An Iranian military official delivered a pointed message to President Donald Trump, rejecting claims of peace talks live on camera and using the president’s own famous catchphrase in English. Brigadier General Ebrahim Zolfaghar, a representative for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Khatam Al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, specifically denied that any negotiations were underway and directly contradicted President Trump’s assertions.
According to HuffPost, Zolfaghar addressed what he called “the enemy forces those who prefer fleeing over standing their ground.” He added, “Those same masters of consecutive defeats who use the Muslim people of the region as their human shields and see fear in every one of their cells until the time of our strikes arrives so that they may be relieved of their fear even before the impact.”
He concluded by saying their defeat would be retribution for anyone who cast “malicious intent on the security of our people.” Then, Zolfaghar switched to English and directly addressed President Trump using his iconic line from The Apprentice. “Hey Trump, you’re fired. You’re familiar with this sentence,” he declared. He also used the president’s favorite social media sign-off, saying, “Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
Both sides are telling very different stories about whether US-Iran talks are actually happening
President Trump, however, has a completely different take on the situation. Before boarding Air Force One on Monday, he insisted that high-level talks between Iranian officials and U.S. diplomats were happening. When reporters questioned him about Iran’s denials, Trump brushed it off, saying, “Well, they’ll have to get themselves better public relations people.” Critics have also raised broader concerns about Trump’s personal financial conduct while in office.
The president maintained that the discussions have been productive. “We have had very, very strong talks. We’ll see where they lead,” he told reporters. Trump also suggested that significant progress had been made, adding, “We have major points of agreement, I would say almost all points of agreement.”
This sharp contrast between Trump’s statements and the Iranian military official’s denial highlights a deep divide in how both sides are describing the current diplomatic situation. It is not the only area where the administration is facing pushback, as TSA workers opposing Trump’s airport security changes have also voiced strong criticism recently. The two conflicting accounts make it difficult to get a clear picture of where things actually stand between the United States and Iran right now.
Published: Mar 24, 2026 05:30 pm