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Following Trump’s announcement, a new report indicates the US may send an additional 10,000 troops, on top of the thousands of service members already deployed to the region.
Kehinde Adegoke | International Agencies
President Donald Trump has extended by 10 days a pause on planned strikes against Iran’s energy facilities, saying the move came at Tehran’s request as ceasefire talks were “going very well.”
Earlier, the US president had set a deadline of Friday for Tehran to enter negotiations to end the war or face the “total destruction” of its energy facilities.
However, in a post on Truth Social, Mr Trump announced that the deadline would now be extended until 6 April, giving both sides more time to negotiate. “Talks are ongoing and, despite erroneous statements to the contrary by the Fake News Media, and others, they are going very well,” Mr Trump posted.
Tehran has denied that any direct talks are happening.
Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Pentagon was considering sending another 10,000 troops to the Middle East. The potential deployment would probably include infantry and armoured vehicles, according to the WSJ. Thousands of US troops have reportedly already been dispatched to the region.
The Trump administration is reportedly considering capturing Iran’s main oil hub, Kharg Island, to pressure the country to open the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that carries about a fifth of the world’s oil.
Iran fires missiles at the UAE and Kuwait.
Kuwait this morning said it shot down Iranian drones in an attack targeting the small, oil-rich nation.
The United Arab Emirates sounded a missile alert over Dubai around the same time, though no intercepts were reported in the city-state as rain blanketed it.
Trump says peace talks with Iran ‘going very well.’
Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff told a cabinet meeting earlier that there were “strong signs” that Tehran was ready to negotiate, confirming publicly for the first time that Washington had passed a 15-point “action list” to Tehran through Pakistani officials.
“We will see where things lead, and if we can convince Iran that this is the inflexion point with no good alternatives for them, other than more death and destruction,” Mr Witkoff said.
The US president yesterday pushed back his deadline for strikes on Iran’s energy assets to 6 April, saying the move came following a request from Tehran and that talks on ending the war were “going very well”.
“As per the Iranian Government request… I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026, at 8 P.M., Eastern Time,” he posted.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters
