Trump delays Iran deal decision as Tehran rejects 'mixture of truth and lies'
President Donald Trump outlined stringent terms for a ceasefire, including the removal of mines from the Strait of Hormuz and the destruction of enriched uranium, but Iranian officials dismissed the proposal and insisted no final accord has been reached.
US President Donald Trump attended a two-hour meeting in the White House Situation Room on Friday to consider a potential deal to end the US-Israeli war against Iran, but did not reach a final decision on any new agreement. While Trump stated he was finalising terms requiring Iran to remove mines from the Strait of Hormuz and destroy enriched uranium, Iranian officials rejected the characterisation of the negotiations as a "mixture of truth and lies". Tehran insisted no final agreement had been reached, citing demands for the release of $12 billion in frozen assets and denying that nuclear disarmament was part of current discussions.
Trump announced the Situation Room gathering via a lengthy social media post, reiterating demands that Iran agree never to possess nuclear weapons and open the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane without tolls. He stated that the United States would lift its parallel blockade of Iranian ports and that the two countries would coordinate on the removal of enriched uranium, adding that "no money will be exchanged, until further notice". The White House described the gathering as a crisis management exercise aimed at finalising the agreement, with US sources indicating the deal was waiting on the president's sign-off.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told state media that the Islamic Republic "said goodbye to the language of 'must' 47 years ago" and confirmed that exchanges of messages were continuing, but no final agreement had been reached. Iranian state news agency Fars cited sources calling Trump’s remarks a "mixture of truth and lies", noting that Tehran is demanding the immediate release of $12 billion in frozen assets before moving to the next phase of negotiations. Fars further reported that no clause regarding the toll-free reopening of Hormuz appears in the current agreement text and that comments on destroying nuclear material are "fundamentally baseless".
Baghaei also told state TV that there were currently "no negotiations" taking place on Iran's nuclear programme. Washington and Tehran have accused each other of violating the truce in and around the Strait of Hormuz, with US strikes on the southern Iranian port of Bandar Abbas countered by retaliatory Iranian fire. Iranian state TV reported that 24 ships had transited the strait in the past 24 hours in coordination with the Revolutionary Guards, but warned that ships from "hostile countries" face a severe response from Iran's military.
On the Lebanon front, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed that troops had crossed the Litani River, approximately 30 kilometres north of the Lebanon-Israel frontier, and were engaging Hezbollah forces. Hezbollah claimed responsibility for a series of drone attacks on military targets in northern Israel, including troop gatherings and a barracks. The attacks occurred while Israeli and Lebanese military delegations were holding security talks in Washington, even as Israel maintained heavy bombardment of southern Lebanon despite a ceasefire that was supposed to have taken effect on 17 April.
