US President Donald Trump claimed that the war had significantly weakened Iran’s military capabilities, arguing that the country no longer possessed an effective air force, navy, air defence systems or radar infrastructure.

Trump also criticised political opponents who, he said, believed Iran was in a stronger position than it had been four months ago despite the conflict. Questioning that assessment, he asserted that the war had left Iran substantially diminished and mocked those who suggested otherwise.

“The War has diminished Iran! It doesn’t, any longer, have an Air Force, a Navy, Antiaircraft Equipment, Radar, or practically anything else, and yet the Dumocrats say that Iran is better off now than it was four months ago. Can you imagine getting away with that??? How stupid can some people be???,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.

In a separate post, Trump said Iran had sought engagement with the United States from a position of weakness and insisted that Washington would not ease economic pressure on Tehran.

“We didn’t meet out of desperation, Iran did. They are FINISHED,” he wrote. He added that the US would “play out the 60 days” and claimed that Iran would receive “no money, not ten cents”, signalling his continued support for maintaining financial and economic restrictions on the country.

Iran’s chief negotiator says US talks bound by Tehran’s ‘red lines’

Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Friday that talks with the United States would remain bound by Tehran’s “red lines”.

“As we have shown in the past path of negotiations, we are steadfast in fulfilling the conditions and red lines set, and in achieving the interests of the Iranian nation,” Ghalibaf said in remarks published by the official IRNA news agency.

“If the enemy seeks to be excessive, we have proven that our fingers are on the trigger and we have no hesitation in giving a crushing response to the enemy.”

Tehran and Washington signed a memorandum of understanding this week, ending a regional war that erupted on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

Ghalibaf’s remarks came after Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei said he had approved the US-Iran deal despite having a “different view” on the matter, without elaborating.
In a message read out on state television, Khamenei said that direct talks with the United States “will not mean accepting the enemy’s point of view”.

In response to Khamenei’s message, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the country’s foreign policy apparatus “will be used to secure the sublime interests of Iran” and “protect the rights of the noble Iranian nation”.

President Masoud Pezeshkian, who signed the deal on behalf of his country, issued a similar statement promising to adhere to Iran’s red lines and defend its “dignity, honour and authority”.

The US-Iran deal, which US President Donald Trump also signed, lays the groundwork for detailed 60-day negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme and sanctions relief.

It remains unclear when talks for a final settlement would start after a first meeting in Switzerland slated for Friday was postponed.

The agreement provides for an end to the Middle East war on all fronts, including Lebanon, the lifting of the two-month US naval blockade on Iranian ports, and Tehran’s reopening of the Strait of Hormuz “with no charge for 60 days only”.

It also includes an Iranian commitment not to procure or develop nuclear weapons — an ambition Tehran has consistently denied pursuing.

Conservatives in Iran appeared deeply sceptical of the deal and US intentions, with some expressing concern that Tehran could be giving up key sources of leverage before securing compensation and sanctions relief.

“The Americans do not honour any commitments, they have not been loyal to any agreements, and they will not be,” said Hossein Shariatmadari, editor-in-chief of the Kayhan newspaper, in an interview with state television on Thursday.

He added: “The Strait of Hormuz is the way to get compensation.”

Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesman for parliament’s national security commission, took issue with reports of possible inspections of Iranian nuclear facilities by a UN watchdog.

“I hope the government denies this, but if this claim is true… the parliament will stand up to lawlessness and disobedience,” he said in a post on X.

Netanyahu: Israeli army will stay in Lebanon ‘as long as necessary’

Israeli troops will stay in Lebanon “as long as necessary”, said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, promising to make Hezbollah pay a “heavy price” for its attacks.

“Israel will not tolerate attacks on our soldiers or our territory, and it will exact a very heavy price from Hezbollah for these attacks,” Netanyahu said on X after the military announced the deaths of four Israeli soldiers in Lebanon.

“The IDF will act to thwart any threat to our forces and our territory.”

“Israel will remain in the security zone in southern Lebanon for as long as necessary for the protection of the communities of the north,” he added.

Hezbollah lawmaker says Iran told group talks with US hinge on comprehensive ceasefire

Lebanese Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah told Reuters that Iran had informed the group that talks with the US could not continue without the implementation of a comprehensive ceasefire.

He called on the Lebanese government to reject any direct negotiations with Israel while Israeli attacks on Lebanon continue, and said Washington bore responsibility for ensuring Israel halted its attacks and implemented the terms of the agreement.

Israel army says hit 80 targets in Lebanon, killed ‘dozens’ of Hezbollah members

Israel’s military said on Friday that it had struck more than 80 Hezbollah targets in Lebanon and killed dozens of its members in response to what it described as ceasefire violations.

“Overnight, the IDF (military) struck more than 80 command centres, terrorists, launch positions, and additional terrorist infrastructure sites in the area of Nabatieh and additional areas in southern Lebanon, within the Security Zone and beyond it,” an army statement said.

“Furthermore, during the strikes, dozens of Hezbollah terrorists operating in the command centres were eliminated.”

‘No one can tell us what to do,’ Israeli defense minister says amid US criticism

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said late Thursday that Israel would respond immediately and with force if Iran attacks, saying that “no one can tell us what to do,” according to Israeli media.

“If Iran attacks us, we will act immediately and respond with force. No one can tell us what to do, and we have proven that,” Katz said in an interview with Channel 14.

“All the capabilities exist and are being built,” Katz added, saying Israel could “respond immediately or act later.”

“We never asked the US to fight with us against Hezbollah in Lebanon, against jihadist elements in Syria or against Hamas in Gaza,” Katz claimed. “We do that alone.”

“We expected, and still expect, that the US will back our right and give us a diplomatic umbrella, not a military one, to act against all these enemies,” he added.

“In Lebanon, in Syria and in Gaza, we will not move from the security zones,” Katz said. “Not in Syria, not in Gaza and not in Lebanon, we will not leave there under any circumstances.”

Israeli security minister says ‘all of Lebanon must burn’ after four Israeli soldiers killed

Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said on Friday that “all of Lebanon must burn” after Israel’s military announced the deaths of four soldiers there.

“For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers must weep,” he wrote on X.

“With all due respect to the Americans, Israel must make it clear to the entire world that the blood of our sons and the security of our citizens are not up for bargaining. All of Lebanon must burn,” Ben Gvir said.

Ben Gvir went on to say that “In the Middle East, you don’t win with measured responses and restraint-you need to go berserk” to “crush the terror.”

The war began by Israel and the US on Iran has killed thousands of Lebanese and Iranians; Israel’s genocide in Gaza has resulted in tens of thousands of civilian deaths, vast destruction of civilian infrastructure and widespread famine.

Deadly Israeli strikes trigger large displacement from southern Lebanon to Sidon, Beirut

A large wave of displacement is underway from the southern Lebanese districts of Tyre and Bint Jbeil toward Sidon and Beirut following deadly Israeli strikes, Lebanon’s state-run NNA reported on Friday.

According to NNA, residents have been leaving the two districts in significant numbers as Israeli attacks continue in the area. The agency said displacement is mainly directed toward the coastal city of Sidon and the capital Beirut.

Earlier on Friday, at least 24 people were killed and several others injured in a series of Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, according to NNA.

The agency said the attacks hit inhabited homes in Al-Sharqiyah, Harouf, and Kfar Sir in the Nabatieh district, also leaving several people unaccounted for.

According to the latest official figures, Israel’s military offensive in Lebanon, which began on March 2, has killed 3,912 people, injured 11,873 others, and displaced more than one million residents.

During the recent military campaign, Israeli forces advanced more than 10 kilometers (6 miles) into Lebanese territory.

Israeli opposition leader warns country’s foreign relations being damaged amid tensions with allies

Israeli opposition leader and former Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Friday criticised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, warning that Israel’s international relations were deteriorating following growing tensions with key allies.

In a post on US social media company X, Lapid pointed to a series of recent diplomatic disputes involving senior Israeli officials and international partners.

“In the past day, the US Vice President got angry at a press conference over Smotrich and Ben Gvir, Foreign Minister Sa’ar cut ties with the European Union’s foreign minister, and President Trump said Netanyahu is showing irresponsibility in Lebanon,” Lapid wrote.

“If we don’t quickly replace this government, Israel’s foreign relations will be wiped out,” he added.

Lapid’s remarks came amid growing debate in Israel over the government’s handling of relations with Washington and European partners following the signing of a US-Iran memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the regional conflict.

Iran says it will waive fees for Hormuz during a 60-day negotiation period

Iran’s Strait of Hormuz body said on Friday it would waive planned fees to use the strait during a 60-day negotiation period under the memorandum of understanding signed with the United States this week.

Ships seeking passage through the strait while the interim agreement is in force must submit transit requests at least 48 hours before arrival, Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) said in a notice.

Iran would waive fees for security, safety, environmental services and related insurance during the period, while requiring vessels to coordinate routes and transit times in advance due to areas affected by mines and to ensure safe navigation.

25 vessels cross Strait of Hormuz after US-Iran deal, data shows

A total of 25 commercial vessels crossed the newly reopened Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, the highest number since mid-April, according to data from maritime tracking firm AXSMarine, according to Al Jazeera.

After the US and Iran agreed to a preliminary agreement to open the Strait of Hormuz, passage through the waterway saw its highest single-day figure since April 18, when Iran briefly reopened the passage to commercial traffic.

Scheduled US-Iran talks called off as Israel strikes southern Lebanon

US Vice President JD Vance pulled out of a planned trip to meet Iranian negotiators in Switzerland on Friday to begin talks on implementing the “Islamabad MoU” struck between Tehran and Washington, a White House spokesperson said, as Israeli strikes killed at least 15 people in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA).

Al Jazeera reported that according to the NNA, the overnight bombardment was one of the most intense Israeli assaults on the area, with multiple homes targeted after midnight.

Israeli artillery fire was reported in the city of Nabatieh, as well as in Kfar Jouz and several surrounding towns, including Kfar Reman and Zebdine, NNA said. Waves of air strikes then also hit Kfar Tibnit and the Rayhan heights.

At least eight people were killed in Nabatieh and Harouf, the agency reported. Four people were killed in a strike on a home between Al-Sharqiya and Doueir, while an attack in the town of Kfar Sir killed three people.

One person was killed and another wounded in an Israeli drone strike that hit a motorcycle near the Doueir municipality building, as per Al Jazeera

The Israeli military claimed they were striking Hezbollah targets, adding that the attacks were in response to “ceasefire violations” on Hezbollah’s part

Israel hits Lebanon with deadly strikes, says four of its troops killed

At least 18 people were killed in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon on Friday, Lebanon’s NNA reported, while the Israeli military said four soldiers were killed in one of the deadliest single incidents since the latest escalation began.

The Lebanese health ministry said intensive airstrikes since midnight had hampered rescue and evacuation efforts, reporting a preliminary toll of 18 dead and 33 wounded that was expected to rise.

Residents and Lebanese media said airstrikes and shelling hit several towns in the Nabatieh district overnight and into early Friday, in what Lebanon’s state news agency NNA described as one of the heaviest bombardments in recent weeks.

Israel said the strikes targeted what it described as Hezbollah operatives and infrastructure across several areas of southern Lebanon and were carried out in response to repeated ceasefire violations by the Iran-backed group.

Hezbollah said its fighters ambushed an Israeli force advancing near Ali al-Taher hill in southern Lebanon, destroying three Merkava tanks with guided missiles and targeting troops with rocket and artillery fire. The group said clashes were ongoing.

The escalation came a day after Israel published a map showing an expanded military control zone in southern Lebanon and said it would not rule out carrying out attacks beyond it, raising questions over an agreement reached on Wednesday to end the US-Israeli war on Iran.

The agreement calls for an end to hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon, and for parties to respect Lebanon’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

A senior Israeli official said Israel was engaged in “stubborn negotiations” with US President Donald Trump’s administration over maintaining troops up to 10 km (6.2 miles) inside southern Lebanon as it pursues Hezbollah.

Israel has rejected calls to withdraw its forces from southern Lebanon and has continued to attack Lebanon, while Hezbollah has retaliated by striking Israeli positions.

China’s UN envoy calls on Israel to stop violating Gaza ceasefire

Fu Cong, China’s permanent representative to the UN, has called on Israel to stop violating the US-brokered “ceasefire” in place since last October in Gaza, according to the country’s Xinhua news agency, as per Al Jazeera.

Speaking at an emergency UN Security Council session on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, Fu said China views Israel’s continual expansion of military occupation in Gaza with grave concern.

China calls on all parties concerned, particularly Israel, to fully comply with the ceasefire agreement and cease any reckless actions that violate it, according to the Xinhua report.

Macron urges Netanyahu to show responsibility, rationality

French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “show responsibility and rationality,” saying he disagrees with Israeli policies in Gaza, the occupied West Bank and southern Lebanon.

In an interview with broadcaster France 2 television a day after the G7 summit in Evian, Macron condemned what he described as “new settlements and acts that are absolutely unacceptable in the West Bank.”

According to Macron, these policies are “feeding resentment and violence among all the populations of the region.”

Macron added that the US-Iran agreement was finalised in the final hours of the G7 summit and rejected suggestions that it amounted to a capitulation by Tehran.

He said many of Iran’s military capabilities had been destroyed but noted that key issues would still need to be addressed during negotiations expected to continue over the next 60 days.

The French president reiterated that France and the UK are ready to help secure the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and said Paris is prepared to participate in negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program.

He also said France would help the Lebanese army reassert control over its territory.

France urges Israel to ‘respect’ US-Iran deal ceasefire

France on Friday urged Israel to “respect” a deal signed between the United States and Iran to end the Middle East war, the French foreign minister said after overnight Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon.

“This agreement provides for a cessation of hostilities; the Israeli government must respect it, and the United States in particular must exert all the necessary pressure on the Israeli government to ensure that this is the case,” Jean-Noel Barrot said on FranceInfo radio.

He said the priority now was to ensure the full execution of the agreement’s final steps, including measures related to regional stability and security guarantees.

Barrot warned that without a deal, the region risked prolonged instability, adding that the agreement was necessary to prevent further escalation and economic fallout linked to energy routes.

He stressed that France would remain engaged in diplomatic efforts and coordination with international partners as implementation of the agreement moves forward.

US-Iran talks scheduled for Friday cancelled: Swiss Foreign Ministry

“The discussion at Bürgenstock will not take place as planned today,” the ministry announced in a statement. “Consequently, the meeting announced yesterday is cancelled.”

The statement came right after the White House announced that US Vice President JD Vance will not be departing for Switzerland on Thursday as logistical details for expected technical talks with Iran remain unresolved.

Read: PM Shehbaz announces signing of ‘Islamabad MoU’ by US, Iranian leadership

On Wednesday evening, US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian electronically signed the “Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding,” which is intended to pave the way for ending the war launched by Washington and Tel Aviv against Iran on February 28.

Under the terms of the deal, Iran will immediately reopen the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, while the US will lift its naval blockade, according to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who also signed the document as mediator.

US vice president cancels trip for peace talks with Iran

US officials said this week they would hold a formal signing ceremony for the US-Iran agreement ‌in Geneva, but Iran’s foreign ministry cast doubt on that, saying it was unnecessary after both countries’ presidents signed the agreement on Wednesday.

Iran had said it was ready to begin technical talks after the two enemies extended a tenuous ceasefire by at least 60 days with the accord. But the semi-official Tasnim news agency said earlier on Thursday, before Vance’s announcement, that Iran’s negotiators needed to see signs of implementation of the interim agreement from the US before the next rounds of ​peace talks could begin, and that there was no confirmation that its delegation would travel to Geneva.

Vance and the US delegation had been ready to depart as soon as plans for the talks ​had been finalised, the White House spokesperson said in a statement on Thursday night. “But the logistics of these negotiations have never been simple or predictable,” the statement ⁠said. There was no immediate response from Iran’s government.

The diplomatic back-and-forth over the planned ceremony and photo-op adds to the uncertainty over whether a lasting truce can be found to a regional war that ​has killed at least 7,000 people, sent energy prices soaring and shaken global markets.

In Washington, some of US President Donald Trump’s Republican allies in Congress questioned whether he had given up too much to end the conflict, which is unpopular with most Americans.

Trump previously wrote he would only end the war with Iran’s “UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER,” but the memorandum he signed with Iran instead provides relief from economic sanctions, unfreezes assets worth tens of billions of dollars and immediately provides US waivers for Iran to export its oil.

Iran’s Supreme ​Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei said Trump had signed the deal “out of desperation” and signalled that upcoming talks over Iran’s nuclear program, among Trump’s stated reasons for starting the war, would not be easy.

“If the American side wants to ​be too demanding, we will not accept it,” he said in a written message.

The deal gives negotiators 60 days to reach agreement on the status of Iran’s nuclear program unless both sides agree to an extension, and set up ‌a $300 billion reconstruction ⁠fund for Iran and other financial incentives. Vance said Washington would also seek to limit Iran’s long-range missiles.

When the US and Israel launched the war nearly four months ago, Trump said he aimed to destroy Iran’s nuclear program to ensure it could never develop nuclear weapons, end Tehran’s ability to strike its neighbours, prevent it from supporting allied anti-Israel militants in the region and make it possible for Iranians to topple their theocratic government.

Trump signed the deal with none of those objectives met.

In the agreement, Iran restated its decades-long position that it will not get or develop nuclear weapons, a position doubted by a succession of US presidents. It also agreed to ​the onsite “down blending” of its highly enriched uranium ​stockpile and inspections by the International Atomic Energy ⁠Agency as a Non-Proliferation Treaty member, rejecting Trump’s wish to remove the material from the country.

US officials say the negotiations could still yield a strong agreement on Iran’s nuclear program, aiming to exceed one from 2015 between Iran and the US and other countries that Trump tore up in his first term. But critics ​say Iran is in a stronger position now, having withstood a superpower attack, exerted control of the Strait of Hormuz and gained valuable waivers to financial ​sanctions.

Iran has said it ⁠will still exert control over Hormuz in partnership with its neighbour Oman across the strait and intends to charge ships fees for services that did not exist before the war, although it says no fees will be charged during the 60-day negotiations period.

In Lebanon, where the fighting has displaced more than a million people, Israeli forces launched fresh airstrikes early on Thursday, raising doubt about how far Trump will go to force his wartime ⁠allies to halt ​an offensive he has now pledged to end.

Trump said he expects a complete ceasefire on all fronts.

The deal calls for the “permanent ​termination” of the war in Lebanon and for the country’s “territorial integrity and sovereignty” to be ensured.

Israel has said it has no intention of withdrawing from Lebanon and released a new map showing an expanded occupation zone.