Live: US attacks Iran, Tehran vows swift response
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UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has condemned comments by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir after he said that "all of Lebanon must burn" following the deaths of four Israeli soldiers in a Hezbollah attack in southern Lebanon.
In a post on X, Cooper described the remarks as "a horrendous and abhorrent statement from an Israeli Minister who has rightly been sanctioned by the UK Government".
Cooper also called on both Israel and Hezbollah to respect the ceasefire in Lebanon and avoid further escalation.
She urged the parties to "ensure that all civilians are protected", stressing the need to prevent additional violence as diplomatic efforts continue to stabilise the situation along the border.
Calling for "all of Lebanon to burn" is a horrendous and abhorrent statement from an Israeli Minister who has rightly been sanctioned by the UK Government.
— Yvette Cooper (@YvetteCooperMP) June 19, 2026
We call on both Israel and Hizballah to comply with the agreed ceasefire, and ensure that all civilians are protected.
An adviser to Iran's Mojtaba Khamenei said the United States emerged weakened from the recent conflict with Iran and that Washington and Israel gradually lost control of events as the war unfolded.
According to Press TV, Mohsen Rezaei, a former commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), made the remarks during a televised interview on Friday, arguing that by the fifteenth day of the conflict the United States and Israel had realised that the situation was no longer under their control.
Rezaei attributed the outcome to a combination of factors, including political divisions within the United States, military challenges, international pressure and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz in response to the conflict.
He said congressional obstacles, limited support from allies and diplomatic pressure from countries including Spain contributed to what he described as a strategic deadlock.
According to Press TV, Rezaei said that these factors ultimately left Washington and Israel in a weaker position and helped bring about the ceasefire announced on 7 April.
US President Donald Trump said Israel's position in the region depended heavily on American support, arguing that US military assistance had been central to the country's security.
"If it weren't for my intervention, Israel would have been crushed," Trump said, adding that the United States provided key capabilities, including advanced weapons systems, the Iron Dome air defence network and B-2 bombers.
Trump also commented on his relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, describing it as positive while suggesting that Washington plays an important role in influencing Israeli decision-making.
"Netanyahu, who worked well with me, will tell you that we are the ones who have the weapons, we are the ones who have the Iron Dome, and we are the ones who have the B-2 bombers," Trump said.
He added that Israel has significant respect for him and would listen to his advice, saying: "But we have to keep him a little bit sensible."
The UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO) has lowered its threat assessment for the Strait of Hormuz to "moderate", down from the "substantial" level it warned of two days earlier.
In its latest advisory, the agency said the southern route through the strategic waterway, which runs close to Oman, remains open for transit both day and night.
However, UKMTO cautioned that mariners should remain vigilant. "Mariners should be advised of the existence of mines and expect naval presence as clearance operations continue," the advisory said.
The agency also "strongly" recommended that vessels use the Naval Cooperation and Guidance for Shipping system, a Nato-developed mechanism designed to coordinate between military operations and commercial shipping.
A Palestinian woman was killed and several other people were wounded in an Israeli air strike targeting a residential apartment in central Gaza City, according to Al Jazeera Arabic.
Local ambulance and emergency services said the attack struck a residential building and resulted in multiple casualties.
Emergency responders reported that several people sustained injuries in the strike and were transferred for treatment. Further details about the victims and the extent of the damage were not immediately available.
Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi is planning to travel to Switzerland for upcoming diplomatic talks, although the trip remains subject to change, according to a report by Axios citing an informed source.
The report said Araghchi has informed several foreign counterparts that the implementation of a ceasefire in Lebanon remains a critical priority for Tehran, adding that US envoy Steve Wittkopf will travel to Switzerland for a round of talks.
According to Axios, Iran is insisting on seeing the ceasefire take effect in practice before moving forward with the Switzerland visit.
The report said Tehran wants concrete evidence that hostilities in Lebanon have ended before proceeding with the next stage of diplomacy, underscoring the importance Iran attaches to regional de-escalation as negotiations continue.
Lebanon and Israel are set to hold a new round of negotiations in Washington, DC, from 23 to 25 June as part of ongoing US-mediated efforts to reach an agreement between the two countries.
The talks will mark the fifth round of discussions since the process began in April, with previous meetings also hosted by Washington.
US State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the upcoming negotiations during a telephone call with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.
According to the State Department, the planned talks will provide an opportunity for "the two parties - as sovereign governments - will work towards making progress towards a lasting peace".
The discussions come amid broader diplomatic efforts aimed at reducing tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border.
US intelligence agencies have warned the Trump administration that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may take actions that could undermine efforts to secure a lasting agreement with Iran, according to US officials.
The assessment, reported by the Washington Post, reflects concerns that Netanyahu is facing growing political pressure at home to continue military operations in Lebanon despite ongoing diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran.
According to the officials, intelligence reports indicate that Israel intends to maintain operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, a move that could clash with a key provision of the emerging agreement calling for an end to hostilities there.
The analysis comes amid increasing tensions between Netanyahu's government and the Trump administration, with US officials publicly cautioning Israel against actions that could derail the diplomatic process.
Exclusive: U.S. intelligence agencies have warned the Trump administration that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is likely to take steps that will undermine President Trump’s effort to reach a lasting peace deal with Iran. https://t.co/LF1mowtp08
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) June 19, 2026
Iran's deputy foreign minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said Tehran remains willing to continue negotiations with the US if Washington demonstrates that it is serious about honouring the agreement reached between the two sides, ensuring that Israel adheres to its terms, Al Jazeera Arabic reported.
Khatibzadeh said Iran was closely monitoring developments following the latest Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon.
Khatibzadeh warned that Israel's "continued war-making" would carry consequences that are "serious and immediate".
He added that Iran was seeking "peace on all fronts, including Gaza," while stressing that diplomatic engagement would depend on the implementation of commitments made under the agreement.
The Palestinian Authority's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned what it described as the Israeli seizure of land belonging to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in the occupied East Jerusalem neighbourhood of Silwan.
In a statement posted on X, the ministry said Israeli authorities took control of the land on June 15, expelled the Patriarchate's representative, confiscated equipment, uprooted trees and enclosed the site with walls and gates.
The ministry described the move as a "grave assault on church properties" and a "gross violation of the legal and historical status quo in occupied Jerusalem".
It said the measures "do not create any legal rights for the occupation and do not alter the prevailing legal and historical status in East Jerusalem as occupied Palestinian land", adding that all annexation, confiscation and seizure measures are "null and void under international law".
The ministry called on the international community to act urgently to halt what it described as violations against Christian and Islamic holy sites and to hold Israel accountable for its actions.
الخارجية // استيلاء الاحتلال على أرض تعود ملكيتها لبطريركية الروم الأرثوذكس في القدس اعتداء خطير على الأملاك الكنسية وانتهاكا جسيما للوضع القانوني والتاريخي القائم في القدس المحتلة
— State of Palestine - MFA 🇵🇸🇵🇸 (@pmofa) June 19, 2026
تدين وزارة الخارجية والمغتربين بأشد العبارات إقدام سلطات الاحتلال الإسرائيلي على الاستيلاء على أرض… pic.twitter.com/WJr5v76C4P
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei has accused French foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot of "hypocrisy" after the French diplomat said the Iranian people were among the principal losers of the war, caught between repression and bombardment.
Baghaei responded in a post on X, criticising what he described as France's stance during the conflict.
"You remained silent – you even made yourself complicit – while Iranian cities were savagely bombed and innocent Iranians were brutally massacred," Baghaei wrote.
Addressing Barrot directly, he added: "And yet, today, when it serves the political interests of your regime, your selective conscience suddenly awakens, and you claim to lecture the entire world on human rights."
Monsieur le Ministre, L'hypocrisie demeure une marque de fabrique de la culture politique française – un vice qui, comme Molière l'a si justement observé dans son chef-d'œuvre de 1664, Le Tartuffe ou l'Imposteur, « est devenu à la mode ». Vous êtes resté silencieux – vous vous… pic.twitter.com/UUzQB79wWl
— Esmaeil Baqaei (@IRIMFA_SPOX) June 19, 2026
Israeli settlers attacked a Palestinian home in the al-Hara’iq area south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa.
The agency reported that the property was vandalised during the attack, adding to a series of incidents reported across the territory on Tuesday.
Wafa also reported that Israeli forces assaulted a young Palestinian man in the Bir Qouza area of Beita, after which he was transferred to a local medical facility for treatment.
Local sources also reported that Israeli settlers destroyed olive trees belonging to Palestinian residents in the village of Kisan, east of Bethlehem.
The memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran has triggered mixed reactions across the US Congress, with some lawmakers criticising provisions that could support reconstruction efforts in Iran while others defended the agreement as a path away from further conflict.
Democratic Senator John Hickenlooper criticised the arrangement, writing on X that while Americans had faced rising costs during the war, "Iran gets money back" and US citizens do not. "It's despicable," he said.
Other lawmakers focused on the broader implications of the conflict and its costs. Senator Chris Van Hollen argued that Democrats should recognise the war as a "blunder" and acknowledge there is "no good way out of a bad war", adding: "When you're in a hole, stop digging."
Senator Elizabeth Warren criticised reports that the Pentagon is seeking an additional $80bn to cover war-related costs, calling the government's priorities "outrageous" and writing that "There is always money for war halfway around the world."
Republican Senator Rand Paul, meanwhile, voiced strong support for President Donald Trump's approach, saying that "proponents of forever wars have zero credibility".
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said "all of Lebanon must burn" in a social media post after the deaths of four Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon, drawing a response from the Iranian foreign minister, who labelled the Israeli leadership a "threat to all of humanity".
“For every tear of an Israeli mother, a thousand Lebanese mothers should cry," Ben Gvir wrote on X on Friday.
"With all due respect to the Americans, Israel must make it clear to the entire world that the blood of our sons and the security of our citizens is not in vain. All of Lebanon should burn."
He openly stated that he has pushed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to abandon “measured” military strategies in the region.
“Enough with the ping-pong. In the Middle East, you don't win with measured responses and containment - you have to go crazy. Erase. Defeat terrorism.”
Read more: 'All of Lebanon must burn,' Israeli minister Ben Gvir declares
The head of the Iranian parliament’s national security committee has accused the Trump administration of failing to honour the opening clause of its memorandum of understanding with Tehran.
Ebrahim Azizi said the first clause requires both sides to agree to “the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon”.
In a post on X, Azizi said Washington’s conduct showed it had not met that obligation.
“America’s failure to commit to the first clause of the agreement demonstrates that America still lacks the will to gain the trust of the Iranian nation,” Azizi wrote on X.
He warned that continued violations would carry consequences.
“The continuation of this situation will come at a heavy cost to them, the first of which will be an intelligent and deterrent response to the violation of the agreement’s commitments,” he said.
