Trump Weighs Resuming the War as ‘Disjointed’ Iranian Leadership Makes a New Proposal

As Iranian negotiators sent a new war-ending proposal to Pakistani mediators on Friday, President Trump says the Islamic Republic’s leadership is too divided, and that he is reluctantly weighing to “blast the hell out of them.” The president insists that Iranians are eager to make a deal. Yet “I’m not satisfied,” with the latest proposal, Mr. Trump told White House reporters Friday He added that negotiations are hard with a “disjointed” Iranian leadership. Washington insists on free navigation at the Gulf of Hormuz, and Mr. Trump repeatedly vows to deny Iran a nuclear weapon. Tehran is demanding full control of the Strait and insists that it has an inalienable “right” to enrich uranium. “There is an internal battle at Tehran,” a veteran Farsi language broadcaster, Menashe Amir, tells the Sun. “Some believe that the current situation is unsustainable and that compromises are needed to make a deal with America. Then there are the Revolutionary Guards. Their budgets and income depend on continuing the war.” The previous supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, has been able to settle such disputes by balancing out the different factions. He was killed in the February 28 strike that launched Operation Epic Fury. While the regime hails him as a martyr, Khamenei is yet to be buried, indicating that internal disputes are delaying decisions even on a funeral for a revered leader. The leader’s son and successor, Mujtaba Khamenei, has not been seen in public since suffering injuries on the February 28 strike that killed his father. “No one knows whether Mujtaba is alive or dead, so no one can make a decision,” Mr. Amir says. “Those who are willing to make concessions fear that the Guards would kill them.” Regime-controlled press outlets reported on Friday that a new proposal was delivered to Islamabad, but were short on who signed or delivered it. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi traveled to several capitals this week. At Islamabad he discussed the state of diplomacy with the Pakistani strongman and military chief, Field Marshal Akim Munir. The London-based website Iran International, though, is reporting that Mr. Araghchi is on the outs with President Masoud Pezeshkian and the speaker of parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. The latter are suspicious of Mr. Araghchi, fearing he is doing the bidding of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps rather than the government, according to the report. Messrs. Pezeshkian and Ghalibaf are seeking the ouster of Mr. Araghchi, according to Iran International. Unidentified sources tell the website that Mr. Araghchi “has acted over the past two weeks without informing” Mr. Pezeshkian, and did so “in full coordination” with the IRGC commander, Ahmad Vahidi, who is directing the negotiations through Mr. Araghchi.The Iranian leadership is “very disjointed,” Mr. Trump said Friday. “They’re not getting along with each other, and it puts us in a bad position. One group wants to make a certain deal, the other group wants to make a certain deal, including the hard liners.” The president now has two choices, he said. “Do we want to go and just blast the hell out of them and finish them forever, or do we want to try and make a deal. He would rather not use the military option “on a human basis,” he added. On Thursday, though, Mr. Trump met with his top security team, including the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Dan Caine, and Central Command commander, Admiral Brad Cooper. “I do have the impression from some of the briefings that I have received, as well as other sources that an imminent military strike is very much on the table,” Senator Richard Blumenthal, who opposes the war, told CNN on Thursday. Democrats and two Republican senators, Rand Paul and Susan Collins, cite the war powers resolution, arguing that the 1973 law requires congressional authorization for military action after 60 days of conflict. Friday marked the 60th day since Epic Fury was launched. Yet “we are in a ceasefire right now, which our understanding means the 60-day clock pauses or stops in a ceasefire,” the secretary of war, Pete Hegseth, told the Senate on Thursday. Israeli officials, meanwhile, say that while major achievements have been made, a new kinetic round is necessary. “We may need to return to battle very soon to complete the war aims,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday.

Trump Weighs Resuming the War as ‘Disjointed’ Iranian Leadership Makes a New Proposal

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