Trump says talks with Iran continue, Iran halts message exchanges

U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that the U.S.-Iran talks "are continuing, at a rapid pace," following his announcement that Israel and Hezbollah have agreed to halt fire, reported Xinhua.

Trump's remarks came hours after Tehran said it was suspending its exchange of messages with Washington through mediators in protest of Israel's military operations in Lebanon.

"Talks are continuing, at a rapid pace, with the Islamic Republic of Iran," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

In an earlier post on Monday, Trump said he had spoken by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and with representatives who conveyed messages from Hezbollah, claiming that both sides had agreed to halt hostilities.

Israel would not send troops to Beirut, Lebanon's capital, Trump added, describing his call with Netanyahu as "very productive."

On Sunday, Israel claimed that its forces had captured southern Lebanon's Beaufort Ridge, including the strategic castle at its summit -- an area located beyond the "security zone" Israel has maintained since the ceasefire with Lebanon.

The move, which media reports called Israel's "deepest advance into Lebanon" in over 20 years, drew condemnation from across the Arab world as well as from France, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Iran has halted talks and exchanges of draft proposals with the United States via mediation in protest against Israel's actions in Lebanon, Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported Monday, said Xinhua.

"There will be no dialogue" until Iran's demands on "immediate cessation" of Israeli operations in Gaza and Lebanon are secured, it reported.

A ceasefire in Lebanon is one of Iran's preconditions for accepting the April truce with the United States, but the truce has now been violated on all fronts, it reported.

It added that Iran and its allies have determined "on the agenda to completely block the Strait of Hormuz, and to activate other fronts, including the Bab el-Mandeb Strait," in retaliation.

Earlier in the day, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said in a social media post that violating the ceasefire between Iran and the United States on any front equals violating it on all fronts.

Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said the U.S. anti-Iran naval blockade and Israel's escalation of "war crimes" in Lebanon are "clear evidence of U.S. noncompliance with the ceasefire."

Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told a weekly press conference that U.S. "new and contradictory" demands have prolonged the process of negotiations to end the war.

Iran and the United States reached a ceasefire on April 8 after 40 days of fighting. They then held one round of peace talks in Pakistan's Islamabad on April 11 and 12, which failed to yield an agreement.

Over the past weeks, the two sides reportedly exchanged several proposed plans outlining conditions for peace through Pakistan's mediation, and are working to finalize a memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war.

Israel and Lebanon reached a ceasefire in mid-April, despite which Israel has continued near-daily strikes in Lebanon, while Hezbollah has launched attacks on Israeli military positions.

On Sunday, Israel claimed having captured southern Lebanon's Beaufort Ridge, including the strategic castle at its summit, an area beyond the "security zone" Israel has maintained since its ceasefire with Lebanon.

The move, which media reports called Israel's "deepest advance into Lebanon" in over 20 years, was condemned by the Arab world, as well as France, Germany and Britain.

Earlier on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a joint statement that they had ordered the military to strike Beirut's southern suburbs, citing "repeated Hezbollah violations" of the ceasefire in Lebanon. Katz later vowed to turn the area of southern Lebanon's Litani River into a military-controlled zone, and to continue striking Beirut until Hezbollah stops attacks.

Cargo vessel attacked in Gulf near Iraqi port: UKMTO

A cargo vessel was struck by an unidentified projectile and suffered a large explosion while transiting deep in the Gulf, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Monday.

According to the UKMTO, the projectile hit the vessel's starboard side, triggering a significant explosion. No environmental pollution or other environmental impact has been reported so far.

The advisory did not disclose the vessel's name, nationality, or whether there were any casualties.

An image attached to the advisory showed that the incident occurred about 40 nautical miles southeast of Umm Qasr in southern Iraq.

The location lies deep in the Gulf, near the maritime area between Iraq and Kuwait.