Donald Trump has said he will demand that Iran pay compensation for the deaths of thousands of American soldiers and Iranian civilians themselves killed over the past decades, in the latest sign that his negotiations to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz have reached an impasse. The US president is trying to end conflicts in Iran, Gaza and Lebanon, and his additional demands on Iran are likely to provoke anger in Tehran at the same time that Israel has rejected Trump’s terms for a 15-point road map to end the war in Gaza. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he was issuing the war reparations demand in response to Iranian negotiators making similar claims for damages for the five-month war that has killed thousands of people and devastated Iran’s military and economy. “I am now also demanding compensation from Iran, for all the people they have killed and seriously injured with their roadside bombs and many conflicts, for which they are famous, as initially led by General Soleimani, including the families of those killed on the USS Cole, and thousands of others. “In addition, compensation must be paid to the families of the hundreds of thousands of innocent protesters that Iran has killed in the last 50 years, not to mention the 52,000 who have been killed in the attacks on Iran in late February. Trump and other high-level negotiators have said many times that a deal is imminent, although none has materialized. The comments came after a series of setbacks in Trump’s efforts to end several conflicts in the Middle East before the November midterm elections, in which high oil prices and inflation are likely to hurt his fellow Republicans at the polls. On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he rejected the plan. Peace Board’s 15 points, backed by Trump, to end Israel’s war in Gaza Netanyahu had said Hamas must disarm completely before Israel would consider withdrawing from Gaza, rather than the gradual withdrawal proposed by the Peace Board. Netanyahu framed the decision as a rejection of US pressure on Israel to make peace in several wars in the Middle East “Unlike all those who preach to us, we do what needs to be done for Israel’s security, and we can. and we know how to stand firm, even against our best friends when necessary,” Netanyahu said. Trump has not responded to Netanyahu’s statement, which was a remarkably public rift between the leaders of the United States and its closest ally in the Middle East. But in response to a shouted question in the Oval Office on Monday, he said his relationship with Netanyahu was “very good.” Trump has sought to increase pressure on Iran. An hour after his first message demanding war reparations from Tehran, he expanded his reach to include victims of wars. “Furthermore, with respect to negotiations with Iran, Iran should be responsible for the damage and deaths caused to the people of Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and Gaza!” he wrote.
