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Israel has warned that its war with Iran could be lengthy, as United States President Donald Trump dismissed European peace efforts and signalled he “might” support a ceasefire between the two Middle Eastern nations, “depending on the circumstances”.
The comments were made on Friday, as the conflict entered its second week and Israeli forces targeted Tehran, while Iranian missiles wounded many in the Mediterranean port city of Haifa.
Hours after Israeli Foreign Minister Eyal Zamir warned his citizens in a video address to prepare for a “prolonged campaign” with “difficult days ahead”, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told a meeting of European diplomats in Geneva that Iran would not resume talks over its nuclear program while under attack.
Trump, meanwhile, dismissed the European diplomatic efforts, saying it was up to the US to find a solution to the current conflict.
“Iran doesn’t want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us. Europe is not going to be able to help in this one,” Trump said.
Trump also asserted that his director of national intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard, was wrong to suggest that there is no evidence Iran is building a nuclear weapon.
On Friday, Gabbard said the media has taken her March testimony “out of context” and was trying to “manufacture division”.
She said in a post on the social media platform X that: “America has intelligence that Iran is at the point that it can produce a nuclear weapon within weeks to months, if they decide to finalize the assembly. President Trump has been clear that can’t happen, and I agree.”
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi met with European counterparts in Geneva on Friday for talks aimed at establishing a path back to diplomacy over Iran’s nuclear program.
European foreign ministers urged Iran to engage with Washington in the current ongoing negotiations, but the talks ended with few signs of progress.
In a press conference following the meeting, Araghchi told reporters that Iran would be ready to “consider diplomacy once again once the aggression is stopped” and “the aggressor is held accountable for the heinous crimes committed”, referring to Israel.
The air assault between the two nations began on 13 June, after Israel attacked Iran, and has raised alarms in a region that has been on edge since the start of Israel’s war in Gaza in October 2023.
Trump and the White House say he will decide in the next two weeks whether the US will involve itself further in the conflict.
In the meantime, Trump has kept the world guessing about his plans, switching back and forth between proposing a swift diplomatic solution and suggesting Washington might join the fight.
When asked on Friday whether he would be willing to send US soldiers into Iran if the conflict escalated, Trump said: “I’m not going to talk about ground forces, because the last thing you want to do is ground forces.”
Israel is the only country in the Middle East widely believed to have nuclear weapons. It said it struck Iran to prevent Tehran from developing its own nuclear weapons.
Iran, which says its nuclear program is peaceful, has retaliated with its own strikes on Israel. Iran is a party to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, while Israel is not.
Israel’s strikes have killed 639 people in Iran, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency. Israel says Iranian attacks have killed 24 civilians in Israel.
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