happy” about the strikes as he works to bring both conflicts to an end. A senior official told the Associated Press that Trump called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, urging him not to retaliate immediately. It appears Netanyahu ignored Trump’s request.
On Monday morning, Trump posted on social media urging Israel and Iran to stop shooting. In a separate post he said Israel and Iran want a ceasefire. A ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran has been in effect since April 7, although back-and-forth attacks have continued.
Israel’s ongoing war against the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon has disrupted peace negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. Iran insists that Lebanon must be included in any ceasefire agreement negotiated with the U.S.
As the war with Iran enters its 15th week, Trump told Axios, “We are very close to a final deal with Iran. It is going to be a good deal. I don’t want it to blow up because of what is happening now.”
Over the weekend, Iranian Foreign Minister spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei claimed that negotiating with the U.S. is difficult because of conflicting statements from the administration.
“The main problem of negotiating with this administration is that you have to face so many changing positions, moving the goal post, different statements, contradictory remarks by different officials, so it makes the whole process very cumbersome, very unstable, and very uncertain, so the exchange of communication still are ongoing,” Baghaei said.
During an interview on “Meet the Press with Kristen Welker” that was recorded on Friday in Wisconsin, Trump dismissed claims that he betrayed a campaign promise of “no new wars.”
Trump said, “First of all, I didn’t guarantee no war. Why would I have built the strongest military in the world? I built our military. I inherited a terrible military. We had no equipment. We had nothing. I built a tremendous military. Biden gave a lot of it away, but it’s still a relatively small portion compared to what I built.”
When Welker pressed him, saying, “But you said it over and over again,” Trump responded, “Why would I build a military now? I didn’t want to use this, but I’m doing you and everybody else a big favor.”
Support for the U.S.-Iran conflict is slipping. A new Economist/YouGov poll shows nearly seven in 10 Americans want the U.S. to make a deal to end the war as quickly as possible.
Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau: