From USA TODAY.

President Donald Trump insisted that the U.S. and Israel have carried out a regime change operation in Iran, though officials in both nations say the regime remains intact.

“We have, really, regime change," Trump said. "This was a change in the regime because the leaders are all very different than the ones that we started out with.”

The opening salvo of the war killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and other top officials, but several of them, including Khamenei, have been replaced by even more hardline members of the regime.

The Trump claims comes a day development comes after he told reporters that his administration was working on a 15-point plan with Iranian leaders. The president has declined to say who the U.S. is negotiating with. Iran has denied negotiations are taking place.

As Trump signals a possible end to the conflict, air attacks continue to hit Iranian cities and U.S. allies throughout the Middle East, and the shipment of oil through the Strait of Hormuz remains at a relative standstill, elevating global energy prices.

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