Iran Signals Fresh Negotiations With US After Deadly Strikes — Trump

Former United States President, Donald Trump, has disclosed that Iran has indicated readiness to resume negotiations with Washington following recent coordinated military strikes carried out by the United States and Israel on key Iranian targets.

Trump, in an interview with The Atlantic, said Iranian authorities initiated contact for renewed dialogue, adding that he had accepted the proposal for talks.

“They want to talk, and I have agreed to talk,” Trump was quoted as saying during a telephone interview with journalist Michael Scherer.

According to him, Tehran delayed engagement despite earlier opportunities for diplomatic resolution.

“They should have done it sooner. They should have given what was very practical and easy to do earlier. They waited too long,” he said.

Trump further claimed that several Iranian officials previously involved in negotiations were no longer alive following the military operation, which he described as a major strike.

“Most of those people are gone. Some of the people we were dealing with are gone because that was a big hit,” he added.

The development comes in the aftermath of coordinated US-Israeli attacks on multiple Iranian locations, reportedly resulting in the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and the country’s armed forces chief of staff, Abdolrahim Mousavi.

Family members of Khamenei, including his daughter, grandchild, daughter-in-law and son-in-law, were also said to have been killed during the operation.

Following Khamenei’s death, Iran is currently under transitional leadership pending the selection of a new supreme leader by the Assembly of Experts.

Trump, however, did not disclose the specific Iranian officials overseeing the renewed diplomatic outreach to Washington.

Iranian authorities have since declared a national mourning period, while reports indicate that several senior Revolutionary Guard commanders and defence officials also lost their lives in the strikes.

Casualty figures released by Iranian officials and regional monitors suggest that more than 200 people have been killed and over 700 others injured since the attacks began.

In Israel, authorities confirmed that at least nine persons were killed, while over 100 others sustained injuries following retaliatory missile and drone attacks launched by Iran.

The latest developments have heightened global concerns over escalating tensions in the Middle East, even as diplomatic efforts appear to be gradually resuming between both countries.