War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

US President Donald Trump signed an order to cut tariffs on agricultural equipment, the White House said, as farmers and manufacturers face pressure from surging costs over the Middle East war, AFP reports.

Trump’s proclamation reduces the duty rate on machinery like harvesters, alongside certain other equipment, from 25 per cent to 15pc.

Foreign companies can also qualify for a 10pc duty rate if their manufacturing equipment contains at least 85pc US steel or aluminum, the White House added in a fact sheet.

Dan Shapiro, a former US ambassador to Israel, has said that Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich “was not invited to the Israel Day Parade in New York. He crashed it.”

“He should have stayed away. His extremist views do harm to the US-Israel relationship,” Shapiro, who represented the US in Israel from 2011 to 2017, added in a post on X.

Equities fluctuate as investors assessed the likelihood of a Middle East peace agreement as US-Iran talks stuttered, while Donald Trump and Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu gave mixed signals over ending Israel’s attacks in Lebanon, AFP reports.

While Wall Street ends with more tech-led records, traders took a breather in Asia following a recent strong run-up, with attention also turning to the release of US jobs data at the end of the week.

With uncertainty continuing to hang over the crisis, Asian equity traders moved cautiously after a healthy, tech-fuelled run-up that has pushed some markets to record highs.

Seoul, which has been at the forefront of the rally this year, dropped almost two per cent, while Tokyo was off more than one percent, having also hit fresh new peaks.

Shanghai, Sydney and Wellington were down, though there were gains in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taipei, Manila and Jakarta.

Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reports that Israeli warplanes launched an air strike on the town of al-Mansouri in the Tyre district early this morning. The air strike coincided with artillery shelling of the town.

US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar accused Israel of acting with “near-total impunity,” saying it has repeatedly been able to “commit genocide and other atrocities” without being meaningfully held accountable.

In a post on X, she said Israel is “exporting the Gaza playbook to Lebanon,” and claimed the conflict there is “killing thousands and displacing over a million people.”

She added: “NO MORE US AID TO ISRAEL.”

President Donald Trump told ABC News he thinks he will have an agreement with Iran to extend the ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz “over the next week”.

“Looking good, looking good,” he told ABC News’ chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl in a telephone conversation.

“There was a little glitch today, but I turned that one around very quickly, as you probably noticed earlier,” Trump said.

The glitch, according to the president, was that the Iranians were upset about Israel’s attacks on Lebanon.

“So, I spoke with Hezbollah, and I said no shooting, and I talked to Bibi [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu], and said, no shooting, and they both stopped shooting each other,” Trump said.

UN chief Antonio Guterres said that peacekeepers will be needed in Lebanon after the mandate of the current mission expires at year-end —an option likely to face opposition from the United States and Israel, AFP reports.

In a report to the Security Council seen by AFP, Guterres proposes three options ranging from nearly 2,000 to more than 5,500 UN personnel to monitor the ceasefire and support the Lebanese armed forces.

“Under all proposed options, a uniformed United Nations presence working to facilitate de-escalation, dialogue, liaison and coordination, and support for the Lebanese Armed Forces, would be necessary… towards the overarching objective of a long-term solution to the conflict,” the report says.

Oil prices held on to most of the previous session’s sharp gains in early trade on uncertainty over the status of ceasefire talks between the United States and Iran and the potential reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reports.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday talks with Iran were ongoing, while Tasnim news agency reported that Tehran had suspended indirect negotiations with Washington.

Brent crude futures inched up 6 cents, or 0.06 per cent, to $95.04 a barrel at 0001 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate fell 17 cents, or 0.18pc, to $91.99 a barrel.

Iran’s chief negotiator with the US and parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, spoke earlier with his Lebanese counterpart, Nabih Berri, regarding Israel’s invasion of Lebanon, Al Jazeera reports.

In a post on X, Ghalibaf said: “In my conversation with my brother, Mr Nabih Berri, the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, I emphasised that if the crimes of the Zionist regime in Lebanon continue, we will not only halt the dialogue process, but also stand firmly against them.”

“Long live the resistance! Long live the defence of the motherland! Long live the brotherhood of the Iranian and Lebanese people!” he added.

The Israeli military said air defences intercepted two projectiles that crossed from Lebanon into northern Israel, hours after US President Donald Trump said fighting would end, AFP reports.

“Following the sirens that sounded at 01:35 (2235 GMT) in several areas in northern Israel, the IAF intercepted two projectiles that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory,” the military said on Telegram.

It also said it identified a “suspicious aerial target” that later fell in Israeli territory near the Lebanese border, adding that no injuries were reported.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has had a phone conversation with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, according to Iran’s IRNA state news agency.

“During the call, Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi and his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan exchanged views on the latest regional developments, including the Zionist regime’s aggressive attacks on Lebanon,” IRNA reports.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has discussed regional developments in a phone call with his French counterpart, Jean-Noel Barrot, according to Iran’s IRNA state news agency.

“During the call, the two ministers exchanged views on the latest developments in the region, including Israeli military attacks against Lebanon and the consequences of these acts of aggression,” IRNA reports, noting that the conversation comes amid heightened tensions in Lebanon following continued Israeli strikes.

Energy prices have decreased amid easing tensions in the Middle East following US President Donald Trump’s statements related to Lebanon, according to Anadolu.

Brent futures, after exceeding $97 per barrel earlier today, have dropped to below $95, while West Texas Intermediate prices have fallen to $91.9 as of 1820 GMT.

An Israeli drone attack has targeted the town of Majdal in the Tyre district of southern Lebanon, while two Israeli air strikes have been reported on the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, according to Al Jazeera correspondents on the ground.

Iraqi security officials say a drone attack caused an explosion on a cargo ship about 74 kilometres southeast of Umm Qasr, the port city in southern Iraq, according to Al Jazeera.

Earlier, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported the ship was hit by an unknown projectile in the Arabian Gulf. The explosion caused a fire that was eventually brought under control. No casualties were reported.

In a new post on Truth Social, US President Donald Trump says talks with Iran are “continuing at a rapid pace”.

US President Donald Trump says “all shooting will stop” between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, adding in a Truth Social post that he has spoken with both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hezbollah.

“I had a very productive call with Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, of Israel, and there will be no troops going to Beirut, and any troops that are on their way, have already been turned back,” he writes.

Trump says he spoke to Hezbollah through “highly placed representatives” and that the group agreed that “all shooting will stop — that Israel will not attack them, and they will not attack Israel”.

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemned in the strongest terms Israel’s military incursion into Lebanon, denouncing strikes as a “flagrant violation of Lebanon’s sovereignty, international law, and international humanitarian law”.

“The [OIC] General Secretariat expressed its strong condemnation and denunciation of the continued attacks by Israeli occupation forces on Lebanon, which constitute a serious threat to security and stability in the region,” a statement reads.

“Reaffirming the OIC’s unwavering support for and solidarity with Lebanon, its sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity, the General Secretariat calls upon the international community to take immediate action to halt this aggression.”

An Israeli attack on the buildings located opposite Jabal Amel University Hospital in Lebanon’s Tyre has killed two people and wounded 23, Al Jazeera reports citing the Lebanese National News Agency.

The United Nations has expressed alarm and called for all sides to respect the ceasefire as Israel expands its offensive into Lebanon, while negotiations to end the US-Iran war appear imperilled, according to AFP.

“We are deeply alarmed by the escalation in military activities across southern Lebanon and beyond,” Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, says. “We urge all actors to respect the cessation of hostilities and avoid further escalation.”

Saudi Arabia has condemned Israel’s aggression against Lebanon and branded its incursion into Lebanese territory a violation of sovereignty.

“The kingdom calls on the international community to assume its responsibility in putting an end to this aggression and halting Israeli military movements that aim to expand incursion into Lebanese territory,” the Saudi foreign ministry says in a statement.

Riyadh also stresses the importance of safeguarding Lebanese sovereignty and the safety of the public in accordance with the relevant international agreements.

“In this regard, the Kingdom reaffirms the importance of adhering to the Taif Agreement in a manner that ensures extending the Lebanese state’s authority over all its territory, and compliance with the decisions of the Lebanese government to restrict arms exclusively to the state and its legitimate institutions, thereby guaranteeing the restoration of security and stability for Lebanon and its brotherly people,” the statement adds.

A source close to Hezbollah tells AFP that the group will not stop targeting northern Israel, after Israeli threats to bomb Beirut’s southern suburbs if the fighters kept up attacks.

Hezbollah “has not committed to stop attacking” northern Israel, the source says, requesting anonymity and adding: “Why stop these attacks that hurt Israel while it is bombarding Lebanon?”