Trump Claims Iran Talks Prompt Strike Pause as Tehran Denies Any Contact
The US president claimed two days of talks led to his order to pause strikes on Iranian energy facilities but Tehran has denied any discussions have taken place
US President Donald Trump has said he has ordered the Department of War to postpone strikes on Iranian power plants for five days, following what he claimed were “productive conversations” between Washington and Tehran.
While Iranian media has denied outright that any talks with the American side took place at all, footage has emerged of significant blackouts affecting the Iranian capital on Sunday night.
Trump had upped the ante over the weekend, threatening strikes on Iranian energy facilities if Tehran did not lift its threat to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, to which Iran responded by publishing a list of power stations and energy facilities across the Gulf that it would target.
Iran has kept the vital shipping route closed to most vessels since February 28, when the US and Israel launched the first wave of strikes against the country.
International markets have responded predictably to the first sign of de-escalation in the four-week war.
Meanwhile Israel is expanding ground operations against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, where the IDF has destroyed several bridges across the strategic Litani River.
At least 1,444 people have been killed and 18,551 injured in US-Israeli attacks on Iran since February 28, the country’s Health Ministry has said.
