The US attacks Iran again with peace negotiations underway
Washington justifies it as a move of "self-defense" to protect American troops from "threats from Iranian forces"
BarcelonaThe United States launched new attacks against southern Iran in the early hours of Tuesday, targeting missile bases and ships attempting to lay mines, the U.S. Central Command reported. In a statement, it stated that these were "self-defense" attacks designed to protect American troops from "threats posed by Iranian forces." Iranian media reported that three explosions were heard in Bandar Abbas, on the coast of the Strait of Hormuz, a major port and Iranian naval base.
"US Central Command continues to defend our forces while exercising restraint during the ongoing ceasefire," stated spokesman Tim Hawkins, who did not specify which ships were attacked, where they were located, or where exactly the U.S. attacks took place. According to the "New York Timesto sign the so-called Abraham AccordsThis new wave of attacks comes as talks to reach a peace agreement are underway. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that it is still possible to reach an agreement and referred to the talks on Tuesday between Iran's Foreign Minister and Qatar's Prime Minister. In statements to journalists during an official visit to India, he said that the talks are now focusing on the "specific language" of the document, and predicted that the agreement would "take a few days" to materialize.
Over the weekend, President Donald Trump spoke with several regional leaders, which allowed for a solid alignment on the initial draft, according to Rubio. In a message on his Truth Social network this Monday, the American president urged the mediating states, starting with Qatar and Saudi Arabia, to sign the so-called Abraham Accords, which involve the normalization of relations with Israel, if they want the pact that would allow the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened to prosper.
Rubio affirmed that Washington will give diplomacy "every opportunity to succeed" before considering whether to deal with Iran "in another way." He also assured that Donald Trump has "expressed his desire to achieve this." However, he warned that the situation in the Strait of Hormuz is unsustainable and stressed that any agreement with Tehran will have to guarantee transit through this route immediately. "The strait must be open. It will be open, one way or another. [...] What is happening there is illegal, illicit, unsustainable for the world and unacceptable," he said, and again reproached Iran for seeking to set a toll for transit.
In a post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump said that talks with Iran were "going well," but warned of new attacks if they failed. "It will only be a Great Deal for everyone, or there will be no Deal," he wrote. Hours later, the army reported attacks in southern Iran, for the moment without a response from Tehran.
Disagreement over Iranian uranium
According to sources cited by various media outlets, the critical points of the negotiation between Washington and Tehran are the conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz –here Iran insists on its right to charge a toll– and the reserves of enriched uranium, which the US demands be eliminated.
In a post on Truth Social this Monday night, Trump referred to this point and suggested that he could accept Iran destroying the material in its own territory: "The enriched uranium (nuclear dust!) will be immediately handed over to the United States to be taken away and destroyed or, preferably, jointly and in coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, it will be destroyed in situ or, elsewhere acceptable, with the Atomic Energy Commission, or its equivalent, as a witness to this process and event," he wrote.
Israel promises more war in Lebanon
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that he will intensify attacks against Hezbollah in Lebanon. "We are at war with Hezbollah," he said in a video released this Monday. Shortly after, the Israeli army reported that it was attacking the infrastructure of the pro-Iranian militia in the Bekaa Valley, in eastern Lebanon, and in other areas.
Israel and Lebanon agreed to a ceasefire in mid-April, without Hezbollah's participation, but the Hebrew army has maintained its bombings. Netanyahu boasted of having killed more than 600 militiamen in recent weeks and warned that the army will intensify the pressure: "We are not taking our foot off the accelerator. On the contrary, I have ordered that we press even harder on the accelerator."