Naim Qassem

Qatar confirmed indirect US-Iran talks on reopening the Strait of Hormuz are ongoing, with no direct negotiations planned. A cargo ship was struck by a projectile near the strait, and its crew abandoned the vessel with one person missing. Israel and Lebanon began a seventh round of US-brokered talks in Rome, focusing on pilot zones and cessation of hostilities. The Houthis claimed a drone strike on Saudi Arabia’s Najran airport. In Gaza, a mass funeral was held for 112 Palestinians recovered from rubble two years after an Israeli airstrike.

The US completed a 10th consecutive night of strikes on Iran as the IRGC claimed attacks on US bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan. The Houthis threatened a maritime embargo on Saudi Arabia, while Hamas elected Khalil al-Hayya as its new political chief. Israel and Lebanon began a pilot zone framework in southern Lebanon, and Qatar formally condemned Iranian strikes on its territory.

President Trump declared the US the 'guardian' of the Strait of Hormuz and announced a 20% toll on all cargo traversing the waterway, as US forces struck an Iranian naval base and submarine maintenance facility. The UK proscribed the IRGC as a terrorist organization over an antisemitic arson campaign, and Yemen's Saudi-backed government bombed Sanaa airport to block an Iranian plane. The IDF killed a Hamas weapons smuggler in southern Gaza, and the UN accused Hamas of obstructing aid distribution.

Ayatollah Khamenei was laid to rest in Mashhad, concluding a days-long funeral procession marked by calls for revenge against the US and Israel. The US denied carrying out reported strikes in southern Iran overnight, while Israel warned Washington of a new Iranian assassination plot against President Trump. In Lebanon, a US official said IDF troops would withdraw from pilot zones in the coming days, and in Gaza, the IDF continued operations, killing at least six and attempting to assassinate a Hamas spokesman.

The US struck targets near Iran’s Bushehr nuclear plant, prompting Iranian ballistic missile salvos at Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar. Khamenei’s funeral culminated in Mashhad with calls for revenge, while the IRGC warned foreign forces out of the Strait of Hormuz. Israel rejected Trump’s Lebanon withdrawal claim, and Palestinian elections were called for November.

The US launched a second consecutive night of strikes on Iran, targeting over 90 sites including railway bridges and the Bushehr refinery, while the IRGC claimed missile and drone attacks on US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain. President Trump declared the ceasefire over and threatened further escalation, even as he acknowledged an Iranian outreach for a deal. Khamenei's funeral procession reached Mashhad for burial, drawing millions of mourners and foreign dignitaries.

Iran launched drones at Bahrain and struck an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, while the US and Iran traded strikes in violation of their MoU. Israel struck southern Lebanon a day after signing a framework deal that Hezbollah rejected as 'null and void.' In the West Bank, a settler and masked soldier allegedly broke into a Hebron mosque, disrupting the call to prayer.

The IDF struck and killed seven Hezbollah operatives transporting weapons in southern Lebanon, while four Israeli soldiers were wounded in a separate clash. US-mediated Israel-Lebanon talks were extended, with Hezbollah demanding an unconditional Israeli withdrawal. The IAEA chief confirmed initial talks with Iran on nuclear site access, and the US is reportedly considering relocating Gulf military bases to Israel after Iranian strikes caused greater damage than acknowledged.

Prime Minister Netanyahu declared Israel will maintain a presence in southern Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza as long as required, while clashes in the Beit Yahoun area of southern Lebanon reportedly caused Israeli casualties. The IDF confirmed striking and killing at least six Hezbollah operatives in two separate incidents. The UN paused its Hormuz evacuation initiative after an Iranian projectile struck a cargo vessel, and Iran warned ships to use only Tehran-approved routes. Vice President Vance revealed a US-Iran deconfliction cell with IRGC and CENTCOM representatives in Doha.

The IDF struck Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon as new Jerusalem-Beirut talks began in Washington, while President Trump claimed Iran agreed to nuclear inspections—a statement Tehran immediately denied. Netanyahu called for independence from US arms, and a UN inquiry accused Israel of genocide against Gaza children.

The first round of US-Iran talks in Switzerland concluded with a 60-day roadmap toward a final deal, though tensions persist over Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz and Israeli military presence in southern Lebanon. An explosion at Qatar's Ras Laffan LNG terminal injured 54 and left 18 missing, shaking global energy markets. The IDF killed two Hamas operatives in Gaza, including a senior engineering officer, and shot dead two Palestinians hurling Molotov cocktails at a West Bank settlement.

Israel and Hezbollah renewed a ceasefire brokered by the US and Qatar through Tehran after a night of fighting that killed four IDF soldiers and 47 Lebanese. The IDF will remain in southern Lebanon while US-Iran MoU implementation faces hurdles, including a still-closed Strait of Hormuz and Iranian demands for US restraint on Israel. Gaza peace plan talks in Cairo made slow progress on disarmament and security, while Norway moved to ban trade with Israeli settlements.

The US and Iran digitally signed the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, formally ending hostilities and opening the Strait of Hormuz, while an IDF reservist was killed and seven others wounded by a Hezbollah explosive device in southern Lebanon. President Trump, at the G7, sharply criticized Israel, suggesting it was in no position to oppose the deal and questioning its reliance on US support. The IDF continued operations in Lebanon and the West Bank, and Hezbollah’s leader hailed the MoU as a victory.

President Trump warned the US would resume bombing Iran if the MOU fails, while Hezbollah explosive drones wounded five IDF soldiers in southern Lebanon. The US-Iran memorandum of understanding is set for signing Friday in Switzerland, though its text remains undisclosed. The IDF killed two Hamas October 7 infiltrators in Gaza and confirmed earlier strikes eliminated a hostage-holder and a PIJ commander. In the West Bank, Israeli forces blocked roads near Hebron and settlers burned a mosque. The Strait of Hormuz remains closed despite diplomatic progress.

President Trump described the Lebanon war as a “minor conflict” and suggested Syria handle Hezbollah, while the Israeli Air Force chief confirmed a major strike on Iran was called off one hour before departure on June 8. The US-Iran memorandum of understanding is set for signing in Geneva on Friday, with both sides preparing for immediate follow-on talks. Hezbollah rocket attacks on Israeli troops in southern Lebanon continued, and Israeli drone strikes near Nabatieh killed four, according to Lebanese media.

The US and Iran have reached a peace deal, mediated by Pakistan, with a formal signing set for Friday in Switzerland. The agreement includes an immediate and permanent cessation of military operations on all fronts, including Lebanon, and the lifting of the US naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Despite the deal, Israeli forces continued operations in southern Lebanon, with drone strikes and artillery fire reported, and a Hezbollah drone was intercepted over northern Israel. Tensions between President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu escalated, with Trump calling Netanyahu a 'very difficult guy' and criticizing the IDF's Beirut strike.

A seven-month-old Palestinian baby was killed and his parents wounded when IDF troops fired on their vehicle in Hebron. Hezbollah rejected the US-brokered ceasefire, launching rockets and surface-to-air missiles at northern Israel, while the IDF killed two Hezbollah operatives in southern Lebanon. France opened a war crimes probe into Israel's treatment of flotilla activists, and Ireland banned Israeli ministers Smotrich and Ben Gvir.

Capt. Eitan Shmuel Lemberg, 21, was killed by a Hezbollah anti-tank missile in southern Lebanon, hours after Hezbollah formally rejected a US-brokered ceasefire accepted by Israel and Lebanon. The IDF struck Hezbollah infrastructure in response, while overnight strikes in Gaza killed senior Hamas security officials. The US Embassy in Jerusalem issued a security alert urging increased caution across the Middle East.

Hezbollah explosive drones killed an IDF soldier and seriously wounded another in southern Lebanon, as President Trump declared it 'mandatory' for six Muslim nations to join the Abraham Accords as part of an Iran deal. The US and Iran voiced cautious optimism but tempered expectations of an imminent breakthrough, while Israeli opposition leaders accused Netanyahu of being sidelined.

President Trump announced a US-Iran ceasefire deal is ‘largely negotiated,’ while a Hezbollah explosive drone detonated in northern Israel without injuries and the IDF dismantled a 100-meter Hezbollah tunnel in southern Lebanon. Israel expressed deep concerns over the emerging deal’s nuclear terms, and Bahrain sentenced nine to life for IRGC-linked terror plots.

Hezbollah launched coordinated quadcopter strikes on Israeli Iron Dome platforms in the western Galilee, while the IDF struck Hezbollah sites in Beqaa and Tyre overnight. The US and Iran are reportedly close to a 60-day ceasefire extension, with Pakistan’s army chief mediating in Tehran. France banned Israeli Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir over his treatment of Gaza flotilla activists, and an IRGC-linked operative was extradited to the US for plotting to assassinate Ivanka Trump.

An IDF brigade commander was severely wounded and a reservist killed in a Hezbollah drone attack on artillery bunkers in southern Lebanon. The Knesset advanced a bill to dissolve parliament, moving Israel closer to early elections. The IRGC threatened to expand the war beyond the region if the US resumes strikes on Iran, while international outcry grew over a video showing Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir taunting detained Gaza flotilla activists.

Israeli airstrikes on vehicles in southern Lebanon killed at least 12 people, including a woman and her two children, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. The IDF said it struck Hezbollah weapons depots, rocket launchers, and infrastructure. Hezbollah claimed an ambush and a loitering-glider hit on an Israeli tank. UNIFIL accused Hezbollah of drone attacks that damaged its headquarters. President Trump arrived in Beijing for a two-day summit with Xi Jinping, with Iran, trade, and Taiwan on the agenda. Iran warned it will block US weapons transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Reports revealed that Mossad and Shin Bet chiefs secretly visited the UAE during the Iran war to coordinate.

President Trump declared the US will “finish the job” against Iran “peacefully or otherwise,” as Hezbollah launched rockets and drones at IDF troops in southern Lebanon. Reports reveal Saudi Arabia conducted covert retaliatory strikes on Iran in late March, while Iran sets five preconditions for resuming nuclear talks with Washington.

US President Donald Trump is seriously considering resuming major combat operations against Iran, frustrated by stalled negotiations and Tehran’s continued uranium enrichment. In Lebanon, the IDF completed a weeklong raid north of the Litani River, while Hezbollah launched multiple drone and glider attacks on Israeli forces. Kuwait announced it had stopped an armed IRGC team from infiltrating Bubiyan Island. The Knesset passed a law establishing a special tribunal with death penalty powers for October 7 detainees. Israel confirmed it sent Iron Dome batteries to the UAE.

Iran launched cruise missiles and drones at the United Arab Emirates on Monday, striking a petroleum facility in Fujairah and triggering air defense alerts in Dubai, in a major ceasefire violation. The US said two American-flagged merchant vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz under Navy escort as part of 'Project Freedom,' while Iran claimed it fired warning shots at US destroyers and hit a warship with missiles, a claim CENTCOM denied. Israel elevated its military alertness to the maximum level and convened its expanded security cabinet for Wednesday.

The IDF launched airstrikes on Hezbollah infrastructure in the Beqaa Valley and southern Lebanon for the first time in three weeks, while Hezbollah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem rejected negotiations and vowed to continue confrontation. Iran's foreign minister arrived in Moscow for talks as Tehran reportedly proposed a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and end the war.