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Iran’s military has vowed to fight until the bitter end against the US and Israel after rejecting Donald Trump’s claims that America had been holding “productive” peace talks with Tehran.
A spokesperson for Iran’s top military command said on Tuesday that its armed forces will not stop “until complete victory”, pouring cold water over Mr Trump’s statements about a “five-day ceasefire”.
However, Iranian officials conceded that the US had been in contact through mediators as pressure mounted for a resolution after weeks of upheaval across the Middle East.
“We received points from the US through mediators and they are being reviewed,” a senior military official told CBS.
Pakistan has offered to mediate negotiations, with its prime minister Shehbaz Sharif writing on X that the nation “stands ready and honoured to be the host to facilitate meaningful and conclusive talks for a comprehensive settlement of the ongoing conflict”.
It remains unclear who diplomats would be negotiating with after several top Iranian officials were killed in recent days, including security chief Ali Larijani. The newly-appointed supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen in public over security fears as Israel is likely to assassinate him.
Tel Aviv on Monday after an Iranian missile strike (AFP/Getty)
Trump administration officials said the White House was considering Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf as a potential leader of talks. An Israeli official told Axios that special envoy Steve Witkoff and Mr Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were negotiating with him instead of the new supreme leader.
Mr Ghalibaf has vehemently denied that Iran is in talks with the US and called such reports “fake news”.
The war of words follows Iran intensifying attacks against Israel and America’s allies in the Gulf, with the Israeli military reporting missile attacks across the country on Tuesday, including several hits on Tel Aviv.
Saudi Arabia intercepted more than 20 drones in a fresh wave of attacks and Bahrain activated sirens while Kuwait responded to drone and missile attacks overnight.
Police in Iran said they arrested 466 individuals accused of “stirring public opinion” and “online propaganda in favour of the enemy”, according to IRNA, the state news agency.
Ghalibaf is being favoured to lead negotiations, according to reports (Middle East Images)
Oil prices plummeted overnight after Mr Trump’s overtures to diplomacy, but edged higher again on Tuesday morning, briefly touching $100 a barrel.
Meanwhile, Israel’s defence minister Israel Katz made his most ardent statement about Lebanon yet, declaring that ground troops would occupy southern Lebanon up to the Litani River.
In a meeting with the military chief of staff he said the military would “control the remaining bridges and the security zone up to the Litani”, creating a “defensive buffer” similar to Gaza. He had previously threatened to “take” the territory if Hezbollah did not disarm.
France warned Israel against a ground invasion of the country, where 1,029 people are reported to have been killed and around 1 million displaced.
Trump had said Iran and the US were engaged in ‘constructive’ peace talks but the Islamic Republic has vowed to fight until the bitter end (AFP/Getty)
Britain has not been far from the conflict with troops shooting down 14 drones overnight in the Middle East, the UK’s defence ministry said.
HMS Dragon reached the eastern Mediterranean to fortify Cyprus’ defences, having undergone a fortnight of critical training and assessment to ensure its 230 sailors are ready for the intensive pace of operations, the Royal Navy said.
The UK is expected to host an international conference on reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which has been brought to a standstill by the conflict.
More than 30 nations have signed a joint statement agreeing to collaborate on efforts to safeguard the channel and reopen it to commercial shipping.
