War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

Iranian authorities have announced the swift return of Kermanshah Airport to the flight operations cycle, IRNA reports.

US Vice President JD Vance has arrived in Switzerland for talks on implementing a deal to end the Middle East war, AFP reports.

Vance arrived at Emmen Air Base at 5:59am (08:59 PKT), according to his spokesperson.

Australia will extend fuel excise relief for an additional month, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said, as the country continues to grapple with higher fuel costs during the Iran war, Reuters reports.

The government would “extend fuel excise relief for another month, making petrol and diesel 16 cents per litre cheaper versus normal prices for July, saving Australians around A$11 per tank”, Albanese said in a statement.

“This is more temporary support that will help take the sting out of petrol prices and help Australians with the cost of living,” he said.

The centre-left government had already halved the excise on fuel and diesel and removed a heavy road user charge for three months until the end of June to help households deal with higher prices at the fuel pump, sparked by the war in the Middle East.

Iran coach Amir Ghalenoei has said he has been told US travel restrictions on his World Cup team will finally be eased for their third group game, but blasted the treatment they have received so far for damaging their on-field performance, AFP reports.

The Iranian squad arrived at the World Cup with their country still at war with co-hosts the United States, and have been based in Mexico while playing all their games in the US.

That has required frequent cross-border travel, and US authorities have only permitted the team to remain in the country for a few hours after each game, with restrictions frequently shifting last-minute.

Ghalenoei said he had been told his team will have more flexibility for their final match, before quickly adding that it would have been “justice” for his team to have the same treatment for its first two games.

An Iranian delegation landed in Switzerland late on Saturday ahead of talks at the Burgenstock resort on the preliminary US-Iran deal to halt the Middle East war, said Bern, according to AFP.

“We welcome the arrival of the Iranian delegation in Switzerland,” the Swiss foreign ministry said on X, adding that the talks were part of the implementation of the memorandum of understanding signed with the United States.

Iran’s official news agency IRNA also said Tehran’s delegation had arrived in Switzerland ahead of the talks.

US Vice President JD Vance was travelling to Switzerland for talks on implementing a deal to end the Middle East war, saying negotiators would discuss Iran’s nuclear program and the Lebanon ceasefire, AFP reports.

“I can only be there for a day or two. I think we’re going to hopefully make progress on the nuclear issue, make progress on the Lebanon ceasefire issue. Those are the two big things that I think we’re to be focused on,” Vance told reporters before departing from Joint Base Andrews.

An Israeli army official has said that the military has received orders from the country’s political leadership to halt fighting in southern Lebanon, where its forces have continued clashing with Hezbollah fighters despite a ceasefire, AFP reports.

“The IDF has received updated directives from the political echelon to cease fire,” the official said in a statement.

“The IDF is not conducting proactive strikes, rather the IDF is only operating in a defensive manner within the security zone” in southern Lebanon, the official said.

“These defensive activities include the right to respond if Hezbollah does not abide by the ceasefire and continues to target our troops or our civilians.

The official said the military was operating in the area of Tebnit which contains “terrorist infrastructure”.

“This includes significant underground infrastructure that directly threatens Israeli troops and civilians,” the official said.

“The terrorist infrastructure that the IDF targets is substantial and serves as a major Hezbollah stronghold, particularly for Hezbollah’s Badr Unit. It extends more than one kilometre underground and spans hundreds of kilometres,” the official added.

Lebanon’s health ministry has said that fresh Israeli strikes in the south and east of the country had killed seven people, AFP reports.

Five people, including a woman and child, were killed in the east of the country and two Palestinians were killed in the southern Tyr region, said the ministry.

These latest strikes came before a pause noted by an AFP correspondent, when the Israeli army said it had received orders from the country’s political leadership to halt fighting in southern Lebanon.

Members of the Democratic Party are continuing to criticise Trump over his handling of the war with Iran, Al Jazeera reports.

Johnny Olszewski, a Democratic congressman from Maryland, said Trump’s “war of choice” was a “disaster” and argued that the agreement with Iran was already breaking down.

“The dressed up ceasefire masquerading as a ‘deal’ is already falling apart,” he wrote in a post on X. “Americans deserve better.”

Pakistan will continue to “support and advance” the implementation of the agreement reached between the US and Iran, the Foreign Office (FO) says.

In a post on X, FO said that PM Shehbaz and CDF Munir had departed for Bürgenstock, Switzerland, to attend high-level talks on the implementation of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.

It added that high-level delegations from the US, Iran and Qatar will be a part of the talks.

Noting that the talks marked the first formal engagement between the two countries since the signing of the MoU on June 17, FO said, “Pakistan will continue to support and advance the implementation of the understandings reached between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the US”.

It added that PM Shehbaz is also “expected to hold bilateral interactions with the participating delegations from the Islamic Republic of Iran, Qatar, Switzerland and the US, to reaffirm Pakistan’s enduring commitment to dialogue and durable peace in the region”.

“Pakistan’s facilitative role underscores its principled, balanced, and constructive approach throughout the crisis, including hosting earlier rounds of US-Iran talks and sustained diplomatic contacts that culminated in the Islamabad MoU.”

President Donald Trump warned that the United States could impose tolls on the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway if negotiators are unable to complete a deal to end the war in Iran, reports AFP.

There will be no tolls “unless they are imposed by and for the United States of America, should the deal not be completed, for services rendered as the Guardian Angel to the countries of the Middle East for purposes of both past, present, and future reimbursement of costs,” Trump posted on Truth Social.

The Israeli military says that one of its soldiers has been killed in fighting in southern Lebanon, marking the fifth such fatality since a US-Iran deal was reached to end the Middle East war, AFP reports.

Staff Sergeant Nir Ben Ari “fell in combat” in southern Lebanon, the military says, a day after four other Israeli soldiers were killed in fighting with the Iran-backed Hezbollah group.

Najat Aoun Saliba, a Lebanese member of parliament, tells Al Jazeera that people in Lebanon are tired and have had enough of the killing and the destruction that is happening to their land, their families and also to their livelihoods.

“It’s also costing us [the government] a lot of money and a lot of pain,” she says, adding that both Israel and Hezbollah have used Lebanese territory to gain leverage over the war in Iran and that the hostility between them has not led to any real gain on the ground.

“I don’t think this should continue, and this tit for tat and this hostility between the two is not going to lead anywhere,” Saliba says.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stressed that Israeli troops will remain in southern Lebanon “for as long as necessary to defend its northern border,” Al Jazeera reports citing The Times of Israel.

In a statement to the media by a senior official at the Israeli prime minister’s office, Netanyahu has reportedly instructed the military to “respond forcefully to any Hezbollah attack and to act to remove threats against our forces”.

Mohamad Elmasry, a professor at Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, tells Al Jazeera that Iran’s position on continuing negotiations has not changed fundamentally.

“My sense is that they’re going to remain committed to Lebanon being included before anything moves forward. I think their credibility is on the line,” he says.

Elmasry notes that Lebanon is mentioned three times in Article One of the memorandum of understanding between the US and Iran, and in one instance, talks about the territorial integrity of Lebanon.

“So I’m guessing the Iranians were talking with the Americans not only about a ceasefire … but also about an Israeli withdrawal [of Lebanon]. Whether that’s a complete withdrawal, whether that’s a partial withdrawal, I don’t know,” he explains.

“But when we talk about territorial integrity, we’re talking about Israeli occupation. I think this is a serious issue for the Iranians… and also I think they view this as a test of whether or not the US is serious and whether or not the US is willing to use its leverage over Israel,” he adds.

Iran’s ISNA news agency reports that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has met and held talks with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

US Central Command (Centcom) says Iran doesn’t control the Strait of Hormuz and commercial vessels are continuing to pass, despite Iran claiming it is closing the critical waterway, CNN reports.

“Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz,” Central Command spokesperson Captain Tim Hawkins says. “Traffic continues to flow, and US forces are monitoring the situation to ensure this remains the case.”

Three Indian-flagged tankers carrying more than 860,000 metric tonnes of oil and 94 Indian crew members have safely transited the Strait of Hormuz and are en route to India, Reuters reports citing shipping minister Sarbananda Sonowal.

Sonowal has posted on X that the Desh Vaibhav, Desh Vibhor and Sanmar Herald have all completed the transit.

Prior to the transit of the three vessels, 13 Indian flagged cargoes were stranded in the Strait of Hormuz.

“Our ministry is actively coordinating with all relevant agencies to guarantee the absolute safety of Bharat’s seafarers and energy lifelines,” Sonowal says.

Israel’s foreign ministry has accused Hezbollah of violating the ceasefire that Washington had announced a day earlier, AFP reports.

“Hezbollah continues to constantly violate the ceasefire,” ministry spokesman Oren Marmorstein claims on X, as Israel’s forces clashed with Hezbollah fighters and Israeli jets carried out deadly strikes across southern Lebanon.

An Iranian negotiating team has left for Switzerland for discussions on the implementation of its agreement with the United States to halt the Mideast war, AFP reports citing state media.

The official news agency IRNA has reported the delegation’s departure, quoting foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei as saying they will “follow up and demand implementation of the other party’s commitments” under the deal.

Iran’s state broadcaster says the delegation heading to Switzerland includes parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, among others.