Trump tells aides he expects to resume bombing Iran by end of November
The timeframe was given privately to aides, not in public remarks aimed at Iran or domestic audiences, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Published
Trump has told aides he expects the United States to resume bombing Iran by the end of November, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing people familiar with his private guidance. The report marks the first time a specific month, rather than Trump's usual "very soon," has been attached to the prospect of renewed strikes.
The timeline comes after a week of mixed signals. Talks between Washington and Tehran stalled again on Tuesday after Trump denied offering Iran anything. The same day, Trump said Iran was doing very poorly and that he was uncertain whether the country would capitulate. Days earlier, Iran had repeated that it will not compromise on its nuclear rights, even as mediators reported progress on a separate deal covering the Strait of Hormuz.
Diplomacy has continued in parallel. Qatar has floated a new proposal meant to break the deadlock after Iran's own deadline for a US reply passed without an answer. Iran's foreign minister, Araghchi, briefed the Iranian president on a US proposal, according to state media IRNA, and separately told the cabinet that Washington had sent one, according to a government spokesperson.
A named month, rather than Trump's habitual vague timing, pushes the situation from posturing toward what looks like an internal operational schedule. That narrows the window for mediators to land a deal before military action resumes, and it reinforces the risk premium already built into crude after weeks of oscillation between talk of a deal and talk of war.