US may put military option back on table if Iran talks fail - i24 News

The Houthi officials' confusion and contradictory statements following the announcement of a halt in US airstrikes indicate the move was the result of a US-Iran deal, said Moammar al-Eryani, the information minister of Yemen’s internationally recognized government.

He said Tehran had exploited the decision to break a deadlock in ongoing negotiations.

"Military action depends on them [Iran], in whether or not they believe in taking President Trump seriously," Israel's Channel 12 reported citing US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee.

In the Saturday interview, Huckabee emphasized that there will not be nuclear weapons in Iran.

"There won't be a deal that involves Iran with nuclear capacity."

"Iran insists on its right to use peaceful nuclear energy and that includes uranium enrichment," Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said one day before the fourth round of talks with the US in Oman.

"We will not back down from the Iranian nation's nuclear rights. If the goal is to prevent Iran from accessing its legitimate right to peaceful nuclear energy, that will never happen," he said.

Araghchi, who was addressing an event held in Doha, said "Iran, in its indirect talks with the United States, emphasizes its right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy and clearly states that it is not seeking nuclear weapons."

"Iran continues the negotiations in good faith, and if the goal of these talks is to ensure non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, an agreement is possible. However, if the aim is to restrict Iran’s nuclear rights, Iran will never back down from its rights."

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White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff’s call for the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear facilities and the end of its enrichment program “validate the Iranian nation's suspicion that the US is addicted to its maximum-pressure policies,” Iran's state-run Press TV reported, citing a senior Iranian official.

Witkoff's remarks “not only expose the inconsistency and unreliability of American decision-makers but also reinforce the suspicion that the American side is ‘under the influence and temptation of neoconservatives and Netanyahu’.”

Esmaeil Baghaei in a statement on Saturday praised the two countries’ leaders in halting the conflict as a responsible and prudent move and expressed hope that the situation between India and Pakistan would return to normal as soon as possible.

He also emphasized "the importance of both countries seizing this opportunity to ensure a reduction in tensions and the sustainability of peace in the region."

Following a tense day of escalating conflict that risked spiraling out of control, India and Pakistan unexpectedly reached an agreement on an immediate ceasefire, putting an end to the most intense clashes in decades between the two nuclear-armed neighbors.

Earlier on Saturday, Pakistan reported that India had launched missile attacks on several of its military bases, prompting Pakistan to retaliate with strikes on Indian bases.

The pause in hostilities was first announced by US President Donald Trump, who shared on social media that the agreement followed a night of American-led mediation efforts.