War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

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.

Hezbollah says Israel’s escalating attacks on southern Lebanon aim to “sabotage” the interim agreement between the US and Iran, Al Jazeera reports.

“In light of the claims and lies that the Israeli enemy continues to promote regarding alleged violations of the ceasefire agreement by Hezbollah … Hezbollah affirms that these claims are completely baseless,” says a statement relayed by the group’s media relations office.

“They fall within the framework of the enemy’s persistent attempts to mislead public opinion and are part of its clear and blatant effort to sabotage the agreement between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America.”

Hezbollah claims Israel has committed more than 300 “violations” and “breaches” of the ceasefire since dawn on Friday, which include air strikes, firing phosphorus shells and using “internationally prohibited cluster bombs”.

The armed group calls on “all countries and officials, especially the United States, [to] exert pressure on the occupying entity to compel it to implement the agreements and cease its attacks, instead of levelling accusations left and right”.

Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 is reporting that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz have ordered the Israeli army to cease fire in southern Lebanon, without withdrawing from the occupied areas, according to Al Jazeera.

Their decision hasbeen made in coordination with the US, the broadcaster adds.

Hezbollah says that Israel bears “full responsibility” for violating a ceasefire announced a day earlier, as Israeli strikes pounded Lebanon’s south and east, AFP reports.

Ongoing Israeli attacks “are no longer just ceasefire agreement violations but represent clear aggression and a continuation of the war in every sense. Accordingly, full responsibility lies with the Israeli occupation”, it says in a statement, adding that Israel “has never adhered to ceasefire provisions” including the recent US-Iran deal and Friday’s announcement.

United States Central Command (Centcom) says commercial ship traffic in the Strait of Hormuz increased today, according to Al Jazeera.

“Safe passage through the international waterway remained intact today as 55 merchant ships transited, moving large amounts of cargo and more than 17 million barrels of oil to global markets,” Centcom says in a statement posted on X.

The US military continues to remain “present and vigilant” to ensure all aspects of the agreement with Iran are adhered to, the statement adds.

It came shortly after Iran announced that the vital waterway was closed, citing Israeli “crimes” in Lebanon and the US violation of commitments to establish a ceasefire.

Iran’s foreign ministry says that the agreement signed between Iran and the United States to halt the Middle East war will be “in trouble” unless its provisions are implemented soon, AFP reports.

“The other side must take the necessary measures as soon as possible. Otherwise, the entire understanding will be in trouble,” ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei says, according to the official news agency IRNA.

The Foreign Office (FO) has announced that technical-level talks will be held in Buergenstock, Switzerland tomorrow (Sunday) to follow up on the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.

“Representatives of the United States and Iran, along with mediators from Pakistan and Qatar, will participate in the discussions,” the FO has said in a statement.

“Pakistan will continue to facilitate the process in its role as mediator, with a view to advancing the understandings reached under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.”

Lebanon’s health ministry says Israeli attacks since March 2 have left 4,057 dead, including 135 health and emergency workers, and 12,121 people wounded, AFP reports.

The ministry has also raised the toll in Israeli attacks on Friday from 47 to “a final toll of 83 martyrs and 141 wounded”, most of them in south Lebanon but also in the country’s east.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy has warned vessels not to approach the Strait of Hormuz and says their security would be at risk, according to Al Jazeera.

In a statement, the IRGC Navy cites Israeli actions in Lebanon and Washington’s violation of its ceasefire commitments as the reason behind Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

US Vice President JD Vance says that talks to end the war on Iran are possible on Sunday, according to Al Jazeera.

Speaking to Fox News, he says US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, are already in Switzerland for negotiations.

He adds that the US is confident it can maintain a ceasefire in Iran and claims that there is no evidence that Iran is closing the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran is sending a delegation to Switzerland to “demand the implementation of the other side’s commitments” as part of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the semi-official Fars news agency reports.

“In Switzerland, we intend to press for the fulfilment of the other side’s commitments and clarify how they plan to act on their obligations,” foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei has been quoted as saying by Fars.

Baghaei emphasises that Iran has adhered to its side of the agreement, and the United States is “obligated to compel the Zionist regime (Israel) to cease its attacks on Lebanon.

“If part of the counterpart’s commitments is not implemented, the entirety of the agreement will be jeopardised,” the spokesperson is quoted as saying. “The counterpart must take the necessary measures as soon as possible; otherwise, the entirety of the agreement will be jeopardised.”

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has landed in Tehran and met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, according to the semi-official Fars news agency.

Iran’s central military command has announced that it has once again closed the vital Strait of Hormuz over Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, describing them as a breach of Tehran’s agreement with the US, AFP reports.

“It is hereby announced that the Strait of Hormuz will be closed to vessel traffic; It is noted that this first step is a response to the enemy’s breach of promise, and if the aggression continues, further steps will be planned and taken to force the enemy to comply with its obligations,” says the Khatam-al Anbiya Central Headquarters in a statement carried by state TV.