US President Donald Trump announced that\u00a0discussions\u00a0are ongoing with Iran to \u201cdetermine whether a broader agreement can be reached\u201d, saying that \u201cthis time, Iran means business; they want to settle. They want peace\u201d.<\/p>\n
But Tehran denied that talks with the US are taking place, with Iran\u2019s parliamentary speaker saying such claims are \u201cfake news\u201d and being \u201cused to manipulate financial and oil markets\u201d.<\/p>\n
Oil prices dropped by about 11 percent after Trump announced a delay to attacks on Iran\u2019s power plants for five days amid his claims of talks.<\/p>\n
Despite Trump\u2019s comments, US Central Command says US forces \u201ccontinue to aggressively strike\u201d targets in Iran, as Iranian missiles and drones continued to target Gulf countries \u2013 including Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait \u2013 overnight.<\/p>\n
Israeli warplanes bombed Beirut\u2019s southern neighbourhood as the Lebanese Health Ministry said the death toll from Israel\u2019s attacks on the country had reached 1,039 people, with 2,786 people injured, since March 2.<\/p>\n