Iran says it has closed the Strait of Hormuz because of Israel’s attacks in Lebanon and warned that while negotiators were going to Switzerland for talks with the US on their interim agreement, it is unlikely that much will happen if the fighting doesn’t stop.
US President Donald Trump, in response, threatened to impose US tolls in the crucial waterway if a final deal with Iran isn’t reached in 60 days, saying the money would be for “services rendered as the Guardian Angel to the countries of the Middle East”. His social media post underscored that the agreement calls for toll-free travel for 60 days.
The announcements indicated a rough start to technical-level US-Iran talks that key mediator Pakistan said will begin Sunday, with Qatari mediators also participating.
Iran’s joint military command said the strait was closed because of the US’s “clear breach of its commitments” by failing to end the war. The interim deal is meant to stop fighting on all fronts.
Shortly after that, Iran’s state broadcaster said that the negotiating team was leaving for Switzerland, a trip delayed from Friday. State media said that the team includes parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and central bank and oil officials, among others. The deal calls for Iran’s assets to be unfrozen.
The US disputed Iran’s announcement on the strait.
“Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz. Traffic continues to flow, and US forces are monitoring the situation to ensure this remains the case,” said Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command. The military said that 55 merchant ships transited on Saturday with more than 17 million barrels of oil.
Iran’s team departs for talks as uncertainty grows
Negotiations toward a final agreement will begin once key commitments are upheld, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, said. If they are not, “the memorandum of understanding as a whole will be jeopardised”.
US Vice President JD Vance confirmed that top negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff were in Switzerland and working through technical details of anticipated negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program. The interim deal gives negotiators 60 days to reach a nuclear agreement, but that can be extended.
Vance told Fox News that he expects to leave for Switzerland in “the next couple of days”.
As part of efforts to revive direct talks, Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met with Araghchi in Tehran earlier on Saturday (local time), according to officials in Islamabad who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.
Ships began transiting after the interim US-Iran agreement was signed earlier in the week, a milestone that left many questions unanswered. The US lifted its blockade of Iran’s ports and now allows Tehran to sell its oil freely — terms that have left some in US Congress asking whether the war was worth it.
Israeli attacks in Lebanon kill at least 16
A Hezbollah official told The Associated Press that Iran informed the militant group that Tehran won’t reopen the strait until Israel announces publicly that it will comply with a “comprehensive ceasefire” in Lebanon and an end to military operations there. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorised to speak publicly.
The official said that Hezbollah would commit to a ceasefire if Israel does.
An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, later said that the military had received “updated directives from the political echelon to cease fire”. The official said that the military is operating in a defensive manner in Lebanon, which includes the right to respond to Hezbollah attacks.
The official also said that five Israeli soldiers had been killed in the past 48 hours in southern Lebanon.
Earlier, Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed at least 16 people, including two children, hours after reports emerged of a ceasefire agreement there. Seven people were trapped under rubble after strikes hit the southern city of Nabatiyeh and nearby villages, Lebanon’s National News Agency said.
The death toll in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war has surpassed 4,000, Lebanon’s health ministry later announced.
An Israeli military official said that Hezbollah fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight. Israel’s army said that it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets and militants.
On Friday, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, said that Israel “remains firmly committed to an immediate ceasefire,” if Hezbollah honours the agreement and ceases hostilities.
Earlier on Saturday, Hezbollah said that it had committed to the ceasefire, but blamed Israel for violating it on Friday night and said that it would repel attacks by Israeli troops.
Conflict could sink the US-Iran deal
Neither Israel nor Hezbollah are signatories to the deal between the US and Iran.
Hezbollah and Israel went to war two days after the US and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28, with Hezbollah firing rockets and drones at northern Israel and Israel seizing large swaths of southern Lebanon.
A new round of US-backed talks between the Lebanese government, and Israel is expected in Washington next week.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to keep Israeli forces in southern Lebanon until any threat to Israel is eliminated. Hezbollah has refused to halt its attacks unless Israel commits to withdrawing from Lebanon.
AP
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