Thanks for joining our coverage of the war in the Middle East. Our liveblog is now closed.
Iran's foreign ministry says delegation from Qatar is holding talks with foreign minister
Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Friday a Qatari delegation was currently holding talks with Iran’s foreign minister, adding that Pakistan remained the main mediator in the negotiations.
Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon kill 10, including paramedics and a child, officials say
Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon Friday killed 10 people, including six paramedics and a Syrian girl, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said, the latest in near-daily attacks from both sides that have not stopped despite the fragile, U.S.-brokered ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war.
The first strike hit the village of Hanouiyeh, killing four paramedics working for Hezbollah’s Islamic Health Association and wounding two others including one paramedic, the ministry said. Another strike Friday morning on the village of Deir Qanoun al Nahr in the coastal Tyre province killed six people, including a Syrian child and two paramedics from the Al-Rissala Scouts Association, a paramedic group affiliated with Hezbollah’s ally, the Amal movement, the ministry said.
An additional six people were injured, including three paramedics and a Syrian woman. The Health Ministry said the two attacks “violated” international law.
On Thursday, the U.N. World Health Organization, WHO, reported 169 confirmed attacks on healthcare workers and facilities in Lebanon, resulting in 116 deaths, since the latest Israel-Hezbollah war began.
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike that targeted the Nabatieh village in southern Lebanon on May 22, 2026. An Israeli strike on southern Lebanon killed six people on May 22, including two rescuers and a child, the Lebanese health ministry said, despite a fragile ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war. Abbas Fakih / AFP
Le Pen says France should quit NATO command structure
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen said on Friday she would withdraw France from NATO's integrated military command if elected president next year, a stance dismissed by Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot as "irresponsible".
Le Pen, whose 2027 bid hinges on an appeals court ruling later this year, has long said participation in the command structure undermines France's independence and reiterated her position to BFM TV as NATO ministers met in Sweden.
"We have to withdraw from NATO’s integrated command. We should remain in NATO, but leaving the command does not prevent interoperability with allied forces,” she said, criticising what she called Europe’s dependence on U.S. decisions.
Pakistan military chief arrives in Tehran for talks, army says
Pakistan's military chief Asim Munir has arrived in the Iranian capital as a part of the ongoing mediation efforts between the U.S. and Iran, the Pakistan military said in a statement on Friday.
EU moves to sanction Iran over Hormuz blockade
European Union nations moved Friday towards imposing sanctions on Iranian officials and others responsible for blocking the Strait of Hormuz, the EU said.
Tehran effectively closed the key shipping lane for global gas and oil in retaliation to US-Israeli strikes launched in February.
Deeming the blockade "contrary to international law", EU governments took a technical step to extend the scope of its existing Iran sanctions regime allowing for more individuals to be targeted under it.
"The EU will now be able to introduce further restrictive measures in response to Iran's actions undermining the freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz," the European Council representing EU nations said.
Rutte says NATO commitment to Article 5 'iron clad', warns of 'devastating' response if members attacked
Italy, France, UK, Germany urge Israel to end settlement expansion
Italy, France, Britain and Germany urged Israel Friday to stop expanding its settlements in the West Bank, saying the government was "undermining stability" and prospects for a two-state solution.
"We call on the government of Israel to end its expansion of settlements and administrative powers, ensure accountability for settler violence and investigate allegations against Israeli forces," said the countries in a joint statement.
Noting that the situation in the West Bank had "deteriorated significantly" in the past few months, the countries said settler violence towards Palestinians was at "unprecedented levels".
"The policies and practices of the Israeli government, including a further entrenchment of Israeli control, are undermining stability and prospects for a two-state solution," read the statement.
- EU moves to sanction Iran over Hormuz blockade
- Rubio says US did not ask NATO for help on Hormuz
- NATO chief Rutte says Zelensky to attend alliance summit in July
- Israeli strikes in south Lebanon kill 10, including paramedics and a child
Rubio says US did not ask NATO for help on Hormuz
There was no specific ask from the U.S. on Friday for help from NATO on the Strait of Hormuz but there needs to be a Plan B if Iran refuses to reopen the supply route, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said after a NATO ministers meeting in Sweden.
Troop changes done in coordination with US allies, Rubio says
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio (R) poses with Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on the sidelines of the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, on May 22, 2026. Foreign ministers of the 32 NATO member states gathered in the Swedish city to finalise preparations for the upcoming Ankara Summit. Julia Demaree Nikhinson / POOL / AFP
NATO chief Rutte says Zelensky to attend alliance summit in July
'Important that countries come together around plans to ensure the strait can be open for transit', NATO chief Rutte says
NATO's chief Rutte warns of 'devastating' response should EU be attacked
- Pakistani interior minister meets Iran’s top diplomat, Iranian media reports
Netherlands to ban imports from Israel's Jewish settlements
The Dutch government has agreed to impose a ban on imports of goods produced in Jewish settlements in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten said on Friday.
The ban is meant to prevent "any contribution through economic activities by the Netherlands to the unlawful occupation", Jetten said.
The previous Dutch government last year said it was planning the ban, which is now expected to take effect in the second half of the year.
The Netherlands is a leading global buyer of Israeli goods.
Lebanon army says soldiers loyal after US sanctions officer over alleged Hezbollah links
Lebanon's military has said its soldeirs were loyal to the institution after the US announced sanctions against an army officer accused of sharing information with Hezbollah.
In a statement, the army said it "affirms that all officers and members of the military institution are performing their national duties with utmost professionalism, responsibility, and discipline, in accordance with the decisions and directives issued by the army command".
It emphasised that "the loyalty of military personnel is solely to the military institution and the nation, and that they are committed to fulfilling their national duties without any other considerations or pressures", also saying it was not informed of the sanctions beforehand.
Washington on Thursday sanctioned what it called nine Hezbollah-linked individuals in Lebanon, including army colonel Samir Hamadi, and Khattar Nasser Eldin, an officer at another state security service.
The US said Hamadi and Nasser Eldin "shared important intelligence" with Hezbollah over the past year.
It marked the first time Lebanese officers have been sanctioned by the United States.
UAE-Israel ties under scrutiny as Iran war deepens Gulf divides
Relations between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iran have been severely strained since the US and Israel launched the war on Iran. The UAE, which signed the Abraham Accords with Israel in 2020, has come under repeated Iranian attacks since February.
Israeli media reports last week of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s secret wartime visit to the UAE has put the focus on ties between the two countries.
Andreas Krieg from King's College London notes that the Israeli leak could have been aimed at potentially driving a wedge between the UAE and other Gulf states.
He describes Israel as "the arsonist who then appeared as a firefighter" while the UAE and other Gulf states are “prisoners of geography".
Saudis warn against political chants, flags as Iran war casts shadow over Hajj pilgrimage
More than a million Muslims are gathering in Mecca for the Hajj pilgrimage overshadowed by the Middle East war, as animosity smoulders across the region despite a fragile ceasefire.
This year's rites, drawing worshippers from across the Islamic world including Iran, follow waves of Iranian attacks on targets in Saudi Arabia and its Gulf neighbours.
Saudi officials are keen to keep conflict far from the minds of visitors, who have travelled long distances for one of the world's biggest annual pilgrimages.
The Hajj has been a point of tension in the past between Riyadh and Tehran, with repeated outbreaks of violence and unrest involving Iranian visitors.
In the years following Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution, Saudi authorities accused Iranian pilgrims of triggering stampedes and other violence, while also chanting political slogans -- an act seen as taboo by the religious establishment in Mecca.
The last major dispute erupted in 2015, when 464 Iranians were among 2,300 pilgrims killed in a stampede -- one of the Hajj's biggest tragedies -- prompting accusations between Riyadh and Tehran.
A Saudi state broadcaster this week posted a warning from the interior ministry saying any chanting or raising political or sectarian flags were strictly prohibited during the hajj.
France may consider windfall tax on sectors buoyed by Iran crisis, finance minister says
French Finance Minister Roland Lescure has said the government may consider imposing a windfall tax on companies amid the surge in energy prices during the war in Iran.
"If there are particular companies that have made an exceptional amount, maybe we will impose additional taxes, I'll say it that way, but this debate will take place in the fall," Lescure told Sud Radio.
Several opposition French politicians have advocated for additional so-called windfall taxes on oil companies such as TotalEnergies since the war in Iran started in late February.
Yesterday's key developments:
- A group of Hezbollah -affiliated parliamentarians, state security officials, and allies of the militant group were hit with US sanctions Thursday, for allegedly seeking to preserve the Iran-backed group's influence over Lebanese state institutions and obstruct disarmament efforts.
- The Board of Peace 's lead envoy for Gaza warned the UN Security Council on Thursday that the enclave's current division could become permanent, leaving more than 2 million people crowded into less than half its territory, unless a ceasefire takes hold.
- US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday renewed criticism of NATO for not supporting the US war on Iran , as he headed to alliance talks in Sweden .
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters, AP and AFP)
