Iran Makes New Proposal to End War, Regional Officials Say

Iran has submitted a new proposal to definitively end the Middle East war, regional officials said Monday, although no immediate breakthrough emerged in stalled peace negotiations.

A ceasefire has halted most violence after six weeks of US-Israeli airstrikes and Iranian retaliation, but progress stalled after U.S. President Donald Trump described the ceasefire as “on life support,” and Israeli media reports suggest a resumption of hostilities is imminent.

Pakistan, which has mediated discussions since the ceasefire took effect last month, has shared the new Iranian proposal with the United States, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said, without providing details.

Contradictory reports emerged from Islamabad. A Pakistani source expressed pessimism, telling Reuters that Washington and Tehran “keep changing their goalposts” and that time was running out to reach an agreement.

Other regional officials said Iran had made or reiterated concessions, including a long-term suspension of its nuclear program, transfer of its highly enriched uranium to Russia, and a phased reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The semi-official Tasnim news agency, citing an unnamed source close to Iran’s negotiation team, reported Monday that the United States had agreed to waive sanctions on Tehran’s oil exports during the negotiation period.

There was no independent confirmation of those claims, and the negotiations have been marked by a series of misleading statements from Iran, the United States and mediators seeking to frame the talks to their advantage.

Rhetoric on both sides has remained defiant in recent days. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) threatened Monday to impose permits on internet cables passing through the Strait of Hormuz, while other officials said the waterway would remain under Iranian “management,” implying Tehran would impose tolls on shipping, a condition Washington has said it cannot accept.

Axios reported that Trump is expected to meet with national security advisers Tuesday to discuss options for resuming military action. Over the weekend, Trump posted on Truth Social: “the Clock is Ticking” for Iran, adding: “They better get moving, FAST, or there won’t be anything left of them. TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE!”

Baghaei said Tehran is prepared for all scenarios. “As for their threats, rest assured that we are fully aware of how to respond appropriately to even the smallest mistake from the opposing side,” he told a televised weekly press conference.

Although US-Israeli airstrikes have ceased and Iranian retaliation has been scaled back, drones have been launched from Iran toward Gulf countries hosting US military bases. One drone strike caused a fire at a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates, officials there said Sunday, and Saudi Arabia reported intercepting three drones.

Iran stepped up attacks on the UAE this month after Trump announced a naval mission to try to open the Strait of Hormuz, which he suspended after 48 hours.

Analysts say the conflict has reached a stalemate, with both sides facing significant pressure to end the war but lacking sufficient incentives to make the painful concessions necessary for a deal.

Trump, who faces midterm elections in November that could go badly for his Republican Party, held talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week in Beijing without securing an indication that China would help resolve the conflict.

White House officials worry that Trump’s foreign policy gamble on Iran and its effect on U.S. fuel prices may derail Republican chances of retaining control of Congress at a time when voters are more concerned with the cost of living than conflicts abroad.

Iran faces a deepening economic crisis and potential damage to its oil infrastructure. Inflation is soaring, and some officials fear a surge in popular discontent with the radical regime.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), a U.S.- and Netherlands-based monitoring group, said it has documented at least 4,023 arrests in Iran between Feb. 28, when the war started, and May 9. Charges include espionage, threats to national security, and communicating or sharing conflict-related content with foreign media, it said.

Ahmad Reza Radan, Iran’s national police chief, said Sunday that more than “6,500 traitors and spies” linked with the “enemy” had been arrested since anti-government protests peaked in January. The authorities described those demonstrations as riots and suppressed them with a crackdown that killed many thousands, according to rights groups.

Radan, as quoted by the Irna news agency, said: “The process of identifying and arresting elements associated with the enemy continues, and the police have not stopped their actions in the field of confronting rioters.”

Alarm over executions in Iran has grown. Rights groups say that since the war began, Iran has executed 26 men considered “political prisoners” — 14 charged over January protests, one over 2022 demonstrations, and 11 accused of links to banned opposition groups.

Six men have been hanged in Iran on charges of spying for Israel since the war started, according to reports in Iranian official media.

HRANA said it has documented at least 3,636 fatalities, including 1,701 civilians, due to US-Israeli attacks on Iran in the war.

Israel carried out new airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Monday, Lebanese security sources and the state news agency said, while Hezbollah announced new attacks on Israeli forces, continuing the war in Lebanon despite an extension of a U.S.-backed truce first announced by Trump on April 16.

A 45-day ceasefire extension, announced after a third round of U.S.-hosted talks between Lebanon and Israel on Friday, began at midnight.