Trump faces challenges as Iran resists negotiations after military escalation and Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's killing.

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United States President Donald Trump enjoys being seen as unpredictable. But when it comes to the military campaign against Iran, his shifting messaging on the length and aims of the conflict obscures the failure to achieve his apparent goal: a quick conclusion that he can declare a victory.

Despite the killing of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday – the kind of brazen act that has become a Trump trademark – and the heavy bombing of Iran, the Islamic Republic’s leaders have publicly rejected the prospect of any immediate return to the negotiating table.