A senior Iranian military officer said Tuesday that a resumption of hostilities with the United States was inevitable, as negotiations between Tehran and Washington appeared to stall.

“The United States demands our total surrender, and the Iranian nation will never surrender,” said Mohammad Jafar Assadi, deputy head of Iran’s central military command, Khatam al-Anbiya. “Without surrender, war is inevitable.”

Iran and the United States are engaged in talks mediated by Pakistan, seeking to end the war that began on February 28. However, negotiations to end the conflict in the Middle East have yet to yield any tangible results.

Meanwhile, Israel and Hezbollah clashed overnight despite US President Donald Trump’s announcement that both sides had agreed to halt fighting ahead of US-hosted talks between Israel and Lebanon on Tuesday. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened to open “new fronts” and keep the Strait of Hormuz closed over Israel’s offensive in Lebanon.

This week’s negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, who have no diplomatic relations, in Washington are the fourth round since April, which Hezbollah strongly opposes.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun stated that “negotiation is safer than war… and we have no other option” to stop the fighting, considering his country to be facing “fierce Israeli aggression” from Israel, which has expanded its operations against Hezbollah.

The Israeli army is currently conducting its deepest military incursion into Lebanon since 2000, when it withdrew after 18 years of occupation. Israel announced on Monday that it would bomb the southern suburbs of Beirut, a Hezbollah stronghold, triggering a mass exodus from the area.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu justified the threats by citing Hezbollah’s “repeated violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon” and attacks against Israel. (AFP)