Trump Warns Iran of Harder Strikes
US President Donald Trump has threatened to hit Iran "very hard again" as fighting between Israel and Hezbollah continues in Lebanon. In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, June 21, Trump said: "Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble. If they don’t, we’ll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!!!"
Escalation in Lebanon
Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed at least 47 people on Friday, June 19, according to Lebanon's National News Agency, with more killed on Saturday, June 20, including two children. Israeli military and local media reported that four Israeli soldiers were killed in the south of Lebanon on Friday after a Hezbollah drone struck their tank.
Iran Closes Strait of Hormuz
In response, Iran once again closed the Strait of Hormuz, accusing the US and Israel of violating the ceasefire, and warned that "if aggression continues, subsequent steps have been planned." The strait is a critical waterway through which a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas passes.
Diplomatic Efforts
Ships had already started passing through the strait after an interim peace agreement between the US and Iran was signed. US Vice-President JD Vance and senior Iranian officials are in Switzerland for negotiations on Tehran's nuclear programme and for further talks on the interim ceasefire deal. Mr Vance said: "The question before us now is how much more can we accomplish together? Can we turn over a new leaf? Can we change relations in the Middle East permanently, or do we go back to doing things the old way, which is not our preference, but is certainly very much something that can happen."
Israel and Hezbollah Remain at Odds
Neither Israel nor Hezbollah are signatories to the deal, however, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowing to keep his forces in southern Lebanon until any threat to Israel is eliminated. An Israeli military official said Hezbollah fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight on Saturday. The army said that it had struck dozens of Hezbollah targets and militants, including rocket-launching positions and command centres. Hezbollah said in a statement that while it remained committed to the ceasefire, Israel had violated it several times overnight. The group added that it would continue to repel attacks by Israeli troops.
