Ceasefire under threat: Israel attacks Lebanon; Iran closes Hormuz Strait

TEHRAN, April 8: The United States demanded Wednesday that Iran immediately reopen the Strait of Hormuz after the Islamic Republic closed the waterway in response to Israeli attacks against the Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.
Iran’s move cast doubt over whether an already precarious ceasefire to end more than a month of war would hold.
The US and Iran both claimed victory after reaching the agreement, and world leaders expressed relief, even as more drones and missiles hit Iran and Gulf Arab countries.
Israel also intensified its attacks in Lebanon, hitting several commercial and residential areas in Beirut without warning. At least 112 people were killed and hundreds were wounded in one of the deadliest days in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war.
The fresh violence threatened to scuttle what US Vice President JD Vance called a “fragile” deal.
“Aggression towards Lebanon is aggression towards Iran,” Gen. Seyed Majid Mousavi, aerospace commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, wrote on X. He warned that Iranian forces were preparing a “heavy response” without revealing details.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi insisted that an end to the war in Lebanon was part of the ceasefire agreement with the US.
Iran’s demands for ending the war include a withdrawal of US combat forces from the region, the lifting of sanctions and the release of its frozen assets.
Israel backed the US ceasefire with Iran, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the deal does not cover fighting against Hezbollah.
Israeli Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said Israel will continue to “utilise every operational opportunity” to strike Hezbollah.
The Israeli military said it struck more than 100 targets within 10 minutes on Wednesday across Lebanon, the largest wave of strikes since March 1. (AP)