IRAN WAR LATEST: Trump says U.S. negotiators will be in Islamabad for talks with Iran
· Toronto Sun
With vessels still steering clear of the Strait of Hormuz and the temporary ceasefire set to expire midweek, U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday that U.S. negotiators will head back to Pakistan for a second round of peace talks.
In a post on Truth Social on Sunday morning, the U.S. president accused Iran of violating the ceasefire agreement after it “decided to fire bullets” in the Strait of Hormuz.
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He then said U.S. representatives will be in Islamabad on Monday evening for negotiations.
“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran. NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!,” he added.
On Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei called the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports “unlawful and criminal” and a violation of the ceasefire agreement.
“ It violates Article 2(4) of the UN Charter; it constitutes an act of aggression under Article 3(c) of the UN General Assembly Resolution 3314 (1974), which explicitly includes the blockade of a state’s ports or coasts among such acts.
“Moreover, by deliberately inflicting collective punishment on the Iranian population, it amounts to war crime and crime against humanity,” Baghaei said in a post on X.
Here is the latest on the Iran war on Sunday:
Traffic halted on the Strait of Hormuz
Shipping traffic on the strait continues to be disrupted on Sunday morning, according to a BBC report, citing information from the Marine Traffic website.
It said a snapshot taken just before 12:00 GMT (8 a.m. EDT) showed no traffic was going through the critical shipping waterway, which accounts for roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil trade.
Both Trump and Iranian officials accuse each other of violating the ceasefire.
Iran had announced the strait’s reopening after a 10-day truce between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon took hold on Friday. But Iran said it would continue enforcing its restrictions there after Trump said the U.S. blockade “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the United States.
After a brief uptick in transit attempts on Saturday, Iran fired on two India-flagged merchant ships that were forced to turn around, leading India to summon Iran’s ambassador over the “serious incident.” India noted that Iran earlier let several India-bound ships through.
Security tight in Islamabad
Prior to Trump’s social media post about the peace talks, security was ramping up around the Pakistani capital, the BBC reported.
The hotel that hosted officials in last weekend’s negotiations had told its guests to leave, according to the British news outlet.
Islamabad police had warned that key roads in the city may be closed with restrictions in place, limiting heavy traffic from heading into the city, the BBC reported.
Though Iranian officials did not immediated confirm the talks, a regional Pakistani official involved in the efforts told the Associated Press that mediators were finalizing the preparations and U.S. advance security teams were already on the ground. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to discuss preparations with the media.
It was unclear whether either side had shifted stances on issues that derailed the last round of negotiations, including Iran’s nuclear enrichment program, its regional proxies and control over the Strait of Hormuz.
— with files from the Associated Press