Iran’s top security official Mohsen Rezaei said there are currently no negotiations taking place between Tehran and Washington, in an interview with pro-Iran broadcaster Al-Mayadeen. Iran has insisted the US must meet seven conditions set out in a June interim agreement before the Strait of Hormuz can reopen and negotiations resume. For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app. Rezaei said Iran had asked the US for a “clear and explicit” response to its conditions, but had yet to receive one, adding that Washington could respond in the future.
After meeting with mediator Qatar on Monday, US President Donald Trump played down the likelihood of major warfare restarting soon but remained unwilling to accept the existing Iranian truce plan. Advertisement Advertisement
Al Arabiya English reruns a short Reuters report that Mohsen Rezaei says no talks are under way with the US, with his account and Trump's position both attributed. The one change from the wire copy is in the headline, where the outlet swaps Reuters' neutral "says" for "claims", which casts doubt on a statement nothing in the article contradicts. Nothing else in the body misleads.
Uses a loaded word
Minor
“claims”
Why this matters
The headline uses "claims" for Rezaei's statement, where the body and the Reuters original use the neutral "said".
The impression it gives
A reader is nudged to treat Rezaei's statement that no talks are under way as doubtful or self-serving.
The context
Nothing in the article contradicts him. Reuters reports the same statement with "said", and this outlet's own earlier report the same day pointed readers to Iran's foreign minister saying there had been no negotiations.
How we know
Elsewhere in the article“Mohsen Rezaei said there are currently no negotiations”