{"id":502760,"date":"2026-06-20T16:23:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T16:23:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/502760\/"},"modified":"2026-06-20T16:23:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-20T16:23:09","slug":"iran-closes-strait-of-hormuz-over-israeli-attacks-in-lebanon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/502760\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran closes Strait of Hormuz over Israeli attacks in Lebanon"},"content":{"rendered":"

TYRE, Lebanon (AP) \u2014 Iran dealt two quick blows to the interim agreement<\/a> with the United States on Saturday, angered by Israel\u2019s continued attacks in Lebanon<\/a>, saying it had closed the Strait of Hormuz<\/a> and announcing that while its negotiators were going to Switzerland for talks, not much is likely to happen there.<\/p>\n

Key mediator Pakistan, meanwhile, said the technical-level talks will begin on Sunday in B\u00fcrgenstock, Switzerland, with Qatari mediators also participating.<\/p>\n

In Tehran\u2019s first salvo, Iran\u2019s joint military command said the strait had been closed, citing the Israeli attacks and U.S. \u201cbad faith\u201d and \u201cclear breach of its commitments\u201d by failing to end the war<\/a>. Its statement on state television warned that \u201cif the aggression continues, subsequent steps have been planned.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shortly after that, the state broadcaster announced that Iran\u2019s negotiating team was going to Switzerland, a trip that had been originally planned for Friday. State media said the team includes parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf<\/a>, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and central bank and oil officials, among others.<\/p>\n

There was no immediate U.S. comment.<\/p>\n

Iran\u2019s team departs for talks as uncertainty grows<\/p>\n

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Bagahei, however, signaled that little might happen until Iran feels the U.S. is living up to the deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis trip is therefore about demanding that the other side fulfill its obligations,\u201d he said, adding that negotiations toward a final agreement will begin only once key commitments are upheld. If they are not, he said, \u201cthen the memorandum of understanding as a whole will be jeopardized.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Washington, Vice President JD Vance confirmed that the top U.S. negotiators \u2014 Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff \u2014 were already in Switzerland and have been working through technical details of the anticipated negotiations on Iran\u2019s nuclear program.<\/p>\n

Vance told Fox News that he expects to leave for Switzerland \u201csometime the next couple of days\u201d but acknowledged that \u201cit\u2019s always a delicate coordination dance.\u201d<\/p>\n

As part of efforts to revive the direct talks, Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met Araghchi in Tehran earlier Saturday, according to officials in Islamabad who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the global economy braced for more uncertainty.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

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Shortly after Iran\u2019s announcement, which it did not address, the U.S. military said commercial ship traffic continued through the strait on Saturday, with 55 merchant ships transiting, \u201cmoving large amounts of cargo and more than 17 million barrels of oil to global markets.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was not clear when in the day they had transited.<\/p>\n

Ships began transiting after the interim U.S.-Iran agreement was signed earlier in the week, a milestone that has left plenty of questions unanswered.<\/p>\n

Israeli attacks in Lebanon kill at least 16<\/p>\n

In Lebanon, an official with Hezbollah told The Associated Press that Iran has informed the militant group that Tehran will not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until Israel announces publicly that it will comply with a \u201ccomprehensive ceasefire\u201d in Lebanon and an end to military operations there. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.<\/p>\n

There was no immediate Israeli comment.<\/p>\n

Earlier Saturday, Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed at least 16 people, including two children, hours after reports emerged of a ceasefire agreement there. Seven people remained trapped under the rubble after the strikes hit the southern city of Nabatiyeh and nearby villages, Lebanon\u2019s National News Agency said.<\/p>\n

The death toll in the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah has now surpassed 4,000, Lebanon\u2019s health ministry later announced.<\/p>\n

Mediators were scrambling to halt the fighting after a heavy exchange on Friday killed at least 47 people in Lebanon and four Israeli soldiers.<\/p>\n

An Israeli military official, speaking anonymously in line with regulations, said Hezbollah had fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight. Israel\u2019s army said it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets and militants in southern Lebanon, including Hezbollah command centers. <\/p>\n

On Friday, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, said Israel \u201cremains firmly committed to an immediate ceasefire\u201d if Hezbollah honors the agreement and ceases hostilities.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Hezbollah said it had committed to the ceasefire but blamed Israel for violating it several times Friday night. A statement by the group\u2019s military wing said it would abide by the ceasefire but would also repel attacks by Israeli troops. <\/p>\n

The conflict could sink the US-Iran deal<\/p>\n

A new round of U.S.-backed talks<\/a> between the Lebanese government and Israel is expected to take place in Washington next week. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Buildings<\/p>\n

Buildings damaged by Israeli strikes are seen through shattered glass from the Jabal Amel Hospital in the southern port city of Tyre, Lebanon, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar)<\/p>\n

Buildings damaged by Israeli strikes are seen through shattered glass from the Jabal Amel Hospital in the southern port city of Tyre, Lebanon, Thursday, June 18, 2026. (AP Photo\/Hassan Ammar)<\/p>\n

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Hezbollah and Israel went to war two days after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, with Hezbollah firing rockets and drones<\/a> at northern Israel and Israel seizing large swaths of southern Lebanon<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Neither Israel nor Hezbollah are signatories to the deal, which calls for a halt to military operations in Lebanon and for the country\u2019s sovereignty to be respected.<\/p>\n

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/a> has vowed to keep Israeli forces in southern Lebanon until any threat to Israel is eliminated. Hezbollah has refused to halt its attacks unless Israel commits to withdrawing from Lebanon, which Iran says is also a condition of the deal.<\/p>\n

Fighting continues near the Israel-Lebanon border<\/p>\n

A strike on Barish village killed four members of a family: parents and two children. In Arab Salim village, a body was pulled from a destroyed house, and in Doueir and Kfar Rumman villages, drone strikes killed a person on a motorcycle and a Lebanese soldier. Nine people were killed in strikes in Qannarit, Sohmor and Shehour villages.<\/p>\n

Smoke rose into the sky over southern Lebanon and Israeli jets flew low over the coastal city of Tyre. Residents told The Associated Press they were relieved that Tyre had been spared in recent days, but now they were reminded that the war is not over. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur entire lives would change if there\u2019s a ceasefire,\u201d said one resident, Hussein Khoshman.<\/p>\n

Netanyahu\u2019s office did not immediately comment on ceasefire efforts.<\/p>\n

Military spokesman Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin said Israeli forces were operating in a \u201cforward defense zone\u201d and would continue doing so.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Mroue reported from Beirut and Munir from Islamabad. Associated Press writers Abby Sewell in Beirut, Samy Magdy in Cairo, Seung Min Kim in Washington and Jamey Keaten in Zurich, Switzerland, contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TYRE, Lebanon (AP) \u2014 Iran dealt two quick blows to the interim agreement with the United States on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":502761,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[50433,49,114,231151,122,86,231152,85,119,87,20889,117780,46,1984,45061,11487,88,47,2034,3896,157952,43,8717,172544,6804,7319,7313,121,12526,126,172216],"class_list":["post-502760","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-israel","tag-abbas-araghchi","tag-benjamin-netanyahu","tag-business","tag-esmail-bagahei","tag-general-news","tag-hezbollah","tag-hussein-khoshman","tag-il","tag-international-agreements","tag-iran","tag-iran-government","tag-iran-war","tag-israel","tag-israel-government","tag-jared-kushner","tag-jd-vance","tag-lebanon","tag-middle-east","tag-mideast-wars","tag-military-and-defense","tag-mohammad-bagher-qalibaf","tag-news","tag-nuclear-weapons","tag-pakistan-government","tag-qatar-government","tag-religion","tag-steve-witkoff","tag-war-and-unrest","tag-washington-news","tag-world-news","tag-yechiel-leiter"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502760","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=502760"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502760\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/502761"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=502760"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=502760"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=502760"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}