Kuwait has come under aerial attack, while the US has been hitting military sites in Iran. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard says it has hit a US base in response. Follow DW for the latest.
What you need to know
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he ordered the military to strike Beirut’s southern suburbs
- Kuwait says its air defenses have been responding to missile and drone attacks
- The US military said it has targeted radar and drone sites in Iran
- Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says it has struck a US base in retaliation for the US attacks
US violating ceasefire with naval blockade — top Iranian negotiator
Top Iranian negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has said that the continued US naval blockade of Iran’s ports and Israel’s intensifying offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon show that Washington is not complying with the ceasefire.
He wrote on X that “the naval blockade and escalation of war crimes in Lebanon” were “clear evidence of US noncompliance with the ceasefire.”
“Every choice has a price, and the bill comes due. It will all fall into place,” he added.
The US and Iran agreed a ceasefire that went into force on April 8 and has since been extended, but both sides have accused each other of violating the truce.
The US began its naval blockade of Iranian ports on April 16 after talks between delegations from Washington and Tehran in Pakistan failed to produce a peace agreement.
Iran has maintained its closure of the Strait of Hormuz — a major chokepoint for the transport of oil and gas — partly because of the blockade.
It has also said a ceasefire in Lebanon, where Israel is continuing its military operations against the Iran-backed militia Hezbollah, is a prerequisite for any peace deal with the US.
Copy linkSkip next section Lack of trust dogs diplomatic peace process — Iran’s Foreign Ministry
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Lack of trust dogs diplomatic peace process — Iran’s Foreign Ministry
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday that exchanges between Tehran and Washington on ending the US-Iran war were taking place under difficult conditions caused partly by contradictory messages coming from the US.
“Negotiations have started amid severe suspicion and mistrust, and the exchange of messages is taking place in this atmosphere,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said in a weekly press briefing.
“The other party is constantly changing its views and putting forward new or contradictory demands (…) it is natural that this situation will prolong negotiations,” he said.
Bagaei also said “a ceasefire in Lebanon is an essential condition for any deal aimed at ending the war” as Israel continues its offensive against the Iran-backed militia Hezbollah.
He said there were currently no negotiations with the US over Tehran’s nuclear program.
“We know when it is necessary to act on nuclear matters. No negotiations have taken place on the details of the nuclear file. At this stage, our priority is ending the war,” he said.
US President Donald Trump has repeatedly asserted that the US offensive against Iran has the main aim of stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons, something Tehran has always denied as the purpose of its nuclear activities.
Copy linkSkip next section Israel says orders strikes on southern Beirut suburb
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Israel says orders strikes on southern Beirut suburb
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz on Monday said they had told Israel’s military to carry out strikes on the Lebanese capital Beirut‘s southern suburbs.
“In light of the repeated violations of the ceasefire in Lebanon by the terrorist organization Hezbollah and the attacks on our cities and citizens, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz have instructed the IDF to strike terror targets in the Dahiyeh district of Beirut,” a joint statement said.
Dahiyeh, a Shi’ite suburb known as a stronghold of Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia, has come under Israeli attack several times in the past two decades.
Israeli strikes and evacuation orders in Lebanon have displaced more than 1.2 million Lebanese since March 2, when Hezbollah began firing missiles and drones into Israel to support its ally Iran as it faced a US-Israeli offensive.
The Israeli offensive has so far killed more than 3,370 people, according to the Lebanese government.
Israel says more than 20 of its soldiers and four civilians have been killed over the same period.
Tens of thousands of Israelis in the country’s north have also been forced from their homes by Hezbollah rockets and drones.
Copy linkSkip next section Security Council set for emergency meeting on Lebanon — diplomatic sources
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Security Council set for emergency meeting on Lebanon — diplomatic sources
The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting on Monday on the conflict in Lebanon as Israeli forces move deep into the country during their offensive against the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia, diplomatic sources told the AFP news agency.
The meeting has been requested by France, with President Emmanuel Macron saying “nothing justifies the major escalation under way in south Lebanon.”
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Monday that his country was facing “a vicious and reprehensible Israeli aggression” after Israel captured the medieval Beaufort Castle, marking its deepest incursion into Lebanon in 26 years.
The continued fighting in Lebanon comes despite a truce that began April 17 but has never brought any respite.
Hezbollah has said it has targeted Israeli forces near Beaufort Castle as well as army positions and infrastructure in Shlomi and Nahariya in northern Israel.
A US official said Secretary of State Marco Rubio had spoken to Aoun and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about ongoing diplomatic negotiations, asserting that Hezbollah must be the first to cease its attacks.
The official said Rubio had proposed a plan to allow for “gradual de-escalation.”
Lebanon was dragged into the Middle East war on March 2 when Hezbollah fired rockets toward Israel in response to the US-Israeli killing of Iran’s former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Copy linkSkip next section Kuwait reports drone and missile fire
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Kuwait reports drone and missile fire
Kuwait, which hosts a major US base, said on Monday it was intercepting incoming drone and missile fire, without giving details as to where it was coming from.
Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has, however, said that it has targeted a US base in response to the US weekend strikes on Iranian military sites, making it seem likely that it is behind the Kuwait attacks.
Gulf states have come under several attacks from Iran during the current conflict, with Tehran saying it is targeting the US military presence there
Copy linkSkip next section US bombed military sites in Iran on weekend — US military
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US bombed military sites in Iran on weekend — US military
The US military said on Monday it had targeted radar and drone control sites in Iran over the weekend after Iranian forces shot down a US MQ-1 Predator drone.
The US military’s Central Command said it conducted the strikes in Iran around the city of Geruk and on Qeshm Island.
“The measured and deliberate strikes occurred … in response to aggressive Iranian actions that included the shootdown of a US MQ-1 drone that was operating over international waters,” it said.
“US fighter aircraft swiftly responded by eliminating Iranian air defenses, a ground control station, and two one-way attack drones that posed clear threats to ships transiting regional waters,” it added.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted an air base used by the US for an attack on southern Iran in response.
It did not identify the base.
The attacks come despite a weekslong ceasefire that has already been undermined by numerous military actions on both sides.
Copy linkSkip next section Welcome to our coverage
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Welcome to our coverage
Timothy Jones | Natalie Muller Editor
The current war in the Middle East, triggered by US and Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28, is still going on after three months despite numerous exchanges between Washington and Tehran aimed at ending the conflict.
A ceasefire that went into effect on April 8 has mitigated the fighting, but both the US and Iran are continuing with limited attacks.
Israel has meanwhile not ceased its military efforts to combat the Iran-backed Hezbollah militia in Lebanon, with its forces over the weekend marking the deepest incursion into the country in 26 years with the capture of Beaufort Castle.
DW brings you reports and background on a conflict that has spread throughout the Middle East region and that is having a major impact on economies around the world.