The Blubber

The White House has confirmed that Donald Trump will decide within two weeks whether to launch a military strike on Iran. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt cited a statement from Trump, noting that “given the substantial chance of negotiations with Iran in the near future, I will make my decision whether or not to go within the next two weeks.” Leavitt added that communication with Iran remains ongoing.

Meanwhile, tensions continue to escalate as Israel accused Iran of firing a missile containing cluster submunitions at a densely populated civilian area. In a statement to Reuters, Israel’s Washington embassy said, “Iran unlawfully fired deliberately at civilian population centres, aiming to maximize harm using wide-dispersal munitions.”

Against this backdrop, diplomatic efforts are set to intensify. European foreign ministers from the UK, France, and Germany, along with the EU’s top diplomat, will meet Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi in Geneva tomorrow for nuclear talks. While in Washington, British foreign secretary David Lammy is also expected to meet with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to discuss Iran. Despite Israeli strikes killing several top Iranian officials, Araghchi’s advisor dismissed concerns that the minister could be targeted, stating, “Since it was announced that the Foreign Minister was heading to Geneva for negotiations with the European troika, I’ve received numerous messages expressing concern that the Zionist regime might target him.”

In a separate development, a grenade was thrown at the residence of the Norwegian ambassador to Israel in Tel Aviv on Thursday evening. No injuries were reported, though light property damage occurred. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the act as a “serious and dangerous crime,” while the Norwegian foreign ministry confirmed an explosion but provided no details on its cause. Israeli police have launched an investigation.