Iran suspends peace talks with US over Israeli military action in Lebanon, Araghchi says it violates ceasefire agreement
Days after Israel ramped up its offensive against Hezbollah and targeted sites in Lebanon, Iran has reportedly suspended talks with the United States in protest
Days after Israel ramped up its offensive against Hezbollah and targeted sites in Lebanon, Iran has reportedly suspended talks with the United States in protest at Israel’s actions in Lebanon. Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported the development and added, “Given the continuation of the Israeli regime’s attacks in Lebanon, and considering that Lebanon had been one of the preconditions for a ceasefire — which has now been violated on all fronts, including Lebanon — the Iranian negotiating team is suspending ‘talks and exchanges of texts through mediators.'” Tehran has called for the immediate halt of Israel's war in Gaza and Lebanon, along with the Israeli army's full withdrawal from Beirut, the agency reported, adding that “until Iran’s and the resistance’s position on these matters is satisfied, there will be no negotiations.” It further said that the Islamic Republic and allied militant groups in the region have placed on their agenda the “complete closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the activation of other fronts,” including the Bab el-Mandeb strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have previously launched attacks on passing vessels.
The development comes hours after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday (local time) ordered the military to strike Beirut's Dahieh district, the city’s southern suburb that is a Hezbollah stronghold. An Israeli official told CNN that plans to strike Beirut were coordinated with the US. Iranian FM slams Israel's military action in Lebanon Earlier today, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi slammed Israel's military offensive in Lebanon and said the ceasefire agreement between Tehran and Washington covers “all fronts, including Lebanon,” warning that any violation on one front will constitute a breach of the broader ceasefire arrangement. In a post on X, Araghchi wrote, "The ceasefire between Iran and the US is unequivocally a ceasefire on all fronts, including in Lebanon. Its violation on one front is a violation of the ceasefire on all fronts. The US and Israel are responsible for the consequences of any violation." Israel ramps up military offensive Araghchi's post came after Tel Aviv ramped up its military offensive in Beirut and is targeting Hezbollah sites.
Last week, the Israeli military urged residents in southern Lebanon to evacuate, following which the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out deadly strikes across southern Lebanon. On 31 May, Israel expanded its ground assault in Lebanon with its broadest incursion into the country for a quarter of a century as Hezbollah stepped up its attacks on Israel’s north, Bloomberg reported. Also Read | Israel Expands Ground Operations in Lebanon, Deepening Incursion According to the Israeli military, Hezbollah fired more than 300 “projectiles” at its soldiers in Lebanon and at northern Israel over the weekend. The latest escalation has shattered a brittle ceasefire declared after the Tehran-backed group attacked Israel in response to its war on Iran, which it launched with the US on 28 February. The escalation comes as the Islamic Republic insists on the urgent cessation of hostilities on all fronts in the region as part of a potential memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Tehran and Washington.
What does the MOU state? The current MOU includes a commitment from Tehran not to pursue a nuclear weapon. It also states that there will be a 60-day window to negotiate Iran's nuclear commitments and sanctions relief from Washington, with the first issues on the agenda being how to dispose of the Islamic Republic's enriched uranium stockpile and curb further enrichment, a part that US President Donald Trump wants to amend.
The BriefWire