Summary
Tehran says it has “no plans for the next round” of peace talks – here’s the latest from Iranian officials
The US says it will send a delegation to Pakistan headed by Vice-President JD Vance, but there’s little clarity on the timing of any potential talks, writes our Washington reporter
The US-Iran two-week ceasefire is due to end on Wednesday. But even if the talks in Pakistan begin, the chances of a breakthrough are slim at best, writes Frank Gardner
It comes after the US attacked and seized an Iranian cargo ship trying to get past its blockade of Iran’s ports, President Trump says
“Vacate your engine room, vacate your engine room, we’re prepared to subject you to disabling fire” – watch the moment US forces attack the ship
Iran’s military has said it will retaliate – Iranian media says drones have attacked US ships, though no damage has been reported
Trump says Israel ‘never’ talked him into Iran warpublished at 10:31
Bernd Debusmann Jr
White House reporter
We’ve just had a new Truth Social Post from Donald Trump, in which he lashes out against the media and says that “Israel never talked me into the war with Iran”.
He says that the Hamas attacks on Israel on 7 October 2023 added to his “lifelong” opinion that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon.
Without saying so, Trump is addressing a talking point that has gained steam domestically – that Israel somehow hoodwinked him into a war in Iran with no easy resolution.
The New York Times, for example, reported that Trump’s closest advisers, including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen Dan Caine, were uneasy with an Israeli forecast presented by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before the operation began.
Additionally, the former head of the National Counterterrorism Center, Joe Kent, explicitly said in his resignation – and multiple times since – that he believes Israel used backchannels to convince the administration to launch the strikes to help achieve their own objectives.
Trump and the White House have repeatedly denied this.
In the same post, Trump lashes out at the media for “lies and made up stories”, saying that “the results in Iran will be amazing”.
