A fragile 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has come into effect, with reports of continued shelling in southern Lebanon shortly after the truce began. The Lebanese state-run National News Agency reported Israeli artillery fire in the villages of Khiam and Dibbine about half an hour after the midnight deadline, while Israel's military said it was investigating the claims. Hezbollah continued rocket attacks on northern Israeli towns until minutes before the ceasefire, and air raid sirens sounded in border communities.
The truce follows direct diplomatic talks between Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors in Washington, brokered by US President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Under the agreement, Israel reserves the right to defend itself against planned, imminent, or ongoing attacks but will not carry out offensive operations against Lebanese targets. Hezbollah has stated it would respond to any Israeli strikes.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has criticised Australia for not providing military support to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, saying, 'I'm not happy with Australia because they were not there when we asked them to be there.' Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese rebuffed the criticism, stating that no direct US requests for additional assistance had been made and noting that Australia had already deployed an E-7A Wedgetail surveillance plane to the Middle East at the request of Gulf countries.
Financial markets have responded positively to the ceasefire and hopes for a resolution to the wider Iran conflict. Asian stocks are poised for strong gains, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan remaining close to its highest since early March. Oil prices have fallen below $100 a barrel, with Brent crude dropping 1% to $98.14 and US West Texas Intermediate falling 1.6% to $93.15. However, analysts caution that sustained peace and a full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz are needed to avoid substantial corrections.
