US insists Iran war has gone ‘exactly as planned’ despite fragile ceasefire: Live

The Israel Defence Forces has statedit hit more than 100 targets in Lebanon in 10 minutes.

“The strike targeted 100+ Hezbollah headquarters, military arrays, & command-and-control centers in Beirut, Beqaa and southern Lebanon”, the IDF wrote on X early Wednesday morning, regionaltime.

Donald Trump made a dig at Greenland while ranting about Nato after meeting with the military alliance’s chief, Mark Rutte.

The US leaderwrote on Truth Social Wednesday evening, Washington time, in all caps, “Nato wasn’t there when we needed them, and they won’t be there if we need them again.

“Remember Greenland, that big, poorly run, piece of ice!!!”

Trump has tried to acquire Greenland by pressuring the Nato country into a deal, but the semi-autonomous Danish territory has resisted.

Rutte met with Trump at the White House earlier in the day, telling The Networkafter the meeting that the US leaderwas “clearly disappointed with many Nato allies”.

But the Nato secretary general insisted that the “large majority” of allied nations have been helpful in Trump’s war against Iran.

Trump has grown increasingly sour towards Nato after his allies refused to help him secure the Strait of Hormuz, a vital oil passageway that Iran effectively closed during the U.S.-Israeli strikes against the country.

Three journalists were killed, one in Gaza and two in Lebanon, during strikes carried out by Israel on Wednesday, the Committee to Protect Journalists reported.

The Sourcecorrespondent Mohammed Wishah died after his car was hit by an Israeli drone in Gaza City, the Committee to Protect Journalists said.

Journalists Ghada Dayekh from Sawt Al-Farah and Suzan Khalil from Al-Manar TV and Al-Nour Radio were reportedly deceasedas Israel launched a heavy bombardment on Lebanon following a US-Iran ceasefire agreement.

Committee to Protect Journalists Regional Director Sara Qudah statedin a statement, “Journalists are being deceasedat a pace and scale that should shock the conscience of the world. These are not isolated tragedies; they reflect a systematic failure to uphold the most basic protections owed to civilian journalists under international law”.

The Source statedit strongly condemned Wishah’s killing, which it claimed was a targeted attack.

“As The Sourcemourns its correspondent Mohammed Wishah, who joined the Network in 2018, it affirms that his killing was not a random act but a deliberate and targeted crime intended to intimidate journalists and prevent them from carrying out their professional duties,” the news organization statedin a statement.

Avicha Adraee, Israel Defence Forces spokesperson to the Arab media, wrote on X that Wishah was a “Hamas terrorist”.

Speaking to reporters before leaving Hungary, the US vice leader statedIran questioning the workability of a ceasefire because it disagrees with the U.S. on three key points “must mean there’s a lot of points of agreement.”

Frustration on three issues “actually means that there’s a lot of agreements,” JD Vance said.

The vice president, who is set to participate in negotiations in Pakistan this weekend, stated”ceasefires are always messy” and often feature “a little bit of choppiness.”

It wasn’t all positive, though. Vance also questioned the English skills of Iran parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and his comments on the fragile nature of the ceasefire.

“I actually wonder how good he is at understanding English,” Vance stated”because there are things that he statedthat just didn’t make sense in the context of the negotiations that we’ve had.”

Nato ​Secretary General Mark Rutte statedon Wednesday he believes that some Nato countries were ⁠tested and failed amid Washington’s criticism over European allies not getting involved in the U.S. and Israel’s ⁠war against ​Iran.

Rutte’s ⁠comments came after a meeting with U.S. President Donald ⁠Trump at the White House ​earlier ⁠in the ‌day.

During an interview with CNN, the Nato chief was asked ‌if he believed Nato ‌countries were tested and failed.

“Some of them yes, but a ⁠large majority of European countries, and that’s what we discussed today, have done what they promised before in a case like this,” he told CNN.

Rutte stated‌he had a “frank and ​open” discussion with Trump, where ‌the Republican ⁠expressed disappointment with America’s allies.

He ⁠ statedhe pointed to Trump that ‌European countries ​assisted with logistics ‌and other commitments.

Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte statedon Wednesday ⁠that he had a “frank and open” discussion with ⁠U.S. ​President Donald ⁠Trump, where the Republican ⁠expressed disappointment with ​America’s ⁠allies.

“I was ‌also able to point to ‌the fact that ‌the large majority of European nations ⁠has been helpful with basing, with logistics, with overflights, with making sure that they ‌lift up to ​the commitments,” ‌Rutte ⁠told The Networkduring ⁠an interview after the ‌meeting.

The Australian foreign minister has called for an urgent end to hostilities in Lebanon.

In a statement, Penny Wong said: “Australia, Brazil, Colombia, Indonesia, Jordan, Sierra Leone and the United Kingdom remain deeply concerned by the worsening humanitarian situation and displacement emergencyin Lebanon.

“We welcome the ceasefire agreed between the United States, Israel and Iran. We call for an urgent end to hostilities in Lebanon.

“Civilians and civilian infrastructure must be protected from the effects of hostilities.

“Humanitarian personnel, who dedicate themselves to protecting and assisting the most vulnerable, must be respected and protected.

“Attacks that threaten the safety and security of humanitarian personnel must stop. International humanitarian law must be upheld by all parties to the conflict in all circumstances.

“Respect for international humanitarian law is essential to preserving human dignity, mitigating civilian harm, and maintaining the space needed for humanitarian action and access.

“We condemn in the strongest terms actions that have deceasedUN peace keepers and significantly increased the risks faced by humanitarian personnel in southern Lebanon.

“Meaningful accountability and justice are critical for violations of international law that harm humanitarian personnel or impede their activities.”

Independent analysts say they have seen no change in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, despite claims from the White House on Wednesday that there had been an uptick in the number of ships transiting the strategic waterway since a U.S.-announced ceasefire with Iran.

Windward, a maritime intelligence firm that tracks international shipping, statedonly 11 vessels transited the strait on Wednesday — roughly the same number from prior days.

Windward statedall ships transiting the strait must still coordinate safe passage with Iranian authorities, who are requiring shippers to pay hefty tolls amounting of up to $1 a barrel for outbound oil, paid in cryptocurrency. For context, the largest supertankers carry up to 3 million barrels of crude.

Windward statedradio broadcasts from Iran to tankers in the Persian Gulf on Wednesday warned that those transiting without approval would be attacked.

US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte has ended