Hezbollah cites “deadlock” in negotiations with Lebanon and Israel
Hezbollah rejects direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, the first in decades between the two countries that do not have diplomatic relations.
These negotiations focus on the thorny issue of the group’s disarmament, which Hezbollah refuses.
“The direct negotiations” with Israel did not lead to a ceasefire and have pushed the Lebanese authorities “into a deadlock (…) that will lead them from compromise to compromise and without a result,” said Hezbollah deputy Hussein Hajj Hassan on Sunday.
“Power in Lebanon has plunged the country into (…) very serious crises, since it will not be able to execute what (Israel) wants, especially regarding the disarmament of Hezbollah,” he added.
Pakistani minister in Tehran “to facilitate” Iran-US talks
The Pakistani Interior Minister arrived in Tehran on Saturday “to facilitate” peace talks, currently at a standstill, between Iran and the United States, Iranian media reported.
This visit comes just days after the visit to Tehran by the Chief of the Pakistani army, powerful Marshal Asim Munir.
Iran claims discussing with European countries on Ormuz
Iran claimed yesterday that European countries were in discussions with them to obtain permissions to cross the Strait of Hormuz.
“After the passage of ships from countries in East Asia, notably China, Japan, and Pakistan, we have received information today that Europeans have begun negotiations with the Revolutionary Guards’ navy” to cross the passage, announced Iranian state television without specifying the names of these countries.
Israeli soldier killed in southern Lebanon
An Israeli soldier was killed in southern Lebanon, the army announced yesterday, bringing to 21 the number of deaths in its ranks since the start of the war with the pro-Iranian Hezbollah in early March.
Aircraft carrier Gerald Ford returns to the United States after a “record” mission
The American aircraft carrier Gerald Ford, dispatched by President Trump to the Middle East before the start of the war in Iran, returned to the United States on Saturday, setting a record for a mission at sea, the Pentagon announced.
The world’s largest aircraft carrier returned to its home port in Norfolk, on the east coast of the United States, welcomed by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, the US Department of Defense said on social media.
Gerald Ford completed a 326-day mission, the longest for a carrier strike group since the Vietnam War, the Pentagon specified.
Series of Israeli strikes carried out in Lebanon
Hello everyone and welcome to this live coverage dedicated to the developments of the conflict in the Middle East on this Sunday, May 17.
Israel carried out a series of strikes on southern Lebanon on Saturday, despite the extension of the ceasefire the day before, for an additional month and a half. The official Lebanese National News Agency (ANI) reported that about twenty villages were hit.
