Trump calls Iran’s response to US peace proposal ‘unacceptable’

Tehran is seeking an end to the war on all fronts, including in Lebanon, where Israel is fighting Hezbollah militants

Iran sent its response to the latest US ceasefire proposal via Pakistani mediators and wants negotiations to focus on permanently ending the war, but President Donald Trump quickly rejected it as “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!” with no details.

Iran seeks to end the war on all fronts, including in Lebanon, where Israel is fighting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, and to ensure the security of shipping, state television said.

Washington’s latest proposal addressed a deal to end the war, reopen the Strait of Hormuz and roll back Iran’s nuclear programme.

Trump earlier on social media accused Tehran of “playing games” with the United States for nearly 50 years, adding: “They will be laughing no longer!”

Trump is giving diplomacy “every chance we possibly can before going back to hostilities”, the US ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, told ABC earlier.

Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not been seen or heard publicly since the war began, “issued new and decisive directives for the continuation of operations and the powerful confrontation with the enemies” while meeting with the head of the joint military command, the state broadcaster reported, with no details.