🔴 Middle East live: Switzerland says talks between US and Iran still planned for Friday
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Middle East live: Talks on implementing US-Iran deal planned for Friday, Switzerland says
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Initial negotiations on implementing a memorandum of understanding between Tehran and Washington on ending the US-Israeli war on Iran were still planned to take place in Switzerland on Friday, the Swiss foreign ministry said Thursday. US President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian have digitally signed the interim agreement. Follow our liveblog for all the latest updates.
‘No reconstruction plan’: US-Iran deal meets with mixed reactions in Lebanon
Although the US-Iran deal brings hope to Lebanon, reactions remain mixed.
Lebanon may be mentioned in the first paragraph, it is not included in the $300 billion reconstruction fund despite the heavy damage caused by Israeli strikes across the country’s south.
FRANCE 24’s Renée Davis tells us more about it from Beirut.
Trump attacks ‘fools’ who criticise Iran deal as ‘jealous, bad people, or stupid’
US President Donald Trump said that “fools” who said his deal to end the Middle East war was not “tough enough on Iran” were “jealous, bad people, or stupid”.
Israel FM says he’s cutting contact with EU top diplomat Kallas over ‘apartheid’ remarks
Israel’s foreign minister said that he was severing all contact with the European Union’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas over reported remarks in which she allegedly compared Israel to the apartheid regime that once ruled South Africa.
“Recently, it was published that during her visit to Mexico, she compared Israel to the racist apartheid regime that existed in South Africa,” Gideon Saar wrote on X.
“Therefore, as the foreign minister of the State of Israel, I have no choice but to sever all contact with Ms Kallas.”
Saar accused Kallas of engaging in “blood libel”, an allegation of anti-Semitism that Israeli politicians increasingly level at figures publicly criticising the state’s military campaigns in Gaza and beyond.
Human right NGOs including Amnesty International and Israeli organisation B’Tselem have labelled Israel’s treatment of Palestinians in areas under its control as a system of apartheid.
Iran says missile programme not part of talks with US
Iran said on that its missile programme would not be part of future negotiations with the United States, after the two sides agreed a framework deal for ending their war.
The agreement signed by Washington and Tehran Wednesday lays the groundwork for detailed negotiations on Iran’s nuclear programme and sanctions relief for Tehran.
There is no mention in the deal of Iran’s missile programme, a longstanding concern for Washington and its ally Israel.
“Our missiles do not like at all to be talked about by anyone,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said in an interview with Iranian state television.
“Iranian missiles are only for firing, not for negotiations. Iran’s defence capability will not be discussed in any way, in any process or with any party.”
Three Saudi-flagged supertankers sail through Hormuz after Iran deal signed, data shows
Three Saudi-flagged supertankers with six million barrels of crude onboard sailed through the Strait of Hormuz hours after US President Donald Trump signed a deal with Tehran to end the US-Israeli war on Iran, ship tracking data shows.
The sailings from Saudi ports were the biggest departures through the strait in weeks, according to Reuters analysis of shipping movements.
Saudi Arabia has mainly used its Red Sea port terminal of Yanbu to ship out oil since the war began.
Majority of Iranian petrochemical units back to production, industry group says
Iran has restored about 89 percent of petrochemical units that were knocked offline during the war with Israel and the US, the head of the country’s largest petrochemical holding group said, according to the Iranian Student News Agency.
Mohammad Shariatmadari, chief executive of Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company, said disrupted facilities had returned to production following what he described as rapid reconstruction efforts, with some units operating above nominal capacity, while others had yet to reach full output.
Shariatmadari’s claims could not be independently verified.
Iran introduced a ban on petrochemical exports in April to ensure domestic supply after its petrochemical sector production was disrupted by Israeli strikes hitting utilities companies that provide feedstock for petrochemical plants.
Israel holding ‘stubborn’ talks with US over Lebanon, senior Israeli official says
Israel is “conducting stubborn negotiations” with the US on the issue of continuing its deployment of troops in southern Lebanon, a senior Israeli official close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Reuters.
Israel has no intention of backing down on its positions, the official said.
Israeli troops continue to occupy swathes of the country’s south.
‘Catastrophic capitulation’: Why US and Israel are the biggest losers in Iran deal
As the full text of the memorandum of understanding signed by Tehran and Washington Wednesday became public, much of the world’s press has focused on the major concessions that Iran has seemingly wrested from the US through its strategic closure of the crucial Strait of Hormuz.
FRANCE 24’s Deepthika Laurent breaks down what the papers are saying.
UN nuclear watchdog says it’s ready to help formulate ‘concrete steps’ towards implementing US-Iran deal
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said that it was as ready to begin defining the “concrete steps” that will need to be taken to implement a US-Iran deal.
“Now it’s for us to sit down with our American colleagues, our Iranian colleagues, and start formulating the concrete steps that will have to be to be taken,” IAEA chief Rafael Grossi told reporters in Geneva.
Switzerland says talks still planned for Friday between Iran and US
Initial talks between the United States and Iran are planned at the Buergenstock mountaintop resort in Switzerland on Friday, following the signing of a ceasefire agreement between Tehran and Washington, the Swiss government said.
“As things stand, the plan is still for the US and Iran, along with mediators Pakistan and Qatar and other involved countries, to meet tomorrow at Buergenstock for initial negotiations about implementing the agreement,” the Swiss foreign ministry said in a statement.
“No further information is currently available regarding the schedule and details of this meeting.”
Oil prices drop more than 3% after Trump signs deal to reopen Hormuz Strait
Oil prices fell over three percent after Tehran and Washington signed off on a deal to end the US-Israeli war on Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
At around 0625 GMT, the main US oil contract, West Texas Intermediate, sank 3.4 percent to $74.18 a barrel.
International benchmark Brent North Sea crude was down 3.02 percent at $77.15 a barrel.
- Trump, Iran’s president sign deal to end Mideast war
- Pakistan PM says Iran to ‘instantly’ reopen Hormuz, US to ‘immediately’ lift blockade
- Pakistan PM confirms US-Iran deal ceremony to be held in Switzerland on Friday
- Israel military says 1 soldier killed and 7 wounded in Lebanon
- Oil prices drop more than 3% after Trump signs deal to reopen Hormuz Strait
Israel military says 1 soldier killed and 7 wounded in Lebanon
The Israeli military announced that one of its soldiers had been killed in fighting in southern Lebanon the day before, in an incident that also wounded seven soldiers.
The 29-year-old soldier “fell in combat”, the military said in a brief statement, adding that an officer, a reserve officer and a reserve soldier were moderately injured.
A combat non-commissioned officer, two reserve soldiers and a female reserve soldier were lightly injured, the military added.
The United States and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding on Wednesday meant to end the Middle East war, with fighting halted on all fronts, including in Lebanon.
Lebanon earlier said Israel’s massive campaign of air strikes and ground invasion has so far killed more than 3,800 people. Lebanon was drawn into the conflict when Tehran-allied Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel on March 2 in support of Iran following the US-Israeli assault.
Israel’s side saw 31 soldiers and one civilian contractor killed since March 2.
Pakistan PM confirms US-Iran deal ceremony to be held in Switzerland on Friday
Pakistan PM says Iran to ‘instantly’ reopen Hormuz, US to ‘immediately’ lift blockade
The signing of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding to end the Middle East war means Tehran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz “instantly” and the American blockade of Iranian ports will end “immediately”, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday.
The memorandum “shall enter into force with immediate effect and as a first step, Islamic Republic of Iran will instantly reopen the Strait of Hormuz and the United States of America will immediately lift the naval blockade”, Sharif wrote on X.
He also confirmed that Pakistan, with Qatari support, would host a ceremony in Switzerland on Friday to “commemorate this landmark event and commence with the technical level talks”.
US-Iran deal takes ‘immediate effect’ after both sides sign, Pakistan premier says
Iran says interim agreement represents a US “failure”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei, quoted by the state news agency IRNA, said the document “was finalized with the signatures of the presidents.”
The deal aims to draw a line under the war launched February 28 by the United States and Israel, prompting Iran to counterattack with missile and drone salvos across the region — and effectively shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for the world economy.
“Now it is time to test the implementation of the agreement,” Baqaei said.
Under the text, Washington commits to immediately waive oil sanctions crippling Iran’s economy.
And once a final agreement is reached on the Islamic republic’s nuclear program, the United States will also facilitate the release of a $300 billion reconstruction fund supported by regional nations, the deal says.
Iran insisted the deal represented a US “failure.”
“People will see it and judge,” Ghalibaf said on state television late Wednesday, after the text was released by both sides.
Trump, Iran’s president sign deal to end Mideast war
US President Donald Trump and Iran’s president signed a deal Wednesday meant to end the Middle East war, with Tehran agreeing to dilute its enriched uranium in return for large-scale economic relief.
Trump put his signature to the memorandum of understanding during dinner with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Palace of Versailles following a G7 summit, a US official told AFP.
“Just signed it,” Trump told reporters as he emerged from the palace.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei, quoted by the state news agency IRNA, said the document “was finalized with the signatures of the presidents.”
“Now it is time to test the implementation of the agreement,” Baqaei said.
Yesterday’s key developments:
- US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war with Iran.
- Iran’s chief negotiator on Wednesday said Tehran would charge service fees for ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz after a 60-day fee-free period stipulated in a memorandum of understanding with the US.
- Iran could get access to a $300 billion reconstruction fund under a deal with the United States, US officials said Wednesday as they released the text, while insisting that Washington was under no commitment to contribute.
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters, AP and AFP)
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