DUBAI: US President Donald Trump and Iranian officials issued contradictory statements on Tuesday regarding negotiations to end the Middle East war, even as intensifying combat in southern Lebanon claimed the lives of both UN peacekeepers and Israeli soldiers.
Israel is trying to push Hezbollah militants, who have fired rockets and drones across the border, out of southern Lebanon in a campaign that Israeli officials suggest could become a prolonged occupation.
The UN Security Council is set to discuss the situation after three UN peacekeepers were killed in southern Lebanon in less than 24 hours, although it's not clear who was responsible. Israel said early Tuesday that another four of its soldiers had been killed in the offensive.
Trump said the US is negotiating with Iran's parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, in an interview with the New York Post published Monday. The former Revolutionary Guard commander was previously floated as Washington's negotiating partner, but has denied Iran is talking to the US and said Pakistan-facilitated discussions were merely a cover for American troop deployments.
Trump also threatened widespread destruction of Iran's energy resources and other vital infrastructure, including desalination plants, if a deal to end the war with Tehran is not reached “shortly.”
US gas prices jumped past an average of USD 4 a gallon on Tuesday for the first time since 2022 as fuel prices continue to soar worldwide. US stocks edged higher in shaky trading Monday as oil prices keep climbing because of uncertainty about when the war could end.
Satellite photos analyzed by The Associated Press show damage after an Iranian attack targeting Qatar's Al Udeid Air Base.
The March 15 photo from Planet Labs PBC shows damage to one of the massive air base's buildings.
Qatar and the US have not acknowledged the damage.
Al Udeid serves as the forward headquarters of the US military's Central Command, which is prosecuting the war.
Information has so far been scarce about the damage being done across the Middle East, particularly inside closed military facilities, since the war started Feb 28.
The images come from Planet Labs PBC, a San Francisco-based firm used by media outlets, including the AP.
Planet Labs has put a two-week delay on its imagery becoming public, citing concerns its imagery could be used by “adversarial actors.”
Egypt Foreign Minister Badr Abdelattay briefed foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Jordan about the latest round of mediation efforts.
Abdelattay and Pakistani and Turkish counterparts met over the weekend in Islamabad for talks aimed at bringing Iran and the United States back to the negotiating table, according to Egypt's Foreign Ministry.
Abdelattay discussed the meeting's outcome and ongoing efforts to stop the war with his counterparts, Egypt's ministry said without elaborating.
Israel's military spokesperson says 10 soldiers have died fighting in Lebanon since the start of the Israeli invasion, including four deaths announced Tuesday.
As of Friday, the military said 261 troops had been injured, 22 seriously, in fighting since the start of the latest war.
The United Nations' special rapporteur on Iran denounced executions being carried out by Tehran.
Mai Sato made the comment on X after two more members of the Iranian exile group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq had been executed Tuesday.
Two others were hanged Monday.
“Given the ongoing internet shutdown, it remains unclear who else has been or is being executed,” she wrote. “What is clear is that executions are being used as a means of suppressing political dissent amid war.”
An Israeli soldier has been dismissed after making “inappropriate comments” to a CNN crew, Israel's military spokesperson said Tuesday.
The solider's battalion assaulted and detained the crew in the West Bank last week. CNN said one of the soldiers put producer Cyril Theophilos in a chokehold during the encounter.
It was not clear which soldier was dismissed. There were multiple soldiers filmed by CNN claiming the Israeli-occupied West Bank belonged to them. Other soldiers involved in the incident received reprimands, the spokesperson said.
A formal police investigation was opened into allegations of violence against another soldier, the spokesperson said.
The military's chief of staff has suspended the battalion from its current deployment.
Three Chinese vessels recently passed through the Strait of Hormuz “through coordination with relevant parties,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said.
“We appreciate the assistance provided by the relevant parties,” she said without naming them.
She repeated China's call for an immediate ceasefire, saying the strait is a vital corridor for goods and energy trade.
The defence ministers of Italy and France expressed “deep and profound concern” Tuesday over the deteriorating security in Lebanon.
The joint statement by Guido Crosetto and Catherine Vautrin made particular reference to recent attacks targeting personnel from the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.
In a phone conversation Monday they stressed the “unacceptability of such incidents and the increasing risks faced by the personnel deployed in the mission,” the statement said.
The ministers agreed on the strategic importance of UNIFIL, saying Lebanon's stability constitutes “an indispensable pillar for the balance of the entire Mediterranean basin.”
They confirmed Italy and France will continue operating in close coordination to ensure the safety of international personnel, the protection of peace and support for Lebanese authorities.
Authorities in Dubai said Tuesday morning they “contained” a Kuwaiti oil tanker after it came under attack from Iran.
Officials said there was “no oil leakage and no injuries reported.”
Two more members of the Iranian exile group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq were hanged Tuesday in Iran, state media reported.
The two men were identified as Babak Alipour and Pouya Ghobadi.
Amnesty International has said Tehran's Revolutionary Court convicted the men on charges of armed rebellion against the state “following a grossly unfair trial in October 2024” after they were subjected to torture.
Two other MEK members had been hanged Monday over the same case.
The operator of a Thai cargo ship struck by a projectile near the Strait of Hormuz said a search team was able to board the vessel but did not locate its missing three crew members.
The Mayuree Naree was disabled after being hit just north of Oman earlier this month.