Middle East crisis live: US and Iran trade threats but Trump insists Tehran wants deal

Key events Show key events only Please turn on JavaScript to use this feature Opening summary: US and Iran trade threats Welcome to our live coverage of events in the Middle East. Donald Trump warned the US may strike Iran again – a day after he said he had held off a major assault in hopes of a peace deal – but Tehran’s army threatened to open “new fronts” if he went ahead. Trump told reporters at the White House that he had been just “an hour away” from relaunching Washington’s attacks on Iran before postponing the order, after weeks of a fragile ceasefire and talks to end the war, which began on 28 February. The decision apparently followed a further peace proposal submitted by Tehran via Pakistan , which has mediated, and may have been motivated by the reluctance of allies, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, to see hostilities resume. A woman walks near a billboard with an image of the late Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran. Photograph: Majid Asgaripour/Reuters “You know how it is to negotiate with a country where you’re beating them badly. They come to the table, they’re begging to make a deal,” Trump said. “I hope we don’t have to do the war, but we may have to give them another big hit. I’m not sure yet.” Oil prices eased on the apparent positive signals from the White House , with Brent crude falling to $110 a barrel, before regaining much of its losses. …