Live: Netanyahu says Israeli troops will remain in southern Lebanon

President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the US would resume attacks on Iran unless Tehran can keep its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon from carrying out attacks. 

"Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "If they don’t, we’ll hit Iran very hard again, just like we did last week, only harder!!!"

US Vice President JD Vance said on Sunday that President Donald Trump wanted to "turn over a new leaf" in US-Iran relations, describing technical talks in Switzerland as an opportunity for both sides to resolve outstanding issues.

"This is a historic meeting," Vance said at the Burgenstock resort, adding that the goal was to "turn over a new leaf to transform our relationship with the people of Iran, and to extend an outstretched hand".

When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu initiated the US-Israeli war on Iran at the end of February, Israel's objectives appeared clear: dismantling Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programmes and bringing about the collapse of the Iranian government.

Now, following the signing of an agreement between Iran and the US, with negotiations between the two countries continuing in Switzerland, a new poll has found that 92 percent of Israelis believe Iran has won the war.

The survey, conducted by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, found that Israelis overwhelmingly view the war and subsequent deal with the US in a negative way, with 83 percent of those polled saying the campaign has weakened Israel's long-term security and 86 percent feeling negatively about the outcome.

This public perception mirrors the feelings of Israel's political and military elite, many of whom see the end of the war on Iran as representing a turning point that could weaken Israel's regional influence.

The poll found that 72.5 percent of Israelis do not believe Netanyahu when he says Israel achieved significant gains and removed an existential threat, a feeling that also reflects the growing uncertainty around the prime minister's future.

Read more: Ninety-two percent of Israelis think Iran has won war, new poll finds

Israel's defence minister said on Sunday that there was and is no restriction on Israeli soldiers to act against any threat encountered inside Lebanon.

"There has never been, and there is currently no restriction on [Israeli] soldiers in Lebanon from acting to eliminate threats... As Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and I have made clear: Israel will not withdraw from the security zone in Lebanon," Israel Katz said in a statement, referring to an area extending roughly 10 kilometres into Lebanese territory where Israeli forces remain.

Katz's remarks came shortly after Iran warned that it would not enter talks on a broader agreement with Washington unless Israel ended its attacks on Lebanon.

Israeli strikes killed more than 20 people in Lebanon on Saturday, Lebanon's state news agency NNA reported, a day after a ceasefire with Hezbollah took effect.

Mediator Qatar has confirmed that talks between the US and Iran have started in Switzerland. 

In a statement Qatar's foreign ministry announced "the launch of the Lake Lucerne Summit and the first meeting of the high-level committee with the participation of representatives from the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the two mediating states, the State of Qatar and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan".

Doha added it hoped the meetings would "lead to a comprehensive and lasting agreement addressing all aspects covered by the Memorandum of Understanding", referring to an accord signed by the US and Iran earlier this week.

Iranian state television also confirmed on Sunday that delegations from Iran, Qatar and the US were holding a meeting in Switzerland to discuss a ceasefire in Lebanon and Iran's frozen assets.

"A tripartite meeting involving Iran, the United States and Qatar on the subjects of a comprehensive ceasefire in Lebanon and Iran's blocked assets is currently being held at the negotiation venue," state broadcaster Irib said in a report.

Iran's Tasnim news agency, citing a source close to Tehran's negotiating team, reported on Sunday that the Strait of Hormuz would not be reopened as long as a ceasefire in Lebanon was not respected.

The source said the waterway would also remain closed until waivers allowing the sale of Iranian oil were issued.

Iran announced that it had once again closed the strait a day earlier over Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon.

A fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas passes through the vital waterway, which Iran had effectively closed for nearly four months after Israel and the US began the war in late February. 

It was briefly reopened after US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed a preliminary agreement earlier this week to halt hostilities on all fronts, including Lebanon. 

In early 2001, the Taliban blew up two giant Buddha statues in the Bamiyan Valley of Afghanistan, which dated from the sixth century.

The world erupted in outrage at the destruction of cultural heritage, and western media engaged in handwringing over the loss of statues that most people presumably had not known existed in the first place but were nonetheless symbolic of our "collective humanity".

Philip T Reeker, deputy spokesman for the State Department of the United States, issued a press statement declaring the US to be "distressed and baffled" by the Taliban's decision to demolish the Buddhas and other ancient artefacts: "Deliberate destruction of statues and sculpture held as sacred by peoples of different faiths is incomprehensible."

Of course, when the US launched the so-called "war on terror" later that same year and undertook to bomb Afghanistan to smithereens, there was no similar distress over the "deliberate destruction" or the mass slaughter of "peoples of different faiths".

But such hypocrisy is part and parcel of an imperial mindset predicated on orientalist dehumanisation, selective cultural concern and the weaponisation of "heritage"

Read more: Israel and the US are erasing Iran and Lebanon's ancient heritage

A vast majority of Israelis believe Iran has won its war with the US and Israel, according to a new poll.

The survey, conducted by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, found that 92 percent of respondents believe Iran has won the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Israelis overwhelmingly view the war and subsequent deal with the US in a negative way, with 83 percent of those polled saying the campaign has weakened Israel's long-term security and 86 percent having a negative attitude toward the outcome.

The poll also found that 72.5 percent of Israelis do not believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu when he says that their country has achieved significant gains and removed an existential threat.

Close to 88 percent of Israelis in fact believe Israel has failed to achieve its objectives, or that it has fulfilled only some of them. Fifty-six percent of respondents said Netanyahu's management of the war on Iran was poor, or that it had failed.

Nevertheless, 48 percent of Israelis, according to the poll, support Israel's military campaign in Lebanon, where it claims to be focused on targeting Hezbollah, the Iran-aligned armed movement. Those Israelis who support this said they did so even if it risked a confrontation with US President Donald Trump.

The poll was conducted by the Agam Institute in collaboration with Hebrew University between 17 June and 20 June. The survey questioned 3,644 Israelis aged 17 and over in a weighted sample to reflect the population. The maximum sampling error is 2.2 percent at a 99 percent confidence level, the pollsters said.

A quadrilateral meeting between Iran, the United States, Qatar and Pakistan will be held at the Burgenstock mountaintop ​resort in Switzerland on Sunday afternoon, according to Iran's foreign ministry spokesman.

Esmaeil Baghaei said that Iran would hold meetings with intermediaries Qatar and Pakistan earlier in the day, adding that the gathering in Switzerland is a follow up on the implementation of a memorandum of understanding signed with the US this week.

US Vice President JD Vance has arrived in Switzerland for talks with Iran. 

Vance said he expected to conduct a couple of days of peace talks with Iranian officials. Video footage showed him and his wife arriving in a convoy at Burgenstock in Switzerland early on Sunday morning.

Vance joins US President Donald Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and son-in-law Jared Kushner.

Iran's oil industry will serve as a major test of any future agreement between Tehran and Washington, Iranian oil minister Mohsen Paknejad has said.

According to the ministry's Shana news outlet, Paknejad said that the sector would demonstrate whether western countries remain committed to the spirit of a final peace agreement, should one be reached.

Paknejad said Iran's oil industry could offer significant investment opportunities to the global economy in a post-agreement environment.

He added that the country has hundreds of investment projects and technical and operational partnership agreements ready to be signed, suggesting that the energy sector could become a key area of cooperation if diplomatic progress continues.

Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir has arrived in Switzerland to take part in technical-level talks between the United States and Iran under the framework of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.

According to reports from Burgenstock, where the negotiations are being held, Munir is expected to play a key role in discussions aimed at advancing the agreement's implementation.

His arrival comes as US Vice President JD Vance, Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and a delegation led by Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also gather in Switzerland for the talks.

Before departing, Vance said he hoped the discussions would produce progress on Iran's nuclear programme and efforts to strengthen the ceasefire in Lebanon, adding that "Israel and Lebanon want security".

The talks are expected to focus on implementing the agreement and addressing outstanding issues, including sanctions, regional security and nuclear matters.

Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

The United States and Iran have opened a new round of high-level talks in Switzerland aimed at implementing their interim agreement and preventing renewed regional escalation.

While both sides expressed support for diplomacy, tensions remain over Lebanon and the Strait of Hormuz, where competing claims underscored the fragility of the emerging deal.

• US Vice President JD Vance arrived in Switzerland for high-level negotiations with Iran, with Pakistan and Qatar helping facilitate the talks.

• Iran's delegation, led by parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, said its priority is to ensure the full implementation of the interim agreement.

• Iran said the Strait of Hormuz had been closed again in response to alleged violations of the agreement, while the US military maintained that the waterway remains open to international shipping.

• Vance said Washington is seeking progress on both nuclear issues and arrangements related to Lebanon.

• Israeli media reported that Israeli forces received instructions to halt fire in Lebanon following strong US pressure.

• Israeli officials indicated troops would remain in strategic positions in southern Lebanon despite the ceasefire.

• At least 16 people were reported killed in Lebanon on Saturday as Israeli attacks continued.

• An Israeli soldier was reported killed and 13 others wounded during fighting in southern Lebanon.

• Pakistan's prime minister and army chief are expected to participate in the discussions in Switzerland alongside US and Iranian officials.

• Al Jazeera cameraman Ahmed Wishah was killed in an air strike in central Gaza, according to the broadcaster. 

A report by Channel 4 foreign correspondent Secunder Kermani documents life under Israeli occupation in the southern Lebanese village of Halta.

Israel has established a "yellow line", similar to the one in Gaza, as it has expanded its invasion of Lebanon and brought large swathes of territory in the south under its control.

Kermani spoke to residents of the village, including Ali Abdel Aal, whose son Mohammed was shot and killed by Israeli soldiers while observing an arrest from the street.

A report by Channel 4's foreign correspondent Secunder Kermani shows the reality of life in the southern Lebanese village of Halta under Israeli occupation. pic.twitter.com/AxB41b3ftM

— Middle East Eye (@MiddleEastEye) June 20, 2026

At least seven people were killed in separate Israeli attacks in Lebanon's Western Beqaa and Tyre, according to reports carried by Lebanon's National News Agency.

The agency, citing the Lebanese health ministry, said five people were killed in a raid on the town of Sohmor in Western Bekaa, including a child, a woman and two elderly people.

In a separate incident, two Palestinian nationals were killed in the Rashidieh area of Tyre, a coastal city in southern Lebanon known as Sour in Arabic, according to the agency.

The attacks come amid continuing violence in southern Lebanon despite ongoing diplomatic efforts to preserve the ceasefire and reduce tensions along the border.