Trump Says Tehran Wants To ‘Talk’ About Ceasefire After Pummeling From Israel

President Donald Trump said on Monday that Iran wants to “talk” about a deescalation with Israel after suffering days of bombardment.

Trump is attending the Group of Seven summit in Canada this week and confirmed to reporters that he has seen messages passed from Iran through intermediaries that Tehran wants to pause hostilities between itself and Israel, according to CBS News. The president said that Iran “should have done that before” Israel began its attack.

“They’d like to talk, but they should have done that before,” said Trump. “I had 60 days, and they had 60 days. On the 61st day, I said, ‘We don’t have a deal.’ They have to make a deal, and it’s painful for both parties. But I’d say Iran is not winning this war, and they should talk, and they should talk immediately, before it’s too late.”

Tehran has expressed a willingness to negotiate to end hostilities, reaching out to Israel and the United States through intermediaries, The Wall Street Journal reported earlier Monday.

World leaders at the G7 Summit were floated a draft statement on the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. Among other items, the statement endorses a ceasefire between Iran and Israel and calls for both sides to protect civilians. Trump does not plan to sign the statement, according to CBS.

Iran’s willingness to talk comes as Israel continues targeted strikes against Iranian military personnel, ballistic missile launchers and stockpiles, nuclear refinement facilities, and other key sites. On Monday, Israel targeted Iran’s state-run broadcaster, which Israel said provided cover for the Iranian regime.

Iran has responded with missile and drone barrages. Most of the ordinance has been intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome, but some explosives have passed through and hit population centers such as Tel Aviv and Haifa.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outlined Israel’s successes so far in the four-day blitz of Iran’s most important sites.

“So far, we’ve killed 10” senior nuclear scientists, said the prime minister, according to The Times Of Israel. “Our arm is still outstretched. There are a few; we will get to them.”

Netanyahu also said that Israel had delivered “an extremely severe strike” to Iran’s uranium enrichment facility in Natanz. “We are continuing to destroy nuclear targets systematically,” he added.

“We eliminated Iran’s security leadership, including three chiefs of staff,” he said. “We are eliminating them one by one.”

He also noted that Israel continues to strike and degrade Iran’s ballistic missile capacity and Tehran’s ability to hit Israel.