Speaking to reporters Saturday on the White House lawn, President Trump offered his first direct confirmation that he has rejected an Iranian proposal for a seven-day ceasefire and is open to the resumption of attacks on the Islamic Republic, as it still insists on its strict demands for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ending the war.
The night prior, The Wall Street Journal was the first to report that "President Trump has rejected Iran’s proposal for a seven-day ceasefire and has told aides he expects to resume bombing Iran after the November midterms, U.S. officials said." Here's how the president responded to a reporter's question Saturday morning:
Reporter: Will you strike Iran after the midterms?
Trump: I'm rejecting their deal. They want to make a deal where they open the Strait immediately because they're losing so badly.
They want to make a deal, and I think that's fine. I like making a deal, too, but that deal would… pic.twitter.com/87rKbDySLN
"Well I’m rejecting their deal," Trump responded. While in the fresh verbal interaction he did not explicitly state he plans to resume bombing, he also obviously did not deny the premise of the question (resumption of bombing Iran).
"They want to make a deal where they open the strait immediately because they’re losing so badly," Trump continued. "You know you don’t read that, you don’t see that in the fake news."
"We're winning tremendously. We have total control of the Hormuz Strait, massive amounts of oil are coming out of the Hormuz Strait," he claimed. "Last night we had 29 ships come out. They want to make a deal, and I think that’s fine, I like making a deal, too, but that deal would not be acceptable."
"And what they want to do is immediately open the Hormuz Strait. You know why? Because they’re dying," Trump said. "You know why they’re dying? Because they have no money coming in. Because they get their money from the Hormuz Strait."
He continued: “So they outsmarted themselves. They said, ‘Let’s close it and cause a problem for the world.’ And then I came along and we put up the greatest blockade ever in military history. It’s a wall of steel."
"I would put it up and guess what? They don’t have any money now because they wanted to close the strait. And I said, ‘That’s fine, we’re going to close it on you. But everybody else is able to use it,'" Trump added.
Analysis: President Trump thinks a better deal is just around the corner and he is willing to set the region on fire again in his pursuit of it.
Unfortunately, my pessimism on the U.S.-Iran talks held up.
The technical details of a new understanding were not difficult to hammer out. But the political commitment for peace is lacking.
President Trump thinks a better deal is just around the corner and he is willing to set… https://t.co/bbU5Pp6iim
For a brief moment there was hope that the warring sides could get back to 'technical talks' based on interactions on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly meeting in New York this past week. Some premature headlines even stated talks at the technical level were already taking place, which the Iranian side was quick to deny.
But at this point that scenario is clearly not going to happen coming out of the UNGA gathering, as President Masoud Pezeshkian has also now flown out of New York and is headed home, state media outlets have indicated.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi previously said, "If the necessary conditions are met, the strait can be reopened, a normal maritime passage restored within seven days. The choice now rests with the United States." He explained: "The actions that the United States should take are not new. They are all already in the MoU." Tehran has said all along it would not back off its conditions for ending the war. The FM was said to be waiting in New York for a response before going back to Tehran. Presumably he too will now return to his country.
🔴 US President Donald Trump informed the negotiating team that there is no going back to the memorandum of understanding with Iran, a US source tells Al Arabiya English
🔴 The US source says Trump told his team that the Iranian negotiators are not decision makers
🔴 Trump… pic.twitter.com/Kc2F2P7Bzg
Trump was clearly not satisfied with the Iranian 7-day roadmap after he demanded the "complete dismantling" of Iran's nuclear program as a key condition for any deal. The Iranians have insisted the question of nuclear enrichment can only be discussed after the war is ended, saving the issue for a future time.
What's the next phase or gameplan here from Washington's perspective? Regional analyst and editor of Amwaj.media, Mohammad Ali Shabani, offers the following: "The next phase of the war will likely revolve around destroying Iran's economic infrastructure. The method is collective immiseration until desperate Iranians with nothing to lose will do the regime change." This of course sets the US on a trajectory of yet another 'forever war' in the region.
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Tyler Durden Sat, 09/26/2026 - 12:00Syria has begun trucking imported gasoline from its Baniyas Refinery into Iraq, adding a return leg to a route Baghdad has used to export its fuel since the US war on Iran led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a senior Syrian oil official told Reuters on 25 September.
According to Tareq Shallash, who heads the Refining Directorate at the state-owned Syrian Petroleum Company (SPC), the first consignment – roughly 32,800 metric tons of gasoline – arrived aboard the Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Avanti and was pumped into storage at Baniyas before being loaded onto trucks this week.
Source: ReutersShallash said 77 tanker trucks have so far set off for the Iraqi border, with loading still in progress and more cargoes on the way.
He stressed that the fuel neither originates in Syria nor comes out of stocks earmarked for domestic consumption.
The shipments move under a transit contract between SPC and Qatar's UCC Holding, which Shallash identified as both the supplier and the firm managing transport.
Iraq's Oil Ministry confirmed the arrangement, with spokesperson Saleem al-Rikabi telling Reuters that “A contract was signed between SOMO and the Qatari company to supply Iraq with improved gasoline through the port of Baniyas by road tankers, and the supplies have in fact been delivered on a regular basis.”
Shallash said the deal is currently restricted to gasoline, though future agreements could open the route to crude, other petroleum products, and additional goods.
Baghdad has already pledged to keep building overland alternatives through Syria even if Hormuz reopens, and Reuters reported in July that Iraqi fuel oil moved via Baniyas had reached the US for the first time.
With Iran closing the Strait of Hormuz, Iraq - unable to ship its oil - has opened its borders to Syria. Thousands of fuel-laden tankers are being sent to the world market overland through Syria. Iraq has closed its airports to Iran's planes.
İran'ın Hürmüz'ü kapatmasıyla petrolünü sevk edemeyen Irak'a Suriye kapılarını açtı. Binlerce petrol yüklü tanker kara yoluyla Suriye üzerinden dünya pazarına gönderiliyor.
Irak, İran'ın uçaklarına havaalanlarını kapattı. pic.twitter.com/I4Ub6a749E
UCC Holding is also part of a consortium with Chevron and TI Capital studying the revival of a Kirkuk–Baniyas crude pipeline, after Iraq and Syria signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Washington in July.
Reuters reported in August that the project could take four years and cost at least $15 billion, because it would require entirely new infrastructure.
Tyler Durden Sat, 09/26/2026 - 11:40