Iran approves draft counterproposal in US nuclear talks as Israeli officials say strike ‘unavoidable’ — report

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi’s draft counterproposal in the US-Iran nuclear talks has been approved by Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, but has not yet been submitted to Washington, a familiar source tells Channel 12.

US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner requested the draft counterproposal following the most recent round of talks in Geneva last week, with an expectation that it would be submitted within days, ahead of the next round of talks set for Thursday. US officials have reportedly warned that the proposal would likely be the last chance for a diplomatic resolution, instead of Washington launching a military strike on Iran.

Israeli political and military officials believe a US strike on Iran is “unavoidable” and are warning American counterparts against allowing nuclear talks with Iran to drag on or result in a poor deal, according to a separate Channel 12 report this evening.

“It will be the surprise of the year if Iran agrees to a real diplomatic solution,” one senior Israeli official is quoted by the Hebrew network as saying, adding that “if [Iran] will submit to US demands [in the nuclear talks] it will go against the entire spirit of this regime. But it will be no less surprising if the Americans agree to a stalling and deceptive deal.”

In conversations over recent days between IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir and US Joint Chiefs of Staff Daniel Caine, Zamir presented a range of military options from Israel’s perspective, warning that “any agreement [with Iran] will be an insurance policy for the Iranian regime.”

Senior Israeli officials are pushing to carry out a forceful attack that will make Iran cautious or incapable of retaliating harshly against the US or Israel, adds Channel 12.