According to IRNA, the Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Saturday morning at a time when Washington was preparing to resume military action in the Middle East. IRNA's report stated that the call took place while the U.S. was conducting preparations for possible new operations in the region.
Hamshahri's account of the same WSJ report expanded somewhat on the context: the telephone conversation, according to the article, occurred right after Trump held consultations with senior military commanders regarding options for resuming combat operations against Iran. ISNA and Iran International also carried similar reports Saturday citing the WSJ; Iran International's headline framed the call as a contact occurring "in the shadow of the possibility of resumed strikes on Iran," and noted that Washington was evaluating strike options while mediators were working to prevent an escalation of tensions, and that Tehran was adopting a "cautious" posture in negotiations.
Hamshahri also published a separate article the same day containing Trump's own assessment of ongoing negotiations. According to the article, Trump said, "The negotiating process is going well right now, but the real problem is that the Iranian side is not very reliable," and added, "Iranians understand, then easily back out of their commitments and withdraw." This statement paints a dual picture: military options are being kept on the table even as the diplomatic channel remains formally open.
How the Persian press covered it
| Source (orientation) | Headline / framing |
|---|---|
| IRNA (State news agency) | Reports the WSJ news straightforwardly; frames the call in the context of "war preparation." |
| Hamshahri (Moderate-traditionalist) | Adds detail about the call's timing just after military consultations with commanders, painting a more complete chain of events. |
| Iran International (Opposition, diaspora) | Frames the call "in the shadow of the possibility of resumed strikes on Iran"; balances this with the fact that negotiations are also ongoing and that Tehran is taking a cautious stance. |
All three sources cite the WSJ as their ultimate source; there is no factual contradiction among them, but Iran International balances the military-preparation angle with information about ongoing diplomatic channels, whereas IRNA and Hamshahri foreground the military readiness aspect.
Context
Telephone conversations between Trump and Netanyahu have established a pattern throughout the war that began in February 2026, surfacing repeatedly at critical junctures; the parties have often either made strike decisions or suspended operations immediately after such contacts. For this reason, the news value of such a call derives less from its content than from its timing: according to the WSJ, the call came immediately after high-level military consultations in Washington.
Ongoing negotiations in Qatar also continue, as connected to earlier statements by Foreign Minister Araghchi regarding negotiations, indicating that the call has a diplomatic backdrop as well as a military one. Trump's remarks that "the Iranian side is not very reliable" signal that Washington is simultaneously maintaining an open negotiating table while sustaining military pressure. No official party has confirmed that strikes will definitively resume; the outcome remains unconfirmed.
