US-Iran ceasefire: Trump says ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by 3 weeks

Israel says it struck Hezbollah missile launcher

Israel's military said it struck a missile launcher in Lebanon that had fired into Israel on Thursday in an attack that Israeli air defenses intercepted. Hezbollah claimed the attack.

Israel's announcement of the strike came soon after Trump said the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire had been extended by three weeks.

Hezbollah said it had launched rockets toward Israel in retaliation for an Israeli strike on the Lebanese village of Yater. Two people, including a child, were wounded by Israeli artillery shelling there, said Lebanon's public health ministry.

The ministry also said that an Israeli airstrike killed three people farther north, in the area of Nabatieh. The Israeli military said it had killed three militants who had launched a missile toward an Israeli warplane.

Trump: US could make a deal with Iran 'right now' — 'We have total control of the Strait'

US President Donald Trump said he could make a deal with Iran "right now," but he wants it to be "everlasting," not temporary.

"We have total control of the Strait... They would have opened it up three days ago. They came to us and they said, 'we will agree to open the Strait.'

"And all my people are happy. Everybody was happy — except me," he told Fox.

"I said...if we open the Strait, that means they're going to make $500 million a day. I don't want them to make $500 million a day until they settle this thing."

Trump insists Iran should not have a nuclear weapon and makes the handover of Iran's enriched uranium as a key precondition for a peace deal.

Iranian officials, including Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghei, have strongly stated that Iran will not transfer its enriched uranium to any foreign country, particularly the United States, calling such proposals a "non-starter". 

Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors thank Trump for historic’ moment

Speaking alongside Trump in the Oval Office, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter said Israel and Lebanon “have never been next to each other more than today.”

Leiter thanked Trump and Vice President JD Vance for a day he said was decades in the making.

“We are going to keep going, working for peace. Let’s hope we will get it as soon as possible,” he said.

Lebanese Ambassador to the U.S. Nada Hamadeh Moawad thanked Trump for presiding over “this historic moment.” She added: “I think with your help, with your support, we can make Lebanon great again.”

Ceasefire in Lebanon extended by 3 weeks: Trump 

President Donald Trump says a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has been extended by three weeks after hosting a meeting of the two countries’ representatives at the White House.

Israel and Lebanon held ambassador-level talks and President Trump greeted both representatives upon their arrival at the White House.

US troops board vessel carrying Iranian oil: Pentagon

The Pentagon said US forces boarded M/T Majestic X, a crude tanker suspected of carrying Iranian oil, while sailing in the Indian Ocean. The Trump administration warned that ships providing material support to Iran in international waters would be targeted as part of "global maritime enforcement".

USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier arrives in Mideast

The USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier has arrived in the Middle East, the US military said Thursday, bringing the number of the massive American warships operating in the region to three.

The Bush was sailing "in the Indian Ocean in the US Central Command area of responsibility, April 23," the military command responsible for the Middle East said in a post on X that included an image of the carrier with its deck packed with warplanes.

Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) sails in the Indian Ocean in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, April 23. pic.twitter.com/oDcTM6YMLF

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) April 23, 2026

A second carrier - the USS Gerald R. Ford - was operating in the Red Sea on Thursday, while a third - the USS Abraham Lincoln - is also in the region, according to social media posts by CENTCOM.

Get updated faster and for FREE: Download the Gulf News app now - simply click here.

Trump to meet Lebanon, Israel envoys at White House talks

US President Donald Trump will meet Israeli and Lebanese envoys when they hold a second round of peace talks Thursday, a US official said.

"The ambassador-level talks between Israel and Lebanon will now take place at the White House," the official said on customary condition of anonymity. "President Trump will greet both representatives upon their arrival."

Get updated faster and for FREE: Download the Gulf News app now - simply click here.

Iran rejects claims of internal divide, asserts unity

Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf on Thursday strongly dismissed claims of internal divisions within the country, responding to remarks attributed to US President Donald Trump.

In a post shared on X, Ghalibaf asserted that there is no divide between political factions in Iran, emphasising national unity and allegiance to the country's leadership.

"In Iran, there are no radicals or moderates; we are all 'Iranian' and 'revolutionary,'" he stated in a post on X, adding that the nation stands united in the face of external pressures.

He further underscored what he described as "iron unity" between the Iranian people and government, along with "complete obedience" to the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, Mojtaba Khamenei.

"With the iron unity of the nation and government, with complete obedience to the Supreme Leader of the Revolution," the post added.

Ghalibaf also issued a warning to adversaries, stating that Iran would make any "aggressor criminal regret his actions."

He concluded his statement with a message of national solidarity: "One God, one leader, one nation, and one path; that path being the path to victory for Iran, dearer than life."

Get updated faster and for FREE: Download the Gulf News app now - simply click here.

US‑Israel war on Iran: Recent developments

Day 55: Trump: US could make a deal with Iran 'right now'

Day 54: Trump extends US-Iran ceasefire

Day 53: Pakistan urges the US and Iran to extend their ceasefire

Day 52: Fighting to resume as ceasefire ends Wednesday: Trump

Day 51: Iran refuses new round of talks, say reports

Day 50: Indian ships reverse course in Strait of Hormuz

Day 49: Trump says Iran agrees to 'never' close Hormuz strait again

Day 48: Trump: Iran agreed to hand over its enriched uranium

Day 47: US optimistic about reaching peace deal with Iran

Day 46: 2 days to US-Iran talks in Pakistan? Trump thinks so

Day 45: US, Iran discuss 'another round' of direct talks

Day 44: US to begin 'blockade' of Iranian ports on Monday

Day 43: 3-way talks with the US and Iran begin in Pakistan

Day 42: Trump says Iran has 'no cards' as Vance heads for talks

Day 41: Kuwait condemns drone attacks, US warns vs Hormuz toll

Day 40: Trump agrees to suspend attack on Iran by two weeks