Israel and Iran have declared a new halt to fighting following the most direct confrontation between both countries since a fragile ceasefire agreement in April.
The two countries exchanged strikes on Monday before US president Donald Trump managed to de-escalate the situation.
Trump, posting on his Truth Social platform, said both sides wanted a ceasefire and final peace negotiations were proceeding “subject to ignorance or stupidity getting in its way”.
The Iranian military’s joint command said it was halting offensive operations against Israel, yet warned of a “much more severe and crushing” response if Israeli attacks continued, including in south Lebanon.
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Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu said if Iran “makes the mistake and returns to attacking us, we will respond with force”.
The latest strikes began after Israel hit Lebanese capital Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sunday, killing at least two people. Iran retaliated by firing missiles at Israel. Tehran has repeatedly said it wants Lebanon to be included in any ceasefire agreement, while Israel says it should be treated separately.
Israel has continued an offensive in Lebanon over the past two months, where Israeli officials say they now control about one-fifth of the country, according to Israeli media. Iranian-backed Lebanese militant group Hizbullah has also continued attacks on Israeli targets.
The Israeli military is demolishing villages and towns inside an area it has declared as a buffer zone, even as more than one million Lebanese people remain displaced. An Israeli drone continued to audibly fly above Beirut on Monday, as it does on most days.
In Iran, the brief resumption in attacks put “intolerable” pressure on “ordinary Iranians ... both mentally and financially”, said Roja Fazaeli, an Iranian professor of law and Islamic studies at the Irish Centre for Human Rights. “Young people especially are expressing utter dismay, with some saying they cannot endure war and would rather take their own lives than live through bombings again. There is a general sense of worry and fear of a full-scale war breaking out.”
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Internet access in Iran largely returned at the end of May, after a shutdown of almost three months. However, internet monitor NetBlocks says users still face “heavy filtering”.
The regional war began after the US and Israel carried out co-ordinated strikes on Iran on February 28th, killing Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei and other senior officials. In the early hours of March 2nd, Hizbullah fired from southern Lebanon towards Israel in support of Iran. A ceasefire was announced on April 8th, but fighting has continued intermittently.
Tehran has continued to block most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which before the war carried a fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas. Washington has imposed its own blockade of Iranian ports.
Trump has said any peace deal must ensure Iran cannot develop a nuclear weapon. Iran’s demands include the lifting of international sanctions, the release of billions of dollars in frozen assets and recognition of its control of the strait. – Additional reporting: Reuters
