War in the Middle East: latest developments

BSS
Published On: 08 Apr 2026, 09:06

PARIS, France, April 8, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The latest developments in the Middle East war:

- US, Iran, Israel agree to truce -

The United States and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire Tuesday barely an hour before President Donald Trump's deadline to obliterate the rival country was set to expire, with Tehran agreeing to temporarily reopen the vital Strait of Hormuz.

Israel also agreed to the ceasefire, the White House said. The 11th-hour agreement came after Trump said he had spoken to Pakistan's leaders, who had requested a truce.

- Talks to begin Friday in Islamabad -

Iran cast the ceasefire as a victory and said it had agreed to talks with Washington to begin Friday in Pakistan on a path to end the conflict.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who had acted as a mediator, said the capital Islamabad would welcome delegates from both countries for negotiations aimed at reaching a "conclusive agreement."

- Iran's 10-point plan -

Iran said Wednesday its 10-point plan for securing an end to the war with the United States would require Washington to accept its uranium enrichment program and the lifting of all sanctions.

Tehran said the plan would also require Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, the withdrawal of the US military from the Middle East, an end to attacks on Iran and its allies, the release of frozen Iranian assets and a UN Security Council resolution making any deal binding.

- Pakistani leader: ceasefire extends 'everywhere' -

Pakistan's Sharif said that the ceasefire agreed to by the United States, Iran and their allies extended "everywhere," including Lebanon.

But Lebanon's health ministry said early Wednesday that an Israeli military strike killed eight people in the Lebanese city of Sidon. An AFP photographer at the scene of the strike, which hit a seafront area of the coastal city, saw flames rising from a cafe.

- Blasts in Baghdad, Doha, UAE -

Five explosions were heard Tuesday night in central Baghdad, where the US Embassy is located, AFP journalists reported.

Blasts were also heard in the Qatari capital of Doha, while the UAE said its air defences were responding to missile and drone attacks from Iran.

- Five people injured in Israel -

Israel's emergency services said five people in northern Israel were injured following missiles from Iran and rockets from Lebanon.

The Israeli military warned of an increased risk of inbound attacks as Trump's midnight GMT deadline approached.

- 'Unacceptable' -

Before the ceasefire was announced, Pope Leo XIV said threats to inflict widespread damage on civilian targets in Iran were "unacceptable" and could breach international law -- without specifically naming Trump,

The US president had warned on Tuesday that "a whole civilization will die" if Iran does not open the Strait of Hormuz by 8 PM Washington time.

- UN probe blames Israel, Hezbollah -

Three UN peacekeepers who died in two separate incidents in Lebanon in March were likely killed by Israeli tank fire in one case and by a Hezbollah improvised explosive device (IED) in the other, according to a United Nations probe.

- Tehran synagogue struck -

The Israeli military expressed regret over "collateral damage" to a synagogue in Tehran caused by an overnight strike it said was targeting a senior Iranian commander.

Earlier on Tuesday, Iranian media reported that the Rafi-Nia Synagogue in central Tehran had been "completely destroyed."

- US journalist's Iraq release -

Iraq's powerful Kataeb Hezbollah armed group announced that it would release US journalist Shelly Kittleson, a week after she was kidnapped in Baghdad.

 

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