The News
US strikes on Iran will continue during what President Donald Trump has called “productive” talks with Iranian leaders, a US official confirmed to Semafor — and Israel isn’t currently a direct party to those discussions, though it’s getting updates.
Trump announced a five-day pause on a promised bombardment of Iran’s power plants and other energy infrastructure on Monday morning, drawing headlines and appearing to soothe markets. But military operations against other targets are continuing.
“The stop on attacks for five days is only on their energy sites,” the US official told Semafor. “It is not on the military sites and the navy, and the ballistic missiles, and the defense industrial base. The initial initiatives of [Operation] Epic Fury will continue.”
And as Iranian officials deny any involvement in talks with Trump, it’s still not clear where Israel would stand on any potential deal. After Trump’s announcement on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he’d spoken with the US president about negotiations with Iran.
“President Trump believes that there is a chance to leverage the great achievements of the IDF and the US military to realize the war goals of the agreement,” Netanyahu said. “An agreement that will protect our vital interests. At the same time, we will continue to attack both Iran and Lebanon.”
Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner are leading negotiations, the president noted on Monday. Negotiations remain between the US and Iran so far, with Israel being kept in the loop, according to the US official, who added that any agreement reached would also be one that is in Israel’s interests.
The official added that Trump, Witkoff, and Kushner are the only three individuals authorized to negotiate with Iran at the moment — though Vice President JD Vance may be “leveraged” if and when that becomes necessary.
Trump’s comments on a potential peace deal with Iran came after a whirlwind weekend in which the president dismissed talk of a ceasefire, indicated that the US was winding down military options, and then threatened to target Iranian energy infrastructure if its leaders did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Those closest to the president insist his various remarks were strategic.
“He knows what he’s doing, and we are now sort of on a dual track,” the US official told Semafor.
A spokesperson for the Israeli embassy in the US did not return a request for comment.
Notable
- Witkoff has played a central role in multiple high-stakes foreign policy negotiations during Trump’s second term, as we reported last year for our Architects of the New Economy series.