The US military said Saturday it remained "present and vigilant" in the Strait of Hormuz, shortly after Iran announced it was closing the critical shipping lane.

"US forces remain present and vigilant to ensure all aspects of the agreement with Iran are adhered to, obeyed, and in full force and effect," US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement.

CENTCOM, which oversees US forces in the Middle East, said 55 commercial vessels had transited the strait on Saturday and that "safe passage through the international waterway remained intact today."

(AFP)

Israel says Hezbollah 'constantly' violating ceasefire

(AFP)

An Iranian negotiating team left Iran for Switzerland on Saturday for discussions on the implementation of the US-Iran agreement.

Pakistan said technical talks to implement the US-Iran deal to end the Middle East war would be held in Switzerland on Sunday.

"As a follow-up to the signing of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, technical-level talks will be held in Burgenstock, Switzerland, on 21 June," the foreign ministry said in a statement on Saturday, adding Pakistani and Qatari mediators would participate in the discussions with US and Iranian representatives.

An Iranian negotiating team left Iran for Switzerland on Saturday for discussions on the implementation of the agreement signed between it and the United States to halt the Mideast war, state media reported.

"Iranian negotiators have left for Switzerland," state news agency IRNA reported, after quoting foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei as warning that the deal was "in trouble".

"I expect that I will leave sometime in the next couple of days, but you know it's always a delicate coordination dance and the diplomatic protocols," Vance says in an interview with Fox News.

Iran said that the closure was the "first step" in response to what it described as breaches of commitments.

Iran's top joint military command, ​Khatam al-Anbiya Central ‌Headquarters, said on Saturday that the Strait of Hormuz would be closed to vessel traffic, citing alleged violations of a ceasefire agreement by the U.S. and Israel, Iran's Mehr state news agency reported.

It said that the closure was the "first step" in response to what it described as breaches of commitments and warned that further measures would be taken if "aggression" continued.

(Reuters)

Diplomats from several countries were meeting Saturday at a Swiss retreat in a bid to maintain dialogue on the preliminary US-Iran deal to halt the Middle East war, said Bern.

The Swiss foreign ministry said diplomats were in discussions at the luxury Burgenstock resort near Lucerne in central Switzerland, without giving further details.

A diplomatic source told AFP the discussions under way on Saturday were preparatory in nature.

Senior-level talks at the hotel complex were initially planned for Friday, but were called off, with the process shrouded in layers of uncertainty, as Israel carried out deadly strikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday.

(AFP)

Lebanese state media says Israeli strike on south kills seven

(AFP)

Israel carried out deadly strikes in south Lebanon on Saturday and Hezbollah maintained it had the right to respond, hours after the United States announced a renewed ceasefire in fighting that had strained a fledgling deal with Iran.

US President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian this week signed a preliminary agreement to halt the Middle East war on all fronts, including Lebanon -- a key demand of Tehran's.

But follow-up talks scheduled for Friday in Switzerland were indefinitely postponed as Israel launched a wave of strikes in Lebanon that left dozens of people dead after four of its soldiers were killed in combat, sparking a furious reaction at home.

(AFP)

Pakistan's interior minister arrived in Iran on Saturday after planned talks between Iran and the United States in Switzerland were postponed, Iranian media reported.

Tehran and Washington were due to hold talks in Switzerland on Friday, after signing a memorandum of understanding ending the war in the Middle East, but the latest negotiations have been postponed with no new date announced.

Iranian media including Tasnim news agency said Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi landed on Saturday in the northeastern city of Mashhad.

Foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei had earlier told ISNA news agency that "Pakistan's interior minister will arrive in Iran at noon today, Saturday, as part of Pakistan's efforts regarding the Iran-US negotiations."

(AFP)

The Israeli military has said it was striking Hezbollah targets in Lebanon in response to overnight projectile launches from the Iran-backed group.

"Overnight, the Hezbollah terrorist organisation launched more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon. Following the attacks, the IDF has been striking Hezbollah terrorist targets in southern Lebanon," an Israeli military official said.

The Lebanese army said an Israeli strike killed one of its soldiers in the country's south.

"An Israeli enemy strike targeted an army soldier on the Kfar Rumman-Nabatieh road, leading to his martyrdom," an army statement said, charging that "the continuation of brutal Israeli attacks aims to obstruct any solution that would allow for restoring stability in Lebanon".

At least five people were killed in Israeli air strikes and drone attacks in southern Lebanon on Saturday, Lebanese state media reported, hours after a ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah group took effect.

Israeli warplanes and drones carried out a series of strikes across the Nabatieh area overnight and into Saturday morning, destroying residential buildings and homes, while Israeli artillery shelled Nabatieh and its outskirts before dawn, state news agency NNA reported. 

Israel and Hezbollah had agreed to the ceasefire on Friday, according to a US official.

US Vice President JD Vance had on Thursday cancelled his trip to Switzerland amid rising tension in Lebanon between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Donald Trump's other envoy and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is also expected to be in Switzerland for talks.

US President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are reportedly headed to Switzerland for talks, after scheduled negotiations due to take place there were postponed.