"It is a remarkable turnaround" -- for Israel too ::::: Any sense of relief is offset by doubts over durability of US-Iran pact and "feelings of betrayal" by Trump administration :::: ‘Everyone is angry for different reasons’: scepticism in Iran as peace deal nears

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces prospect of going it alone against Iran as strategic interests of US and Israel are diverging

 “I fear the uncertainty surrounding [the peace deal],” said Nahid*, a mother in Sirik, who described how villagers were queueing for water in the punishing heat, worried the water shortages could last far longer. 

Although the water supply was restored after 12 hours, the amount reaching households remained nowhere near enough for drinking and daily chores.

“My four-year-old woke up crying from dehydration and pain between her legs caused by chafing and the lack of water for basic hygiene,” she said.

As the sole earner of her family, Nahid, who works as a sewer, said she feared for her daughter’s health and future. Nahid’s reaction is one of many shared by Iranians across the country as the US and Iran move closer to formally signing a deal.  

In the rural town of Sirik, in southern Iran, temperatures over the past week have climbed to 45C (113F), and residents were still queueing to fill buckets of water days after US strikes reportedly damaged two drinking water facilities serving nearby villages.

Amid the water shortages and the looming fear of war came news of a possible deal between Washington and Tehran. But for those struggling to pick up the pieces in the aftermath, the announcement brought little relief.

A damaged drinking water reservoir in the Bemani area of Hormozgan province. The message on the wall advises residents not to overuse water.

US and Iran deal to end war allows Tehran to sell oil and fuel  

The US will allow Iran to immediately start selling oil and fuel again as part of the deal to end the war, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Iran can only sell oil if they keep to the terms of the deal, as US official told Reuters. It includes the free flow of navigation in the strait of Hormuz and not obtaining an nuclear weapon.

Such a move is likely to be controversial with many politicians and lawmakers opposed to offering Iran financial relief.

It comes as oil prices sunk again on Tuesday, pulling back to $80 per barrel for the first time since early March, while the US stock market drifts near its all-time high.  

Two months of final negotiations will begin immediately after the initial deal between the US and Iran is signed on Friday. Negotiations will continue for a 60-day window after the ceremony, officials told AFP, leading to a plan for the lifting of economic sanctions and decisions on the fate of Iran’s nuclear programme.

A US-Iran deal aimed at ending the Middle East war will be signed at Switzerland’s mountainside Burgenstock resort on Friday, the Swiss foreign ministry confirmed to AFP. The site, located near Lucerne in central Switzerland, is difficult to access and therefore easily secured.

Increasingly, the Israeli prime minister who had dominated relations with five US presidents has had to face the prospect of Israel going it alone against Iran. 

It is a remarkable turnaround from a mere four months ago, when his intervention and a White House presentation that he had given to successive US administrations finally hit home, convincing Trump to mount a joint attack.

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