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War in the Middle East: latest developments Paris, France, April 18 (AFP) Apr 18, 2026 The latest developments in the Middle East war:
The Israeli military said its air force had eliminated a "terrorist cell" operating near its troops in southern Lebanon, despite the ceasefire there. "The IDF eliminated a terrorist cell operating in proximity to IDF soldiers in southern Lebanon, in the area of the forward defence line dedicated to preventing imminent threats to Israel's northern communities," it said, without specifying how many suspected militants were killed.
"Hezbollah denies any connection to the incident that occurred with UNIFIL forces in the Ghandouriyeh-Bint Jbeil area, and calls for caution in making judgements and assigning responsibilities regarding the incident pending the Lebanese army's investigations to determine the full circumstances of the incident," the group said in a statement.
Iran's top national security body said that the country was reviewing "new proposals" received from the United States, even as it warned that its negotiators would cut no compromises with Washington. "New proposals have been put forward by the Americans, which the Islamic Republic of Iran is currently reviewing and has not yet responded to," the Supreme National Security Council said in a statement.
"Metrics show the measure, unprecedented for a connected society, continues to the detriment of most Iranians' livelihoods and human rights," NetBlocks said on X.
"We're talking to them. They wanted to close up the strait again -- you know, as they've been doing for years -- and they can't blackmail us," Trump said at a White House event.
"Everything points to Hezbollah being responsible for this attack," he said on X, urging Lebanese authorities to arrest the perpetrators. Israel and Lebanon had agreed to a 10-day ceasefire on Thursday in order to negotiate an end to six weeks of war between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.
Qamati said in Beirut his group was "not concerned with the negotiations being conducted by the state", dubbing them "a failure, weak, defeated... and submissive negotiations".
The tanker's captain reported being approached 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman by two gunboats of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC), which without any radio warning "then fired upon the tanker", the UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre said in an online statement. burs-sbk/jxb |
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