Netanyahu authorizes direct talks with Lebanon in potential boost to ceasefire efforts

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — In a imaginable boost to Middle East ceasefire efforts, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that helium authorized nonstop negotiations “as soon arsenic possible” with Lebanon aimed astatine disarming Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants and establishing relations betwixt the neighbors.

There was nary contiguous effect from Lebanese authorities, but the announcement appeared to bolster the tentative ceasefire successful the Iran warfare that had staggered nether the value of Israel’s bombardment of Beirut, Tehran’s continued chokehold connected the Strait of Hormuz and uncertainty implicit whether planned bid talks tin find communal ground.

Netanyahu's announcement came amid disagreement implicit whether the ceasefire woody included a intermission successful warring betwixt Israel and Hezbollah, and a time aft Israel pounded Beirut with airstrikes that resulted successful the deadliest time successful Lebanon since the warfare began connected Feb. 28.

Iran and the U.S. — which some declared triumph aft the ceasefire announcement — appeared to use pressure. Semiofficial quality agencies successful Iran suggested forces person mined the Strait of Hormuz, a important waterway for lipid that Tehran has closed. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, warned that U.S. forces would deed Iran harder than earlier if it did not fulfill the agreement.

Questions besides remained implicit what volition hap to Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium astatine the bosom of tensions, however and erstwhile mean postulation volition resume done the strait, and what happens to Iran’s quality to motorboat aboriginal rocket attacks and enactment equipped proxies successful the region.

Despite the fragile and disputed quality of the ceasefire, it appeared to person halted weeks of rocket and drone attacks by Iran connected its Gulf Arab neighbors and Israel, with nary caller launches reported Thursday. There were nary reports of strikes by the U.S. oregon Israel targeting Iran.

Israeli had vowed to proceed striking Hezbollah successful Lebanon

Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, warned Thursday that continued Israeli attacks connected the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant radical successful Lebanon would bring “explicit costs and STRONG responses” successful a societal media post.

Qalibaf has been discussed arsenic a imaginable negotiator who could conscionable U.S. Vice President JD Vance this play successful Islamabad. The White House has said Vance would pb the delegation for talks starting Saturday.

Iran had said Israel's ongoing attacks connected Hezbollah were violating the ceasefire agreement. Netanyahu and Trump person said it was not.

Hours earlier opening the mode for talks with Lebanon, Netanyahu said Israel would proceed striking Hezbollah “with force, precision and determination.”

Lebanon’s wellness ministry said astatine slightest 203 radical were killed and much than 1,000 wounded Wednesday successful Israeli strikes successful cardinal Beirut and different areas of Lebanon that Israel said targeted Hezbollah, which joined the warfare successful enactment of Tehran.

Israel said Thursday it killed an adjutant to Hezbollah person Naim Kassem, Ali Yusuf Harshi. Hezbollah did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

A New York-based deliberation vessel warned that the ceasefire “ hovers connected the verge of illness ” pursuing Israel's strikes Wednesday.

Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported that an Israeli onslaught overnight killed astatine slightest 7 radical successful confederate Lebanon. The Israeli subject did not instantly admit the strike.

Oil prices stay precocious amid uncertainty implicit the strait

Semiofficial quality agencies successful Iran published a illustration Thursday suggesting the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard enactment oversea mines into the Strait of Hormuz during the warfare — a connection that whitethorn beryllium intended to unit the United States.

The chart, released by the ISNA quality bureau and Tasnim, showed a ample ellipse marked “danger zone” successful Farsi implicit the way ships instrumentality done the strait, done which 20% of each traded lipid and earthy state erstwhile passed.

Only a trickle of ships person transited since the warfare began aft respective were attacked, and Iran threatened to deed immoderate that it deemed connected to the U.S. oregon Israel. Ships appeared to proceed to debar the strait adjacent aft the ceasefire.

The illustration suggested that ships question done waters person to Iran’s mainland adjacent Larak Island, a way that immoderate ships were observed taking during the war. It was dated from Feb. 28 until April 9, and it was unclear if the Guard had cleared immoderate mines since then.

Iran’s lawman overseas minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, told the BBC that his state volition let ships to walk done the strait successful accordance with “international norms and planetary law” erstwhile the United States ends its “aggression” successful the Middle East and Israel stops attacking Lebanon.

The caput of the United Arab Emirates’ large lipid company, Sultan al-Jaber, said immoderate 230 ships loaded with lipid were waiting to get done the strait and indispensable beryllium allowed "to navigate this corridor without condition.”

The strait’s de facto closure has caused lipid prices to skyrocket — affecting the outgo of gasoline, nutrient and different basics acold beyond the Middle East. Oil prices fell Wednesday connected quality of the ceasefire but climbed again arsenic uncertainty implicit the woody grew.

The spot terms of Brent crude, the planetary standard, was astir $98 Thursday, up astir 35% since the warfare began.

Points to code successful talks see whether Iran volition beryllium allowed to formalize a strategy of charging ships to usage the strait. That would upend decades of escaped transit done what has been treated arsenic an planetary waterway.

The destiny of Iran’s enriched uranium remains a question

The destiny of Iran’s rocket and atomic programs — which the U.S. and Israel sought to destruct successful going to warfare — besides remained unclear. The U.S. insists Iran indispensable ne'er beryllium capable to physique atomic weapons and wants to region Tehran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which could beryllium utilized to physique them. Iran insists its programme is peaceful.

Trump said Wednesday that the U.S. would enactment with Iran to region the uranium, buried successful past year's U.S. and Israeli strikes, though Iran did not corroborate that. In 1 mentation of the ceasefire woody that Iran published, it said it would beryllium allowed to proceed enrichment.

The main of Iran’s atomic agency, Mohammad Eslami, said Thursday that protecting Tehran’s close to enrich uranium is “necessary” for immoderate ceasefire talks.

Trump warned that U.S. warships and troops volition stay astir Iran “until specified clip arsenic the REAL AGREEMENT reached is afloat complied with.”

___

Becatoros reported from Athens, Greece. Associated Press writers Chan Ho-him successful Hong Kong, Zeke Miller successful Washington and Kareem Chehayeb and Hussein Malla successful Beirut contributed to this report.

Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This worldly whitethorn not beryllium published, broadcast, rewritten oregon redistributed without permission.