Trump says Iran involved in Gaza ceasefire-hostage talks

“Gaza right now is in the midst of a massive negotiation between us and Hamas and Israel, and Iran actually is involved,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “We want to get the hostages back.”

Trump gave no further details.

The US has proposed a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza. Israel has accepted the plan, while Hamas has not agreed. The proposal includes the release of 28 Israeli hostages, both living and dead, in exchange for 1,236 Palestinian prisoners and the remains of 180 Palestinians.

Separately, Trump said talks with Iran on its nuclear program were continuing but differences remained. He said Iran wanted to continue enriching uranium, which the US opposes.

“They seek enrichment. We can’t have enrichment,” Trump said.

Earlier on Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry said it would soon present a counter-proposal to a recent US offer, which it has called unacceptable.

Trump told reporters he expected the next round of discussions to take place on Thursday. However, Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei later said the next round of indirect negotiations was being planned for Sunday in Muscat.

The White House has received indications that despite saying "no," Iran will express interest in continuing the nuclear talks with the United States, Axios reported on Monday citing a senior White House official.

"We sent the Iranians and very tough proposal, and we expect that they will give a harsh response," the official was quoted as saying.

The sixth round of Iran-US talks will be held either in Oslo or Muscat, Axios reported on Monday citing a US official.

While Donald Trump said earlier in the day the talks will be held on Thursday, Axios reports they are scheduled for either Friday (in Norway) or Sunday (in Oman).

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will visit Norway on Wednesday and Thursday to attend the Oslo Forum, according to Iranian media.

It remains unclear whether he will engage in any nuclear talks with the United States during his visit.

An Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear sites may push Tehran toward pursuing a bomb, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi told Israeli news channel i24News.

Such an attack "might have an amalgamating effect which would make a determination on the part of Iran to go to a nuclear weapon or to abandon the treaty on non-proliferation. I’m telling you this because they have told me,” Grossi said.

The IAEA chief emphasized the difficulty any military operation would have of destroying Iran's nuclear capabilities.

“Certainly this program runs wide and deep. And when I say deep, I know what I’m saying. So many of these facilities are extremely well protected. This would require a very, very devastating force to affect it.”

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Such an attack "might have an amalgamating effect which would make a determination on the part of Iran to go to a nuclear weapon or to abandon the treaty on non-proliferation. I’m telling you this because they have told me,” Grossi said.

The IAEA chief emphasized the difficulty any military operation would have of destroying Iran's nuclear capabilities.

“Certainly this program runs wide and deep. And when I say deep, I know what I’m saying. So many of these facilities are extremely well protected. This would require a very, very devastating force to affect it.”

The United States and Iran are locked in high-stakes negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program, and US President Donald Trump has mooted an attack if they fail.

Israel struck multiple targets inside Iran in October and has repeatedly vowed to deny Iran a nuclear weapon, which it views as an existential threat.

Tehran denies seeking nuclear weapons but its arch-nemesis Israel and Western countries doubt its intentions.

Grossi said Iran needed to the let the nuclear watchdog do its job by allowing more inspection and explaining past behavior.

"I am in a constant dialog, especially with the foreign minister (Abbas) Araghchi," Grossi said. "(They say) they have nothing happened. If this is the case, then they should allow us to do our job and to get as much access as we can."

Western powers may push for a resolution finding Tehran non-compliant with its nuclear non-proliferation obligations at the upcoming quarterly meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors this week.

Iran has warned of an unspecified strong response to any such move and has accused the IAEA of being swayed by its Western adversaries.

The United States accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon as part of the shadowy Amad Project scrapped in 2004, an effort Washington says was overseen by Iran’s Organization of Defensive Innovation and Research.

"There are areas of real concern and we need to get to the bottom of a number of things," Grossi said, without referring to any specific issues.

"Over the past few years ... we discovered traces of enriched uranium in places that were not supposed to be having any nuclear activity. So my question here - this is not an accusation - It's just a very logical question: if we found these traces there, what was going on?"

The IAEA would likely play a central role in verifying and overseeing any nuclear agreement between Iran and the United States, as it did with an international deal US President Donald Trump scrapped in 2018.

Hawks in Israel and the United States have said Iran's lack of full disclosure on past activities calls into question its commitment to any future deal.

"For years ... we have been getting some answers, and these answers have not been satisfactory," Grossi added. "Please do not believe that we are naive."