Geneva meeting begins in bid to halt escalating Israel-Iran conflict
A crucial international meeting aimed at halting the hostilities between Israel and Iran began Friday in Geneva, marking the start of an intensive two-week diplomatic effort to prevent a wider conflict in the Middle East, Anadolu reports.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, and German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul are holding talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi to address Tehran's nuclear activities and identify potential diplomatic off-ramps to avoid escalation. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas is also attending the meeting.
The talks come a week into Israel's strikes on Iranian military and nuclear facilities and retaliatory attacks by Iran.
The Geneva negotiations are seen as a critical step toward building momentum ahead of next week's NATO summit in The Hague, where Middle East security is expected to dominate discussions.
Earlier it was reported that the key buildings at the Iranian Khondab heavy water research reactor, including the distillation unit, were damaged in a recent Israeli airstrike, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) wrote on its X page.