Closing Summary
This live blog is now closed.
Here’s a wrap of the latest major events across the Middle East.
-
US vice-president JD Vance on Thursday told reporters Washington was “not there yet” with Iran but he said the parties were close, adding that the US was in a position where it could substantially set back Tehran’s nuclear program. He said were a couple of sticking points in talks with Tehran about its enriched uranium stockpile and the question of enrichment.
-
Earlier, Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to the negotiating team, said the text of a potential memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two countries had not yet been finalised or confirmed.
-
Donald Trump has circulated a draft peace agreement for the war with Iran among allies including Israel as both sides try to prevent fresh breaches of the ceasefire escalating out of control and scuppering any deal.
-
A US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters that no US aircraft were shot down near Bushehr in Iran, contradicting earlier reports from Iran that its air defences had intercepted and destroyed a “hostile aircraft” in Iran’s southern Bushehr province in the past hour, state media reports.
-
The latest report from the UN documenting sexual violence in wars around the world said in 2025 the UN was able to document “patterns of sexual violence” against Palestinians detained in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, and verified multiple incidents of conflict-related sexual violence. Israel said it is breaking all contact with UN chief António Guterres because of its inclusion in the report.
-
Benjamin Netanyahu said he has given orders to the Israeli army to seize control of 70% of the Gaza Strip in a move that threatens to torpedo an already fragile ceasefire and create catastrophic humanitarian conditions in the already devastated territory.
-
Lebanon’s prime minister said “nothing can justify” Israel’s ongoing assault on the south of his country, and reissued his calls for an immediate ceasefire. Nawaf Salam said Israel’s continued bombardment amounts to collective punishment condemned by all international norms and laws.
-
US treasury secretary Bessent said he had spoken with the Omani ambassador, who “assured” him that there are no plans to toll the strait of Hormuz. Bessent told reporters at the White House briefing that Donald Trump “wanted to punctuate freedom of navigation in the strait” when he threatened to “blow up” US ally Oman on Wednesday.
Updated
The latest report from the UN documenting sexual violence in wars around the world, said in 2025 the UN was able to document “patterns of sexual violence” against Palestinians detained in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, and verified multiple incidents of conflict-related sexual violence, including as a form of torture, inflicted on 14 men, seven women, nine boys and one girl from Gaza and the West Bank. It said 13 cases occurred in 2025 and 18 in 2023 and 2024.
It detailed at least nine victims, mostly from Gaza, who were raped or gang raped, in some cases repeatedly, by perpetrators from the Israel Defense Forces and Israel’s prison service, its special forces and police units.
Danny Danon, the Israeli ambassador to the UN, said in a statement on social media that Israel was “done” with the UN secretary general because of the country’s inclusion in the report.
“[Antonio] Guterres has put Israel on the same blacklist along with Hamas, Islamic State and the most depraved terrorist organizations in the world.”
Danon said Israel had provided documents, data and detailed responses to the allegations that were raised in the report.
We told you earlier about Israel’s anger that it has been included in a UN report documenting sexual violence in conflicts worldwide.
Associated Press is now reporting that the 35-page report shared by the Israeli mission to the UN late Thursday ahead of its expected release today, has included Israeli forces because of their treatment of Palestinian detainees. It’s the first time since the review began more than 15 years ago that Israel has been included.
The list for 2025 includes Israel’s armed and security forces as well as Hamas militants, who were previously blacklisted after their attack in Israel on 7 October 2023, which sparked the war in Gaza.
Russian armed and security forces were also blacklisted for the first time this year for sexual violence against prisoners of war and civilians detained during the war in Ukraine. Israel and Russia both deny the accusations.
The UN report blacklists 77 government and non-government parties in a dozen countries suspected of committing or being responsible for sexual violence in conflicts around the world. It says the number of cases rose sharply in 2025 from 2024.
Israel said it is breaking all contact with UN chief António Guterres, because of its inclusion in the report.
As negotiations continue between the US and Iran about a peace agreement, tensions deepened Thursday in Lebanon as Israel conducted an airstrike on a southern suburb of the capital, Beirut, and other strikes in the southern coastal city of Tyre.
At least 17 people were reported killed and many others wounded across the country’s south, and local people and paramedics continue to search the wreckage, as you can see by these latest pictures coming in from around Lebanon.
Iran has insisted that any deal must include an end to Israel’s military operations in Lebanon against the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah.
Lebanese authorities on Thursday decried Israeli attacks near Unesco-protected historic sites and landmarks in the country’s south.
Culture Minister Ghassan Salame “made numerous contacts with his counterparts worldwide and relevant international organisations to draw their attention to the huge damage to archaeological sites and heritage districts” in south Lebanon, the state-run National news agency said.
He highlighted the ancient city of Tyre and Beaufort castle in the Nabatieh district, emphasising that “a large number of these sites enjoy enhanced protection from Unesco, making it necessary to protect them from any Israeli air or artillery attack”. Israel has issued repeated evacuation warnings to swathes of the southern coastal city of Tyre in recent days and carried out heavy strikes.
The south Lebanon municipality of Arnoun, where the historic Beaufort castle is located, said in a statement on Facebook that it “condemns in the strongest terms the attack that targeted” the site, blaming Israeli bombardment and urging authorities to protect it “from further damage”.
On Wednesday, an AFP correspondent saw smoke rising near Beaufort castle after what appeared to be artillery fire.
In November 2024, during a previous war between Israel and Hezbollah, Unesco granted 34 heritage sites in Lebanon including Tyre and Beaufort Castle “provisional enhanced protection”.
Updating earlier reports from Iranian state tv that Iranian forces had intercepted and destroyed a US aircraft near Iran’s southern Bushehr province, the US is denying the claim.
A US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, has told Reuters that no US aircraft were shot down near Bushehr.
The Iran news report had cited the governor of Jam County, Masoud Tangestani.
Vance says he 'feels good' about Iran deal but can't guarantee 'we're going to get there'
US vice-president JD Vance on Thursday told reporters that Washington was “not there yet” with Iran but he said the parties were close, adding that the US was in a position where it could substantially set back Tehran’s nuclear program.
Earlier, Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to the negotiating team, said the text of a potential memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the two countries had not yet been finalised or confirmed.
Donald Trump has circulated a draft peace agreement for the war with Iran among allies including Israel as both sides try to prevent fresh breaches of the ceasefire escalating out of control and scuppering any deal.
The US vice-president told reportersthere were a couple of sticking points in talks with Tehran about its enriched uranium stockpile and the question of enrichment.
“It’s hard to say exactly when or if the president is going to sign the MOU. We’re going back and forth on a couple of language points,” Vance said.
“I can’t guarantee that we’re going to get there, but right now I feel pretty good about it,” he said.
Updated
The day so far
-
Benjamin Netanyahu said he has given orders to the Israeli army to seize control of 70% of the Gaza Strip in a move that threatens to torpedo an already fragile ceasefire and create catastrophic humanitarian conditions in the already devastated territory. Speaking at a conference in an occupied West Bank settlement, Netanyahu, who is struggling for his political survival before elections in the next few months, spelled out the extent of Israel’s territorial goals. The Israeli prime minister said: “We are currently squeezing Hamas. We now control 60% of the territory in the strip. You know, we were at 50, we moved to 60. My directive is to move to … 70%.” Here’s our report.
-
Lebanon’s prime minister said “nothing can justify” Israel’s ongoing assault on the south of his country, and reissued his calls for an immediate ceasefire. “Nothing can justify the ongoing assaults on my regions of Tyre and Nabatieh and the destruction of their historical landmarks, nor the continuous threats targeting our peaceful people there, nor the repeated calls for them to leave their homes and abandon their livelihoods,” Nawaf Salam wrote on X. He said Israel’s continued bombardment amounts to collective punishment condemned by all international norms and laws”, and strengthen “our resolve for the necessity of an immediate ceasefire, working toward a complete Israeli withdrawal from our land”.
-
Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to the negotiating team, said on Thursday that the text of a potential memorandum of understanding between Iran and the US had not yet been finalised or confirmed. It followed several media reports that the two sides had reached the agreement to, among other things, extend the ceasefire and launch negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme – but were still waiting for Donald Trump to give final approval.
-
It came after Trump circulated a draft peace agreement among allies including Israel. In an attempt to speed up the negotiations, Pakistan’s foreign minister, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, will fly to Washington on Friday to meet his US counterpart, Marco Rubio.
-
Meanwhile, Iranian state tv reported that Iranian forces intercepted and destroyed a US aircraft near Iran’s southern Bushehr province. Iran’s Mehr news agency is also reporting that Iranian armed forces had fired warning shots at four vessels near the strait of Hormuz that were “attempting to pass through the strait without coordination”.
-
US treasury secretary Bessent said he had spoken with the Omani ambassador, who “assured” him that there are no plans to toll the strait of Hormuz. Bessent told reporters at the White House briefing that Donald Trump “wanted to punctuate freedom of navigation in the strait” when he threatened to “blow up” US ally Oman on Wednesday.
-
Asked whether the US and Iran have struck a deal, Bessent was vague. “The teams have been going back and forth,” he said, adding that Trump has “made it very clear that he has several red lines” and is “not going to take a bad deal”. “Everything depends on what the president wants to do and president Trump is not going to make a bad deal for the American people,” he added.
Updated
Iran intercepts US drone, state tv reports
Further to that last post, Iranian state tv is reporting that it was a US aircraft that Iranian forces intercepted and destroyed, citing local officials.
There’s as yet been no confirmation from the US.
Updated
Iranian air defences destroy ‘hostile aircraft’ in Bushehr province
Iranian air defences have intercepted and destroyed a “hostile aircraft” in Iran’s southern Bushehr province in the past hour, state media reports.
“The incident that occurred tonight was related to the destruction of a hostile aircraft,” the semi-official Tasnim news agency quoted the governor of Jam County, Masoud Tangestani, as saying. “The city is now in a normal situation.”
Iranian forces fire ‘warning shots’ at vessels near strait of Hormuz, state media reports
Iran’s Mehr news agency is reporting that Iranian armed forces have fired warning shots at four vessels near the strait of Hormuz.
The vessels were “attempting to pass through the strait without coordination”, the agency said in a post on Telegram.
I’ll bring you more on this as we get it.
Lebanon’s health ministry said an Israeli strike south of Beirut on Thursday killed a woman and two children, after Israel’s army said it “precisely struck” the capital without identifying the target.
“The Israeli enemy strike on the town of Choueifat led to a final toll of three martyrs including a woman and her baby daughter, and a child of Syrian nationality, in addition to wounding 15 people including three children and five women,” the health ministry said in a statement.
Iran’s Fars news agency is reporting that the Iranian armed forces fired missiles from the southern regions of the country towards “specific targets” a short while ago.
It added that the exact destination of the missiles was not yet clear.
I’ll bring you more on this as we get it.
Lebanese PM says ‘nothing can justify’ Israel’s bombardment
Lebanon’s prime minister has slammed Israel’s expanded offensive in the south of the country, which he said amounts to “collective punishment condemned by all international norms and laws”.
“Nothing can justify the ongoing assaults on my regions of Tyre and Nabatieh and the destruction of their historical landmarks, nor the continuous threats targeting our peaceful people there, nor the repeated calls for them to leave their homes and abandon their livelihoods,” Nawaf Salam wrote on X.
He said the attacks strengthen “our resolve for the necessity of an immediate ceasefire, working toward a complete Israeli withdrawal from our land”.
Updated
My colleague Oliver Holmes looks at how Donald Trump’s book The Art of the Deal could shed light on the president’s negotiation tactics in the war with Iran.
The terms of a purported 60-day deal to negotiate peace in the Iran war have trapped the Trump administration between mounting economic costs ahead of midterm elections and anger from Republican hawks who accuse the US government of surrendering to Iran.
The public rift between Trump and Senate Republicans over his shift toward diplomacy with Iran has also been matched within his administration, where the dovish JD Vance and traditional neoconservative Marco Rubio have been forced to pirouette between Trump’s policies as he shifts to exit the war as soon as possible.
US media outlets reported on Thursday that US and Iranian negotiators had reached an agreement on a 60-day memorandum of understanding (MOU) that would extend a ceasefire and launch negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme. But Iran has not confirmed a deal, and skirmishes have increased in the strait of Hormuz. The reported conditions for the negotiations appear to favour Washington even as Tehran has indicated it would demand further concessions to open the strategic waterway.
If that deal has been made, the White House is not in a rush to ink it, as Donald Trump seeks to cushion the political blowback of an interim agreement to start negotiations with the Iranians. “The president relayed to the mediators that he wants a couple of days to think about it,” a US official told Axios.
US treasury secretary Scott Bessent was asked about the skirmishes and ceasefire violations that have taken place this week. He said: “President Trump always prefers a peace deal, so everything we have done thus far has been defensive, and at present that is what we will continue doing.
“We can’t talk about reconstruction in Iran until we reach a peace deal.”
Agreement not finalised, Iranian state media reports
Iran’s Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to the negotiating team, said on Thursday the text of a potential memorandum of understanding between Iran and the United States had not yet been finalised or confirmed.
The source said Tehran had not informed the Pakistani mediator that the text was complete and would notify both the mediator and the public once finalised, adding that western media reports claiming the agreement had already been finalised were false.
US treasury secretary says Omani ambassador 'assured' him of no plans to toll strait of Hormuz
Bessent said that Donald Trump “wanted to punctuate freedom of navigation in the strait [of Hormuz]” when he threatened to “blow up” Oman on Wednesday.
Bessent said he spoke with the Omani ambassador, who “assured” him that there are no plans to toll the critical waterway.
“I told him that this was a non-starter and he didn’t want to risk the Omani individuals or Omani organisations being sanctioned,” he added.
The US president made the extraordinary threat to the US’s ally after reports of talks between Iran and Oman about jointly charging a toll for ships passing through the strait, which has been all but closed since the start of the US-Israel war on Iran.
A reminder that, in addition to Oman’s decades-long military and economic ties with the US, the Gulf nation of 5.3 million people has played a mediation role in the war and has itself come under attack from Tehran.
Bessent added on Thursday:
Our countries have had 200 years of good relations. [Trump] wants to have another 200 more.
Updated
Asked whether the US and Iran have struck a deal, Bessent was vague.
“The teams have been going back and forth,” he said, adding that Trump has “made it very clear that he has several red lines” and is “not going to take a bad deal”.
“Everything depends on what the president wants to do and president Trump is not going to make a bad deal for the American people,” he added.
Updated
US treasury secretary Scott Bessent is leading the White House press briefing on Thursday.
He’s sure to be asked about the draft peace agreement shared by Donald Trump. I’ll bring you any relevant key lines here.
Further to that, a senior Arab official directly involved in mediating peace talks between Washington and Tehran has told NBC News that US and Iranian negotiators agreed to the terms of a truce deal three days ago, but both sides have delayed finalising and announcing it.
“It was already closed in Doha three days ago, now everyone is playing a game of chicken and egg,” the official said, describing the delays as “frustrating”.
Negotiators agreed a deal but had to go back to their leaders for approval, with Donald Trump’s approval still pending, they said.
Asked whether the US president is still pushing for Iran’s Arab neighbours to normalise relations with Israel by joining the Abraham Accords as part of a deal, the official told NBC News that Trump has brought it up.
“Someone is misunderstanding the situation in a big way,” the Arab official said. “We should be paid back, not paying the price.”
Updated
Further reports that US and Iran have reached memorandum of understanding
US sources have also confirmed to Al Jazeera that US and Iranian negotiators have agreed on a framework for a 60-day ceasefire extension deal but it still needs Donald Trump’s approval.
The sources confirmed the two sides had agreed on a memorandum of understanding to extend the truce and launch negotiations for a final deal to end the war.
This is in line with the report we brought you earlier from Axios, which cited two US officials and a regional source involved in the mediation efforts.
The Associated Press hears the same from a US official, and Reuters from four sources familiar with the matter.
Updated
Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN chief António Guterres, has said that the United Nations is trying to “get a better understanding of what is official and what is not official”, amid reports that a memorandum of understanding has been reached between the US and Iran.
In comments reported by Al Jazeera, Dujarric told reporters that the UN is “very worried and concerned” about exchanges of fire between the two countries this week. He added:
We encourage both parties to respect the ceasefire that they had announced.
The day so far
-
Axios is reporting that the US and Iran have reached an agreement on a 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and launch negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme. However, US president Donald Trump still needs to give final approval, according to two American officials.
-
Donald Trump has circulated a draft peace agreement for the war with Iran among allies including Israel as both sides try to prevent fresh breaches of the ceasefire escalating out of control and scuppering any deal. In an attempt to speed up the negotiations, Pakistan‘s foreign minister, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, will fly to Washington on Friday to meet his US counterpart, Marco Rubio.
-
US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent threatened Thursday to target Oman if it helped impose a tolling system in the key strait of Hormuz, warning of sanctions against parties involved. “Oman, in particular, should know that the US Treasury will aggressively target any actors involved – directly or indirectly – in facilitating tolls for the Strait and any willing partners will be penalized,” Bessent warned in a post on X.
-
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened a “firm response” on Thursday in the event of renewed attacks, after the United States carried out a strike the country’s south. “If this action is repeated, the US military will face a firm response,” the Guards said in a statement on their Sepah News website.
-
Kuwait has now named Iran as the culprit behind the attempted missile and drone attacks against the Gulf state, describing it as a “dangerous escalation”. Earlier, the Kuwaiti armed forces said it had intercepted drones and missiles that were launched towards the country, but did not say who was behind the attacks. The US and UAE placed the blame squarely on Iran.
-
The IDF said it carried out a strike in the Lebanese capital Beirut, which had been largely spared of attacks since a fragile ceasefire took effect on 17 April. In a post on X, it said: “The IDF has just carried out a targeted strike in Beirut; further details to follow.”
-
Israel is breaking all contact with United Nations chief Antonio Guterres, the country’s ambassador announced Thursday, saying it was “outrageous” that Israel has been blacklisted over accusations of sexual violence in war zones. “We are done with this secretary-general,” ambassador Danny Danon said in a video posted on X.
-
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday he had ordered the country’s military to take control of 70% of the Gaza strip, in defiance of the terms of a fragile ceasefire that took effect in October. “We are currently squeezing Hamas. We now control 60% of the territory in the strip,” he said at a conference in an occupied West Bank settlement, according to a video aired by Israel’s Channel 12 network.
-
Israel has denounced a UN decision to blacklist the country over alleged sexual violence in conflict zones, calling the move “shameful and absurd”. “The shameful and absurd UN decision to include Israeli entities in the annex to the CRSV (conflict-related sexual violence) report is further proof of the UN’s true nature: a politicised and corrupt organisation that has abandoned its founding principles and systematically targets Israel as its primary mission,” Oren Marmorstein, a spokesperson for the Israeli foreign ministry, said on X.
-
The proportion of vessels not linked to Iranian ownership that are transiting the key strait of Hormuz has risen, according to data from maritime firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence shared Thursday. This despite Iran blockading the waterway since the start of the Middle East war on 28 February, preventing a large share of Gulf countries’ hydrocarbon exports, in turn harming the global economy.
The proportion of vessels not linked to Iranian ownership that are transiting the key strait of Hormuz has risen, according to data from maritime firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence shared Thursday.
This despite Iran blockading the waterway since the start of the Middle East war on 28 February, preventing a large share of Gulf countries’ hydrocarbon exports, in turn harming the global economy.
“The last week we saw ships flagged with Singapore, UAE, South Korea, and also a Norway flagged-vessel going through the Gulf, specifically exiting,” said Bridget Diakun, an analyst at Lloyd’s List Intelligence.
Israel has denounced a UN decision to blacklist the country over alleged sexual violence in conflict zones, calling the move “shameful and absurd”.
“The shameful and absurd UN decision to include Israeli entities in the annex to the CRSV (conflict-related sexual violence) report is further proof of the UN’s true nature: a politicised and corrupt organisation that has abandoned its founding principles and systematically targets Israel as its primary mission,” Oren Marmorstein, a spokesperson for the Israeli foreign ministry, said on X.
Netanyahu orders IDF to occupy 70% of Gaza, up from 50%
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday he had ordered the country’s military to take control of 70% of the Gaza strip, in defiance of the terms of a fragile ceasefire that took effect in October.
“We are currently squeezing Hamas. We now control 60% of the territory in the strip,” he said at a conference in an occupied West Bank settlement, according to a video aired by Israel’s Channel 12 network.
He said the military had controlled 50% of Gaza under the terms of the ceasefire, adding: “My directive is to move to... 70%”.
“We’re squeezing them from all [sides]. We’ll deal with what’s left afterwards.”
Updated
US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent threatened Thursday to target Oman if it helped impose a tolling system in the key strait of Hormuz, warning of sanctions against parties involved.
“Oman, in particular, should know that the US Treasury will aggressively target any actors involved – directly or indirectly – in facilitating tolls for the Strait and any willing partners will be penalized,” Bessent warned in a post on X.
Donald Trump shares draft Iran peace agreement with Israel and other allies
Donald Trump has circulated a draft peace agreement for the war with Iran among allies including Israel as both sides try to prevent fresh breaches of the ceasefire escalating out of control and scuppering any deal.
In an attempt to speed up the negotiations, Pakistan‘s foreign minister, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, will fly to Washington on Friday to meet his US counterpart, Marco Rubio.
Tehran targeted a US air base in Kuwait on Thursday after Washington struck what it described as an Iranian drone operation near the strait of Hormuz, highlighting the fragile situation as both sets of negotiators refuse to cede ground on final points of disagreement.
The draft Trump has shared is not vastly different to the one that has been circulating across the Middle East for days, under which the strait of Hormuz would be opened to commercial shipping, the US blockade of Iranian ports would by lifted and Iran would be given access to as much as $12bn (£9bn) in frozen assets.
The aim would be for commercial shipping in the strait to return to pre-war levels within 30 days and for negotiations envisaged to last as long as 60 days to commence on the future of Iran’s nuclear programme. This would include discussions about its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, a time-limited suspension of further enrichment and supervision by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN’s nuclear watchdog.
China is pressing for the UN security council to ratify any agreement.
US media report draft 60-day deal agreed - but not yet approved by Trump
Axios is reporting that the US and Iran have reached an agreement on a 60-day memorandum of understanding to extend the ceasefire and launch negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program.
However, US president Donald Trump still needs to give final approval, according to two American officials.
Updated
Israel is breaking all contact with United Nations chief Antonio Guterres, the country’s ambassador announced Thursday, saying it was “outrageous” that Israel has been blacklisted over accusations of sexual violence in war zones.
“We are done with this secretary-general,” ambassador Danny Danon said in a video posted on X.
Pakistan’s foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, is set to meet US secretary of state Marco Rubio in Washington today, the Pakistani foreign ministry said in a statement.
Islamabad is continuing its mediation efforts to negotiate a peace agreement to bring an end to the Iran war. Dar has been in the US for the UN security council and other meetings in New York.
US to shut down Iranian airlines' access to landing spots, refuelling and ticket sales, says Bessent
The US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said Washington will be shutting down Iranian airlines’ access to landing spots, refuelling and ticket sales.
In a post on X, he said the US has sanctioned Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA), a government agency Tehran established on 5 May handling transit fees for vessels in the strait of Hormuz.
Bessent wrote:
The US treasury continues our Economic Fury campaign against the Iranian regime.
Their troops are not getting paid, the police are not reporting for work, and Kharg Island is shut down. The Iranian economy and currency are in free fall.
Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) is a joke, and today Treasury has sanctioned it. We have warned any corporate or state entities against paying tolls or hiding them as aid payments.
Forming a Wall of Steel, the US Naval Blockade has ensured a record low amount of Iranian crude on the water. We will also be shutting down both Iranian airlines’ access to landing spots, refueling, and ticket sales.
Only a satisfactory outcome in negotiations will end the downward spiral.
Here are some of the latest images from Beirut, where the Israeli military launched an attack in its first strike on the Lebanese capital since 6 May:
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened a “firm response” on Thursday in the event of renewed attacks, after the United States carried out a strike the country’s south.
“If this action is repeated, the US military will face a firm response,” the Guards said in a statement on their Sepah News website.
Overnight, the Israeli military pounded the coastal city of Tyre, Lebanon’s fourth-largest city, killing at least 14 people across the south of the country in its ongoing military escalation against the Hezbollah group ahead of the Washington talks.
Among those killed in the flurry of strikes were five women and children and a Lebanese soldier. Dozens of others were wounded, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry and the state-run National News Agency.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported that an Israeli strike on Beirut targeted an apartment building in the southern Choueifat area.
It was not immediately clear who or what was targeted in the building, but the Times of Israel reported that the IDF was attempting to assassinate an IRGC-linked military leader. Citing a security source, the newspaper reported that the target was Ali al-Husni, described as “the head of the missile force in the Imam Hossein Division, an Iranian militia that operates alongside Hezbollah”.
It is the first time in over three weeks that Israel has attacked the Lebanese capital.
Kuwait says Iranian attacks on its territory a 'dangerous escalation'
Kuwait has now named Iran as the culprit behind the attempted missile and drone attacks against the Gulf state, describing it as a “dangerous escalation”.
Earlier, the Kuwaiti armed forces said it had intercepted drones and missiles that were launched towards the country, but did not say who was behind the attacks. The US and UAE placed the blame squarely on Iran.
In a statement, the Kuwaiti foreign ministry said it expressed the country’s “strongest condemnation and denunciation of the criminal Iranian attacks that targeted the territory of the state of Kuwait with missiles and drones, in a dangerous escalation”.
It added:
The ministry affirms this escalation comes at a time when earnest efforts are being exerted by a number of brotherly and friendly countries to reduce tensions, de-escalate, and spare the region further escalation, which amplifies the gravity of these attacks and undermines diplomatic efforts aimed at preserving regional security and stability.
Associated Press reported that Israeli fighter jets struck a southern suburb of Beirut but it was not clear what the target was.
According to AFP, citing a Lebanese military source, the Israeli strike hit an apartment south of the capital.
IDF says its carried out strike in Beirut
The IDF said it carried out a strike in the Lebanese capital Beirut, which had been largely spared of attacks since a fragile ceasefire took effect on 17 April.
In a post on X, it said: “The IDF has just carried out a targeted strike in Beirut; further details to follow.”
The most recent Israeli strike on Beirut was on 6 May, when the IDF carried out an airstrike in the southern suburbs known as the Dahiyeh.
We will bring you more as we get it.
Updated
US accuses Iran of ceasefire violation after missile intercepted by Kuwaiti forces
The US Central Command said an Iranian missile was intercepted by Kuwaiti forces, as it accused Tehran of an “egregious ceasefire violation”.
In a statement posted on social media, it said:
Iran launched a ballistic missile toward Kuwait that was successfully intercepted by Kuwaiti forces. This egregious ceasefire violation by the Iranian regime occurred hours after Iranian forces launched five one-way attack drones that posed a clear threat in and near the strait of Hormuz. All drones were successfully intercepted by US forces which also prevented a sixth drone launch from an Iranian ground control site in Bandar Abbas.
US Central Command and regional partners remain vigilant and measured as we continue to defend our forces and interests from unjustified Iranian aggression.
UAE condemns Iran for strikes on Kuwait
The UAE has condemned “in the strongest terms” what it described as Iranian drone and missile attacks on Kuwait.
Earlier, the Kuwaiti armed forces said its air defences were intercepting “hostile missile and drone attacks” this morning, but did not say how many and where they were launched from.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it targeted an unnamed American military base in retaliation against US strikes on the Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas near the strait of Hormuz, according to the Iranian state broadcaster Irib.
In a statement, the UAE’s foreign ministry said the attacks constituted “a flagrant violation of the sovereignty of Kuwait and a threat to its security and stability”.
The IDF claimed to have struck more than 135 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon over the past 24 hours, including in the city of Tyre and other southern areas and the eastern Bekaa valley.
Among the targets, the IDF said it struck a Hezbollah training camp and rocket launch sites.
Local media in Lebanon have reported massive explosions and widespread damage in Tyre, as the Israeli military continues to expand its operations deeper into the country through a relentless campaign of displacement orders and airstrikes.
Updated
Hezbollah has claimed dozens of drone and rocket attacks that it said targeted Israeli troops in southern Lebanon and northern Israel.
The group said it launched several attacks on Israeli soldiers and tanks that crossed the Litani river into the town of Zawtar al-Sharqiyah near Nabatieh, as close-range fighting continues.
It points to an expansion of Israel’s military operations beyond the boundary of its self-declared military security zone in southern Lebanon. Earlier this week, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, announced he had instructed the IDF to expand its operations in Lebanon with “large forces on the ground” and take control of new areas north of the Israeli-occupied buffer zone.
Updated
Israel’s defence minister has said he is committed to the ethnic cleansing of Gaza through large-scale migration of Palestinians as part of Israel’s long-term plans for the territory.
Israel Katz said the government would implement a plan for large numbers of Palestinians to leave Gaza “at the right time and in the right manner”, in a statement on Wednesday marking the targeted killing of Mohammed Odeh, Hamas’s most recent military commander.
Pushing for mass departures violates Donald Trump’s ceasefire plan for Gaza, which Israel signed last year. The second point of the plan states: “Gaza will be redeveloped for the benefit of the people of Gaza, who have suffered more than enough.”
Israel’s government has promoted the prospect of Gaza without Palestinians since Trump suggested early last year that hundreds of thousands of people should leave to “clean out” the strip for reconstruction.
Read more:
Here are some of the latest images from southern Lebanon, where the Israeli military said it has launched new strikes against Hezbollah targets in the coastal city of Tyre:
Here is a video of Donald Trump making those remarks about attacking Oman during a cabinet meeting at the White House:
Iran says Trump's threats against Oman 'dangerous' and 'bullying'
We have a statement from the Iranian foreign ministry in which the spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, described Donald Trump’s threats against Oman as “dangerous” and “bullying”.
He was quoted as saying:
Threats to “destroy” a United Nations member state that has always played a constructive, effective, and responsible role in regional peace and security and has used its noble efforts in the service of regional peace and stability as a mediator in diplomatic processes for many years are not only a violation of the fundamental principle of prohibiting the threat of the use of force, but also another dangerous sign of the normalisation of lawlessness and bullying in international relations.
As a reminder, the US president said yesterday that he would “blow up” Oman if it entered an agreement with Iran to manage shipping in the strait of Hormuz.
Read more here:
Updated
Dozen people killed in Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon
At least a dozen people have been killed in Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon today, according to local media, as the Israeli military continues to push further into Lebanese territory.
Among those killed was a solider in the Lebanese armed forces. In a post on social media, the army said the soldier was “targeted by a hostile Israeli airstrike” while travelling between the villages of Zefta and Deir ez-Zahrani in the Nabatieh area.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported at least six people, including children, were killed in an Israeli drone attack on the Adloun Highway in the Nabi Sari area of southern Lebanon. The victims – reported to be members of the same family – were killed “as they were trying to flee from the threatened villages to a safe place at dawn”, according to the news agency. More deaths were reported in the southern Lebanese cities of Tyre and Sidon where the Israeli military said it is targeting Hezbollah infrastructure.
Lebanese and Israeli military officials are set to hold their first security talks tomorrow in Washington, with talks at a political level scheduled on 2 and 3 June. The talks have extended a nominal ceasefire that went into effect on 17 April, although the attacks have since intensified.
Updated
Iran official condemns 'US officials' threats' against Oman
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei, has condemned the US after Donald Trump threatened to attack Oman if it sides with Tehran over reopening the strait of Hormuz.
In remarks during a cabinet meeting in the White House yesterday, the US president said he would “blow up” ally Oman if it did not “behave just like everybody else” in the ongoing dispute over the key waterway.
In a statement this morning, Baghaei expressed solidarity with Oman, a key mediator in the Iran conflict, after “US officials’ threats”, without specifically naming Trump.
He also condemned US attacks on Bander Abbas, the Iranian port city near the strait of Hormuz.
Updated
The Israeli military said a soldier was killed in a Hezbollah drone attack in northern Israel near the border with Lebanon.
In a statement online, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said two other soldiers were injured in the same incident yesterday.
According to AFP news agency, 24 Israeli soldiers have been killed since renewed fighting with Hezbollah began on 2 March.
After 88 days of near-total internet blackout in Iran, long-delayed messages, images and poems flooded phones and social media feeds at about 5pm on Tuesday, when still-limited connectivity flickered back to life.
The first reactions, however, were not celebratory. Many new posts were threaded with scepticism, anxiety and anger.
Ellie*, 42, an artist from Tehran, was able to connect for the first time since 28 February. “I lit a cigarette, played SoundCloud and listened to our favourite music,” she said. “Ali [her husband] and I held back tears, then cried and convinced ourselves that this was a small taste of a much greater freedom after the fall of this regime … and we truly believe it.”
The part-restoration hit global headlines, with many regime supporters applauding the government.
Maryam*, a photographer in Tehran, said it was “nauseating to watch the celebrations and applause”.
“What an absolute joke,” she said. “It’s been truly absurd watching western media celebrate partial restoration as if it’s an achievement to applaud the regime for. The internet is our basic right.”
Read more:
Opening summary
The US has targeted a military facility in Iran and downed four attack drones, US officials said, which prompted an apparent Iranian retaliatory attack on an American airbase in Kuwait, in fresh signs that any peace agreement remains elusive.
US Central Command forces shot down four Iranian one-way attack drones that posed a threat around the Hormuz strait, according to the officials, and struck a ground control station in the port city of Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone. Iranian state broadcaster Irib reported later on Thursday the Revolutionary Guards had targeted an American base in Kuwait “that served as the source of the attack”.
Kuwait’s army confirmed its air defences were intercepting missile and drone threats just before 6am in Kuwait City.
Earlier, Donald Trump dismissed a report that Iran and Oman would manage shipping through the strait of Hormuz as part of a deal to end the war.
Oil prices jumped on Thursday – erasing much of Wednesday’s decline – amid the latest test of the ceasefire, with Trump warning he may have to “finish the job” and Tehran saying its forces are still “lying in wait with full magazines”. Brent North Sea crude – the main international benchmark – rose by 1.8% in Thursday morning trade to $95.95 a barrel.
But mixed signals underscored the fragile state of talks. Iran said a return to war was unlikely, while Trump told a televised White House cabinet meeting that Tehran “very much” wanted a deal but had not yet offered enough.
“So far they haven’t gotten there. We’re not satisfied with it, but we will be,” the US president said. “Either that or we’ll have to just finish the job.”
Here are the other main developments:
-
The Israeli military declared a new swathe of southern Lebanon a combat zone and said residents in the area should move north, warning it would act “with great force” against the Iran-backed Hezbollah in the zone. The statement on Wednesday appeared to signal a further escalation after more than 120 strikes hit Lebanon’s south and east on Tuesday, despite a ceasefire.
-
The major Lebanese city of Tyre has come under constant Israeli bombardment, according to local media. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it is hitting Hezbollah targets in the ancient coastal city in southern Lebanon, a day after issuing a warning forcing thousands of people to leave Tyre and surrounding areas. Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported two people were killed in Tyre in an Israeli drone strike on Thursday morning.
-
Trump appeared to direct a warning at Oman – a US ally and mediator in the Iran conflict – when asked about a possible short-term arrangement allowing Iran and Oman to control the strait of Hormuz. “No, the strait is going to be open to everybody,” he said. “It’s international waters and Oman will behave just like everybody else or we’ll have to blow them up. They understand that, they’ll be fine.”
-
Trump’s “rhetoric” would not force Iran to back away from its demands to enrich uranium, wield authority over the strait and see sanctions against it lifted, said Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee. “It is obvious Trump, seeking a way out of this strategic deadlock, alternates between issuing threats and appealing for an agreement,” Azizi said on X.
-
Hamas has confirmed that Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City killed the new leader of Hamas’ military wing. The group said on Wednesday that Mohammed Odeh was killed the previous day, along with his wife and two of his children.
-
More Israeli strikes in the city on Wednesday evening killed at least seven people, including two children and a woman. More than 20 people were wounded, including several children, according to Shifa hospital.
