Pakistan says it will host US-Iran talks, while Iran warns US ground troops would be 'set on fire'

Pakistan says it will host US-Iran talks, while Iran warns US ground troops would be 'set on fire' Pakistan’s foreign minister says Islamabad will soon host talks between the U.S. and Iran By MUNIR AHMED Associated Press , SAMY MAGDY Associated Press , and CARA ANNA Associated Press March 29, 2026, 12:08 AM ISLAMABAD -- ISLAMABAD — Pakistan announced Sunday that it will soon host talks between the U.S. and Iran, though there was no immediate word from Washington or Tehran, and it was unclear whether discussions on the monthlong war would be direct or indirect. "Pakistan is very happy that both Iran and the U.S. have expressed their confidence in Pakistan to facilitate the talks. Pakistan will be honored to host and facilitate meaningful talks between the two sides in the coming days,” Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said after top diplomats from Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia met in Islamabad. Pakistan later said the diplomats had departed for their home countries. The talks were originally scheduled to continue Monday. Pakistan's foreign ministry did not answer questions, and Iran’s mission to the United Nations declined to comment. Islamabad has emerged as a mediator, having relatively good ties with Washington and Tehran, after what Pakistani officials call weeks of quiet diplomacy. Earlier, Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, dismissed the talks in Pakistan as a cover after some 2,500 U.S. Marines trained in amphibious landings arrived in the Middle East. He said Iranian forces were “waiting for the arrival of American troops on the ground to set them on fire and punish their regional partners forever,” according to state media. Iran also threatened to attack homes of U.S. and Israeli “commanders and political officials” in the region. A spokesperson for the Iranian military's joint command, Ebrahim Zolfaghari, cited the “targeting of residential homes of the Iranian people in various cities” and other “malicious actions,” state media reported. “We do...