Middle East Tensions Rise: Iran Calls for Ceasefire Involving Lebanon Amid Strait of Hormuz Standoff

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Iran closes strait of Hormuz in response to Israeli attacks on Lebanon – state media

Iran has closed the strait of Hormuz in response to Israel’s attacks on Lebanon today despite the ceasefire, Iranian state media reports, with Iran’s authorities said to be treating the strait as still closed.

The hours-old two-week conditional ceasefire agreed between the US and Iran had a provision for the temporary reopening of the crucial maritime channel. Effectively, the strait has remained closed as traffic had not immediately increased inthe hours after the ceasefire announcement.

Tehran said on Wednesday that it would offer safe passage in coordination with its armed forces, though its coast guard said any ship trying to transit without permission would be “targeted and destroyed”.

Israel has launched huge strikes across Lebanon today, killing over 250 people, with Trump later clarifying that Lebanon wasn’t included in the ceasefire deal.

Key events

Red Cross ‘outraged’ as latest Israeli strikes kill at least 182 in Lebanon

The Red Cross said it was “outraged by the devastating death and destruction” in densely populated areas across Lebanon as Israel launched a massive wave of attacks on Wednesday.

Heavy explosive weapons struck bustling neighbourhoods, including in Beirut, without effective advance warnings, the International Committee of the Red Cross said.

“Many who had begun thinking of the moment when they might return to their homes have been rushing to streets and hospitals, searching for missing loved ones or seeking a safety that feels increasingly out of reach,” said Agnes Dhur, the ICRC’s head of delegation in Lebanon.

At least 182 people were killed and 890 wounded on Wednesday, according to the latest Lebanese health ministry toll.

Here are some of the images from those Israeli strikes.

A fireball rises from a building hit by an Israeli airstrike in the area of Abbasiyeh, on the outskirts of the southern Lebanese city of Tyre. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

Emergency responders work at the site of an Israeli strike in Al-Mazraa in Beirut. Photograph: Yara Nardi/Reuters

A man reacts as he watches an excavator remove debris at the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut. Photograph: Emilio Morenatti/AP

Rescue workers stand next to the rubble at the site of an Israeli strike in Tyre. Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters

People gather as rescuers work at the site of an Israeli strike in Sidon. Photograph: Reuters

‘Remember Greenland,’ says Trump as he vents frustration with Nato

Further to that Trump-Rutte meeting and the US-Nato relationship, Trump has posted this on Truth Social just minutes ago:

NATO WASN’T THERE WHEN WE NEEDED THEM, AND THEY WON’T BE THERE IF WE NEED THEM AGAIN. REMEMBER GREENLAND, THAT BIG, POORLY RUN, PIECE OF ICE!!! President DJT.”

Trump meets Nato leader amid musings US could pull out of alliance

Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte met behind closed doors with Donald Trump on Wednesday for discussions that were expected to focus on reopening the strait of Hormuz and soothing Trump’s anger with Nato over the Iran war.

It wasn’t immediately clear how things went in the private meeting, ahead of which Trump had suggested the US may consider leaving the trans-Atlantic alliance after Nato member countries ignored his call to help.

However, during an interview with CNN after the meeting, Rutte was asked if he believed Nato countries were tested and failed.

“Some of them yes, but a large majority of European countries, and that’s what we discussed today, have done what they promised before in a case like this,” he said.

“I was also able to point to the fact that the large majority of European nations has been helpful with basing, with logistics, with overflights, with making sure that they lift up to the commitments.”

Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte meets with the
US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, while in Washington DC on Wednesday. Photograph: Anna Rose Layden/Reuters

Rutte said he had a “frank and open” discussion with Trump, where the US president expressed disappointment with America’s allies.

The White House did not immediately offer an update on the conversation.

But earlier Wednesday, the White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, acknowledged that Trump had discussed leaving Nato. “I think it’s something the president will be discussing in a couple of hours with secretary-general Rutte,” she said.

Reuters is reporting that Iran’s Revolutionary Guards navy have posted a map showing alternative shipping routes in the strait of Hormuz to help transiting ships avoid naval mines, citing the semi-official Iranian news agency ISNA.

We’ll have more on this as it develops.

Australia has called for the ceasefire to apply to Lebanon and for both Hezbollah and Israel to observe the ceasefire. In a radio interview on Thursday morning, Australia’s foreign minister, Penny Wong, said:

If fighting continues in Lebanon, it risks the whole ceasefire across the region. So we called for that last night. We’ve been joined overnight by the G7 and other countries saying the same thing, and we continue to assert that.

The online betting market Polymarket is back in the news, after a group of new accounts on the platform made highly specific, well-timed bets on whether the US and Iran would reach a ceasefire on 7 April.

The bets resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in profits for those users.

Analysis of blockchain data shows at least 50 wallets placed substantial “Yes” bets before Trump announced a two-week ceasefire on social media.

Polymarket labeled the ceasefire betting event as “disputed” due to ongoing tensions, which means some payouts are on hold. This pattern of strategic bets has raised questions about insider trading.

For more on Polymarket and the Middle East conflict, here’s this piece from Jillian Ambrose, our energy correspondent.

Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis says it would be ‘completely unacceptable’ for ships to have to pay a fee to cross the strait of Hormuz.

Amid ceasefire talks, Tehran has proposed fees or tolls on vessels to safely pass through the strait. Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested the US and Iran could collect tolls in a joint venture, while the White House said the priority was reopening the strait without limitations.

Mitsotakis said the strait always had freedom of navigation and that needs to continue.

“I don’t think that the international community would be ready to accept Iran setting up a toll booth for every ship that crosses the strait,” Mitsotakis told CNN on Wednesday.

That seems to me to be completely unacceptable.

He said a separate international agreement regarding the strait may be necessary.

“But this agreement cannot, I repeat, cannot include a sort of a fee that ships will have to pay every time they cross the strait. This was not the case before the war started and it cannot be the case after the war finishes,” he said.

“We would be setting a very, very dangerous precedent, if that were to happen, for the freedom of navigation.”

Kyriakos Mitsotakis speaks at a press conference during the EU summit. Photograph: Nicolas Tucat/AFP/Getty Images

Ceasefire must include Lebanon to be ‘credible and lasting’, says Macron

Emmanuel Macron has said he has told the presidents of the US and Iran that their ceasefire deal should include Lebanon.

In a post on X, the French president said:

I spoke today with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, as well as with US President Donald Trump.

I told both of them that their decision to accept a ceasefire was the best possible one.

I expressed my hope that the ceasefire will be fully respected by each of the belligerents, across all areas of confrontation, including in Lebanon. This is a necessary condition for the ceasefire to be credible and lasting.

He said that this would “open the way to comprehensive negotiations” that lead to a long-term peace deal.

Macron pledged that “France will play its full part, in close coordination with its partners in the Middle East”, and said he had also discussed his position today with the leaders of Qatar, the UAE, Lebanon and Iraq.

A tale of two ceasefires – the day so far

The fate of the fragile two-week ceasefire looks increasingly uncertain on Wednesday, with Washington and Tehran giving decidedly different versions of what was agreed.

Iran and Pakistan, which brokered the 11th-hour truce, have both asserted that the ceasefire included Lebanon. Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, disagreed and Israeli forces unleashed their heaviest attack of the war so far on more than 100 targets, killing at least 254 people and injuring at least 1,165 across Lebanon. The scale of the killing and destruction amid Israel’s strikes on Lebanon is “horrific”, UN high commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, said – urging the international community to “bring an end to this nightmare”.

The United States is also denying that Lebanon was ever included in the deal. Iran’s IRGC warned it will deliver a “regret-inducing response” if strikes against Lebanon are not ended immediately, in a statement directed at “the oath-breaking” United States and Israel.

There have also been conflicting reports over the status of the critical strait of Hormuz, with Washington declaring it open with an “uptick” in traffic and stating that Donald Trump expects it to remain open “without limitations”, while Tehran said the route “remains closed”, and warned ships passing through the waterway without permission will be “targeted and destroyed”. Iran reportedly halted shipping traffic in the strait in retaliation for Israel’s continued strikes – allegedly targeting Hezbollah – in Lebanon.

Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that three key clauses of the hours-old ceasefire had already “openly and clearly violated” – including a ceasefire in Lebanon – ahead of planned negotiations, and described further talks as “unreasonable”. He said there had also been an intrusion into Iranian airspace and denial of Iran’s right to nuclear enrichment. “The deep historical distrust we hold toward the United States stems from its repeated violations of all forms of commitments – a pattern that has regrettably been repeated once again,” he said on X.
In similar vein, Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said the US must choose between continued war via Israel or a ceasefire. In a post on social media, he said: “The Iran–U.S. Ceasefire terms are clear and explicit: the U.S. must choose – ceasefire or continued war via Israel. It cannot have both. The world sees the massacres in Lebanon. The ball is in the U.S. court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments.”
The Trump administration, meanwhile, stated that Lebanon was not part of the ceasefire deal, with White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt claiming “that has been relayed to all parties”. US vice-president JD Vance also told reporters in Budapest that the US never promised to include Lebanon in the ceasefire, and that Iran may have been under that impression due to a “misunderstanding”. “I think this comes from a legitimate misunderstanding,” he said. “I think the Iranians thought the ceasefire included Lebanon, and it just didn’t. We never made that promise, we never indicated that was going to be the case.”
Leavitt also dismissed “misreporting” that Donald Trump is working from the original 10-point plan put forward by Tehran, and denied that Lebanon was ever included in the ceasefire deal. She said the 10-point plan presented in public by Iran was “literally thrown in the garbage by President Trump” – despite the fact that Trump said on Truth Social that the US received a 10-point proposal from Iran that is believed to be a “workable basis on which to negotiate”. Leavitt claimed that Iran actually put forward a “more reasonable and entirely different and condensed plan to the president”. “The idea that President Trump would ever accept an Iranian wish list is completely absurd,” she said, insisting that Trump’s red line on enriched uranium had not changed.
Netanyahu said in a televised statement that Israel’s “finger remains on the trigger”, adding, “we are prepared to return to combat at any moment required”. He said his campaign against Hezbollah would continue, reiterating that the ceasefire with Iran did not include the armed group, which is based out of Lebanon. “We continue to strike it with force,” he said. He also vowed to remove Iran’s nuclear material from the country, whether by winning the war or reaching an agreement. And he dismissed political rumours that Israel had been “surprised at the last moment,” by the ceasefire, insisting it came into effect “in full coordination with Israel”.
Amid all these wildly conflicting versions of what was agreed, Vance will lead a US delegation for peace talks in Islamabad on Saturday. He’ll be joined by Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Vance says US never promised Lebanon ceasefire

As we’ve been reporting, there’s a serious disconnect between what Tehran and Washington are saying today regarding whether or not Lebanon was included in the two-week ceasefire deal reached last night.

Iran seems to think it was; Washington insists it wasn’t.

US vice-president JD Vance has now told reporters in Budapest that the US never promised to include Lebanon in the ceasefire, and that Iran may have been under that impression due to a “misunderstanding”.

I think this comes from a legitimate misunderstanding. I think the Iranians thought the ceasefire included Lebanon, and it just didn’t. We never made that promise, we never indicated that was gonna be the case.

Per my last post, Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that three key clauses of the ceasefire deal, including one regarding the ceasefire including Lebanon, had been violated.

Asked about that, Vance insulted Ghalibaf as he questioned whether he had misunderstood elements of the deal. He told reporters:

If he’s frustrated about three issues, that actually means that there’s a lot of agreement.

I actually wonder how good he is at understanding English, because there are things that he said that, frankly, didn’t make sense in the context of the negotiations.

JD Vance speaks to the media before boarding Air Force Two to return to Washington from Budapest. Photograph: Getty Images

US has violated three clauses of ceasefire deal, says Iran’s parliament speaker

Earlier, Iran’s powerful parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that three key clauses of the hours-old ceasefire had been “openly and clearly violated” – including a ceasefire in Lebanon – ahead of planned negotiations, and described further talks as “unreasonable”.

In a statement on X, Ghalibaf said Iran’s “deep historical distrust” toward the US stems from its “repeated violations of all forms of commitments – a pattern that has regrettably been repeated once again”.

He noted that Donald Trump had described Iran’s proposal as a “workable basis on which to negotiate” and the main framework for these talks” (which Trump did say on Truth Social, but the White House attempted to walk that back earlier).

The three violations, Ghalibaf said, were:

Non-compliance with the first clause of the 10-point proposal regarding the ceasefire in Lebanon – a commitment which Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz Sharif has also explicitly referred to and declared as “an immediate ceasefire everywhere, including Lebanon and other regions, effective immediately”.
The entry of an intruding drone into Iran’s airspace, which was destroyed in Lar, “in clear violation of the clause prohibiting any further violation of Iranian airspace”.
Denial of Iran’s right to enrichment, which was included in the sixth clause of the framework.

Emergency services clear rubble and search for survivors in Beirut after Israel carried out intense airstrikes across Lebanon on Wednesday, killing at least 254 people. Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images

The scale of killing amid Israel’s strikes on Lebanon is “horrific”, UN high commissioner for human rights, Volker Türk, has said – urging the international community to “bring an end to this nightmare”.

At least 112 people were killed and 837 more wounded on Wednesday, according to the latest Lebanese health ministry toll.

The scale of the killing and destruction in Lebanon today is nothing short of horrific. Such carnage, within hours of agreeing to a ceasefire with Iran, defies belief.

Türk also deplored Hezbollah’s missile and drone attacks on northern Israel, and urged both parties to stop, immediately.

Israeli police have said holy sites across Jerusalem will reopen on Thursday morning. They include the al-Aqsa mosque compound, which also contains the Dome of the Rock mosque and is known to Muslims as al-Haram al-Sharif, and to Jews as the Temple Mount.

Police said the religious sites had been closed “due to safety measures adopted during the war with Iran” but would now “reopen to visitors and for prayer”.

This photograph shows a view of the old city of Jerusalem with the al-Aqsa mosque and its Dome of the Rock on 28 April 2026. Photograph: Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images

An oil tanker has been returned to Gulf waters after trying to pass through the strait of Hormuz, Reuters is reporting, citing Iranian news agency, SNN. We’ll update you when we have more.

Netanyahu address Israel – key points

Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke earlier in a televised address to the nation about the ceasefire, here are the key points:

Israel’s “finger remains on the trigger”, he said, adding that “we are prepared to return to combat at any moment required.”
He said the campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon would continue, reiterating that the ceasefire with Iran did not include the Lebanese armed group. “We continue to strike it with force,” he said.
He dismissed political rumours that Israel had been “surprised at the last moment,” by the ceasefire, instead he said it came into effect “in full coordination with Israel.”
Netanyahu has faced domestic criticism from opposition lawmakers for agreeing to the ceasefire before achieving its war objectives. He called it “a historic operation” with the United States, noting that “such a partnership … against our greatest enemy is also unprecedented”.

Ceasefire must include Lebanon or war will continue, Iran’s foreign minister says

The United States must choose between continued war via Israel or a ceasefire, Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has said in a post on social media.

The Iran–U.S. Ceasefire terms are clear and explicit: the U.S. must choose – ceasefire or continued war via Israel. It cannot have both.

The world sees the massacres in Lebanon. The ball is in the U.S. court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments.

Araghchi’s post also included a screenshot of this post from Shehbaz Sharif, the Pakistani prime minister, announcing the ceasefire had been reached on Tuesday, in which he had said:

I am pleased to announce that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America, along with their allies, have agreed to an immediate ceasefire everywhere including Lebanon and elsewhere, EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY.

The White House insisted today that Lebanon was not included in the ceasefire deal and that “has been relayed to all parties”, as Israel massively ramped up an intense wave of airstrikes across the country, killing at least 254 people on Wednesday.

But that is starkly different to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) earlier warning both the US and Israel that it would respond if Israel did not cease attacks on Lebanon.

We issue a firm warning to the United States, which violates treaties, and to its Zionist ally, its executioner: if the aggression against beloved Lebanon does not cease immediately, we will fulfill our duty and deliver a response.

Asked if Donald Trump is still considering withdrawing the US from Nato, Leavitt says:

It’s something the president has discussed, and I think its something the president will be discussing in a couple of hours with secretary general [Mark] Rutte.

And perhaps you’ll hear directly from the president following that meeting later this afternoon.

Nato was ‘tested and they failed’ by ‘turning its back’ on US, says White House

Leavitt shares a message from Donald Trump about Nato, saying the alliance was “tested and they failed”.

It’s quite sad that Nato turned [its] backs on the American people over the course of the last six weeks, when It’s the American people who have been funding their defence.

She adds that Trump will have a “frank and candid conversation” with Nato secretary-general, Mark Rutte, about this later today when they meet in Washington.

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