US-Israel-Iran War Ceasefire News Live Updates: Israel-Lebanon ceasefire extended by 3 weeks; Trump to invite leaders to the White House

Iran has executed a man who held a managerial position in civil defence and was accused of spying for Israel, according to Reuters.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received a report of an incident about 15 nautical miles northeast of Oman, where a container ship was approached by an IRGC gunboat.

The vessel was later fired upon, sustaining heavy damage to its bridge.

No fires or environmental impact were reported, and all crew members were safe, according to the report.

Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA) reported that Israeli forces carried out demolitions of several homes in the southern town of Al-Bayyadah, as cited by Al Jazeera.

According to the agency, the blasts triggered by the demolitions were so powerful that they were heard across the nearby city of Tyre at dawn.

A fresh assessment by the Pentagon’s intelligence wing indicates that Iran still retains its “key military capabilities,” challenging earlier claims by US officials about severe degradation of Tehran’s forces.

According to an NBC News report, the findings contradict statements by President Donald Trump and US secretary of war Pete Hegseth, who had suggested Iran’s military had suffered irreversible losses, including claims that its air force was “destroyed” and navy “decimated.”

The report says Iran’s armed forces remain a significant regional power despite recent operations.

Amid this, Trump announced an extension of the ceasefire, saying it followed a request from Pakistan’s leadership to delay a planned US strike. He added that the blockade of Iranian ports would continue until Tehran presents a “unified proposal.”

However, Iran reacted sharply, with an adviser to the parliament speaker dismissing the extension as meaningless and calling for military escalation, warning that the move could be a tactic to buy time.

The Trump administration has moved to suspend shipments of US dollars to Iraq and halt key security cooperation programmes with its military, in what officials describe as a calculated effort to pressure Baghdad into curbing the influence of powerful Iran-backed armed groups, as cited by the Wall Street Journal.

US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said the blockade of Iranian ports is aimed at cutting off the country’s key revenue sources by restricting maritime trade.

In a post on X, he said the move would lead to storage at Kharg Island — a major hub handling about 90% of Iran’s oil exports — reaching capacity, forcing oil wells to shut down.

"As @POTUS has made clear, the United States Navy will continue the blockade of Iranian ports. In a matter of days, Kharg Island storage will be full and the fragile Iranian oil wells will be shut in. Constraining Iran’s maritime trade directly targets the regime’s primary revenue lifelines. The @USTreasury will continue to apply maximum pressure through Economic Fury to systematically degrade Tehran’s ability to generate, move, and repatriate funds. Any person or vessel facilitating these flows—through covert trade and finance—risks exposure to US sanctions", Bessent wrote.

Bessent also reiterated that Iranian funds will remain frozen and warned that any individual or vessel helping channel money to Iran would face US sanctions.

Iran has suggested that the United States may be preparing to ease tensions over its naval blockade, according to Press TV citing Iran’s UN ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani.

Iravani said Tehran has received indications that Washington could be ready to end the blockade. He also urged the United Nations to press the US to immediately release the Iranian commercial vessel Touska, along with its crew, calling its capture in the Sea of Oman a “hostile and unlawful act.”

In a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and the Security Council, Iravani raised concerns over what he described as violations of international law, including the targeting of Iranian ships.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump claimed Iran is privately pushing to reopen the Strait of Hormuz due to heavy economic losses, despite its public stance. He said intermediaries had conveyed Tehran’s interest in reopening the waterway, but warned that doing so without concessions would weaken US leverage.

The Strait of Hormuz remains a key flashpoint, with disruptions continuing to impact global energy markets and regional stability.

Iranian hard-liners held rallies on late Tuesday after talks with the United States broke down, with ballistic missile launchers brought to one of the events.

Footage aired by state television showed men carrying Kalashnikov-style rifles riding atop a missile resembling a Qadr ballistic missile in Tehran.

Such missiles are capable of releasing bomblets known as cluster munitions, which Iran has previously used during attacks on Israel.

Iran’s education minister Alireza Kazemi said 775 out of 1,300 schools damaged in US-Israeli attacks have been repaired, according to IRNA news agency.

He said around 20 schools were completely destroyed, with the worst-hit areas including Tehran, Kermanshah, Isfahan and Hormozgan. Repairs to the most severely damaged institutions are expected to be completed by October.

Kazemi added that education has continued throughout the war, either in person or remotely, including via the Iranian Television School.

He also said counselling support was provided, and schools held commemorations for the 170 people killed in the missile strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh Girls’ School in Minab, most of them students and teachers.

The United Arab Emirates thanked US President Donald Trump for mentioning a possible currency swap, while stressing its financial strength amid ongoing uncertainty over the Iran war.

In a statement, the UAE Embassy in Washington said any suggestion that the country needs external financial backing “misreads the facts,” highlighting over $2 trillion in sovereign investment assets and more than $300 billion in foreign currency reserves.

The UAE said its banking sector also remains strong, with around $1.5 trillion in deposits.

The remarks come as disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz have impacted oil flows, while the conflict has also affected business activity in Dubai and operations of major carriers like Emirates and Etihad.

US President Donald Trump said the extension of the ceasefire was necessary due to what he described as divisions within Iran’s leadership.

In a social media post, he said the leadership was “seriously fractured,” adding that such divisions had come “not unexpectedly.”

Trump also said that while some Iranian officials are willing to make a deal, the killing of several top leaders has complicated the situation. “We’ve taken out their leaders… which does complicate things in one way, but these leaders are much more rational,” he said in an interview.

The White House said US Vice President JD Vance will not travel to Pakistan on Tuesday following the president’s decision to extend the ceasefire and await a proposal from Iran.

In a statement, the White House said the US negotiating delegation would also not be making the trip.

No further details were provided on the possibility of future in-person meetings between the two sides.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said the US decision to extend the ceasefire is “an important step toward de-escalation,” according to his spokesperson.

He said the move would create “critical space for diplomacy and confidence-building” between Iran and the United States.

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric urged all sides to build on the momentum, avoid actions that could undermine the ceasefire, and engage constructively to reach a lasting resolution.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard aerospace chief, general Majid Mousavi, has warned the Gulf nations that any support towards “US aggression” against Iran would trigger serious consequences for the region, including damage to oil infrastructure.

While talking to the Iranian media, Mousavi cautioned neighbouring countries that if they let the US use their territory for attacks against Iran, they would have to “say goodbye to oil production in the Middle East.”

“If southern neighbours allow the enemy to use their facilities to attack Iran, they should say goodbye to oil production in the Middle East region,” he said.

Mahdi Mohammadi, an adviser to Iran’s parliament speaker, has dismissed US President Donald Trump’s decision to extend the ceasefire, calling it meaningless and warning of a possible escalation.

In remarks shared on a post on X, Mohammadi said “the losing side cannot dictate terms” and argued that the continued US blockade is effectively no different from active bombardment, and should be met with a military response.

"Trump's extension of the ceasefire means nothing. The losing side cannot set the terms. Continuing the siege is no different from bombing and must be responded to militarily. Meanwhile, Trump's extension of the ceasefire certainly means buying time for a surprise strike. It is time for Iran to take the initiative," he wrote.

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday welcomed the extension of the ceasefire in the US-Israeli war with Iran and thanked US President Donald Trump for accepting Pakistan’s request to allow diplomacy more time.

Sharif said the extension would support ongoing efforts to reach a negotiated settlement to the conflict.

"I sincerely hope ⁠that both ‌sides will continue to observe ⁠the ceasefire and be able to conclude a comprehensive ‘Peace Deal’ during the second round of talks scheduled at Islamabad for a permanent ‌end to the conflict," Sharif said in post on ⁠X.

Trump announced the ceasefire extension to provide additional time for negotiations and said it would remain in place until Iran submits a proposal.

US crude futures moved higher in early trading on Wednesday despite Washington’s decision to indefinitely extend a ceasefire with Iran, as uncertainty surrounding peace negotiations continued and the Strait of Hormuz remained effectively shut.

West Texas Intermediate futures climbed to as high as $90.70 a barrel and were up 59 cents, or 0.7%, at $90.26 by 2215 GMT. The benchmark contract had gained 2.8% on Tuesday.

US President Donald Trump said he would indefinitely prolong the ceasefire with Iran just hours before it was due to expire, allowing both sides to continue peace talks aimed at ending a conflict that has killed thousands and rattled the global economy.

Trump’s declaration appeared to be unilateral, and it was not immediately clear whether Iran or key US ally Israel would support extending the truce, which began two weeks ago.

He also said the US Navy would maintain its blockade of Iranian ports and coastline, a move Tehran has described as an act of war.

There was no immediate response from Iran’s senior leadership. However, Tasnim News Agency reported that Tehran had not requested a ceasefire extension and repeated earlier threats to break the US blockade by force.

Shipping activity through the Strait of Hormuz, which usually carries around 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies, remained largely stalled on Tuesday. Shipping data showed only three vessels passed through the waterway over the previous 24 hours.

US President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would indefinitely extend the ceasefire with Iran just hours before it was due to expire, allowing negotiations to continue over ending a seven-week conflict that has killed thousands and disrupted the global economy.

Reversing earlier warnings of renewed military action, Trump said he had accepted a request from Pakistan, which has been mediating the talks, "to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such ‌time as their leaders ⁠and ⁠representatives can come up with a unified proposal."

The announcement appeared to come unilaterally, with no immediate indication that Iran or key US ally Israel had agreed to prolong the truce, which began two weeks ago. Trump also said the US Navy would continue its blockade of Iranian ports and coastline, a move Tehran has described as an act of war.

Iran’s top leadership did not immediately respond. However, Tasnim News Agency reported that Tehran had not requested any ceasefire extension and repeated earlier threats to break the blockade by force.

Mahdi Mohammadi, an adviser to parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, dismissed Trump’s announcement.

"Trump's ceasefire extension is certainly a ploy to buy time for a surprise strike," Mahdi Mohammadi, the parliament speaker's adviser, said in a statement on social media, calling the U.S. blockade an ⁠ongoing military aggression. "The time for Iran to take the initiative has come."

Trump said the ceasefire would remain in place until Iran's "proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other."

The move marked another last-minute retreat from Trump’s repeated threats to bomb Iranian power plants. António Guterres and others have condemned such threats, saying international humanitarian law prohibits attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure.

Trump, whose administration joined Israel in launching the war against Iran on February 28, said he chose to prolong the ceasefire because "the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so," referring to US-Israeli assassinations of senior Iranian leaders, including former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was succeeded by his son.

The US blockade has become a major obstacle in efforts to arrange a second round of peace talks in Islamabad.

Only hours before announcing the extension, Trump had said he was unwilling to continue the temporary truce and that US forces were "raring to go." In an interview with CNBC, he said Washington held a strong negotiating position and would secure what he described as "a great deal."

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif thanked Trump for "graciously accepting our request to extend the ceasefire to allow ongoing diplomatic efforts to take their course."

"I sincerely hope that both sides will continue to observe the ceasefire and be able to conclude a comprehensive 'Peace Deal' during the second round of talks scheduled at Islamabad for a permanent end to the conflict," Sharif wrote.

It remains unclear when, or whether, that second round of negotiations will take place.