A week into the fragile Israel-Iran peace agreement, here’s what we still don’t know

DUBAI United Arab Emirates AP It s been a week since the United States pressed Israel and Iran into a truce ending a bloody -day conflict that had set the Middle East and globe on edge The fragile peace brokered by the U S the day after it dropped -pound bunker-busting bombs on three of Iran s key nuclear sites is holding But much remains unsettled How badly Iran s nuclear scheme was set back remains murky The prospects of renewed U S -Iran peace talks are up in the air And whether U S President Donald Trump can leverage the moment to get Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu s executive and Hamas focused on a ceasefire and hostage deal that brings about an end to the -month war in Gaza remains an open question Here is a look at what we still don t know How far Iran s nuclear plan has been set back Trump says three targets hit by American strikes were obliterated His defense secretary stated they were destroyed A preliminary assessment issued by the U S Defense Intelligence Agency meanwhile stated the strikes did vital damage to the Fordo Natanz and Isfahan sites but did not totally destroy the facilities Rafael Grossi head of the International Atomic Potency Agency reported on CBS Face the Nation on Sunday that the three Iranian sites with capabilities in terms of restoration conversion and enrichment of uranium have been destroyed to an fundamental degree But he added particular is still standing and that because capabilities remain if they so wish they will be able to start doing this again He mentioned assessing the full damage comes down to Iran allowing inspectors access What future US-Iran relations might look like After the ceasefire deal came together Trump spoke of potentially easing decades of biting sanctions on Tehran and predicted that Iran could become a great trading nation if it pulled back once-and-for-all from its nuclear initiative The talk of harmony didn t last long Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in his first general appearance after the ceasefire was publicized claimed Tehran had delivered a slap to America s face Trump responded by suggesting the supreme leader own up to the fact Iran got beat to hell The president also announced he was backing off reviewing any immediate sanction relief because of Khamenei s heated comments White House functionaries say the U S and Iran are already in early discussions about resuming negotiations that had ended after Israel began launching strikes But Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says there s no agreement in place to restart talks It s unclear if Iran s leadership is ready to come to the table so soon after the fighting has ended especially if Trump holds to the position that Iran must give up nuclear enrichment for even civilian use And Trump has offered conflicting statements about his commitment to talks We may sign an agreement he disclosed Wednesday at a NATO summit press conference He added I don t think it s that necessary What role Iran s supreme leader will play Khamenei s age and contemporary diminished appearance have raised questions about the scope of his involvement in U S -Iran relations and the Islamic Republic s response to both American and Israeli strikes But despite having spent the last scant weeks in a bunker as threats to his life escalated there is little indication that the ayatollah does not still reign supreme over the country s massive military and governmental operations Khamenei has ruled three times longer than his predecessor the late Ruhollah Khomeini and has shaped life for the country s more than million people perhaps even more dramatically He entrenched the system of rule by the mullahs or Shiite Muslim clerics That secured his place in the eyes of hard-liners as the unquestionable authority below only that of God At the same time Khamenei built the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard into the dominant force in Iran s military and internal politics How Iran might strike back Iran s retaliatory missile attacks on a U S base in Qatar following the American bombardment were sloughed off by the White House as a half-hearted face-saving measure The U S was forewarned and the salvos were easily fended off Yet Iran remains a persistent threat particularly via cyberwarfare Hackers backing Tehran have already targeted U S banks defense contractors and oil industry companies but so far have not caused widespread disruptions to critical infrastructure or the market The U S Department of Homeland Shield last week issued a community bulletin warning of increased Iranian cyber threats And the U S Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Safety Agency is urging organizations that operate critical infrastructure like water systems pipelines or power plants to stay vigilant Whether the Israel-Iran ceasefire will hold It remains a fragile peace Right away following the U S strikes Trump got on the phone with Netanyahu and stated the Israeli leader not to expect further U S offensive military action according to a senior White House official who was not authorized to comment publicly about the sensitive diplomatic talks But even as he agreed to deal Netanyahu made clear that Israel will strike again if anyone in Iran tries to revive this project The ceasefire deal came without any agreement from Tehran on dismantling its nuclear project Khamenei asserts the attacks did nothing critical to Iran s nuclear facilities Trump expressed confidence that Iran at the moment has no interest in getting its nuclear plan back up The last thing they re thinking about right now is enriched uranium Trump mentioned Still Trump says he expects Iran to open itself to international inspection to verify that it doesn t restart its nuclear venture by the International Atomic Capacity Agency the U N nuclear watchdog or various other organization that we respect including ourselves Whether Trump can now press Netanyahu on Gaza The president took a big gamble with his decision to order strikes on Iran s nuclear fortress As a candidate he promised to hastily end Russia s brutal war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza but has failed to find a resolution to either He also vowed to keep the U S military out of foreign conflicts But after helping Israel with U S strikes on Iran Trump in conversations with Netanyahu and other world leaders in modern days has made clear he wants a deal completed soon according to two people familiar with the private discussions and were not authorized to comment publicly On Friday Trump stated reporters We think within the next week we re going to get a ceasefire Trump didn t offer any further explanation for his optimism But Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer is expected to be in Washington this week for talks on a Gaza ceasefire Iran and other matters according to an official familiar with the matter The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media Madhani informed from Washington Associated Press writers Stephanie Liechtenstein in Vienna Wafaa Shurafa in Deir al-Balah Gaza Strip Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv Israel and David Klepper in Washington contributed to this document Source