Tehran Rejects Trump's Talk of Negotiation, as Israel and Iran Launch Airstrikes

This satellite image from Planet Labs PBC shows damage after airstrikes targeting Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran, March 7, 2026. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)
This satellite image from Planet Labs PBC shows damage after airstrikes targeting Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran, March 7, 2026. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)
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Tehran Rejects Trump's Talk of Negotiation, as Israel and Iran Launch Airstrikes

This satellite image from Planet Labs PBC shows damage after airstrikes targeting Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran, March 7, 2026. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)
This satellite image from Planet Labs PBC shows damage after airstrikes targeting Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, Iran, March 7, 2026. (Planet Labs PBC via AP)

Israel and Iran exchanged airstrikes on Wednesday, as Iran's military rejected President Donald Trump's claim Washington was in negotiations to end to the war, saying the US is negotiating with itself.

The rejection of negotiations by the unified command of the Iranian Armed Forces, which is dominated by the Revolutionary Guards, comes amid reports the US has sent a 15-point plan for discussion to Tehran.

"Has the level of your inner struggle reached the stage of you (Trump) negotiating with yourself?" the top spokesperson for Iran's joint military command, Ebrahim Zolfaqari, said on Iranian state TV.

"People like us can never get along with people like you."

"As we have always said... no one like us will make a deal with you. Not now. Not ever."

Iran's leadership has previously said it cannot negotiate with the US as it has attacked the country twice during high level negotiations in the past two years.

Four weeks into the war that has killed thousands, created the worst energy shock in history and sparked global inflation fears, there was no letup in airstrikes from Iran and Israel on Wednesday.

The Israeli Defense Forces said in a Telegram post it had launched a wave of strikes targeting infrastructure across Tehran. The semi-official Iranian SNN News Agency said the strikes hit a residential ⁠area in the ⁠city, with rescuers searching the rubble.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said it had launched a new wave of attacks against locations in Israel including Tel Aviv and Kiryat Shmona, as well as U.S. bases in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain, Iranian state media reported.

Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday the US was in "negotiations" with "the right people" in Iran to end the war, adding the Iranians wanted to reach a deal very badly.

Stocks rose and oil prices fell on Wednesday on reports the US is seeking a month-long ceasefire and had sent a 15-point plan to Iran for discussion, raising hopes for a ⁠resumption of oil exports out of the Arabian Gulf.

The New York Times reported on Tuesday that Washington sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war in the Middle East. Israel's Channel 12, quoting three sources, said the US was seeking a month-long ceasefire to discuss the 15-point plan.

A source familiar with the matter confirmed that the US had sent a plan to Iran but provided no further details.

The Israeli media outlet said the plan would include the dismantling of Iran's nuclear program, ceasing support for proxy groups, such as Lebanon's Hezbollah, and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28 after saying they had failed to make enough headway in talks aimed at ending Iran's nuclear program, although mediator Oman said significant progress had been made.

The US struck Iran's nuclear facilities in June 2025.

Since the start of "Operation Epic Fury" by the US in February, Iran has attacked countries that host US bases, struck Gulf energy infrastructure and effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, conduit for a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas.



Trump Licks Wounds as Democrats Celebrate Huge Midterms Win

The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)
The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)
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Trump Licks Wounds as Democrats Celebrate Huge Midterms Win

The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)
The US Capitol building in Washington, DC, US, November 4, 2026. (Reuters)

Donald Trump faced a radically transformed and hostile political landscape on Wednesday after US voters handed control of Congress to the Democrats in a stunning rebuke to his presidency.

The result was a personal humiliation for the 80-year-old Trump as a Democratic wave swept into his Republican heartland, boosted by anger at soaring energy prices and his costly war with Iran.

The Democratic capture of the Senate and House of Representatives signals an end to Trump's stranglehold on US politics and gives Democrats the power to block legislation, launch probes into the administration and thwart his appointments.

Another stark challenge to Trump came from closer to home as Vice President JD Vance, a likely 2028 presidential candidate, said that Republicans lost the midterms because of the Iran conflict.

"The reason we lost is the war," said Vance, who had reportedly been skeptical about the war Trump launched in February. "Everyone knows why we lost."

Hakeem Jeffries, expected to be the next speaker of a Democratic House, singled out the high cost of living as the defining issue for voters and predicted Democrats could end up with as many as 255 seats in the 435-member chamber when all the votes are counted.

Jeffries, appearing on MS Now, said his party would focus not on retribution but on fulfilling its promise to lower the prices of groceries, gas, housing and health care.

- 'Still your president' -

Trump, whose approval ratings were at record lows going into Tuesday's vote, struck a conciliatory tone despite his history of rejecting election defeats, telling The New York Times he was "absolutely willing" to accept the results.

The White House made it clear, however, that Trump wasn't going to take a backseat during the remaining two years of his presidency.

"TRUMP IS STILL YOUR PRESIDENT," the White House said in a post on X that featured a picture of a glaring Trump in the Oval Office.

Trump, in remarks to Fox News, acknowledged that the Iran conflict had contributed to the defeat but defended the military campaign.

He said Democrats did a "good job" and "fought hard" while distancing himself from his party's poor showing.

Republicans would have won "IN A LANDSLIDE" if he had been on the ballot, Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

Trump also repeated his threat to use the presidential veto on Democrat-passed bills, posting a picture of a red baseball cap reading just: "VETO."

Democrats flipped seven Senate seats that had been held by Republicans, scoring breakthroughs in South Carolina, North Carolina, Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Texas and Maine.

- 'Big wipeout' -

Two Senate races -- in Mississippi and Alaska -- remained too close to call on Wednesday.

In Maine, former logger Troy Jackson defeated longtime Republican Senator Susan Collins.

In Kansas, Methodist minister Adam Hamilton became the first Democrat elected to the Senate from the reliably conservative state since 1932.

Iowa had not elected a Democratic senator since 2008.

In Texas, James Talarico, one of several young, charismatic politicians put up by the Democrats, won a Senate seat and Democrats also won the governor's race, ending decades of Republican rule.

Democrats protected key Senate seats of their own, including Jon Ossoff in Georgia and an open seat in New Hampshire.

In Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed, who Trump crudely derided as a "jihadist," defeated former Republican lawmaker Mike Rogers, making him the first Muslim elected to the upper chamber of Congress.

In the House, Democrats made gains in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Arizona, North Carolina, Wisconsin and New Jersey, including districts Trump had carried comfortably in 2024.

Democrats also won Georgia's governorship, electing former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms as the first Black woman governor in US history.

Republicans had some consolation in Florida, where Trump-backed Byron Donalds became the state's first Black governor and Ashley Moody retained a Senate seat.

But the night was "a big wipeout and a strong repudiation of Donald Trump and his policies," George Washington University professor Todd Belt told AFP.


White House Insists Trump Is ‘Still Your President’ After Midterm Rout

US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)
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White House Insists Trump Is ‘Still Your President’ After Midterm Rout

US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)
US President Donald Trump speaks during a midterm campaign rally at Five Flags Center in Dubuque, Iowa, US, November 1, 2026. (Reuters)

Donald Trump is "still your president," the White House said Wednesday, a day after his Republican Party suffered sweeping losses in midterm elections seen as a referendum on his second term.

The White House delivered the message in a post on X featuring a picture of a glaring Trump looming over the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.

"PSA: TRUMP IS STILL YOUR PRESIDENT," text superimposed on the image said, using the abbreviation for public service announcement.

"Thank you for your attention to this matter," the post added, using a phrase Trump frequently employs in his social media messages.

Opposition Democrats won control of both the House and the Senate on Tuesday, dealing a major blow to Trump and the Republican Party.

The Democratic capture of Congress signals an end to Trump's stranglehold on US politics and gives Democrats the power to pass legislation, launch investigations into Trump's administration and thwart his appointments.

The results reflected deep frustration over the cost of living, tariffs and Trump's war with Iran, which has sent prices soaring and compounded dissatisfaction with an already deeply unpopular president.

But Trump has threatened to use his veto power, raising questions about how much Democrats can achieve even with control of both the House and Senate.


US VP Vance Says Iran War Is ‘the Reason We Lost’ Midterms

 Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)
Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)
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US VP Vance Says Iran War Is ‘the Reason We Lost’ Midterms

 Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)
Vice President JD Vance speaks at a campaign rally at Eugene F. Kranz Toledo Express Airport, Monday, Nov. 2, 2026 in Swanton, Ohio. (AP)

US Vice President JD Vance said Wednesday that the Iran war doomed Republicans in the midterm elections, as he sought to distance himself from the conflict ahead of a possible 2028 White House run.

"The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night," Vance said in a lengthy post on X -- apparently referring to President Donald Trump saying the Iran war was "part of it" but that it was still justified.

"Everyone knows why we lost. And any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there," added Vance, who had reportedly been skeptical about the war Trump launched in February.