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U.S. Officials Insist Iran Deal "Not Imminent"
(Times of Israel) U.S. officials have in recent days told Israel's leadership that a new nuclear deal is not imminent and that Washington has not agreed to any new concessions to Iran in order to reach an accord, the Walla news site reported Saturday, citing senior U.S. officials. One U.S. official said: "We may be closer to a deal than we were two weeks ago, but there are still uncertainties about a resolution and differences remain with the Iranians. At any rate, the signing of a nuclear deal is not expected in the immediate timeframe." At the same time, a senior U.S. official confirmed that Iran had dropped its demand that the Islamic Revolutionary Guards be removed from a terror blacklist. Senior Israeli officials are saying conversations between Israel and the U.S. have become "difficult" in recent days as an accord becomes likelier. "We are not calm," said one official. "On the contrary, we are very worried." Top Israeli officials have warned their counterparts in the U.S. and Europe against the deal and called for the negotiators to give up on the talks. Israel believes Iran wishes to build a nuclear bomb and has published intelligence it says reveals the Iranian weapons program. Iran has recently been enriching uranium to levels that international leaders say have no civilian use.