A woman stands under a banner representing Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, in a street in Tehran on May 2, 2026 (AFP / -)
Donald Trump announced on Saturday that he would be studying a new Tehran conflict resolution plan in the Middle East, warning that he is unlikely to accept it and hinting at the threat of new military operations.
The situation between the two countries has been at a standstill since a ceasefire came into effect on April 8, following nearly 40 days of Israeli-American strikes on Iran and Tehran’s retaliations in the region.
An Iranian military official, Mohammad Jafar Asadi, deemed it “likely” on Saturday that a war restarting with the United States, as direct talks in Islamabad on April 11 proved fruitless due to strong divergences, from the Strait of Hormuz to the nuclear aspect.
According to Iranian news agencies, Iran has transmitted a 14-point plan through Pakistan to Washington to end the conflict within 30 days.
“I will be analyzing a plan that Iran has just sent to us,” announced the American president on his Truth Social platform, “but I cannot imagine it being acceptable, because (the Iranians) have not yet paid a sufficient price for what they have done to humanity and the world for 47 years since the founding of the Islamic Republic.”
– Sanctions –
According to Tasnim agency, Tehran demands in this plan the withdrawal of American forces from areas close to Iran, the lifting of the blockade on Iranian ports, unfreezing Iranian assets, payment of reparations, lifting of sanctions, a mechanism concerning the Strait of Hormuz, and “the end of the war on all fronts including Lebanon.”
On this last front, Israel carried out a new series of strikes on Saturday that killed at least three people in the southern part of the country, as reported by the official Lebanese news agency. The Israeli army claimed to have targeted dozens of pro-Iranian Hezbollah sites.
Tasnim does not mention the nuclear issue, which is a crucial matter for the United States and Israel, accusing Iran of seeking nuclear weapons – a claim the country denies.
This week, Iran has already transmitted a new text through Pakistan, with no details revealed.
– Blockade –
War continuation or diplomatic path, Tehran is “ready” for both scenarios and “the ball is in the court of the United States,” stated the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi.
The war has resulted in thousands of deaths, mainly in Iran and Lebanon, and its repercussions continue to shake the global economy, with oil prices rising to unprecedented levels since 2022.
Although the bombings have ceased, the conflict persists in other forms: Washington imposes a blockade on Iranian ports in response to Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s consumed hydrocarbons used to pass.
When questioned by journalists on Saturday night in Florida, Donald Trump refused to specify what could trigger new military operations against Iran.
“If they misbehave, if they do something wrong, but for now, we’ll see,” he stated. “But it’s certainly a possibility.”
The Republican theoretically had until Friday to request Congressional authorization to continue the war. Instead, he chose to send a letter to congressional leaders notifying them that hostilities against Iran had ended, even though several Democratic lawmakers pointed out that the continued presence of forces in the region indicated otherwise.
The war, highly unpopular in the United States, has fueled discontent against Donald Trump, under pressure to find a solution as the country approaches crucial midterm elections in just six months.
– “Panic Attacks” –
In Iran, while the population has resumed a semblance of normalcy with the ceasefire, daily life is burdened by skyrocketing inflation and unemployment, in a country already weakened by decades of international sanctions.
Amir, 40, starts his day “watching the news and news of executions.” The Iranian judiciary announced the hanging of two men on Saturday, accused of spying for Israel.
<p"People are trying to cope, but it's clear they are collapsing," he told AFP, recounting having "panic attacks six times a day."
