Iran Rejects Trump's Peace Overture, Citing US Role in Recent Military Strikes

Iran has responded firmly to US President Donald Trump's recent call for a peace deal, stating that such overtures contradict America's actual conduct toward the Iranian nation.

"The desire for peace and dialogue expressed by the US president is at odds with the hostile and criminal behaviour of the United States towards the Iranian people," declared Iran's foreign ministry in an official statement released Tuesday.

This response follows Trump's speech at the Israeli Knesset on Monday, where he expressed desire for a peace agreement with Tehran while suggesting that Iran needed to take the initiative for such an accord to materialize.

The tensions between the nations escalated significantly in mid-June when Israel conducted an unprecedented bombing campaign against Iran. These strikes targeted both military and nuclear installations as well as residential areas, resulting in over 1,000 casualties. During this 12-day conflict, the United States participated by striking key Iranian nuclear facilities.

Iran retaliated with missile and drone attacks that caused dozens of fatalities in Israel before a ceasefire took effect on June 24. The military exchanges effectively derailed high-level nuclear negotiations that had been ongoing between Washington and Tehran.

In their statement, Iranian officials questioned the sincerity of peace proposals following such military actions: "How can one attack the residential areas and nuclear facilities of a country in the midst of political negotiations, kill more than 1,000 people including innocent women and children, and then demand peace and friendship?"

Trump's speech also suggested that regional improvement would depend on Iran "renouncing terrorists, stopping threats to neighbors, quitting funding militant proxies, and recognizing Israel's right to exist."

Tehran firmly rejected these characterizations, labeling Trump's remarks as "irresponsible and shameful" while accusing the United States of being "a leading producer of terrorism and a supporter of the terrorist and genocidal Zionist regime."

The Iranian foreign ministry concluded by stating that the United States "has no moral authority to accuse others," highlighting the continuing diplomatic tensions between the two nations.