The U.S. and Iran exchanged bombings over the weekend, escalating tensions and raising questions about the stability of the ceasefire as peace talks are expected to resume Tuesday. White House Sends Mixed MessagesOn Saturday night, President Donald Trump accused Iran of violating the ceasefire and warned that the U.S. might need to use military force. The president posted on social media, “There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”On Sunday morning, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz echoed the president’s sentiment, saying in a TV interview, “Don’t think for a second that President Trump isn’t going to leave every option on the table to achieve not just our aim, the entire world’s aim, that Iran never has a nuke.”By Sunday evening, the White House shared a statement from a U.S. official with Hearst Television saying, “Technical talks are slated to continue on all areas of the MOU . Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely.” Weekend Marked by New FightingThe most recent strikes happened Sunday when Iran attacked commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz and targeted American allies in Bahrain and Kuwait. This was in response to attacks on Friday and Saturday from the U.S. for separate Iranian bombings of commercial ships on Thursday and Saturday. U.S. Central Command shared video of the strikes from Saturday.Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reiterated Sunday Tehran’s position that it must control the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway that sees about one-fifth of the world’s oil traffic. Efforts to keep the Strait open without Iranian oversight have further fueled tensions. There’s a dispute between the U.S. and its allies and Iran about operating multiple lanes for ships to move through the Strait.Iran’s initial attack on Thursday forced the United Nations to postpone a mission to assist ships trapped in the Persian Gulf.Talks to Continue Despite FightingSince signing a ‘memorandum of understanding,’ the U.S. and Iran have been discussing arrangements for the Strait and the future of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which could be used to build nuclear weapons. Strikes between Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon could also add further strain on the agreement, after an Israeli soldier was killed Sunday in a Hezbollah attack.Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict, said talks between the U.S. and Iran would continue on Tuesday.Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau:
WASHINGTON —
The U.S. and Iran exchanged bombings over the weekend, escalating tensions and raising questions about the stability of the ceasefire as peace talks are expected to resume Tuesday.
White House Sends Mixed Messages
On Saturday night, President Donald Trump accused Iran of violating the ceasefire and warned that the U.S. might need to use military force.
The president posted on social media, “There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”
On Sunday morning, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz echoed the president’s sentiment, saying in a TV interview, “Don’t think for a second that President Trump isn’t going to leave every option on the table to achieve not just our aim, the entire world’s aim, that Iran never has a nuke.”
By Sunday evening, the White House shared a statement from a U.S. official with Hearst Television saying, “Technical talks are slated to continue on all areas of the MOU [memorandum of understanding]. Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely.”
Weekend Marked by New Fighting
The most recent strikes happened Sunday when Iran attacked commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz and targeted American allies in Bahrain and Kuwait.
This was in response to attacks on Friday and Saturday from the U.S. for separate Iranian bombings of commercial ships on Thursday and Saturday. U.S. Central Command shared video of the strikes from Saturday.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reiterated Sunday Tehran’s position that it must control the Strait of Hormuz, a critical waterway that sees about one-fifth of the world’s oil traffic. Efforts to keep the Strait open without Iranian oversight have further fueled tensions. There’s a dispute between the U.S. and its allies and Iran about operating multiple lanes for ships to move through the Strait.
Iran’s initial attack on Thursday forced the United Nations to postpone a mission to assist ships trapped in the Persian Gulf.
Talks to Continue Despite Fighting
Since signing a ‘memorandum of understanding,’ the U.S. and Iran have been discussing arrangements for the Strait and the future of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which could be used to build nuclear weapons.
Strikes between Israel and the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon could also add further strain on the agreement, after an Israeli soldier was killed Sunday in a Hezbollah attack.
Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict, said talks between the U.S. and Iran would continue on Tuesday.
Keep watching for the latest from the Washington News Bureau: