Iran attacks US base after Trump insisted Tehran wants a deal

Summary

Iran attacks US base after Trump insisted Tehran wants a deal and told his critics to stop 'chirping' - See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred Source Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it had targeted a US base after the US struck Iranian military sites at the weekend, the latest exchange of attacks amid negotiations to end the three-month-old war. It came as Donald Trump declared that the Islamic Republic 'really wants to make a deal' and told his critics to stop 'chirping'. The US and Iran have sporadically exchanged strikes since their ceasefire took effect in early April as diplomacy aimed at a more durable agreement drags on. A similar exchange occurred last Thursday and was described in near-identical terms by both sides. The weekend US strikes on Iran's Gulf coast were in response to 'aggressive Iranian actions that included the shootdown of a US MQ-1 drone that was operating over international waters,' the US Central Command said in a post on X. 'US fighter aircraft swiftly responded by eliminating Iranian air defences, a ground control station, and two one-way attack drones that posed clear threats to ships transiting regional waters,' CENTCOM said, adding it will continue to protect US assets and interests during the ongoing ceasefire. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Monday it had targeted an air base used by the US in response to the attack on southern Iran, without identifying which base. Air defences in Kuwait, where a major US base is located, were intercepting missile and drone attacks on Monday as sirens sounded across the country, according to state news agency KUNA. Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre on May 31 In a late night social media post, Trump did not mention the exchange of hostilities, repeating his as-yet unproven claim that Iran 'really wants to make a deal The Strait of Hormuz remains blocked as attacks continue despite ceasefire talks The war launched by the US and Israel on February 28 has killed thousands of people, mainly in Iran and Lebanon, and caused global economic pain by pushing up energy prices due to Iran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. In a late night social media post shortly after 1am, Trump did not mention the exchange of hostilities, repeating his as-yet unproven claim that Iran 'really wants to make a deal'. The president also took aim at what he called 'Dumocrats' and 'seemingly unpatriotic Republicans,' accusing political opponents of making it harder for him to navigate one of the most dangerous foreign policy crises of his presidency. 'Don't the Dumocrats, and various seemingly unpatriotic Republicans, understand that it is MUCH tougher for me to properly do my job and negotiate, when political hacks keep negatively 'chirping,' at levels never seen before, over and over again, that I should move faster, or move slower, or go to war, or not go to war, or whatever,' Trump wrote. 'Just sit back and relax, it will all work out well in the end - It always does!' he said. Trump is under pressure to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and get US gasoline prices down ahead of the November congressional elections, as voters show increasing frustration over rising prices. At the same time, he faces a potential backlash from Iran hawks in his own party over any concessions to Tehran. Oil prices rose about 2 per cent in Asia on Monday as the lack of progress in negotiations kept traders on edge. Trump has said his key aim in the war is to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon with its highly enriched uranium. Tehran has consistently denied it has plans to do that. The two sides remain at odds on several other issues, such as Tehran's demands for the lifting of sanctions and the release of tens of billions of dollars of Iranian oil revenues frozen in foreign banks. Israel's war in Lebanon with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia is another major impediment. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday he had ordered troops to move further into Lebanon in the battle against the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with both Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Netanyahu on the diplomatic negotiations between Israel and Lebanon and has proposed a plan to allow for 'gradual de-escalation,' a US official said. It came as Israeli troops captured a strategic mountain topped with a Crusader-built castle in southern Lebanon, in the deepest incursion into the country in more than a quarter-century. The taking of Beaufort castle, near the city of Nabatiyeh, followed days of airstrikes and intense fighting in nearby villages between Israeli troops and Hezbollah militants. Israel has continued striking near Tyre, including near the Hiram Hospital. The Lebanese Health Ministry said 13 health workers were wounded in the strike. Hezbollah overnight claimed two attacks targeting Israeli troops and a Merkava tank in the southwestern town of Bayada near the border. In recent days, the group has said it has clashed with Israeli troops in several towns just north of the river near Nabatiyeh and the strategic castle. It also claimed attacks deeper into Israel near the northern city of Haifa, Nahariya, as well as border areas. Hezbollah on Saturday fired salvos of rockets into northern Israel, including Kiryat Shmona, the largest city in the area. Hezbollah's use of hard-to-detect fiber optic drones has been deadly for the Israeli military, which is struggling to respond. There have been nearly 200 alerts for Israeli civilians across northern Israel warning of drones and missiles in the past 24 hours, according to Israel's military. The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.