Israel banned from bombing Lebanon, Trump says

US President Donald Trump has said that the US has banned Israel from further bombing in Lebanon, using an atypically harsher tone than usual with its longtime ally.

"Israel will not be bombing Lebanon any longer. They are PROHIBITED from doing so by the U.S.A. Enough is enough!!!" Mr Trump said in a social media post.

Mr Trump also said any deal the US reaches with Iran "is in no way subject to Lebanon" but the US will "deal with" the militant Hezbollah situation in an appropriate manner.

The US president also said the US will get nuclear material from Iran.

"No money will exchange hands in any way, shape, or form." he said.

A ten-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel came into effect last night, and Mr Trump said the next meeting between the US and Iran may take place over the weekend, adding to optimism that the Iran war could be nearing an end.

Strait of Hormuz 'open' but US blockade of Iran 'in full force'

He welcomed Iran's announcement that the crucial Strait of Hormuz will reopen to shipping, but said a US blockade of Iranian ports would continue until a peace deal is signed.

"THANK YOU!" Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, saying that Iran had announced the narrow waterway was "FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR FULL PASSAGE."

In a second message a few minutes later, Mr Trump posted: "The naval blockade will remain in full force and effect as it pertains to Iran, only, until such time as our transaction with Iran is 100% complete."

"This process should go very quickly in that most of the points are already negotiated," Mr Trump said, using his trademark style of all-capital letters.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had announced earlier tody that the strait, vital for the global trade in oil and other commodities, will remain "completely open" as long as a ceasefire in the Middle East lasts.

It was not immediately clear if he was referring to a ten-day truce agreed by Lebanon and Israel that went into effect at midnight local time or an earlier two-week truce between Iran and the US that began on 8 April.

Trump says Iran deal 'very close'

Mr Trump said Iran had offered not to possess nuclear weapons for more than 20 years. Tehran's nuclear ambitions were a sticking point at talks in Islamabad last weekend.

"We're going to see what happens. But I think we're very close to making a deal with Iran," he told reporters outside the White House.

Hours later at an event in Las Vegas, Nevada, Mr Trump went further, saying the war "should be ending pretty soon".

The war with Iran, which began on 28 February with a US-Israeli attack, has killed thousands and sent oil prices surging, creating a major political headache for the US president.

If the Lebanon ceasefire clears the way for a broader peace deal with Iran, it would be a significant win for the Trump administration, which has struggled so far to reopen the strategically important Strait of Hormuz and block Iran's path to a nuclear weapon.

Celebratory gunfire rang out across parts of Beirut as the clock struck midnight local time (10pm Irish time) last night, the time the ceasefire was set to go into effect.

For around half an hour, the sound of explosions from rockets fired in celebration could also be heard, witnesses said. But the pause in hostilities remained fragile.

The Lebanese Army said that Israel committed violations of the ceasefire after it took effect, including the intermittent shelling of several southern Lebanese villages.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which had said earlier that its forces remained deployed in the area.

In a post on X, Arabic-language military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said the deployment was in response to what he described as continued Hezbollah militant activity.

Hezbollah released a lengthy statement detailing what it described as its military operations against Israel throughout yesterday, which showed that its last attack came at 11.50pm local time, ten minutes before the ceasefire took effect.

Mr Trump later issued a social media post urging Hezbollah to respect the ceasefire.

"I hope Hezbollah acts nicely and well during this important period of time. It will be an GREAT moment for them if they do. No more killing. Must finally have PEACE!" he said.

Read more:
Lebanon ceasefire agreement significant on number of fronts
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Further Israel-Lebanon talks planned

Mr Trump said he thought the US had a chance of a deal with Iran.

"And if that happens, oil goes way down, prices go way down, inflation goes way down, and ... much more importantly than even that, you won't have a nuclear holocaust," he said.

The president said he was not sure a two-week ceasefire agreed with Iran last week would need to be extended beyond next week and added that Tehran wanted to make a deal.

"We have a very good relationship with Iran right now, as hard as it is to believe. And I think it's a combination of about four weeks of bombing, and a very powerful blockade," he said.

The Lebanon ceasefire aims to halt a conflict between Israel and the Iran-aligned Lebanese group Hezbollah that was reignited by the US-Israeli war against Iran.

Hezbollah opened fire in support of Tehran on 2 March, prompting an Israeli offensive in Lebanon 15 months after the last major conflict.

Mr Trump said he had held "excellent conversations" with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and planned to invite them both to the White House for "meaningful talks".

He said later that the White House meeting could take place over the next week or two, and that if an Iran deal was reached and signed in Islamabad, he might go for that.

Mr Trump said he had directed US Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine to work with Israel and Lebanon to achieve lasting peace.

Iran welcomed the ceasefire in Lebanon, saying it was part of an understanding reached with the United States and mediated by Pakistan, Iranian media reported, citing a statement by a Foreign Ministry spokesperson.