US-Iran news highlights: Israel-Lebanon agree to ceasefire; Trump's ‘will go get’ Tehran's uranium claim amid talks

Iran attacks US bases highlights: Israel and Lebanon have agreed to implement a ceasefire following US-mediated talks in Washington, according to a joint statement released by the US State Department. The deal requires Hezbollah to fully stop firing and withdraw its fighters from southern Lebanon’s Litani region. Although a ceasefire framework was agreed earlier, fighting had continued on the ground.

Both sides have also agreed to continue direct negotiations to address remaining disputes and build confidence.

Trump on peace talks with Iran

US President Donald Trump said negotiations with Iran are going “very well” and that a deal could be reached “over the weekend”. “Anything can happen,” he said, speaking at the White House.

Trump also spoke of his intention to secure Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile. “I want to get it” and “We will go get it,” he said. He added that the Strait of Hormuz would reopen “immediately upon signing” an agreement with Tehran. “It will open up quickly.”

Bahrain arrests Iran-linked people

Bahrain has arrested 15 people accused of working for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, hours after Tehran launched strikes on US bases in the country, the Interior Ministry said.

The Kuwait International Airport on Wednesday suspended flight operations citing drone and missile attacks from Iran on the airport's T1 building. The Kuwait authorities also claimed severe damage to facilities at the airport, as well as injuries to several people due to the attacks.

Earlier today, the US said Iran launched two missiles at Kuwait that fell short or broke apart, and three missiles at Bahrain that were immediately intercepted.

This came after the US launched strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island. Iran then claimed to have struck the US military installations.

The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) claimed a “retaliatory” missile strike on a cargo vessel named MSC Sariska, alleging that the US first attacked an Iranian commercial ship in the Sea of Oman, according to a Press TV report.

‘Iran firing on commercial ships’

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio testified at a congressional hearing in Washington on Tuesday and defended the US blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, saying that Iran's “firing on commercial ships” was the trigger behind the move.

“The notion is that if no one's ships are going to get out, then Iran's ships aren't going to get out either... There wouldn't have been a blockade if Iran had agreed to do what they said they would do when the ceasefire kicked in,” Rubio said, referring to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

He also claimed that Iranian Navy was finished and the country's economy was also far worse.

Container vessel hit in the Gulf

Hours before the reported attempted attacks in Kuwait and Bahrain, two projectiles also hit a container vessel in the Gulf as it was leaving port in Iraq. According to a Reuters report from Tuesday, Iran claimed to have had targeted the Panama-flagged MSC Sariska V "belonging to the American-Zionist enemy" with a cruise missile.

In a Press TV report, the IRGC was quoted as saying that the container ship was targeted in retaliation for a US attack on the Iranian vessel in the Sea of Oman.

After claiming to have targeted the US Navy's 5th Fleet in Bahrain and another country in its attack, without naming Kuwait, the IRGC cited its previous warning of a “more severe” response. “We had previously warned that in case of aggression, the response would be different and more severe, and we acted accordingly," the Guard said in its statement, according to AP.

Where does the Iran-US ceasefire stand?

Claims of fresh attacks and counterattacks come amid stalled peace talks between the US and Iran. While reports said Tehran has stopped communicating with Washington on extending the ceasefire, President Donald Trump disputed the claim and said talks were continuing.

“The conversations between us have been going on continuously, including four days ago, three days ago, two days ago, one day ago and today,” Trump said in a social media post. "Where they lead, one never knows, but as I told Iran, ‘It’s time, one way or another, for you to make a Deal."

However, news agency AP reported, citing an official, that Iran had not communicated at all on Tuesday and remains firm on its demand for a ceasefire in in Lebanon for negotiations to continue.