In Israel, we were informed today (Wednesday) that President Donald Trump's deadline for a ceasefire with Iran will end this Sunday.
According to Yaron Avraham's report this evening on Channel 12, President Trump did not specifically specify this date - but this is the understanding in Israel, after the update they received from the Americans.
Avraham notes that "it's worth noting - this is the amount of time it will take for the third American aircraft carrier to reach the region.".
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Tomorrow, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to hold additional discussions on this issue, in order to complete preparations in the areas of defense and attack.
Israel estimates that there is no way to come to an agreement unless there is a dramatic concession by one of the parties. In this state of affairs, Israel sees the military scenario as the most likely.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Qalibaf conveyed a message to Trump this evening: "A complete ceasefire only makes sense if it is not violated through the naval blockade and the hostage-taking of the world economy. They did not achieve their goals through military aggression and they will not succeed through bullying either - the only way is to recognize the rights of the Iranian nation.".
Three senior American officials told Channel 12's Barak Ravid today that President Trump is giving the Iranians a short window of time to come back with an answer to the American proposal or the ceasefire will end.
A senior American official told News 12: "Trump is willing to give another 3 to 5 days of ceasefire to allow the Iranians to get their act together. This is not going to be an open-ended, unlimited ceasefire.".
According to the report, Trump's team believes they can reach an agreement with the Iranians, but they are not sure whether the Iranians they are talking to are the ones making the decisions, because of what they defined as "complete chaos within the Iranian system" - there is a supreme leader who does not really communicate with the rest of the leadership, there is an internal battle between the generals of the Revolutionary Guards and the civilian elements, Foreign Minister Araqchi and Parliament Speaker Qalibaf.
Against this backdrop, a senior American official told Channel 12: "We see that there is a complete rift within Iran between the negotiating team and the army and the Revolutionary Guards, with neither side having complete access to the Supreme Leader, who does not respond and does not make decisions.".
Kan News reported that a diplomatic source estimates that Trump wants to reach agreements with Iran - and not just hold negotiations.
Israeli sources say that it is unlikely that the parties will reach agreements by Sunday, adding that they sense chaos in the Americans' conduct: "We have recently been informed about Trump's moves only from the news and his social network.".
By the way, the last statement should be taken with limited certainty: media outlets have often reported that Netanyahu is not coordinated - which later turned out to be an invention.
