War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says that through “Economic Fury” — a reference to the US military campaign ‘Operation Epic Fury’ — Washington is curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

“Economic Fury is imposing a financial stranglehold on the Iranian regime, hampering its aggression in the Middle East, and helping to curtail its nuclear ambitions,” says Bessent in a post on X.

“At [President Donald Trump’s] direction, [the] Treasury will continue to constrict the network of vessels, intermediaries, and buyers Iran relies on to move its oil to global markets,” he adds.

“Any person or vessel facilitating these flows — through covert trade and finance — risks exposure to US sanctions.”

Qatar’s ⁠Amir ⁠Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al ⁠Thani has discussed developments ⁠in the Washington-Tehran ceasefire agreement in a ‌phone call with US President Donald Trump, Al Jazeera reports.

Qatar will ⁠continue coordinating ⁠with partners to ⁠support mediation efforts led by ‌Pakistan, ⁠Sheikh Tamim says.

US President Donald Trump tells Reuters that Iran plans to make an offer aimed at resolving Washington’s demands.

They’re making an offer and we’ll have to see,” Trump has said during a phone interview.

Foreign Office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi has confirmed that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has landed in Islamabad.

In a post on X, he says Tehran’s top diplomat was received by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Asim Munir and other senior officials.

“During the visit, the Iranian foreign minister will hold meetings with Pakistan’s senior leadership to discuss the latest regional developments as well as ongoing efforts for regional peace and stability,” Andrabi adds.

US President Donald Trump has granted a 90-day extension to a shipping waiver that makes it easier to move oil, fuel and fertiliser around the United States, Reuters reports citing the White House.

The decision adds roughly three months to the existing waiver that was set to expire on May 17, enabling foreign-flagged vessels to move commodities between US ports through mid-August.

White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers confirms that Trump issued the extension.

“This waiver extension provides both certainty and stability for the US and global economies,” Rogers says.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has reached Islamabad, according to Pakistani sources.

Araghchi is currently on a tour of three regional countries, with forthcoming visits in Oman and Russia.

The US Treasury Department is sanctioning multiple wallets tied to Iran, thereby freezing $344 million in cryptocurrency, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said in a statement on X, according to Reuters.

The United States has imposed fresh Iran-related sanctions and issued a general license authorising the wind-down of deals involving Chinese company Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery Co, Reuters reports citing a notice on the US Treasury website.

Pope Leo XIV has urged the United States and Iran to return to talks to end the war, Al Jazeera reports.

He says the question is not whether the Iranian regime should change or not, “the question should be about how to promote the values we believe in without the deaths of so many innocents”.

“As a pastor, I cannot be in favour of war,” he tells reporters aboard his plane. “I would like to encourage everyone to find responses that come from a culture of peace and not hatred and division.”

Asked if he condemned Iran’s recent executions, Leo says he denounces “all actions that are unjust” and includes capital punishment on the list.

“I condemn the taking of people’s lives. I condemn capital punishment. I believe human life is to be respected and that all people from conception to natural [death], their lives should be respected and protected.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt says that US President Donald Trump has “military options on the table”, but diplomacy with Iran is ongoing.

“Ultimately, the goal of Operation Epic Fury was to ensure that Iran can never possess a nuclear weapon, and we’ve now transitioned into this diplomatic phase to get that done through the means of a deal,” Leavitt tells Fox News.”

“Right now, diplomacy hopefully continues and we’ll get to a place where the president’s red lines will be met — where Iran will turn over their enriched uranium and where they will firmly commit to never obtaining, possessing or moving towards creating a nuclear bomb,” she adds.

The United States has “seen some progress” from the Iranian side in recent days and hopes more will be made in weekend talks, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt tells reporters, according to Reuters.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has said that “everyone” will be on standby to travel to Pakistan for talks, Reuters reports.

“Everyone will be on standby to fly to Pakistan if necessary, but first, Steve and Jared will be going over there to report back to the president, the vice president and the rest of the team,” Leavitt tells Fox News programme ‘America Reports’.

In a government shelter in the coastal city of Sidon, Mohammed al-Zein sees little to celebrate in the extension of a truce between Lebanon and Israel, saying he is still barred from returning to his southern hometown, AFP reports.

His village of Ayta al-Shaab, heavily bombed by Israel ever since the last conflict with Hezbollah in 2023, is located behind the “Yellow Line” established by the Israeli army, designating a ribbon of territory along the border a no-go zone for civilians.

“I felt nothing” when the truce was announced, Zein tells AFP. “As long as we do not return to our hometown, nothing matters.”

In Sidon, dozens of cars head south with bags and mattresses strapped to their roofs, but for others, the situation remains too uncertain to consider returning.

At the school-turned-shelter where Zein is staying, 40 per cent of the 600 people staying there have gone back home since the truce was extended, according to volunteer Nivine Hashisho.

But as some pack their bags on a recent visit, others are playing cards and having breakfast in the school playground, in no rush to leave just yet.

“We have to see the situation during the ceasefire, because we do not believe the Israelis,” says Izdihar Yassin, a 58-year-old woman staying at the shelter.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has posted a video on X in which he offered his first comment following the US president’s announcement that a ceasefire in Lebanon would be renewed for an additional three weeks, Al Jazeera reports.

“We are maintaining full freedom of action against any threat, including emerging threats,” The Times of Israel quotes him as saying. “We struck yesterday and we struck today. We are determined to restore security to the residents of the north.”

Several people have been wounded after Israeli artillery shelling hit the town of Yater in southern Lebanon, Al Jazeera reports citing the state-run National News Agency.

Separately, Israeli air raids have been reported in the southern town of Taybeh and the outskirts of Bint Jbeil.

Lebanon’s Ministry of Health has said the death toll since fighting between the Israeli army and Hezbollah broke out on March 2 has risen to 2,491 people killed and 7,719 wounded, according to Al Jazeera.

The Israeli military claims its forces killed six Hezbollah fighters in a southern Lebanese town during a clash that included a firefight, AFP reports.

According to the military, troops identified six fighters operating in the town of Bint Jbeil, an area that saw heavy fighting before a ceasefire was declared last week.

“Following the identification, an exchange of fire began between the terrorists and the soldiers, during which the soldiers eliminated two terrorists,” the military says.

“Subsequently, the soldiers struck the structure from which the terrorists had been operating. In the strike, the four remaining terrorists were eliminated.”

US President Donald Trump is sending his special envoy Steve Witkoff and adviser Jared Kushner to Pakistan to participate in talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi this weekend, two administration officials tell CNN.

Vice President JD Vance is not currently planning to attend but he will be on standby to travel to Islamabad if negotiations progress, CNN said.

The UN human rights office says it has documented patterns of attacks on civilians in populated areas and residential buildings in Lebanon and Israel that may amount to serious violations of international humanitarian law, Reuters reports.

The report covers the first three weeks of the latest escalation, which began after Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel on March 2, prompting Israel to respond with a large-scale military offensive.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has documented several cases in which Israeli strikes hit, and in some instances destroyed, multi-storey residential buildings, killing entire families in Lebanon, which may constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law, OHCHR spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan says.

The report cites the example of an Israeli strike on March 8 that hit a multi-storey residential building in the town of Sir el-Gharbiyeh, in the Nabatiyeh governorate. The strike killed at least 13 civilians inside the building, including five women, five men, two boys and a girl.

The Israeli military and Hezbollah did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment about the report.

Read more here.

European leaders say it is still premature to consider lifting sanctions on Iran, despite ongoing diplomatic efforts, Al Jazeera reports.

EU Council President Antonio Costa tells a joint news conference in Cyprus that it is “too early” to discuss easing restrictions.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has echoed that position, signalling a cautious approach from Brussels.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Hezbollah of trying to “sabotage” Israel’s efforts to reach a peace agreement with Lebanon, AFP reports.

“We have started a process to reach a historic peace between Israel and Lebanon, and it’s clear to us that Hezbollah is trying to sabotage this,” he has said in his first remarks after a ceasefire with Lebanon was extended.

French President Emmanuel Macron has met Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa and Jordanian Crown Prince Hussein bin Abdullah II on the sidelines of an EU meeting in Cyprus.

“As the countries of the Middle East and Europe face the consequences of the regional conflict, it is more necessary than ever to work together on a shared agenda of sovereignty, stability, and prosperity for the entire region,” Macron writes on X.

He adds that the Middle East is set to become a central link in supply routes to Europe, for the mutual benefit of both regions.

“France will play its part.”