PARIS, April 10: The latest developments in the Middle East war:
- Air raid sirens in Israel -
Air raid alerts sounded across Israel, including in the commercial hub of Tel Aviv and the southern coastal city of Ashdod, after rocket fire from Lebanon.
There were no immediate reports of casualties, but Israeli media reported that air-defence systems had intercepted at least one incoming rocket.
Earlier Friday, Hezbollah said it had launched three waves of rocket and drone strikes against Israeli soldiers on both sides of the border as well as a town in northern Israel.
- Iran leader issues new written message -
Iran's new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said in his latest written message that the Islamic republic did not want war with the United States and Israel but would protect its rights as a nation, state television reported.
"We will not renounce our legitimate rights under any circumstances, and in this respect, we consider the entire resistance front as a whole," he added, in an apparent reference to Lebanon, where Israel is fighting with Tehran's ally Hezbollah.
Khamenei has still not been seen in public since being appointed to succeed his father, who was killed in the initial wave of strikes on February 28.
War in the Middle East: latest developments
- Trump says Iran doing 'poor job' on Hormuz -
US President Donald Trump accused Iran of doing a "very poor job" of allowing oil through the Strait of Hormuz and of breaching the terms of their fragile two-week ceasefire agreement.
"Iran is doing a very poor job, dishonorable some would say, of allowing Oil to go through the Strait of Hormuz," Trump said on his Truth Social platform. "That is not the agreement we have!"
- Trump warns Iran against Hormuz tolls -
Trump also warned Iran against imposing a toll for ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
"There are reports that Iran is charging fees to tankers going through the Hormuz Strait -- They better not be and, if they are, they better stop now!" Trump said on his Truth Social platform.
In a second message just a few minutes later, Trump added that "very quickly, you'll see Oil start flowing, with or without the help of Iran."
- Israel issues evacuation order for Beirut -
Israel's military warned residents of Beirut's southern suburbs, long a stronghold of Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, of imminent strikes and called for them to evacuate.
The World Health Organization urged Israel to cancel the evacuation order, saying the district it intends to target is home to two hospitals.
The announcement came a day after Israel carried out its largest wave of strikes since the start of its war with Hezbollah on March 2, killing more than 300 people and wounding over 1,000, according to Lebanon's health ministry.
- Trump, Starmer seek 'practical plan' on Hormuz -
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Trump called "for a practical plan" to get shipping moving again through the Strait of Hormuz following the US-Iran ceasefire, the UK leader's office said.
The two leaders "agreed that now there is a ceasefire in place and agreement to open the Strait, we are at the next stage of finding a resolution," according to Downing Street.
"The leaders discussed the need for a practical plan to get shipping moving again as quickly as possible," and agreed to speak again.
- Israel-Lebanon talks planned in Washington next week -
Israel and Lebanon will hold talks next week in Washington after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered direct talks, a US official said Thursday.
The negotiations will come soon after the United States and Iran are set to open talks in Pakistan.
Israel has said that the Lebanon invasion, in which it is targeting Iranian-backed Hezbollah, is not affected by a two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran.
But a Hezbollah lawmaker reiterated his group's rejection of any direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel.
- Netanyahu threatens Hezbollah -
Earlier, Netanyahu said Israel would keep hitting Hezbollah "wherever necessary".
"We are continuing to strike Hezbollah with force, precision, and determination," the prime minister said on his personal X account.
- Khamenei tributes -
Thousands of Iranians rallied in a tribute to former supreme leader Ali Khamenei, killed on the first day of the war.
Holding portraits of their deceased leader and waving the Islamic republic's flag, Khamenei supporters took part in rallies across the country after he died in the US-Israeli attack on February 28.
