JERUSALEM, Israel – The U.S. and Iran met for the first time on Saturday for direct negotiations on ending Iran’s nuclear program. The outcome of the talks may shift the future of the Middle East.
Little happened in Oman during the negotiations. However, more talks will occur next Saturday, and both sides tried to sound upbeat.
President Donald Trump remarked, “Nothing matters until you get it done. So I don’t like talking about it, but it’s going okay. The Iran situation is going pretty good.”
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi said, “As a first session, it was a constructive meeting. It took place in a calm and very respectful environment.”
The most significant concern for Israelis is that the Tehran regime will drag the talks out as it completes the development of nuclear weapons, gaining the capacity to destroy Israel. It does appear the Iranian negotiators are already attempting to stall.
Aragchi noted, “The American side said their aim is to reach an agreement in the shortest possible time. But, of course, this won’t be easy.
“It’s still too early to talk about that,” Aragchi added.
Trump told reporters Sunday that he may not be willing to put up with any stalling. “We’ll be making a decision on Iran very quickly,” he declared.
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In Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces continued their fierce attacks on Hamas. They’re capturing more land, in one case completely cutting off the Hamas stronghold of Rafah from the rest of the Gaza Strip.
Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Gazans over the weekend that the only way to stop the destruction is for them to end it themselves.
Katz announced, “It is time to stand up and remove Hamas and release all the Israeli hostages. This is the only way to end the war.”
Israel has declared that until Hamas frees all the hostages, Israel will continue to take territory in Gaza and turn the captured land into buffer zones.
“Many areas are being seized and added to the security zones of the State of Israel, leaving Gaza smaller and isolated,” Katz explained.
This is a severe blow to Hamas since one of the greatest humiliations for Islamists is to lose land to non-Muslims.
Some Gazans gathered in church to mark Palm Sunday despite their suffering as the war grinds on.
Eyyad, a displaced resident from Tal al-Hawa, said, “The situation has gotten out of hand, our situation is unbearable, the situation is tragic.”
Thousands also celebrated Palm Sunday in Jerusalem, marching with palm fronds along the path they believe Jesus rode on a donkey in his final entry into Jerusalem before His crucifixion and resurrection.
An aid worker from The Netherlands commented, “It’s really nice to have such a joyful day, because sometimes it can be a bit heavy to live here with everything that’s going on.”
Local resident Daniella Naffal said, “I hope that everyone in the world could join us here in Jerusalem for the procession. I wish that the war will stop soon and everything will come back to normal.”
