US military says it has launched new strikes in Iran, including on missile launch sites
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According to a statement from the US Central Command, the strikes were carried out “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces".
The US military said Monday that it carried out "self-defence" strikes in southern Iran, including on missile launch sites and boats placing mines, even as President Donald Trump said on social media that negotiations were “proceeding nicely".
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According to a statement from the US Central Command, the strikes were carried out “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces".
“Targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace mines. U.S. Central Command continues to defend our forces while using restraint during the ongoing ceasefire,” CENTCOM spokesman Timothy Hawkins wrote in the statement.
Further details were not immediately available, including more specifics on the threats from Iran and what this means for ongoing negotiations.
The strikes come amid a potential deal between both sides on ending the war, and that will allow for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the passageway for some 20 percent of global shipping which has been effectively blockaded by Iran since the start of the US-Israeli war on Tehran on 28 February.
On Monday, Iranian officials said agreements on many issues were concluded between its negotiators and Washington, but a potential deal was not imminent.
According to Tehran's foreign policy spokesperson Esmail Baquei, there was no 'timeframe or deadline' in finalising the deal with the US.
The remarks contrasted with those from Trump, who claimed on Saturday that a deal with Iran on the war, including opening the Strait of Hormuz, has been “largely negotiated” after calls with Israel and other allies in the region.
“Final aspects and details of the deal are currently being discussed and will be announced shortly,” Trump said on social media, with no details.
Hours later on Sunday, the US president said he had told representatives to hold off and not rush the potential deal.
Potential deal to end Iran war to include Abraham Accords
Meanwhile, Trump on Monday said any agreement to end the Iran war should include a requirement for several additional countries, including Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, to join the Abraham Accords, the US-brokered agreements from Trump’s first term aimed at normalising relations with Israel.
The proposal came as the emerging Iran deal faced criticism from fellow Republicans who favour a harder line on Iran, and it could add new diplomatic complications to the negotiations.
Trump pointed to Saudi Arabia and Qatar as countries that should “immediately” sign on, alongside Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt and Jordan. Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates became the first countries to join in 2020.
RelatedAccording to Trump, “after all the work done by the United States to try and pull this very complex puzzle together, it should be mandatory that all of these countries, at a minimum, simultaneously sign onto the Abraham Accords.”
Trump has long hoped Saudi Arabia would join, but the kingdom has maintained that any normalisation deal requires first establishing a clear path for Palestinian statehood. That’s also key for Pakistan, which is among the countries that do not have diplomatic relations with Israel.
Originally between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, then followed by Sudan, Morocco, and, more recently, Kazakhstan, the accords are a series of diplomatic, economic and security agreements created with US influence during Trump’s first term.
They were framed as an endeavour to promote cooperation among countries in the Middle East and North Africa, and the administration saw them as partly paving a path toward full ties with Israel.
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