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US will restart military action if Iran does not fulfil commitments under signed agreement, Hegseth says
The US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, has been speaking in Brussels after meeting with Nato defence ministers there.
He said the US will restart military action and reimpose a blockade against Iran if it does not fulfil its commitments under the agreement signed yesterday.
“The president has pointed out that we will be prepared to recommence if underneath the timeline of these talks, Iran does not do what it says it’s going to do,” Hegseth said.
“If Iran doesn’t comply, then we’re more than able to reimpose an ironclad blockade.”
He also slammed Nato for its perceived lack of support on the Iran war, as my colleague, Jakub Krupa, reports on the Europe live blog.
Hegseth said:
The United States has defended Europe for generations, and the President said all he said was that our jets would need to take off from bases in Europe or our ships from ports to strike targets in the Middle East, Iranian targets that threaten European interests even more directly than they threaten us.
But too many of our allies said no, or tried to drown us in arcane legal debates, or criticised us publicly for doing what they aren’t prepared or able to do themselves. It was shameful.
These allies, they put America’s sons and daughters, our sons and daughters, at risk by denying them the predictable access facing an overflight that never should have been in question at all.”
Key events
Graeme Wearden
UK wholesale gas prices have fallen to their lowest level since the start of the Iran war.
The month-ahead UK gas price fell as low as 95p per therm this morning, following the signing of the interim peace deal by the US and Iran.
That’s the lowest since 2 March, the Monday after the conflict began. Reminder: Brent crude oil has also fallen to its lowest since 2 March today (see earlier post).
However, this still leaves UK gas prices above their level just before the start of the war – 78.57p per therm.
Continential European gas prices have also fallen today, down 3% to €40.6 per megawatt hour.
Hopes for a resumption of traffic through the strait of Hormuz are pushing down energy costs, despite concerns that it will take time for the situation to return to prewar levels.
Oxford Economics say:
With the new US-Iran ceasefire including an agreement to reopen the strait of Hormuz, Oxford Economics anticipates an initial surge in traffic as ships that have been stuck are finally able to exit. Flows are then expected to slow until confidence builds that the ceasefire is durable. The firm expects the recovery in shipping to be gradual as logistics are adjusted and oil and gas production restarts.”
Follow our business live blog for the latest economic and financial news:
Three people killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon - state media
Three people have been killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese state media, despite the signing of the US-Iran agreement which provides for the end of the war on all fronts in the Middle East, including Lebanon.
Lebanon’s official National News Agency reported an “enemy drone targeted a car” in Kfar Tebnit, a village near the city of Nabatiyeh, killing two people. Another drone attack in the neighbouring village of Zebdine killed one person, according to the news agency.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military said one of its soldiers was killed last night in an incident in southern Lebanon that left seven others injured.
While Israel’s strikes in Lebanon have been sporadic since a ceasefire was announced in the country in April, the fighting between the Israeli military and Hezbollah has not stopped. The Iran-backed group, however, has not claimed responsibility for any new attacks against Israel since the US-Iran agreement was announced earlier this week.
Ships pass through strait of Hormuz, according to shipping tracker
At least seven vessels have crossed the strait of Hormuz so far today, according to Marine Traffic data.
Four cargo ships, a French flagged LNG tanker and a Cook Islands flagged bitumen tanker all exited the strait towards the Gulf of Oman – CNN reports. Additionally, a Panama flagged Starway entered the strait heading toward the Gulf.
This marks an increase in traffic on the strait, but still far below the prewar average of about 135 ships per day moving through the vital waterway.
This comes after the route was reopened as part of a deal between the US and Iran was made on Wednesday.
European leaders have largely been sidelined from the negotiations, but expressed relief that the strait of Hormuz would reopen, allowing the flow of oil to resume. Emmanuel Macron said it would put a stop to a “situation of great instability that had terrible consequences for our economies”.
President of the Philippines Ferdinand R Marcos Jr was also optimistic, saying the freedom of navigation returning to the Hormuz strait was “what we have been hoping for since the day after the war started”.
Pakistan and Turkey’s politicians hope for “lasting peace” in the region, after discussing the US and Iran peace deal over the phone.
According to the office of Pakistan’s foreign minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, he had a phone call with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, about the news of the deal.
“Fidan congratulated Pakistan on the historic signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding between the United States and Iran and endorsed by Pakistan as the mediator,” a statement said.
“Both leaders expressed hope that this significant development would contribute to lasting peace, stability, and progress in the region and beyond,” it added.
Here are some of the latest images from the Middle East on our wires:
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a statement saying it would continue operating in southern Lebanon within an area it has occupied since the start of the current war.
The IDF posted a map on social media showing its so-called “security zone” that stretches 10km (more than 6 miles) into Lebanese territory from the northern Israeli border. The military has forced thousands of people to flee their homes in the towns and villages within the zone through mass “evacuation” and no-return orders.
“IDF forces have established themselves in their area of operations in southern Lebanon and continue to operate to remove threats and improve protection for residents of the north,” it said.
The US-Iran preliminary memorandum of understanding signed last night stipulates “the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon”, but Israel said it will continue its war against Hezbollah in Lebanon and does not feel bound by the agreement, which it took no part of.
Iranian president hails 'historic' deal with US
The Iranian president, Masoud Pezeshkian, has praised what he called a “historic” deal with the US to end the war between the two countries and pave the way for negotiations towards a final settlement.
In a post on social media, he said: “This is a historic document and a message from a powerful Iran: peace will be realised in the shadow of mutual respect.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has always been committed and steadfast to global peace while preserving its dignity and independence, as well as to progress and regional cooperation.”
He also posted an image of the document bearing his signature and that of US president Donald Trump.
Kaja Kallas has responded to the Israeli foreign minister’s announcement that he was severing all contact with the EU’s top diplomat (see post at 10:05).
In a message to Gideon Saar, she said she valued the “dialogue and engagement” between the EU and Israel but did not address reports that she allegedly compared Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to apartheid South Africa.
In a post on X, Kallas said:
Dear Gideon, as you know, the EU and Israel have a lot that binds us. I value our dialogue and engagement, and I’m open to continue in that spirit, respectfully and constructively. Dialogue is the foundation of diplomacy, especially when differences arise. The EU is always committed to a constructive relationship with Israel.
To bring peace to the Middle East, the two-state solution remains the only viable path. The EU has condemned the illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank that make it increasingly difficult to get to that goal. That is the EU position.”
Earlier this week, Kallas said the EU would explore options for restricting trade with Israeli settlements following calls from several member countries, according to AFP.
US will restart military action if Iran does not fulfil commitments under signed agreement, Hegseth says
The US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, has been speaking in Brussels after meeting with Nato defence ministers there.
He said the US will restart military action and reimpose a blockade against Iran if it does not fulfil its commitments under the agreement signed yesterday.
“The president has pointed out that we will be prepared to recommence if underneath the timeline of these talks, Iran does not do what it says it’s going to do,” Hegseth said.
“If Iran doesn’t comply, then we’re more than able to reimpose an ironclad blockade.”
He also slammed Nato for its perceived lack of support on the Iran war, as my colleague, Jakub Krupa, reports on the Europe live blog.
Hegseth said:
The United States has defended Europe for generations, and the President said all he said was that our jets would need to take off from bases in Europe or our ships from ports to strike targets in the Middle East, Iranian targets that threaten European interests even more directly than they threaten us.
But too many of our allies said no, or tried to drown us in arcane legal debates, or criticised us publicly for doing what they aren’t prepared or able to do themselves. It was shameful.
These allies, they put America’s sons and daughters, our sons and daughters, at risk by denying them the predictable access facing an overflight that never should have been in question at all.”
The UK foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, met with the head of the Palestinian committee tasked with overseeing the future administration of Gaza, as part of efforts to “revive” the peace plan aimed at ending the war between Israel and Hamas.
Cooper’s meeting with Ali Shaath, the general commissioner of the National Committee for Gaza Management (NGAC), came as the US and Iran signed an initial agreement to end the war between the two countries.
Cooper said the deal serves as an opportunity to rescue the US-brokered 20-point Gaza ceasefire plan signed in October, which calls for an interim Palestinian administration to govern the Strip and launch a reconstruction programme for the devastated territory.
The NGAC was established as part of the peace plan to oversee the transition of power in Gaza, but the process appears to be at a standstill as Israel tightens its grip on the Palestinian territory and Hamas retains administrative control.
“The 20-point peace plan is on life support,” Cooper said in a statement.
While she praised Egypt, the US, Turkey and Qatar for their efforts, she added: “Momentum has stalled and we need to see rapid progress on implementation as living conditions for ordinary Gazans remain dire.
“Now an agreement between the US and Iran has been reached, we must seize this opportunity to hold the parties who agreed the 20-point peace plan to their commitments and to deliver that plan in full, at pace.”
'Jealous, bad people, or stupid': Trump hits out at critics over his Iran deal
Donald Trump has hit out at critics who say he has “not been tough enough on Iran”, calling them “jealous, bad people, or stupid”.
Among his critics are top Republicans, who have said the agreement achieves even less than the deal negotiated by former US president Barack Obama in 2015.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said:
These fools, who think I haven’t been tough enough on Iran, when the Stock Market Just Hit A RECORD HIGH, and Oil prices are “tumbling” down, are either jealous, bad people, or stupid. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
Israeli foreign minister says he is 'severing all ties' with EU foreign policy chief over 'apartheid' remarks
The Israeli foreign minister, Gideon Saar, said he is cutting off contact with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas after she reportedly compared Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to South Africa’s racist apartheid era.
In a post on social media, Saar accused Kallas of “acting obsessively and with blatant unfairness” against Israel and claimed she has not denied, clarified or addressed the remarks reported in Euractiv, a European news website.
“Therefore, as Israel’s minister for foreign affairs, I have no choice but to sever all ties with Ms Kallas,” Saar said.
Kallas did not immediately comment.
According to Euractiv, Kallas made the apartheid comparison during closed-door and confidential talks with officials in Mexico City last month as part of a senior EU delegation attending a summit there.
The director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, said the organisation was ready to start defining the “concrete steps” that will need to be taken after the signing of the agreement between the US and Iran which provides for the dilution of Iranian uranium stocks under its supervision.
“It is good that the memorandum is there. Now the technical work starts,” Grossi told reporters in Geneva.
“Now it is for us to sit down with our American and Iranian colleagues and start formulating concrete steps that will have to be taken.”
One person was killed in an Israeli drone strike in southern Lebanon this morning, according to the country’s official National News Agency.
The strike hit a car near Kfar Tebnit, a village near the city of Nabatiyeh, where the Israeli military has been operating, the news agency reported.
Israel has continued to bomb Lebanon despite a ceasefire agreed in April, but it is facing pressure to halt attacks after the US and Iran signed a deal to wind down the conflict.
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 Benjamin Netanyahu told Reuters.
Israel has no intention of backing down on its positions, the official said.
