Mediator Qatar said the United States and Iran were still engaged in talks to end the Middle East war, despite an apparent deadlock seven months into the conflict, AFP reports.

The indirect negotiations take account of “the concerns of the various parties”, foreign ministry official Ibrahim Al-Hashmi told a regular press briefing.

“I can confirm that the talks are continuing and the exchange of messages between different parties are continuing via Qatar and its regional partners,” he said.

“As you know, the scale of this conflict and the magnitude of the price that the whole world is paying require us to put our best efforts to end this immediately through a negotiable solution on the negotiation table,” the official added.