US, Iran double down as ceasefire future uncertain: Live war updates – USA Today
WASHINGTON − U.S. and Iranian officials are rejecting each other’s negotiating positions, leaving the ceasefire between the two sides in an uncertain place Saturday.
Meanwhile, the United States accused an Iraqi man of helping an Iran-backed militia’s plans for attacks in the U.S. and Europe.
President Donald Trump told reporters that he disregarded Iran’s latest peace proposal after reading the first sentence of the document, saying he wants to see guarantees the country won’t pursue a nuclear weapon.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi also said the Islamic republic would sign a deal with the United States “only when our conditions are met.” Top stipulations for Iran include recognition of the country’s sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz and reparations for damage suffered under U.S. and Israeli strikes.
Josh Meyer
The Justice Department says it has arrested and brought to the U.S. an Iraqi national accused of involvement in multiple attacks against U.S. interests in Europe.
Prosecutors on May 15 said the suspect, Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, was a senior member of the Iran-backed militia Kata’ib Hezbollah, a U.S. designated foreign terrorist organization. He faces terrorism-related counts relating to allegedly providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization.
The Justice Department also accused Al-Saadi of working for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), “including his involvement in nearly 20 attacks and attempted attacks throughout Europe and the United States,” it said in a statement.
Al-Saadi was presented earlier Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn in Manhattan federal court and ordered detained pending trial.
“Thanks to the dedication and vigilance of law enforcement, this alleged terrorist commander is now in U.S. custody,” said Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche. “As alleged in the complaint, Al-Saadi directed and urged others to attack U.S. and Israeli interests and to kill Americans and Jews in the U.S. and abroad, and in doing so advance the terrorist goals of Kata’ib Hizballah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.”
Contributing: Reuters
Josh Meyer
On Saturday, Ebrahim Azizi of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee said Tehran has created a mechanism to regulate traffic through the strait and will charge fees, but only commercial vessels and those cooperating with Iran would benefit. The critical shipping passage has been a key point of the war, driving up gas prices. They topped $5 per gallon on average in Alaska, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. Average prices in California remain above $6 per gallon.
The latest impasse leaves the ceasefire between the two sides in an increasingly uncertain place as the global economy gets hit by the war’s impact on trade. Inflation has shot up to its highest levels in years.
