A 10-day ceasefire announced by U.S. President Donald Trump and agreed on by Lebanon and Israel went into effect as Friday began. The agreement could boost attempts to extend the ceasefire between Iran, the United States and Israel after weeks of devastating war.<\/p>\n
Israel has not been fighting with Lebanon itself, but rather with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group inside Lebanon. Hezbollah said in a statement that \u201cany ceasefire must be comprehensive across all Lebanese territory and must not allow the Israeli enemy any freedom of movement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Pakistan\u2019s army chief met with Iranian officials in Tehran on Thursday in a bid to ease tensions in the Middle East and arrange a second round of negotiations between the United States and Iran after almost seven weeks of war<\/a>.<\/p>\n The U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports<\/a> continued as U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the Trump administration would ramp up economic pain on Iran with new economic sanctions<\/a> on countries doing business with it, calling the move the \u201cfinancial equivalent\u201d of a bombing campaign.<\/p>\n The White House said any further talks with Iran would likely take place in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad<\/a>, though no decision had been made on whether to resume negotiations. Pakistan has emerged as a key mediator<\/a> after it hosted direct talks between the U.S. and Iran in Islamabad.<\/p>\n Trump hails Israel-Lebanon ceasefire as \u2018historic day\u2019<\/p>\n In two social media posts Thursday night, U.S. President Donald Trump said that Thursday could have been \u201ca historic day for Lebanon.\u201d In a separate Truth Social message after the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon went into effect, Trump added that he hoped the Lebanon-based, Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group \u201cacts nicely and well.\u201d \u201cIt will be an GREAT moment for them if they do,\u201d Trump added.<\/p>\n Australia strikes deal with BP to underwrite fuel imports<\/p>\n BP has become a fifth company to strike a deal with the Australian government to underwrite fuel imports at prices inflated by the Iran war.<\/p>\n Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the BP deal on Friday at Viva Energy\u2019s Geelong refinery, southwest of Melbourne, that was damaged by fire over Wednesday night. Viva on Thursday secured 570,000 barrels of diesel underwritten by the government in shipments from Brunei and South Korea at prices that might otherwise be commercially unviable.<\/p>\n Albanese said the damaged Geelong refinery continued to produce diesel and jet fuel at 80% capacity and gasoline as 60% capacity.<\/p>\n Viva chief executive Scott Wyatt expected to import fuel to make up for the shortfall in the refinery\u2019s production.<\/p>\n Australia has sufficient fuel supplies contracted into May, but there are concerns that shortages could emerge in the months ahead.<\/p>\n Sri Lanka repatriates Iranian sailors, including torpedo attack survivors<\/p>\n Sri Lanka has sent home 238 Iranian sailors, including 32 who were injured in a U.S torpedo attack which sank their warship in early March.<\/p>\n Defense Ministry spokesman Brig. Franklin Joseph said everyone except a few crew members from a second ship which later anchored in Sri Lanka were repatriated earlier this week.<\/p>\n A U.S submarine sank the Iranian warship IRIS Dena on March 4 as it returned home after taking part in am Indian naval exercise..<\/p>\n Sri Lankan navy recovered 87 bodies while 32 sailors wounded in the torpedo attack were hospitalized. The second ship was brought to a southern Sri Lankan port after the crew reported technical problems.<\/p>\n Trump says Iran<\/p>\n war \u2018going along swimmingly\u2019<\/p>\n The president said in a Las Vegas speech he was feeling pretty positive about the Iran war, despite the energy price spikes, the death and destruction and the anxiety about the future of NATO and the Middle East.<\/p>\n \u201cI will say the war in Iran is going along swimmingly,\u201d Trump said. \u201cIt should be ending pretty soon.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump added that the war was \u201cwas perfect\u201d as he praised the power of the U.S. military.<\/p>\n Reports of shelling in Lebanon continue after ceasefire goes into effect<\/p>\n Lebanon\u2019s state-run National News agency reported that Israeli shelling continued in the villages of Khiam and Dibbine about a half hour after the truce began.<\/p>\n The Lebanese Army also repeated its warning to people displaced from southern Lebanon about returning home because of intermittent shelling.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s military told The Associated Press very early Friday that it was looking into reports of shelling and artillery fire in southern Lebanon.<\/p>\n The terms of the ceasefire, as provided by the U.S. State Department, prohibit Israel from offensive military actions in Lebanon. But they appear to leave more room for \u201cself-defense,\u201d including \u201cagainst planned, imminent, or ongoing attacks.\u201d<\/p>\n UN chief welcomes Israel and Lebanon ceasefire and calls on all parties to observe it<\/p>\n Secretary-General Antonio Guterres hopes the ceasefire will pave the way for negotiations toward a long-term solution to the Israel-Hezbollah conflict, U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.<\/p>\n Guterres commends the United States for facilitating the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, he said.<\/p>\n The secretary-general reaffirms U.N. support for all efforts to end hostilities and the suffering of people on both sides of the Israel-Lebanon border, Dujarric said.<\/p>\n A 10-day ceasefire agreed on by Israel and Lebanon has gone into effect<\/p>\n A 10-day ceasefire announced by U.S. President Donald Trump and agreed on by Lebanon and Israel started at midnight.<\/p>\n The two neighboring countries held their first direct diplomatic talks in decades on Tuesday in Washington after more than a month of war between Israel and the Iran-backed, Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group.<\/p>\n Hezbollah started firing on Israel right after the start of the Iran war. It kept up attacks focused on northern Israel communities through Thursday night, with at least eight people injured, including two seriously, according to Israel\u2019s emergency services.<\/p>\n Air raid sirens were sounding in a few northern Israeli communities just minutes before the ceasefire was going into effect. Israel\u2019s military also said late Thursday it was striking Hezbollah rocket launchers.<\/p>\n Trump claims Iran has \u2018agreed to give us back the nuclear dust\u2019<\/p>\n The president made the assertion in an exchange with reporters before departing for an event in Las Vegas on Thursday.<\/p>\n If true, it would be a major concession from Iran, and would lock in a key demand of the U.S. to end the conflict.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019ve agreed to give us back the nuclear dust that\u2019s way underground because of the attack we made with the B-2 bombers,\u201d said Trump, using a term he\u2019s adopted as shorthand for the roughly 970 pounds of enriched uranium buried under Iranian nuclear sites damaged by U.S. strikes on the country last year.<\/p>\n Iran has repeatedly insisted that it doesn\u2019t seek a nuclear weapon and that its program is for peaceful proposes. Neither Iran nor countries acting as intermediaries in the conflict have talked about what would be a major breakthrough.<\/p>\n Pressed by a reporter on what is he waiting for to move forward, Trump offered that it was \u201cvery complicated.\u201d<\/p>\n He added, \u201cI don\u2019t think we\u2019re waiting. I think we\u2019re moving very fast. It could happen pretty quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n The White House did not respond to follow-up queries about whether Iran has agreed to give up its enriched uranium, under what terms and to whom it would be surrendered. Trump has previously made claims about Iran\u2019s nuclear program that have turned out to be imprecise.<\/p>\n UN envoy says Israel will react to any Hezbollah threats and hold its positions southern Lebanon during ceasefire<\/p>\n Ambassador Danny Danon told U.N. reporters Thursday that the 10-day ceasefire will be \u201cchallenging\u201d because of Hezbollah, which said after the ceasefire announcement that continuing Israeli occupation grants Lebanon the right to resist.<\/p>\n Danon said Israel believes in direct negotiations with Lebanon, but knows this is a complex issue for the Lebanese government because of Hezbollah.<\/p>\n Israel\u2019s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered to go to Washington \u2014 where the ambassadors of Israel and Lebanon met earlier this week \u2014 for negotiations, the ambassador said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will come to any meeting to promote peace, but I cannot speak for the Lebanese government. We know that they are under pressure and threats from Iran,\u201d Danon said.<\/p>\n Iran remains \u2018cautiously optimistic\u2019 about negotiations with the US, its UN envoy says<\/p>\n Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani said the Islamic Republic welcomes and supports diplomatic efforts to bring a \u201csustainable end to this unlawful and unwarranted war,\u201d including by Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, China and Russia.<\/p>\n \u201cDespite our deep mistrust of the United States, stemming from its repeated betrayal of diplomacy, we nevertheless enter the negotiation in good faith and remain cautiously optimistic,\u201d he told the U.N. General Assembly on Thursday.<\/p>\n \u201cWe believe that should the United States adopt a rational and constructive approach and refrain from advancing demands that are inconsistent with international law, this negotiation can lead to a meaningful outcome,\u201d Iravani said.<\/p>\n He spoke at an assembly meeting in support of vetoes by Beijing and Moscow of a U.N. Security Council resolution backed by the U.S. and Gulf nations aimed at opening the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n Hezbollah warns displaced people not to rush back home<\/p>\n The Lebanese militant group called on people to exercise restraint and refrain from returning to areas in south and eastern Lebanon and Beirut\u2019s southern suburbs that have been hit hard by Israeli strikes \u201cuntil the situation becomes fully clear.\u201d<\/p>\n The Lebanese army issued similar warnings, urging people not to rush back to those areas after the 10-day ceasefire kicks in at midnight Beirut time.<\/p>\n Previous ceasefires saw tens of thousands of people clogging roads as they attempted to drive back to check on homes and belongings in the first hours of the truce.<\/p>\n More than 1 million Lebanese people have been displaced during the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah.<\/p>\n UAE official says Iran is viewed as the \u2018main enemy\u2019<\/p>\n Anwar Gargash, diplomatic advisor to the UAE\u2019s president, said Gulf states have a different view of Iran, seeing it as the \u201cmain enemy\u201d, citing its missile and drone attacks despite.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are fully aware of the position of many Arab societies in viewing Israel as the primary enemy, but the view in the Gulf states may be different… Iran is the one that attacked the Gulf states with thousands of missiles and drones, and for this reason we do not trust it, and we view it as a primary enemy,\u201d he said during a media briefing Thursday at Dubai Press Club.<\/p>\n Gargash added that the UAE has questions over Iran\u2019s nuclear program as well as its ballistic missiles and drones, and said that just as Tehran is seeking guarantees and reparations for war damage, the UAE also wants assurances that such \u201ccowardly\u201d attacks will not happen again.<\/p>\n Flurry of diplomacy to get to ceasefire in Lebanon<\/p>\n The 10-day ceasefire that Israel and Lebanon agreed to came about following a meeting between the nations\u2019 ambassadors and a flurry of subsequent phone calls from President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, according to a White House official.<\/p>\n After the talks Tuesday in Washington that included Rubio, Trump spoke Wednesday evening with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, who agreed to a ceasefire with certain terms, according to the official, who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n Rubio then called Lebanon\u2019s president, Joseph Aoun, who got on board. Trump then spoke with Aoun, and again with Netanyahu.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the State Department worked with both governments to formulate a memorandum of understanding for the truce.<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s parliamentary speaker says Lebanon \u2018integral part\u2019 of regional ceasefire<\/p>\n Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf made these remarks on Iranian state television after meeting Pakistan\u2019s army chief Gen. Asim Munir in Tehran. U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 10-day truce between Lebanon and Israel in a bid to end the war between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group.<\/p>\n Iran, Hezbollah\u2019s key patron and ally, has included ending the war in Lebanon as one of its conditions in its talks with Washington, mediated by Pakistan.<\/p>\n There was no mention about resuming in-person talks with Washington, as both sides gear up for a second round of talks.<\/p>\n US details ceasefire deal between Israel and Lebanon<\/p>\n The 10-day halt to the fighting that will begin later Thursday can be extended if there\u2019s progress in talks to reach a lasting peace agreement and Lebanon \u201ceffectively demonstrates its ability to assert its sovereignty,\u201d the State Department said.<\/p>\n President Donald Trump announced the truce following talks held in Washington this week. Israel hasn\u2019t been fighting with Lebanon itself but rather with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group inside Lebanon.<\/p>\n In the statement that the U.S. says was agreed to by Lebanon and Israel, there is a provision to allow Israel to defend itself \u201cat any time, against planned, imminent, or ongoing attacks.\u201d Hezbollah has said it will respond to any strikes by Israel.<\/p>\n But otherwise, Israel \u201cwill not carry out any offensive military operations against Lebanese targets, including civilian, military, and other state targets,\u201d the statement says.<\/p>\n Trump says he could go to Pakistan to sign deal if agreement is reached with Iran<\/p>\n The president once again claimed progress is being made in talks with Iran and suggested he could be involved in the signing of a peace agreement, if one is reached.<\/p>\n