The day so far
Donald Trump said he is “very optimistic” a peace deal with Iran was within reach as a diplomatic delegation led by his vice-president JD Vance prepared to head to Pakistan for high-stakes talks aimed at ending the war this weekend. Iran’s leaders “talk much differently when you’re at a meeting than they do to the press. They’re much more reasonable,” the US president said, in line with his administration’s narrative that there’s a disconnect between what Tehran says publicly and privately. Trump went on: “They’re agreeing to all the things that they have to agree to. Remember, they’ve been conquered. They have no military. If they don’t make a deal, it’s going to be very painful.”
Trump also confirmed that he had asked Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday to be “more low-key” in Lebanon to help ensure the success of the upcoming US-Iran negotiations in Islamabad. “I spoke with Bibi and he’s going to low-key it. I just think we have to be sort of a little more low-key,” Trump told NBC News, adding that he believed Israel was “scaling back” its operations in Lebanon (there’s been no evidence of that yet – see the next few points).
Netanyahu said he had instructed his cabinet to begin direct negotiations with Lebanon aimed at disarming Hezbollah – all the while insisting that “there is no ceasefire” in Lebanon and that Israel will “continue to strike Hezbollah with force”.
Israel has since launched a fresh wave of strikes against what it called “Hezbollah launch sites” in Lebanon, after the IDF earlier ordered people to flee Beirut’s densely populated southern suburbs. Later in the day, Hezbollah said it had fired a rocket salvo towards northern Israeli settlements.
While Israel continues to insist that the war will go on and “talks will be held under fire”, Lebanon is demanding a ceasefire before direct negotiations can begin. Joseph Aoun, the Lebanese president, said this was “the only solution”. Lebanon is also insisting that it needs the US as a mediator and guarantor of any agreement. Those talks will reportedly take place next week, hosted by the US state department in Washington.
Iran’s president Masoud Pezeshkian said Israeli strikes on Lebanon violate the ceasefire agreement and would render negotiations meaningless, adding that Iran would not abandon the Lebanese people.
The speaker of the Iranian parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said Lebanon forms “an inseparable part of the ceasefire” deal. In a post on X, he said “there is no room for denial and backtracking”.
Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned Israel’s “ongoing aggression against Lebanon” on Thursday, ahead of the expected US-Iran talks in Islamabad. “The prime minister said that Pakistan was engaged in sincere efforts for regional peace and it was in this spirit that the peace talks between Iran and the US were being convened,” Sharif’s office said in a statement.
Keir Starmer also said that Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon “shouldn’t be happening”. The British prime minister also dismissed an argument put forward by US vice-president JD Vance on Wednesday that there had been “a legitimate misunderstanding”, saying the issue “isn’t a technical one of whether it’s a breach of the agreement or not”. It is “a matter of principles as far as I’m concerned”, Starmer said.
A statement attributed to Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, said Iran will take management of the strait of Hormuz into a new phase, but did not elaborate on what that would be. In the statement, read out on state tv, he also said Iran remains determined to “take revenge” for his father, who was assassinated on the first day of the war, and all those killed in the war. “We will certainly demand compensation for each and every damage inflicted, and the blood price of the martyrs and the compensation for the wounded of this war,” he said.
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi suggested that Netanyahu is resisting a ceasefire because of his corruption trial, and urged Trump not to “crater” the US economy by allowing the Israeli prime minister to jeopardise ongoing diplomatic efforts to stop the war. Araghchi said on X: “Netanyahu’s criminal trial resumes on Sun. A region-wide ceasefire, incl in Lebanon, would hasten his jailing.”
Lebanon held a day of mourning after a punishing wave of Israeli attacks killed more than 300 people and injured more than 1,000 in a single day on Wednesday, prompting worldwide condemnation.
Keir Starmer and Donald Trump have said they’re at the “next stage of finding a resolution” for reopening the strait of Hormuz, Downing Street has said.
In a statement, No 10 said that the British prime minister discussed with Trump the UK’s “efforts to convene partners to agree a viable plan” to reopen the critical shipping lane.
“They agreed that now there is a ceasefire in place and agreement to open the Strait, we are at the next stage of finding a resolution,” the statement said.
“The leaders discussed the need for a practical plan to get shipping moving again as quickly as possible,” it went on, adding Trump and Starmer would speak again soon.
Iran’s foreign minister says Netanyahu delaying ceasefire to avoid corruption trial
Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi has suggested that Benjamin Netanyahu is resisting a ceasefire because of his corruption trial, and urged Donald Trump not to “crater” the US economy by allowing the Israeli prime minister to jeopardise ongoing diplomatic efforts to stop the war.
Araghchi said on X:
Netanyahu’s criminal trial resumes on Sun. A region-wide ceasefire, incl in Lebanon, would hasten his jailing.
If the US wishes to crater its economy by letting Netanyahu kill diplomacy, that would ultimately be its choice. We think that would be dumb but are prepared for it.
Netanyahu’s long-running trial will resume on Sunday, an Israeli courts’ spokesperson said on Thursday.
The first sitting Israeli prime minister to be charged with a crime, Netanyahu denies charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust brought in 2019 after years of investigations. His trial, which began in 2020 and could lead to prison terms, has been repeatedly delayed due to his official commitments, with no end date in sight.
US state department to host Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington next week
Talks between Lebanon and Israel will take place next week in Washington DC, a US State Department official has confirmed to AFP.
We can confirm that the Department will host a meeting next week to discuss ongoing ceasefire negotiations with Israel and Lebanon.
We earlier brought you that report from Axios.
Updated
Earlier today, the Guardian’s Peter Beaumont wrote this analysis about Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon – asking: What was the point of surprise mass strikes that killed more than 300 people and drew widespread international condemnation?
Here’s more from Peter’s piece:
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials have claimed the largest strike against Hezbollah during the month-long war against Iran was carefully aimed at members of the armed group.
Others have speculated that the attack – without warning and initially hitting more than 100 targets in 10 minutes including in densely populated residential areas in central Beirut – was aimed at undermining the US-Iran ceasefire that many see as being imposed on an unhappy Netanyahu.
The version being briefed in the Israeli media is that Hezbollah had sought to move command posts to civilian areas outside its historical centres, such as the sprawling Dahieh suburb, to better conceal and protect them – a claim Israel has previously made about Hamas in Gaza.
Updated
Netanyahu says 'no ceasefire in Lebanon'
“I wish to inform you: There is no ceasefire in Lebanon,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Israelis in a short video address posted on X. He said Israel was “continuing to strike Hezbollah with full force, and we will not stop until we restore your security.”
His comments come shortly after President Trump said he had asked Netanyahu to be “more low-key” in Lebanon, as the US seeks to negotiate with Iran to bring the war to an end.
Netanyahu added that he had instructed his government to “open direct negotiations with Lebanon as soon as possible.” The talks will focus on the disarmament of Hezbollah and the establishment of peaceful relations between Israel and Lebanon, he added.
Israel says it is attacking 'Hezbollah launch sites' in Lebanon
A few moments ago, the IDF said in a brief post on Telegram that it had started begun striking “Hezbollah launch sites in Lebanon”.
The Israeli army earlier ordered people to flee from Beirut’s southern suburbs as it warned of further strikes.
This is all as Lebanon says that a ceasefire must be in place before it can enter into negotiations with Israel, whereas Tel Aviv insists “talks will be held under fire”.
It is also despite Donald Trump telling Benjamin Netanyahu to scale back his attacks on Lebanon, ahead of high stakes talks with Iran this weekend.
I’ll bring you more on this as we get it.
Updated
Supreme leader says Iran will take management of strait of Hormuz 'into new phase'
A statement attributed to Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, who has still not been seen or heard from in public, has just been read out across state media – his first since the fragile ceasefire was announced.
He said Iran remains determined to “take revenge” for his father, who was assassinated on the first day of the war, and all those killed in the war:
We will certainly demand compensation for each and every damage inflicted, and the blood price of the martyrs and the compensation for the wounded of this war.
He was also quoting as saying that Iran will take management of the strait of Hormuz into a new phase, but did not elaborate on what that would be.
Khamenei also called on pro-regime protesters to take to the streets because “your voices raised in public squares have an impact on the outcome of the negotiations”.
He added:
Iran is not seeking war but will not forfeit its rights and considers all resistance fronts as a unified entity.
Updated
Trump confirms he asked Netanyahu to be 'more low-key' on Lebanon
In that interview with NBC News, Donald Trump also confirmed that he asked Benjamin Netanyahu to be “more low-key” in Lebanon as the US seeks to negotiate with Iran to bring the war to an end.
“I spoke with Bibi and he’s going to low-key it. I just think we have to be sort of a little more low-key,” Trump said, adding that he believed Israel was “scaling back” its operations in Lebanon (again, there’s been no evidence of that yet).
Earlier, I brought you CNN’s report that the US president had made the request to the Israeli prime minister. NBC News heard the same, reporting that Trump asked Netanyahu to pull back on the strikes to help ensure the success of the upcoming negotiations in Islamabad.
Israel’s attacks on Lebanon should not be happening, says Starmer
Peter Walker and Jamie Grierson
Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon “shouldn’t be happening”, Keir Starmer has said on his visit to the region, echoing criticisms by Yvette Cooper, his foreign secretary; and John Healey, his defence secretary, and emphasising a potentially widening gap between the UK and Donald Trump’s US over the war on Iran and its aftermath.
As well as the condemnation over Lebanon, Starmer and his ministers have been adamant that the strait of Hormuz must be free of any sort of tolls or levies, after Trump mooted the idea of a “joint venture” between the US and Iran to do this.
Speaking in Bahrain on a trip in which he has also held talks in Saudi Arabia and the UAE on shoring up the tentative ceasefire between Iran, the US and Israel, and fully reopening the strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping, Starmer criticised Israel’s intensified bombing in Lebanon, which killed more than 300 people on Wednesday.
He told ITV:
That shouldn’t be happening. That should stop. That’s my strong view.
As we’ve been reporting, while Israel has announced it will begin talks with Lebanon, both Israel and the US have denied that ending attacks on Lebanon was part of the ceasefire. JD Vance, Trump’s vice-president, argued that there had been “a legitimate misunderstanding”.
Starmer dismissed this argument, saying the issue “isn’t a technical one of whether it’s a breach of the agreement or not”, calling it “a matter of principles as far as I’m concerned”.
UK ministers have refused to directly condemn Trump, even after the US president shocked the world by saying Iran’s “whole civilisation will die” if Tehran did not meet US demands before the ceasefire.
In the ITV interview, Starmer was obliquely critical of the language, saying:
They are not words I would use, ever use, because I come at this with our British values and principles.
Read the full report here:
Updated
Trump ‘optimistic’ about Iran peace deal even as ceasefire appears strained
Donald Trump has told NBC News that he is “very optimistic” a peace deal with Iran was within reach as a diplomatic delegation led by his vice-president JD Vance prepared to head to Pakistan for high-stakes talks aimed at ending the war this weekend.
Iran’s leaders “talk much differently when you’re at a meeting than they do to the press. They’re much more reasonable,” the US president said, in line with his administration’s narrative that there’s a disconnect between what Tehran says publicly and privately.
Trump went on:
They’re agreeing to all the things that they have to agree to. Remember, they’ve been conquered. They have no military.
If they don’t make a deal, it’s going to be very painful.
In line with what Reuters and others are hearing, a Lebanese official has told Al Jazeera that talks with Israel would take place under US oversight.
They said Lebanon is seeking a ceasefire before agreeing to enter direct negotiations, and that those negotiations would be led by former Lebanese ambassador Simon Karam.
Lebanese president says 'only solution' is ceasefire before talks with Israel
As we’ve been reporting, Lebanon wants a ceasefire from Israel before direct negotiations can begin, while Israel says the “talks will be held under fire”.
Earlier, Lebanese president Joseph Aoun said that a ceasefire first was the “only solution”.
In a statement posted on X, he said:
The only solution to the situation Lebanon is experiencing is to achieve a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, followed by direct negotiations between them.
He added that Lebanon’s security forces have been “carrying out their work fully to enforce security and stability”, despite the “difficult circumstances they are facing”.
Updated
Death toll from Israel's attacks on Lebanon on Wednesday rises to over 300
Lebanon’s health ministry said on Thursday that Israeli strikes across the country the day before killed more than 300 people and wounded at least 1,150.
In a statement, the ministry said “the Israeli enemy’s airstrikes yesterday, Wednesday, resulted in a preliminary toll of 303 martyrs and 1,150 wounded”, adding that the cumulative toll since the start of the war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah on March 2 rose to 1,888 dead and 6,092 wounded.
It warned the death toll could rise further as search efforts were ongoing, as well as DNA testing of bodies transferred to hospitals.
Lebanon is holding a day of mourning on Thursday after the “unprecedented” wave of Israeli strikes wrought devastation across the country.
Trump asked Netanyahu to scale back attacks and seek direct negotiations with Lebanon - report
Further to that last post, CNN hears that Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to seek direct negotiations with Lebanon came at Donald Trump’s request.
During a conversation on Wednesday, Trump asked the Israeli prime minister to scale back attacks on Lebanon and enter negotiations with the Lebanese government about disarming Hezbollah, sources familiar with the matter told CNN.
It is unclear whether Netanyahu is actually scaling back strikes in Lebanon, given the IDF ordering people to flee their homes in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Thursday.
An Israeli official reiterated to CNN that there is “no ceasefire at the moment,” adding that “talks will be held under fire”. That is contrary to what the Lebanese government is seeking, which is ceasefire before talks.
US vice-president JD Vance said yesterday that “the Israelis have actually offered to check themselves a little bit in Lebanon”, but, as we’ve been reporting, there’s been no evidence of that.
Israeli ambassador to the US Yechiel Leiter will represent Israel in forthcoming negotiations with Lebanon, an Israeli official and a source familiar with the matter told CNN.
Updated
The first meeting between Israel and Lebanon will take place in Washington at the US state department, according to an Axios reporter on X.
Reuters reports that Lebanon has spent the last 24 hours advocating for a temporary ceasefire to allow for broader talks with Israel. Meanwhile, the IDF ordered people to flee their homes in southern Beirut on Thursday as it warned of more strikes that have already devastated the Lebanese capital.
A senior Lebanese official told Reuters no date had been set yet but Lebanon needed the US as a mediator and guarantor of any agreement. They said the ceasefire would be a “separate track but the same model” as the fragile truce brokered by Pakistan between the US and Iran (which Islamabad and Tehran said included Lebanon, while Washington and Tel Aviv claim it didn’t).
Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced earlier that he had instructed the start of direct negotiations with Lebanon “as soon as possible”. Lebanon wants a ceasefire before starting any negotiations, a Lebanese government official told AFP.
As we’ve been reporting, Israel has provoked international condemnation after it launched its most intense assault on Lebanon of the war so far on Wednesday, killing at least 254 people in airstrikes across the country and injuring 1,165, and jeopardizing the fragile US-Iran ceasefire.
Updated
The day so far
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has ordered his cabinet to open direct talks with Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah and establish “peace relations” between the two countries. “In light of Lebanon’s repeated requests to open direct negotiations with Israel, I instructed the cabinet yesterday to begin direct negotiations with Lebanon as soon as possible,” his office wrote in a statement.
Lebanon has spent the last 24 hours advocating for a temporary ceasefire to allow for broader talks with Israel, a senior Lebanese official told Reuters, saying it would be a “separate track but the same model” as a fragile truce brokered by Pakistan between the US and Iran. The official said no date or location had been set yet but Lebanon needed the US as a mediator and guarantor of any agreement.
Nato would be willing to a play a role in a possible strait of Hormuz mission if it is able to do so, the military alliance’s chief Mark Rutte said on Thursday. “If Nato can help, obviously then there is no reason not to be helpful,” Rutte said during remarks in Washington.
German chancellor Friedrich Merz has said he hoped for “a negotiated solution” to the Iran war, stressing that Germany has a fundamental interest in resolving the conflict. Speaking in Berlin, Merz said that “the threat of a massive escalation … has been averted, at least for now,” but warned that the existing ceasefire was “fragile.”
Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned Israel’s “ongoing aggression against Lebanon” on Thursday, ahead of expected US-Iran talks in Islamabad. “The prime minister said that Pakistan was engaged in sincere efforts for regional peace and it was in this spirit that the peace talks between Iran and the US were being convened,” Sharif’s office said in a statement.
The United States condemned an 7 April attack on the Kuwaiti consulate in Basrah on Thursday, the state department said in a post on X. The US is calling on the Iraqi government to “hold accountable and dismantle the Iraqi terrorist groups aligned with Iran that conducted this attack,” the department’s bureau for Near Eastern Affairs said.
Russia said that the Middle East war ceasefire announced by the United States and Iran must cover Lebanon, after Israel announced it would continue its attacks on Iran-backed Hezbollah there. Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov hailed the ceasefire in a phone call with Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, with the ministry saying in a read-out that “Moscow firmly believes that these agreements... have a regional dimension and, in particular, apply to Lebanon”.
The speaker of the Iranian parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, says Lebanon forms “an inseparable part of the ceasefire” deal. In a post on X, he said “there is no room for denial and backtracking”. His comments come after US president Donald Trump described Israel’s war with Lebanon as a “separate skirmish”.
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, confirmed that IDF strikes in Lebanon killed the nephew and secretary of Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem. In a statement on X, he said Ali Yusuf Harshi was “one of the closest people” to the militant group’s leader.
The International Monetary Fund expects to have to provide up to $50 billion in immediate financial assistance to countries affected by the Middle East war, its managing director said, with the crisis likely to have lasting economic effects. “Given the spillovers of the Middle East war, we expect near-term demand for IMF balance-of-payments support to rise to somewhere between $20bn and $50bn, with the lower bound prevailing if the ceasefire holds,” Kristalina Georgieva said, according to prepared remarks shared with AFP.
The foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia have held a phone call today, in what the AFP news agency reported is the first official contact between the countries since the start of the war. The Saudi ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement on X that the country’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, received a call from the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi.
Updated
Will deadly Israeli attacks in Lebanon shatter US-Iran ceasefire? - podcast
Israel has intensified its bombing campaign in Lebanon, prompting Iran to warn it could withdraw from the ceasefire agreed with the US.
Hundreds have been killed and wounded since the agreement was announced, after Israeli forces launched mass strikes on densely populated areas.
Israel says the strikes are aimed at the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, while Iran claims they are a blatant violation of the ceasefire.
Iran and Pakistan claim the agreement included Lebanon, but Donald Trump called it “a separate skirmish”.
In today’s edition of The Latest podcast, Lucy Hough speaks to Beirut-based reporter William Christou.
Updated
Nato would be willing to a play a role in a possible strait of Hormuz mission if it is able to do so, the military alliance’s chief Mark Rutte said on Thursday.
“If Nato can help, obviously then there is no reason not to be helpful,” Rutte said at a conference in Washington.
“When it comes to the strait of Hormuz, what we are seeing under the leadership of, of Keir Starmer and these 34 countries working closely with the US, is is, of course, a shared commitment, an agreement that we cannot accept this trade to be closed. It has to be opening up. And when it is opened up, we have to keep it open,” he added.
He also talked up the relations between the US and Nato countries in the face of threats by Donald Trump to reduce US military presence in certain countries to “punish” allies for not backing his war on Iran.
Rutte said the US military was benefitting hugely from Europeans buying arms with spending going up from about $10bn in 2020 to $43bn in 2024.
After a closed door meeting with Rutte, Trump again lashed out against Nato.
“None of these people, including our own, very disappointing, Nato, understood anything unless they have pressure placed upon them,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, without giving any further explanation.
Lebanon seeks temporary ceasefire to allow broader talks with Israel, official says
Lebanon has spent the last 24 hours advocating for a temporary ceasefire to allow for broader talks with Israel, a senior Lebanese official told Reuters, saying it would be a “separate track but the same model” as a fragile truce brokered by Pakistan between the US and Iran.
The official said no date or location had been set yet but Lebanon needed the US as a mediator and guarantor of any agreement.
The official spoke to Reuters after Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had instructed the start of direct negotiations with Lebanon “as soon as possible.”
Israel PM says cabinet instructed ’to begin direct negotiations’ with Lebanon
Turning back to the Israel-Lebanon conflict now, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he has ordered his cabinet to open direct talks with Lebanon to disarm Hezbollah and establish “peace relations” between the two countries.
“In light of Lebanon’s repeated requests to open direct negotiations with Israel, I instructed the cabinet yesterday to begin direct negotiations with Lebanon as soon as possible,” his office wrote in a statement.
“Negotiations will focus on disarming Hezbollah and establishing peace relations between Israel and Lebanon. Israel appreciates today’s call by the prime minister of Lebanon to demilitarise Beirut,” the statement added.
Updated
Rutte says that if Nato can play a role in a possible strait of Hormuz mission, it will “be there”.
“If Nato can help, then obviously Nato will be there. There is no reason not to be helpful, obviously we will,” he says, adding that it will have to be taken “step-by-step”.
Rutte is now taking questions from the media and is immediately asked about his previous comments in which he called Donald Trump “daddy”.
“This was a language problem,” he says, in seemingly good spirits about the whole awkward affair. “It follows me a little bit, I can assure you.”
He says Trump was angry with Iran and Israel in June last year. “I was not calling him my daddy but of course daddy has some special connotation and I have to live with this the rest of my life,” he says.
Rutte adds that his conversation with Trump yesterday was “very open” but that he was disappointed with the response of allies.
Asked about what Nato countries are doing to keep the strait of Hormuz open, Rutte says UK prime minister Keir Starmer “took the leadership role”.
Starmer called for a coalition of nations to collectively ensure the principle of free shipping is upheld, Rutte says.
Nato is providing “practical support” to the US, Rutte adds, saying that is early days following the ceasefire.
“This is not only Nato nations, this is including Japan, Korea, Australia,” he says.
Nato allies providing 'massive support' to Trump on Iran, says Rutte
Rutte says a “mindset shift is well underway” but that it will only become apparent in the fullness of time – the time in between “can be precarious”.
On the US-Israeli war on Iran, he says “some allies were a bit slow, to say the least” when it came to providing support.
He says:
In fairness, they were also a bit surprised. In order the maintain the element of surprise for the initial strikes, president Trump opted not to inform allies ahead of time – and I understand that.
He says allies have been supporting the US with air bases and logistics and that European allies are “doing everything that Donald Trump is asking”.
“But what I see, when I look across Europe today, is allies providing a massive amount of support,” he added.
“Nearly without exception, allies are doing everything the United States is asking. They have heard and are responding to president Trump’s requests.“
Updated
Nato chief Mark Rutte gives speech to the Ronald Reagan Institute
Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte is giving a keynote address at the Ronald Reagan Institute in DC.
He starts by saying “American leadership is absolutely essential” for freedom across the world. He says Reagan and former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher “won the Cold War”.
Rutte says that US president Donald Trump’s “commitment to progress reversed more than a generation of stagnation and atrophy by reminding Europe that values must be back by hard power”.
Updated
The United States condemned an 7 April attack on the Kuwaiti consulate in Basrah on Thursday, the state department said in a post on X.
The US is calling on the Iraqi government to “hold accountable and dismantle the Iraqi terrorist groups aligned with Iran that conducted this attack,” the department’s bureau for Near Eastern Affairs said.
Merz also said he did not want the US-Israeli campaign in Iran to “split” Nato or put further pressure on the relations between the US and its European allies, as he suggested Germany could play a role in securing the strait of Hormuz.
Responding to Trump’s recent criticism of the alliance, Merz said that “we do not want – I do not want – a split in Nato,” and cautioned against the war putting “further strain” on relations between the US and European Nato partners.
“Nato is a guarantor of our security, including and above all in Europe,” he stressed.
He also played down the risk of withdrawal or restriction of US troops stationing in Germany, after media suggestions that Trump was mulling such a move.
Russia said that the Middle East war ceasefire announced by the United States and Iran must cover Lebanon, after Israel announced it would continue its attacks on Iran-backed Hezbollah there.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov hailed the ceasefire in a phone call with Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi, with the ministry saying in a read-out that “Moscow firmly believes that these agreements... have a regional dimension and, in particular, apply to Lebanon”.
In a separate statement, the ministry’s spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemned Israeli attacks on Lebanon, saying that “such aggressive actions threaten to derail the emerging negotiation process”.
German chancellor Friedrich Merz has said he hoped for “a negotiated solution” to the Iran war, stressing that Germany has a fundamental interest in resolving the conflict.
Speaking in Berlin, Merz said that “the threat of a massive escalation … has been averted, at least for now,” but warned that the existing ceasefire was “fragile.”
He stressed that the conflict will have a significant impact on the world’s economy as markets remain “very tense,” stressing that Germany will “support the diplomatic process wherever and however possible.”
Merz said that speaking to Trump last night, he “encouraged” the US president to pursue negotiations with Iran “seriously,” and offered Germany’s help to secure freedom of navigation in the strait of Hormuz.
But he stressed that any such missions would “ideally” have the backing of the UN Security Council and of the German parliament, so “no decisions are to be expected within a few days.”
The German chancellor also warned about the “severity” of Israeli attacks on Lebanon, warning they could “derail the entire peace process and that must not be allowed to happen.”
The International Monetary Fund expects to have to provide up to $50 billion in immediate financial assistance to countries affected by the Middle East war, its managing director said, with the crisis likely to have lasting economic effects.
“Given the spillovers of the Middle East war, we expect near-term demand for IMF balance-of-payments support to rise to somewhere between $20bn and $50bn, with the lower bound prevailing if the ceasefire holds,” Kristalina Georgieva said, according to prepared remarks shared with AFP.
The IMF chief also highlighted the ripple effects of the crisis, including food insecurity for at least 45 million people.
Pakistani prime minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned Israel’s “ongoing aggression against Lebanon” on Thursday, ahead of expected US-Iran talks in Islamabad.
“The prime minister said that Pakistan was engaged in sincere efforts for regional peace and it was in this spirit that the peace talks between Iran and the US were being convened,” Sharif’s office said in a statement.
‘There’s no Hezbollah here’: the Lebanese reaction to Israeli strikes that killed hundreds
Omar Rakha heard the war planes but did not feel the explosions; it was only when he woke up face down on the street, bleeding, that he understood what had happened. The building next to his in the Barbour neighbourhood of central Beirut had been destroyed by two Israeli bombs – he then ran through the flaming wreckage to find his sister, screaming.
“I really didn’t think something like this would happen here. Nothing like this happened in the last war,” he said.
Rakha and other locals in the Lebanese capital have spoken to my colleague William Christou in Beirut, where they say the Israeli strikes have mainly killed civilians.
Shaden Fakih, a 24-year-old calisthenics trainer, said: “It’s getting ridiculous. There’s no Hezbollah here, the Israelis are just getting happy when they bomb people.”
You can read the full report here:
IDF orders people to flee homes in Beirut as it warns of further strikes
The Israeli military has again ordered people to flee their homes in the southern suburbs of Beirut, as it warned of more strikes that have already devastated the Lebanese capital.
“Urgent warning to residents of the southern suburbs of Beirut … The Israeli army is continuing its operations and striking Hezbollah military infrastructure throughout the southern suburbs,” said Avichay Adraee, an Arabic-language spokesperson of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
Israeli strikes yesterday killed more than 200 people and wounded 1,100 others, according to Lebanese authorities. The IDF said it targeted sites of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group, but Associated Press reported that several strikes hit densely packed commercial and residential areas without warning during rush hour, leading to widespread civilian casualties.
Trump criticises Nato in confusing Truth Social post
Donald Trump has again levelled criticism at Nato, after meeting with the alliance’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, yesterday.
Giving very little context, the US president wrote on his Truth Social app: “None of these people, including our own, very disappointing, NATO, understood anything unless they have pressure placed upon them!!!”
After their private meeting yesterday, Rutte said Trump was “clearly disappointed” that the US’s allies had refused to join its war against Iran.
Lebanese prime minister Nawaf Salam asked his Pakistani counterpart on Thursday to confirm Lebanon’s inclusion in the Iran war ceasefire, a day after Israeli strikes on the country killed more than 200 people.
In a statement, Salam’s office said he phoned Shehbaz Sharif, praising Islamabad’s efforts in securing the truce and asking him to “confirm that the ceasefire includes Lebanon to prevent a recurrence of the Israeli attacks witnessed yesterday”.
Iran to let no more than 15 vessels a day to pass strait of Hormuz
Iran will allow no more than 15 vessels a day to pass through the strait of Hormuz under the ceasefire agreement it agreed with the United States, Russia’s state TASS news agency quoted an unnamed senior Iranian source as saying.
The strait, a strip of water only 34 km (21 miles) wide between Iran and Oman, provides passage from the Gulf to the Indian Ocean and is the main route for about a fifth of world oil supplies and other vital goods including fertilisers.
It has been largely shut by Iran since the start of the conflict at the end of February, leading to a surge in global oil prices.
The speaker of the Iranian parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, says Lebanon forms “an inseparable part of the ceasefire” deal.
In a post on X, he said “there is no room for denial and backtracking”. His comments come after US president Donald Trump described Israel’s war with Lebanon as a “separate skirmish”.
Ghalibaf added:
Ceasefire violations carry explicit costs and STRONG responses.
Extinguish the fire immediately.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon 'blatant violation' of ceasefire, says Iranian president
The Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, said Israel’s strikes on Lebanon are a “blatant violation” of the US-Iran ceasefire agreement and their continuation would “render negotiations meaningless”.
A translation of his statement on X reads:
Israel’s renewed incursion into Lebanon is a blatant violation of the initial ceasefire agreement. This is a dangerous sign of deception and lack of commitment to potential agreements. The continuation of these actions will render negotiations meaningless. Our fingers remain on the trigger. Iran will never abandon its Lebanese sisters and brothers.
The US and Israel maintain that the two-week ceasefire does not extend to Lebanon, where the Israeli military has launched one of its heaviest barrages of airstrikes yesterday.
Iran and Pakistan, which mediated the ceasefire, say Lebanon is included.
Iran nuclear chief on restrictions to uranium enrichment: 'US and Israel demands will not come true'
As we reported earlier (see post at 10:30) Iran’s atomic energy chief, Mohammad Eslami, said the US will “not succeed in restricting Iran’s enrichment programme”.
AFP news agency has reported further comments from Eslami, in which he says the US and Israel’s demands for Iran to cease uranium enrichment “will not come true”.
“The claims and demands of our enemies to restrict Iran’s enrichment programme are merely wishes that will be buried,” he was quoted as saying by Iran’s ISNA news agency.
Iran’s uranium enrichment capabilities remain a key point of contention in the negotiations between Tehran and Washington, with Donald Trump demanding a total halt and removal of buried nuclear “dust” – referring to Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium – in exchange for sanctions relief.
The UAE defence ministry said its skies had been free of any aerial threats today.
In a post on X, the ministry said: “UAE air defence systems did not detect any ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, or UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicle) launched from Iran.”
Four Iranian, four Greek and one Chinese ships are among the 11 vessels that have been allowed transit through the strait of Hormuz in the 24 hours since the ceasefire.
Their passage barely dents the blockage on both sides of the narrow passage where about 1,400 ships remain anchored.
According to data verified by AXSMarine, two eastbound ships – the Oman-owned Lucia and Greek-owned Iolcas Destiny – were given passage from the Gulf in the early hours of Thursday morning despite the Iranian declaration that the strait was closed amid concerns over the fragility of the ceasefire.
A further ship which crossed from west to east on Wednesday did not identify itself and could be part of a shadow fleet.
AXS said there was a high degree of “spoofing” and signal disruption particularly among vessels anchored in the Gulf, with many reporting false positions.
While the strait has been effectively closed since the outbreak of war, Iran has made concessions to allies including China, Russia, India, Iraq and Pakistan, with some Malaysian and Thai vessels granted access after diplomatic talks in the last six weeks.
On 2 April, Iran said it would allow Philippine-flagged vessels to cross following further negotiations.
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Netanyahu after death of personal adviser to Hezbollah leader: 'We will continue to strike them wherever necessary'
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, confirmed that IDF strikes in Lebanon killed the nephew and secretary of Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem.
In a statement on X, he said Ali Yusuf Harshi was “one of the closest people” to the militant group’s leader.
He added that the Israeli military will continue to strike Hezbollah “wherever necessary”, a day after deadly Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon.
Netanyahu said yesterday that Lebanon is not part of the ceasefire between the US and Iran, but Tehran and mediating countries have issued conflicting claims on whether the ceasefire applies to the country.
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Four Lebanese soldiers killed in Israeli strikes, Lebanon army says
Four Lebanese soldiers were killed in Israeli attacks yesterday, Lebanon’s army said in a statement.
More than 200 people were killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon yesterday, according to Lebanese authorities, with a further 1,100 wounded.
Several world leaders and officials, including the UK foreign minister Yvette Cooper, have called for Lebanon to be included in the US-Iran ceasefire.
The Iranian embassy in Pakistan has said there was a “timing” error after announcing the arrival of an Iranian delegation today.
We reported earlier (see post at 08:17) that the Iranian ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, deleted a post on X in which he announced the arrival of an Iranian delegation in Islamabad this evening for talks with the US. An official at the Iranian embassy in Islamabad told AFP news agency that the message had been sent prematurely.
The official said the post was removed “because of some issues”, declining to say whether the delegation was still expected tonight.
When asked further, the official said: “Timing – we were not supposed to send it.”
Updated
Here are some of the latest images coming through to us on the newswires:
Iran’s atomic energy chief, Mohammad Eslami, said his country’s uranium enrichment programme will not be curtailed, according to Reuters news agency.
Citing a report by the state-backed Iranian Students’ News Agency, Reuters quoted Eslami as saying “the enemy won’t succeed in restricting Iran’s enrichment programme”.
His remarks go against statements made by US president Donald Trump and other US officials yesterday that there will be “no enrichment of uranium” in Iran as part of the ceasefire agreed by both countries.
The EU’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, has joined a growing number of officials in calling for the US-Iran ceasefire to be extended to Lebanon.
In a post on X, she wrote:
Hezbollah dragged Lebanon into the war, but Israel’s right to defend itself does not justify inflicting such massive destruction.
Israeli strikes killed hundreds last night, making it hard to argue that such heavy-handed actions fall within self-defence.
Israeli actions are putting the U.S.-Iran ceasefire under severe strain. The Iran truce should extend to Lebanon.
Hezbollah must disarm, as it agreed to do. The EU supports Lebanon’s efforts to disarm Hezbollah.
The phone call between Saudi and Iran officials is an interesting development, given that Saudi Arabia had previously urged the US to ramp up attacks on Iran.
In this report by my colleagues Julian Borger and Aram Roston, a Saudi intelligence source confirmed reports that the kingdom’s de facto leader, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, had been pushing Donald Trump to intensify attacks against Iran, and that the US-Israeli campaign represented a “historic opportunity” to remake the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia, among other Gulf nations, has faced Iran’s retaliatory drone strikes following the US-Israeli attack on Tehran on 28 February.
The Saudi monarchy’s apparent support for Trump’s war off-stage (while not committing to any direct role in the conflict) does not come as a surprise – Iran and Saudi Arabia have long been bitter rivals, accusing each other of destabilising the region and frequently supporting opposing sides in conflicts across Yemen, Lebanon, and Syria.
Iran and Saudi foreign ministers hold first call since start of war
The foreign ministers of Iran and Saudi Arabia have held a phone call today, in what the AFP news agency reported is the first official contact between the countries since the start of the war.
The Saudi ministry of foreign affairs said in a statement on X that the country’s foreign minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, received a call from the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi.
The statement said: “During the call, they reviewed the latest developments and discussed ways to reduce tensions to restore security and stability in the region.”
It does not say when the officials spoke, but the statement was issued a day after the announcement of a two-week ceasefire between Iran and the US.
IDF claims to have killed nephew and personal secretary of Hezbollah leader
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has claimed to have killed the nephew and secretary of Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem in yesterday’s strikes in Beirut.
In a post on Telegram, the IDF said:
Yesterday (Wednesday), the IDF struck in the Beirut area and eliminated Ali Yusuf Harshi, the personal secretary and nephew of Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem.
Harshi was a close associate and personal advisor to Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem and played a central role in managing and securing his office.
Hezbollah has not immediately commented on the claim.
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Israel's strikes on Lebanon a 'grave violation' of ceasefire, says Iranian official
The Iranian deputy foreign minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, has accused Israel of a “surprise attack” on Lebanon, saying it constituted a “grave violation” of the ceasefire agreed between the US and Iran.
“It was a sort of genocide, you know, by the regime of Israel in Lebanon, just immediately after the ceasefire was accepted,” he told the BBC’s Today programme.
“It is a type of practice that the Israeli regime has always done: accepting ceasefire, then surprise attack, massacring.”
He added that the US “must choose between war and ceasefire”, saying: “They cannot have both at the same time.”
He continued: “If president Trump … is interested in peace for the whole Middle East, and since Iran is committed to that, we ask everybody in the Middle East to be abided by this agreement and this ceasefire that we reached with Americans, and we expect Americans do the same with its ally, the Israeli regime.”
UK prime minister Keir Starmer has arrived in the UAE on the second leg of his tour in the Middle East.
Starmer is meeting with allies in the Gulf region as part of ongoing talks to give shipping the confidence to pass through the strait of Hormuz.
The prime minister was in Saudi Arabia yesterday, where he met with the crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, and visited an airbase. Starmer said there was still work to do to ensure the US-Iran ceasefire was “not a temporary ceasefire but a permanent ceasefire”.
Despite the recently agreed ceasefire, the energy crisis triggered by the war continues to reverberate across Asia.
In the Philippines, agriculture officials have warned of possible losses of P75 billion (US$1.2bn) if the government doesn’t give support to help rice and corn farmers, and fishers cope with the soaring cost of fuel. Farmers in some areas have been forced to let produce rot in their fields because the cost of harvesting and transporting goods has risen so sharply.
Officials are continuing to take steps to conserve energy and protect consumers. On Wednesday, officials in Lapu Lapu, in the Philippines’ Central Visayas region, signed an order introducing a four-day week for many government workers.
Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, appears to have deleted a post on X in which he said an Iranian delegation is set to arrive in Islamabad tonight for negotiations with the US.
As we reported earlier, Moghadam had posted: “Despite skepticism of Iranian public opinion due to repeated ceasefire violations by Israeli regime ... Iranian delegation arrives tonight in Islamabad for serious talks based on 10 points proposed by Iran.”
That post no longer appears on his X account.
The French Le Monde newspaper has reported further comments from Jean-Noël Barrot on France Inter, in which he castigated the Israeli government over its continued strikes on Lebanon.
“Iran must stop terrorising Israel through Hezbollah, which must be disarmed immediately,” he said.
“Lebanon must not be made the scapegoat by a disgruntled government simply because a ceasefire has been reached between the United States and Iran.
He described the ceasefire as “temporary” and “very fragile”, adding: “The destruction of Lebanon, of the Lebanese state, will not destroy Hezbollah; on the contrary, it would strengthen it.”
Barrot said his country has joined the national day of mourning declared today in Lebanon.
The French foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, has also condemned the Israeli strikes on Lebanon.
“These attacks are all the more unacceptable as they undermine the temporary ceasefire reached yesterday between the United States and Iran,” he told France Inter radio, according to the AFP news agency.
UK foreign secretary Yvette Cooper said Israel’s continued strikes on Lebanon was “deeply damaging” and risked destabilising the ceasefire between the US and Iran.
“We want to see Lebanon included in the ceasefire,” she told Times Radio this morning.
“We want it extended to cover Lebanon, because otherwise that will destabilise the whole region.
“That escalation that we saw from Israel yesterday was deeply damaging, and we want to see an end to hostilities.“
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has claimed to have killed “dozens” of Hezbollah fighters in its “expanded” ground military operation in southern Lebanon over the past week.
In a series of posts on X, the IDF said its forces have operational control of the area and will continue to strike what it described as Hezbollah infrastructure.
The Lebanese civil defence service said at least 254 people were killed in the Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon yesterday, and more than 1,100 others were wounded.
Here are the latest images coming from Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon.
Interim summary
In case you’re just joining us, here’s the latest developments. It is now 9.30am in Tehran, 9am in Jerusalem and 2am in Washington DC.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah says it fired rockets at northern Israel in its first attack against Israel since the US reached a two-week ceasefire agreement with Iran. Hezbollah said in a statement that its attack came in response to what it described as Israeli ceasefire violations.
Israel’s strikes on Lebanon on Wednesday killed at least 254 people and wounded over 1,100 others, the country’s civil defence service said.
The Israeli strikes raised questions about regional truce efforts, with Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, saying a ceasefire in Lebanon was an essential condition of Iran’s agreement with the US.
Fears that the ceasefire could fall apart saw West Texas Intermediate oil jump around 3% Thursday, having plunged more than 16% the day before. The price of Brent was up more than 2% following a 13% drop.
Iran announced alternative routes for ships travelling through the strait of Hormuz, citing the risk of sea mines in the main zone of the vital waterway. The statement shared instructions for an alternative entry and exit route through the strait.
Donald Trump said US ships, aircraft and soldiers will remain around Iran and threatened that the US will start “shooting” again unless Tehran fully complies with the deal reached with Washington. “If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the “Shootin’ Starts,” bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before,” Trump wrote in a late night Truth Social post.
UN secretary-general António Guterres condemned yesterday’s deadly Israeli strikes on Lebanon, saying they pose “a grave risk to the ceasefire and the efforts toward a lasting and comprehensive peace in the region,” Guterres’s spokesperson said in a statement.
If you’re wondering how Pakistan brokered the two-week ceasefire deal and the looming US-Iran talks in Islamabad, Hannah Ellis-Peterson and Shah Meer Baloch have laid out the details for you in this fascinating piece.
An Iranian delegation will arrive in Islamabad on Thursday night for talks to resolve conflict with the US and Israel, Iran’s ambassador to Pakistan said on Thursday.
“Despite skepticism of Iranian public opinion due to repeated ceasefire violations by Israeli regime ... Iranian delegation arrives tonight in Islamabad for serious talks based on 10 points proposed by Iran,” ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam said in a post on X.
A little earlier (close to midnight in Washington DC), Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that US forces would remain stationed in the region until a “real agreement” is reached.
While he said a deal falling through was “highly unlikely,” Trump threatened to revert to “bigger, and better, and stronger” strikes if an agreement was not reached.
“In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest. AMERICA IS BACK!” he wrote.
UK foreign minister says Lebanon must be included in ceasefire deal
The UK foreign minister, Yvette Cooper, has said Lebanon must be included in any ceasefire agreement. In other remarks now being reported by Reuters, Cooper added that shipping through the strait of Hormuz must be toll-free.
Amid ceasefire talks, Tehran has proposed fees or tolls on vessels to safely pass through the strait. Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested the US and Iran could collect tolls in a joint venture, while the White House said the priority was reopening the strait without limitations.
Only 11 vessels moved through the strait on Wednesday, roughly the same as in prior days, according to Windward, a maritime intelligence firm. Iran was requiring shippers to pay tolls of up to $1 a barrel for outbound oil, it said. The largest supertankers carry up to 3 million barrels of crude.
Updated
UK prime minister Keir Starmer will continue his tour of the Middle East on Thursday, meeting with allies as part of ongoing talks to give shipping the confidence to pass through the strait of Hormuz.
Yesterday he met with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, and visited an air base in Saudi Arabia. Starmer said there was still work to do to ensure “this ceasefire should be not a temporary ceasefire but a permanent ceasefire”.
Starmer’s refusal to let the US have free rein on the use of British bases to launch raids against Iran has severely strained his relationship with Trump.
Asked whether his relationship with Trump was “in tatters”, Starmer responded: “I’ve acted as you would expect of a British prime minister, which is by being absolutely focused on what is our national interest, and that’s why I’ve applied my principles and my values throughout.
And my principles and values made sure that our decisions were that we wouldn’t get involved in the action without a lawful basis, without a viable, thought-through plan.”
Updated
The Spanish prime minster, Pedro Sánchez, condemned Israel’s latest strikes on Lebanon, and criticised Benjamin Netanyahu.
“His contempt for life and international law is intolerable,” Sánchez wrote on X.
Sánchez, who has been Europe’s loudest critic of the US and Israel’s military actions in the region, called on the EU to suspend its association agreement with Israel.
Meanwhile, the Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, urged Israel’s attacks on Lebanon to cease, saying it threatened “a fragile peace”.
“The Australian government also firmly believes [the ceasefire] has to apply to Lebanon as well. We want to see peace in this region,” Albanese said.
Updated
Pakistan has suddenly declared two days of local holidays in Islamabad from Thursday, ahead of US-Iran talks due to take place in the capital.
No reason was given in the official notification, but authorities in Islamabad have often announced holidays or restrictions for security reasons ahead of high-profile diplomatic events.
Pakistan has been preparing for high-stakes talks involving US and Iranian representatives. The White House says the vice president, JD Vance, will be leading a team to the negotiations in Islamabad “this weekend”.
Updated
Trump tells Iran to comply with 'real agreement'
Donald Trump has just posted to Truth Social.
He says all US ships, aircraft, and military personnel would remain in place until Iran fully complied with “the real agreement”.
If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the “Shootin’ Starts,” bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before. It was agreed, a long time ago, and despite all of the fake rhetoric to the contrary - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS and, the Strait of Hormuz WILL BE OPEN & SAFE. In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest. AMERICA IS BACK!”
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UN warns ceasefire at 'grave risk' if Israel keeps attacking Lebanon
The UN secretary-general has warned that ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon poses “a grave risk” to the fragile US-Iran truce, his spokesperson said.
“The ongoing military activity in Lebanon poses a grave risk to the ceasefire and the efforts toward a lasting and comprehensive peace in the region. The Secretary-General reiterates his call to all parties to immediately cease hostilities,” UN chief Antonio Guterres’s spokesman said in a statement on Wednesday.
Updated
Israeli strikes kill Al Jazeera correspondent and two Lebanese journalists: report
Israeli strikes on Wednesday killed an Al Jazeera correspondent in Gaza, according to Al Jazeera and health officials there, as well as two Lebanese journalists in that country, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Citing Al Jazeera, the Associated Press reported that Mohammed Wishah was targeted in a drone strike in west Gaza City. The Israeli military’s Arabic-language spokesperson, Avichay Adraee, claimed on X that Wishah was a member of Hamas, reposting a 2024 tweet that described him as a “prominent commander” in its military wing, among other positions.
The Guardian has not been able to independently verify these claims.
Oil prices climb, stocks fall as ceasefire hangs in balance
Oil prices have climbed and stocks fallen on fears over the nascent US-Iran ceasefire, after Israel launched a major bombardment of Lebanon. In past two hours, Hezbollah said it had fired rockets at northern Israel in response to “ceasefire violations”.
Fears that the ceasefire could fall apart while crude remains stuck in Hormuz saw West Texas Intermediate oil jump around 3% Thursday, having plunged more than 16% the day before. Brent was up more than 2% following a 13% drop.
Equities also gave up some of their gains. In early trading in Asia, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore, Seoul and Taipei were all marginally down.
Gold eased to $4,712 an ounce.
Updated
Independent analysts say they have observed no change in traffic through the strait of Hormuz. That’s despite claims from the White House on Wednesday there had been an uptick in the number of ships transiting the strategic waterway since a US-announced ceasefire with Iran.
Windward, a maritime intelligence firm that tracks international shipping, said only 11 vessels transited the strait on Wednesday – about the same number from prior days.
Windward said all ships transiting the strait must still coordinate safe passage with Iranian authorities, who are requiring shippers to pay hefty tolls of up to $1 a barrel for outbound oil, paid in cryptocurrency. For context, the largest supertankers carry up to 3 million barrels of crude.
Windward said radio broadcasts from Iran to tankers in the Gulf on Wednesday warned that those transiting without approval would be attacked.
Updated
Welcome summary
Welcome to the Guardian’s continuing coverage of the US-Israel war on Iran.
The fragile two-week truce between the US and Iran was hanging in the balance on Thursday, with Tehran threatening to resume hostilities as Israel launched a major bombardment of Lebanon, killing at least 254 people, according to Lebanon’s Civil Defence.
As a result, the conditional opening of the strait of Hormuz is precariously placed. Iran is threatening to lock up the chokepoint if Israel keeps striking Lebanon. Just before 4am on Thursday, Hezbollah said it had fired rockets at northern Israel over “ceasefire violations”, reports said.
Washington and Tehran have both claimed victory in agreeing the ceasefire, but fractures emerged quickly as Israel carried out its heaviest strikes on Lebanon – including in central Beirut – since Hezbollah joined the war in early March.
The UN rights chief, Volker Turk, called the scale of killing “horrific”, as Israeli bombarded Beirut without warning, triggering scenes of horror and panic. The Red Cross said it was “outraged by the devastating death and destruction” in densely populated areas across Lebanon.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned they would “fulfil our duty and deliver a response” if Israel did not cease its strikes there, while Hezbollah said it had a “right” to respond.
Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the country remained prepared to confront Iran if necessary, as it still had “objectives to complete”, with the military saying it continued to pursue the goal of “disarming” Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, also vowed that US forces remained at the ready if the conflict flared up again.
The belligerent rhetoric came ahead of high-stakes talks in Pakistan expected on Friday, where the reopening of the strait of Hormuz will be a main talking point.
Here’s the main developments:
Iran announced alternative routes for ships travelling through the strait of Hormuz, citing the risk of sea mines in the main zone of the vital waterway. The statement shared instructions for an alternative entry and exit route through the strait.
The Trump administration on Wednesday stated Lebanon was not part of the ceasefire deal, with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claiming “that has been relayed to all parties”.
The US vice-president, JD Vance, also told reporters in Budapest that the US never promised to include Lebanon in the ceasefire, and that Iran may have been under that impression due to a “misunderstanding”. Israel announced on Wednesday it did not consider Lebanon covered by the Iran-US truce.
Karoline Leavitt also dismissed “misreporting” that Trump is working from the original 10-point plan put forward by Tehran. She said the 10-point plan presented in public by Iran was “literally thrown in the garbage” by Trump – despite the fact Trump said on Truth Social that the US received a 10-point proposal from Iran that is believed to be a “workable basis on which to negotiate”. Leavitt claimed Iran actually put forward a “more reasonable and entirely different and condensed plan to the president”.
French president Emmanuel Macron said he has urged his US and Iranian counterparts, Donald Trump and Masoud Pezeshkian, to include Lebanon in the ceasefire reached with Iran. Australia’s foreign minister has urged the same.
Donald Trump vented his frustration with Nato during a private meeting with its secretary-general, Mark Rutte, as relations in the alliance reached a crisis point. “He is clearly disappointed with many Nato allies, and I can see his point,” Rutte said on CNN, after spending more than two hours at the White House. “This was a very frank, very open discussion, but also a discussion between two good friends.”
Sir Keir Starmer will continue his tour of the Middle East on Thursday after he met with the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed Bin Salman, as part of ongoing talks with allies to give shipping the “confidence” to pass through the strait of Hormuz.
