No deal with United States

The recent crisis in the Middle East is likely to linger more than expected.

The Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Ali Larijani, has dismissed media reports in the United States claiming he had made a new push to resume nuclear talks with Washington, as Israel and the US have continued attacks on Tehran.

“We will not negotiate with the United States,” he wrote in a post on X on Monday.

The Wall Street Journal had earlier reported that Larijani made the push through Omani mediators following the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in a joint attack by the US and Israel on Saturday.

Reacting post on X, Larijani said Trump had plunged the Middle East into chaos with his “delusional fantasies and now fears more American casualties”.

“He turned his self-made ‘America First’ slogan into ‘Israel First’ and sacrificed American soldiers for Israel’s power-hungry ambitions,” Larijani said.

At least three service members were killed in an operation against Iran on Sunday, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed in a statement, and five others were “seriously wounded”.