Iran war updates: Israel to hold ceasefire talks with Lebanon

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Here are some of the day’s top developments:

• The death toll from Israel’s devastating attacks across Lebanon on Wednesday, the day after a two-week ceasefire began, has risen to 303, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said.
• Iran’s IRGC denied that it had fired any missiles since its agreed ceasefire with the United States began, after Kuwait reported a drone attack caused damage at a national guard facility.
• The UKMTO said only five ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours. No attacks have occurred for 48 hours, the maritime agency also reported.
• Trump said that Iran is “doing a very poor job” of allowing oil through the Strait of Hormuz.
• Preparations have continued for Pakistan-mediated peace talks expected to begin in Islamabad this weekend, with Pakistan’s UN envoy again confirming Lebanon was included in the two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has spoken with US President Donald Trump over the phone, with the pair discussing the need to restore freedom of movement in the Strait of Hormuz.

A Downing Street spokesperson said the two leaders discussed the need for a “practical plan” to ensure that ships can pass freely through the strait.

Starmer is visiting British allies in the Gulf region and has held meetings in Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

The British leader earlier said that there should be no tolls for ships navigating the strategically important Strait of Hormuz.

Aline Kamakian, a chef with the food aid organisation World Central Kitchen in Lebanon, has told Al Jazeera that the need for assistance from displaced families is “growing very, very fast”.

“The situation is becoming inhumane,” she said, noting that Israel’s new evacuation orders now cover half of Beirut.

“I don’t know where the people will go. The shelters are overcrowded, and they are just governmental schools, not very well equipped.”

“The basic needs are not available, and people are without any basic hygiene. So it’s very dangerous.”

Kaja Kallas, the EU’s top diplomat, has called for an urgent cessation of hostilities in Lebanon, urging all parties to respect a ceasefire agreement agreed between the US and Iran.

“We urge all involved to fully respect the ceasefire across the region, cease all military operations and fully ensure freedom of navigation as well as free and safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, in line with international law,” Kallas said in a statement.

Kallas has been meeting Gulf leaders and was in the UAE on Thursday.

As US-Iran talks in Pakistan near, professor Mehran Kamrava of Georgetown University in Qatar identifies three core obstacles to a durable agreement.

According to Kamrava, the first obstacle is Lebanon and Israel’s refusal to halt bombardment as “poisoning the atmosphere” before talks have even begun.

The second obstacle, according to Kamrava, is sanctions, which he said are non-negotiable for Iran.

“Washington’s 15-point proposal did acknowledge sanctions relief as a subject for discussion, but the extent of primary and secondary sanctions removal remains deeply contested,” he said.

The third is the Strait of Hormuz. Iran is determined to retain some measure of control over it and will not easily relinquish that leverage, he added.

It was a relatively calm day across the GCC, with the exception of Kuwait.

However, for the first time perhaps, they have not named or indicated any source for those attacks. That’s why there is speculation now that it might not be from Iran but rather the Iran-affiliated armed groups in Iraq.

However, this is just an interpretation; there are no official statements about the origins of these attacks.

As of now, these attacks have largely stopped, and the damage that the attacks throughout the last six weeks have caused is now becoming clear.

The UKMTO has said that the overall threat level in the Gulf, Strait of Hormuz and Gulf of Oman remains “critical” and that only five vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz in the past 24 hours.

The British maritime agency’s latest update noted that while there have been zero attacks in the last 48 hours, the “US–Iran two-week conditional ceasefire” has not yet “resulted in a meaningful increase in traffic”.

Overall, there were 29 attacks recorded by the UKMTO since March 1, the agency noted.

It also noted that Iran has said “transits require prior coordination with its armed forces” and that alternative routes proposed by Iran could lead to ships travelling in opposite directions in the same lane.

The Bab al-Mandeb Strait and Gulf of Aden remain at a moderate threat level, the UKMTO added.

Iran’s FM has said that it would be “dumb” for the US to allow Israel to jeopardise the regional ceasefire by continuing its intense attacks on Lebanon, which have killed hundreds of people since the truce came into effect.

On Thursday, Araghchi noted that Netanyahu’s corruption trial will resume on Sunday. He suggested that the Israeli leader has an ulterior motive for continuing the fighting.

Read more here.

Trump has launched a sweeping personal attack on a group of conservative commentators who have criticised his position on Iran’s nuclear programme.

In a social media post, Trump slammed Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, Candace Owens and Alex Jones, accusing them of wanting Iran to have a nuclear weapon.

The post came amid broader tensions over US policy towards Iran with Trump’s MAGA movement.

Trump has warned that “very quickly” oil will start flowing, “with or without the help of Iran”.

“Because of me, Iran will never have a nuclear weapon,” he added.

The European development bank said it will release 5 billion euros ($5.9bn) to help economies derailed by the conflict in the Middle East, triggered by the US-Israeli war on Iran.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said in a statement the funds would be focused on Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, the occupied West Bank and Gaza, “and affected neighbouring economies”, including Egypt, Turkiye, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“The economic and social impact of the conflict is already being felt across many of the bank’s economies in the form of disrupted trade routes, energy and commodity shocks, weakened investor confidence and broader costs to the population,” it added.

The bank said “The volume of conflict response investment will be demand-driven, due to the fast-changing nature of the situation.”

The bank also approved “a project to support Lebanon’s retail chain,” it said, adding it also aimed to safeguard access to jobs, finance and essential services.