Iran contacted CIA day after airstrikes to discuss ending war: NYT

Iran's intelligence ministry indirectly contacted the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) through a third country's intelligence agency just one day after U.S. and Israeli airstrikes began, proposing talks on terms to end the war, The New York Times (NYT) reported. According to sources familiar with the matter, both the U.S. administration and Iran are highly skeptical about their readiness to establish a short-term exit strategy, or "offramp." The NYT added that Israeli officials reportedly favor a multi-week military operation to inflict maximum damage on Iran's military and potentially destabilize the regime, and have urged the U.S. to ignore Tehran's approach. The U.S. is currently not taking the proposal seriously, the report noted.