As Trump threatens Ayatollah Khamenei, White House prepares to resume nuclear talks with Iran

The Trump administration will resume nuclear negotiations with Iran this Friday. This was reported by Axios, after talking to officials with knowledge of the dialogue between Washington, D.C. and Tehran. The two sides agreed to meet in Oman, rather than in Istanbul as the White House had originally proposed. The news came as Donald Trump claimed that Iranian supreme leader, Alli Khamenei, should be "very concerned."

"Nuclear talks with the United States are scheduled to be held in Muscat on about 10 am Friday. I'm grateful to our Omani brothers for making all necessary arrangements," celebrated Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi.

According to the cited media outlet, plans resumed after the intervention of several Middle Eastern leaders, who encouraged the Trump Administration to resume negotiations. "They asked us to keep the meeting and listen to what the Iranians have to say. We have told the Arabs that we will do the meeting if they insist. But we are very skeptical," one official told Axios.

However, a second official told them that the White House agreed to hold the meeting "out of respect" for its allies in the region and to "pursue the diplomatic track."

Steve Witkoff, the White House special envoy, met Tuesday with Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to coordinate positions before negotiations resume.

Trump threatens Iranian supreme leader

In recent weeks, Iran cracked down hard on protesters who rose up against Khamenei across the country. While according to the Iranian regime the dead numbered approximately 3,100, other reports indicate that the number could be nearly 36,000.

During an interview with NBC News, Trump was asked if the ayatollah should be concerned, to which the president responded as follows, "I would say he should be very worried. He should be. As you know, they're negotiating with us."