U.S. and Israel to hold Iran talks 2 days after apparent Israeli attack on nuclear site
12 April 2021
Top national security officials from the U.S. and Israel will convene virtually on Tuesday for a second round of strategic talks on Iran, three Israeli officials tell me.
Why it matters: The talks come two days after an explosion at an Iranian nuclear facility that experts consider a likely act of Israeli sabotage, and one day before the U.S. resumes indirect nuclear talks in Vienna over a return to the 2015 nuclear deal — a prospect that has raised anxiety levels in Jerusalem.
Detail: The strategic dialogue is led by National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and his Israeli counterpart Meir Ben Shabbat, with officials from various national security and intelligence agencies participating. It will be held via a secure video link.
- The first round of talks last month focused on intelligence surrounding Iran's nuclear program.
- This round is expected to focus on Iran's regional activities in Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Yemen, the Israeli officials say.
- The Vienna talks are also expected to be discussed, as well as recent attacks on Iranian and Israeli ships in the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.
Between the lines: One of the main understandings that emerged from the first round of talks was a mutual "no surprises" policy.
- It's unclear how much coordination the Israelis did with Washington before the strikes on Iranian ships and the apparent attack at the Natanz nuclear site.
- The Biden administration has distanced itself both from that explosion and the attack last week on an Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps ship in the Red Sea. That has created the impression the Biden administration is unhappy with the Israeli actions.
The other side: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been increasingly vocal about his concerns around the nuclear talks. He recently said that Israel would not be bound by any U.S.-Iran deal, hinting that the Vienna talks will not prevent Israel from continuing its operations against Iran.
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.