Iran and US to hold 4th round of talks today as enrichment concerns grow

Iran and the United States are set to attend a fourth round of talks over Tehran’s nuclear program today, as US officials have voiced increasing opposition to Iranian enrichment.

The negotiations, mediated by Oman and held in its capital Muscat, follow earlier rounds that began nearly a month ago, marking the highest-level contact between the countries since Washington withdrew from a landmark nuclear deal in 2018, during US President Donald Trump’s first term.

Both sides have reported progress after previous talks, but there have been some delays and disagreements over Iran’s right to enrich uranium, which Tehran says is “non-negotiable” but a US envoy has called a “red line.”

The fourth round was initially set to take place on May 3 but has been rescheduled. Mediator Oman cited “logistical reasons” for the delay, which was announced after the United States imposed new sanctions on Iran.

Gazan media claims 8 killed in overnight Israeli strikes near Khan Younis

Palestinian media reports claim eight have been killed, including children, in Israeli strikes overnight near Khan Younis in southern Gaza, amid escalating fighting between the IDF and the Hamas terror group in the Strip.

A drone strike is also reported hours later in Khan Younis’s Al-Amal neighborhood.

There is no immediate word from the IDF.

Russia launches aerial attack on Kyiv, Ukrainian capital’s mayor says

Ukraine’s air defense units are trying to repel a Russian air attack on Kyiv, the city’s mayor says, after Ukraine’s air force warned of a drone attack on the capital.

The attack comes hours after Russia’s President Vladimir Putin proposed direct talks with Ukraine on May 15 in Istanbul, which he says should be aimed at bringing a durable peace.

Reuters witnesses hear blasts in Kyiv from what sounds like air defense units in operation.

Putin proposes direct talks with Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin proposes direct talks with Ukraine on May 15 in Istanbul.

“It was not Russia that broke off negotiations in 2022. It was Kyiv. Nevertheless, we are proposing that Kyiv resume direct negotiations without any preconditions,” Putin says.

“We offer the Kyiv authorities to resume negotiations already on Thursday, in Istanbul.”

Russian-declared 72-hour truce, which Ukraine said Moscow repeatedly violated, ends

Russia’s 72-hour ceasefire in Ukraine, which Kyiv said Moscow violated hundreds of times, has ended.

President Vladimir Putin announced the ceasefire to coincide with Moscow’s grand May 9 military parade marking the end of World War II. Ukraine, which is calling for a full 30-day ceasefire, dismissed it as theatrics and never said if it would follow it.