Listen to this article
Average 4 minutes
The audio version of this article was created by AI-based technology. It can be mispronounced. We are working with our partners to continuously review and improve the results.
Israel says Iran launched missiles at it for the first time since a ceasefire began in early April, complicating efforts to broker a deal to end the war.
Iran’s state broadcaster confirmed the launch of missiles and multiple explosions were heard in northern Israel. Israel’s military said it was working to intercept the missiles but “defence is not,” adding that sirens were sounding in many parts of the country.
Tehran warned of retaliation after Israel on Sunday raided areas south of Beirut without warning in defiance of Washington’s call in the past days for him to step down. Israel called it retaliation for Iranian Hezbollah shelling in northern Israel earlier in the day.
- Follow the live coverage of this story here.
Israel’s attack on Beirut came days after the Lebanese and Israeli governments agreed to a ceasefire in talks hosted by the US, although Hezbollah rejected the deal. A strike in a residential building killed two people and injured 20, Lebanon’s Ministry of Health said.
Iran had warned that an attack on Beirut would reignite an all-out war in the Mideast, as Pakistan tried to restart talks between Tehran and Washington. Iran wants a deal that includes an end to the war in Lebanon.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said on Sunday that the Israeli army must stop its attacks on Lebanon, and if it increases its attacks or responds to Iran’s actions, it will face “hurtful and sad consequences.”
“We previously warned that if the crime in the Dahiyeh area of Beirut increases, we will attack the bases in the occupied areas,” said the Revolutionary Guard joint military commander.
Peace talks
Israeli strikes and ground attacks in Lebanon in pursuit of Hezbollah, as well as the terrorist group’s resistance to disarmament, have complicated an agreement to end the war in the Middle East. Iran says any deal must include an end to fighting in Lebanon.
The White House did not comment on the Israeli strike in Beirut. Israel on Monday announced it would strike areas south of the Lebanese capital, but emergency talks with Washington halted that on the condition that Hezbollah stop targeting Israeli border towns.
Hezbollah wants direct talks between Lebanon and Israel to end and instead supports Iran’s position that the agreement to end the conflict between Tehran and Washington includes Lebanon’s position.
Efforts to mediate a major deal continued on Sunday as Pakistan’s interior minister visited Iran for talks with officials and Egypt said its foreign minister and his Qatari counterpart had discussed “proposed elements” of a possible deal, without giving details.
US President Donald Trump did not comment on the war on Sunday, but he did in an interview with NBC Meet the media aired after Friday’s recording, he said he would like to see “more operational strikes on Hezbollah.” He also said that he “does not want” Lebanon to be part of the agreement to end the war in Iran.
Meanwhile, Iran continued to insist on holding the Strait of Hormuz, and the US continued its blockade of Iranian ports, with oil, natural gas and fertilizer exports affected and the world economy in pain.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing elections later this year, has said he wants to continue attacking Israel until he believes Hezbollah is no longer a threat.
