Israel says Iran's nuclear plans set back by two years: Reports
Israel said on Saturday that its military operations have delayed Iran's suspected nuclear programme by at least two years, South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported. The statement came a day after US President Donald Trump warned that Iran has no more than two weeks to avoid possible American air strikes.
Trump said he is still deciding whether to involve the United States in Israel's military campaign. 'Iran doesn't want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us. Europe is not going to be able to help in this,' Trump told reporters, according to the SCMP. He added that he is unlikely to ask Israel to stop its attacks, saying, 'If somebody's winning, it's a little bit harder to do.'
Israel on the other hand claimed to have carried out further air strikes on missile storage and launch sites in central Iran. Israel said the attacks aim to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons, though Iran denies seeking to build such weapons.
Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar told Germany's Bild newspaper, as reported by SCMP, 'According to the assessment we hear, we already delayed for at least two or three years the possibility for them to have a nuclear bomb.' He said the attacks would continue, adding, 'We will do everything that we can do there in order to remove this threat.'
European diplomats have been trying to restart talks with Iran. Officials from Britain, France and Germany met Iran's deputy foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, in Geneva and urged Iran to return to negotiations with the United States.
France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said, as reported by the SCMP, 'We invited the Iranian minister to consider negotiations with all sides, including the United States, without awaiting the cessation of strikes, which we also hope for.'
Araghchi told NBC News after the meeting, 'We're not prepared to negotiate with them any more, as long as the aggression continues.'
The SCMP said that any American involvement would likely involve 'bunker-buster' bombs to target Iran's underground uranium enrichment plant at Fordo.
Shops and markets in Tehran were mostly closed on Friday. Iran has not updated its official death toll since Sunday, when it said at least 224 people had been killed. A US-based group, the Human Rights Activists News Agency, said at least 657 people had died, including 263 civilians.
Since Israel began its attacks on June 13, Iran has fired missiles and drones at Israel. Israeli officials said 25 people have been killed. A hospital in Haifa reported 19 injuries from the latest attacks.
Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy said it was important to avoid the conflict spreading further. The Arab League and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation held talks on the situation. Switzerland announced it is closing its embassy in Tehran for now but will continue to represent US interests there.
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