Middle

Iranian official stresses no decision made on taking part, as US vice-president JD Vance is set to travel to Islamabad for negotiations JD Vance to lead US delegation in Pakistan if Iran agrees to talksOn Tuesday morning, Islamabad sat poised and ready to host a second round of talks – even as uncertainty reigned over whether both sides would even turn up.Pakistani officials remained optimistic that the second round of negotiations would happen, even as Iranian ministers said they would refuse to come to the table under the threat of “force” and it remained unclear exactly when US vice-president JD Vance planned to depart Washington for Islamabad. Continue reading...

Islamabad has seized chance to act as mediator in Iran war and hopes to reap diplomatic and economic benefitsMiddle East crisis – live updatesAs Pakistan works frantically to narrow differences between Iran and the US in its newfound role as global peacemaker, it is also seeking to recast its diplomatic standing and attract business.Pakistani officials, mediating between an unpredictable US president and hardliners in Tehran, were on Monday trying to coax both sides to put the conditions in place for a second round of talks in Islamabad this week, including easing the standoff in the strait of Hormuz. Pakistan was optimistic that the meeting would happen, viewing objections voiced by the Iranian side and Donald Trump’s threats as posturing for domestic audiences. Continue reading...

Twin reports from top accounting firms underline scale of economic threat as Iran war shatters business confidenceA quarter of a million people could lose their jobs by the middle of next year as Britain “flirts with recession”, analysis suggests, after business confidence was shattered by the US-Israel war on Iran.As the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, summoned bank chiefs for talks aimed at containing the fallout, twin reports from top accounting firms underlined the scale of the economic threat facing the UK. Continue reading...

Donald Trump said on Sunday that US marines had taken custody of a vessel that tried to get past the American blockade on Iranian portsTehran has ‘no plans to participate’ in new talks, state media reports, as it accuses US of violating ceasefireJust to recap the latest peace talks news, and whether or not Iran will attend negotiations in Pakistan.State broadcaster IRIB on Sunday cited Iranian sources as saying “there are currently no plans to participate in the next round of Iran-US talks”.Iran has reportedly rejected participation in a second round of peace talks with the US in Pakistan, citing “Washington’s excessive demands, unrealistic expectations, constant shifts in stance, repeated contradictions, and the ongoing naval blockade, which it considers a breach of the ceasefire”, according to the official IRNA news agency.Hours before Iran’s statement, Trump said his negotiators would arrive in Islamabad on Monday evening. A White House official said the delegation would be led by vice-president JD Vance and include Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.Donald Trump said in a post on Sunday that the US marines have taken custody of a vessel that tried to get past the American blockade on Iranian ports, adding that US forces stopped the ship by blowing a hole in its engine room.The US military confirmed that the US destroyer fired “several rounds” towards an Iranian-flagged ship that was attempting to pass through its naval blockade. In a statement released on Sunday, US Central Command said the USS Spruance intercepted the Iranian-flagged Touska ship as it travelled towards an Iranian port “in violation of the US blockade.”The US blockade of Iran’s ports is a violation of the ceasefire agreement and is “both unlawful and criminal”, Esmaeil Baqaei, a spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry, said on Sunday.Oil prices jumped, the US dollar rose and stock futures fell on Monday as investors dealt with conflicting messages about the Iran war and news that the strait of Hormuz was closed again. In early Asian trading Brent crude futures jumped about 7% to $96.85 a barrel and S+P 500 futures fell about 0.9%. The euro was down 0.3% at $1.1735 and the yen eased about 0.2% to 158.95 per dollar. Continue reading...

Iran’s top negotiator says both sides remain far apart after Tehran again closed strait of Hormuz after US said it would not end its blockadeFull report: Iran closes strait of Hormuz again ‘until US lifts blockade’Welcome to our live coverage of events in the Middle East.Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said on Saturday that the recent talks with the US had made progress but gaps remained over nuclear issues and the strait of Hormuz. “We have had progress but there is still a big distance between us,” he told state media, referring to talks last weekend. “We made progress in the negotiations, but there are many gaps and some fundamental points remain.”After the initial talks between the US and Iran last weekend in Pakistan, the Iranian deputy foreign minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, said a second date cannot be set until both sides “have agreed on the framework”.Iran’s supreme national security council, the country’s highest decision-making body under the supreme leader, said it is reviewing “new proposals” put forward by the US, according to Iranian media.Hezbollah has denied it was involved in the deadly attack against UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, which killed a French soldier. A UN peacekeeper was killed and three others were injured after a patrol came under attack from “non-state actors”, the UN Interim Force in Lebanon said.Israeli forces on Saturday began demolishing homes in the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil and other border towns where Israeli troops are present, Lebanese state media reported.The Israeli military killed two Unicef-contracted truck drivers at a water point in the northern Gaza Strip, forcing the UN agency to suspend its operations in the area, Unicef said.Pope Leo XIV said that it is “not in my interest at all” to debate Trump about the Iran war, but that he would continue preaching the Gospel message of peace.Trump left the White House Saturday afternoon to play golf, despite Iran’s re-closure of the strait of Hormuz in response to the US blockade of Iranian ports. Continue reading...

Iranian parliamentary speaker also says passage through waterway will depend on Iranian authorisation and accuses Donald Trump of multiple falsehoodsIran says strait of Hormuz ‘completely open’ to commercial vessels as oil prices fallBritain will make “a wide-ranging military contribution” to an international mission to protect shipping in the strait of Hormuz trade waterway, the UK ambassador to the US has said.Christian Turner’s commitment comes amid long-running concerns over the state of Britain’s armed forces and warnings of under-funding. Continue reading...

António Guterres welcomes truce and says through spokesperson he hopes halt in fighting will ‘pave the way for negotiations’Hello and welcome to our live coverage of events in the Middle East.United Nations chief António Guterres has welcomed the ceasefire announced on Thursday between Israel and Lebanon, urging “all actors” to fully respect the truce.A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has come into effect, pausing fighting in a devastating conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that has killed more than 2,100 Lebanese people and displaced more than 2.1 million. The agreement was announced earlier by Donald Trump, who said he had spoken with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese president Joseph Aoun, and invited both leaders “for meaningful talks” at the White House. Both leaders welcomed the agreement. But how long the ceasefire will hold is the key question, as both Israel and Hezbollah have maintained their right to defend themselves if the truce is broken. Here’s our report.Netanyahu called it a “historic” opportunity for peace, though he refused to withdraw his troops from southern Lebanon during the pause in fighting. “We are remaining in Lebanon in an expanded security zone,” he said, due to the “danger of an invasion” and to prevent fire into Israel. “That is where we are, and we are not leaving.” The Israeli prime minister maintained that his key demand was dismantling Hezbollah. He has previously declared his intention to occupy southern Lebanon up to the Litani River – about 30km from the border – while Lebanon demands the complete withdrawal of Israeli forces and for displaced residents to be able to return to their homes.Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei welcomed the ceasefire and stressed it was already part of the original Iran-US agreement brokered by Pakistan. Baghaei said Iran emphasised “from the outset” the need for a “simultaneous ceasefire throughout the region, including Lebanon”, and expressed his “solidarity” with the people and government of Lebanon. He called for the return of displaced residents to their homes and emphasised the necessity of the “complete withdrawal” of Israeli forces from the south of the country – which, as mentioned, Israel has refused to do.The Lebanese army urged residents to “exercise restraint” in returning to their villages and towns in southern Lebanon ahead of the ceasefire coming into effect. The army added that even then residents should avoid areas that remain occupied by Israeli forces. It was followed by a similar statement issued by Hezbollah, urging caution amid Israel’s history of “breaking covenants and agreements”.The Israeli military issued an urgent warning to the people of southern Lebanon not to return south of the Litani River despite the ceasefire coming into force.In the hours before the truce took effect, Israel and Hezbollah continued to exchange fire. Just as the ceasefire came into force, the Israeli military said it had hit more than 380 Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon in the past 24 hours, including rocket launchers, headquarters and Hezbollah members themselves. Meanwhile, Israeli strikes on Lebanese towns and villages killed dozens of people, including an attack on the town of Ghazieh which killed at least seven people and wounded 33, the health ministry said on Thursday. Continue reading...