Trump is “not satisfied” with Iran’s proposal to end the war

ISLAMABAD (AP) — President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to end the war between the two countries, saying Friday he was still not satisfied while blaming Iran’s “divided” leadership.

Trump backed away from the latest proposal almost as soon as it was delivered. Iran handed over its plan to mediators in Pakistan on Thursday evening, the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.

Read more: Trump says Congress deadline to approve Iran war doesn’t apply, claims hostilities are ‘over’

Trump told reporters Friday at the White House: “They want to reach an agreement. I am not satisfied with it, so we will see what happens,” without explaining what he considered to be flaws.

The fragile three-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran appears to still be holding despite the two countries accusing each other of violations.

While the ceasefire has largely halted the fighting in Iran, the United States and Iran are locked in a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of global oil and gas trade passes in peacetime. The US naval blockade that prevents Iranian oil tankers from going to sea has led to the deterioration of the Iranian economy. The global economy is also under pressure as Iran maintains a stranglehold on the strait.

The president said that negotiations continued by phone after Trump canceled his envoys’ trip to Pakistan last week. Trump this week rolled out a new plan to reopen the vital corridor that America’s allies in the Gulf use to export their oil and gas.

On Friday, Trump expressed his frustration with the Iranian leadership, describing it as divided.

He watches: Trump says he has raised tariffs on cars coming from the European Union to 25%

“It’s very dysfunctional leadership,” Trump said. “They all want to make a deal, but they’re all a mess.”

Discussing his Thursday briefing with Adm. Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command, the president said the United States has only two options in Iran.

“I mean, do we want to go and blow them up and end them forever? Or do we want to try to get a deal? I mean, those are the options,” Trump said.

Trump said he believes the Iranian leadership has made some progress toward unifying around the resolution.

“They have made great strides, but I am not sure whether they will get there or not,” he added. “There is tremendous disagreement, and they have tremendous trouble getting along with each other in Iran.”

Iran’s top diplomat requested support for the plan

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi held a series of calls on Friday with several of his regional counterparts, including Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Azerbaijan, to update them on his country’s latest initiatives to end the war, according to his social media.

European Union Foreign Policy Coordinator Kaja Kallas also spoke by phone on Friday with Araghchi. They discussed ongoing diplomatic efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and long-term security arrangements, Kallas’ office said in a statement. Kallas was also in contact with European Union partners in the Gulf.

Pakistani officials said that efforts are continuing to ease tensions between Iran and the United States

Read more: 4 Conclusions from Hegseth Hearings on Landmark Defense Budget Request, Iran War

Former Pakistani ambassador to Washington Masoud Khan said the ongoing exchange of proposals indicates that the United States and Iran remain engaged in seeking a diplomatic middle point.

Khan said the proposals also come after the leaders of the two countries exchanged some of their harshest threats, raising fears that military hostilities could resume at any moment.

The imprisoned Iranian Nobel laureate was taken to hospital

Its foundation announced on Friday that Iranian prisoner and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi was urgently transferred from prison to a hospital in northwestern Iran after a “catastrophic deterioration” in her health.

Founder Narges Mohammadi said she suffered two bouts of complete loss of consciousness and a severe heart attack. She is believed to have suffered a heart attack in late March, according to her lawyers who visited her a few days after the accident.

The foundation said that her transfer to the hospital comes “after 140 days of systematic medical negligence” since her arrest.

Mohammadi, 53, a human rights lawyer who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2023 while in prison, was arrested in December and sentenced to another seven years in prison.

The explosion of bomb remnants killed 14 people in Iran

The Islamic Republic News Agency and other Iranian media reported on Friday that the explosion of bombs left over from strikes during the war against Iran led to the death of 14 members of the Revolutionary Guard.

A report by the Nournews website, believed to be close to Iranian security, stated that the explosion occurred near the northern city of Zanjan, located northwest of Tehran.

This is the largest number of Revolutionary Guard members killed since the ceasefire began on April 7. The report said that the munitions included cluster bombs and aerial mines dropped during the fighting.

Since the war began on February 28, at least 3,375 people have been killed in Iran, and more than 2,600 people have been killed in Lebanon, where new fighting broke out between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group two days after the war began, according to authorities.

In addition, 24 people died in Israel and more than 20 in Gulf Arab states. 17 Israeli soldiers were killed in Lebanon and 13 American soldiers were killed throughout the region.

Ezz El-Din reported from Cairo and Binkley reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Sylvie Courbet in Paris and Sarah El-Deeb in Beirut contributed to this report.