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Iran tells mediators it will not negotiate ‘while under attack’: official
Israel and Iran continue to trade attacks, raising fears of a bigger conflict
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Mediators Qatar and Oman were told by Iran that Tehran “will not negotiate while under attack”, an official briefed on the talks said on Sunday, amid a massive exchange of strikes between Israel and the Islamic republic.
“The Iranians informed Qatari and Omani mediators that they will only pursue serious negotiations once Iran has completed its response to the Israeli pre-emptive strikes,” the official told Agence France-Presse.
Iran had also made it “clear that it will not negotiate while under attack”, the source added on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks.
Israel unleashed a punishing fresh barrage of strikes across Iran in a third day of exchanges on Sunday, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to make the country pay a “heavy price” for killing civilians.
The source said: “Reports Iran has approached Oman and Qatar with a request to engage the United States to broker a ceasefire with Israel and potentially renew nuclear negotiations are inaccurate”.
A sixth round of nuclear talks between Iran and the United States planned for Sunday in Muscat was cancelled, Oman said.
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