The Takeaway: Hopes dim for Iran deal before US midterms

Hamas, Islamic Jihad tensions escalate; Netanyahu-Liberman square off ahead of elections; Egypt expands green initiatives ahead of COP27; Qatar’s neighbors benefit from World Cup; Syria’s Christians hold service in Idlib.
A picture shows a newspaper stall with a view of Etemad newspaper's front page bearing a title reading in Farsi "The night of the end of the JCPOA ", and cover photos of Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian his deputy and chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani, in the capital Tehran on August 16, 2022.
A picture shows a newspaper stall with a view of Etemad newspaper's front page bearing a title in Farsi, "The night of the end of the JCPOA" and cover photos of Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and his deputy and chief nuclear negotiator, Ali Bagheri Kani, in the capital Tehran on Aug. 16, 2022. - ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images
Elizabeth Hagedorn
Elizabeth Hagedorn
@ElizHagedorn
andrew parasiliti
Andrew Parasiliti
@ATParasiliti

The Iran deal isn’t doomed, but expectations are low that an agreement will be reached before the November midterms.

A senior European source told Ali Hashem this week a deal won’t happen before the elections, if at all. “Because of the last Iranian response, there can be no return to the [Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action] before the midterms,” adding that the longer the wait, the more risk there is to close the deal.

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