American and Iranian officials communicated through mediators in New York during the United Nations General Assembly. Donald Trump said the discussions lasted three hours and described them as productive, while Steve Witkoff said intermediaries moved between the delegations. Iranian officials have reportedly offered to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if Washington eases military pressure and lifts its blockade. Trump called for more economic pressure on Iran in his UN address, and no agreement has been reached.
Meanwhile, IRGC Brigadier General Hassan Sharif was killed near Iran’s border with Pakistan. He wasn’t one of the commanders believed to be at the center of Iran’s current power struggle, but you don’t want senior officials getting picked off when you’re fighting an internal struggle and an external struggle against a greater foe. The people representing Iran at the UN want money flowing again because they don’t want an uprising they can’t pay people to put down. That’s how the whole phony-baloney operation comes undone.
