Updated April 9, 2026 at 3:24 AM AKDT
President Trump said late Wednesday that U.S. forces deployed in the Middle East will "remain in place" until an agreement is reached with Iran, and its implementation takes hold.
His comments followed a shaky start to a two-week ceasefire. Israel continued its strikes in Lebanon, killing hundreds on Wednesday, Gulf Arab countries also reported some drone and missile attacks on oil refineries and power plants, and according to reports Iran had shut down the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway, largely blocked during the war, is a key shipping route for about 20 % of the world's fuel and goods.
The uncertainty was also felt by the markets on Thursday, diminishing gains made a day earlier, with oil prices rising and stocks dipping. Brent crude, the international standard, was at $ 97 per barrel, or up by 2.4%.
Trump warned that strikes on Iran would resume if Iran did not comply with "the REAL AGREEMENT reached."
"If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the "Shootin' Starts," bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before," he said.
He also reiterated that the deal would not allow nuclear enrichment in Iran and would keep the Strait of Hormuz open.
"It was agreed, a long time ago, and despite all of the fake rhetoric to the contrary - NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS and, the Strait of Hormuz WILL BE OPEN & SAFE," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The White House denied the reports on Wednesday that Iran closed the strait, saying they are false and that there was an uptick in traffic in the strait on Wednesday.
Here are more updates from the region:
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Peace talks |Gulf countries' defense upgrade | Lebanon | Killed Journalists | Strait of Hormuz
Peace talks to resume, while confusion remains over the terms of the current ceasefire
High-level talks between the U.S. and Iran are slated to start on Saturday in Islamabad, with the mediation of the Pakistani prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif. His government acted as an intermediary between Washington and Tehran to secure the two-week ceasefire. The White House announced that Vice President JD Vance will lead the U.S. delegation.
But confusion remains over the basis of the plan for those talks, with Iran insisting on a 10-point plan that includes its full control over the Strait of Hormuz, removal of sanctions, and accepting Iran's right to enrichment. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday that Iran's 10-point proposal was "literally thrown in the garbage by President Trump." Trump initially called a plan from Iran "workable."
Meanwhile, Israeli attacks in Lebanon, which is observing a national day of mourning on Thursday, drew condemnation from Iran and criticism from Pakistan. The dispute over whether Lebanon is included in the ceasefire terms remains unresolved. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement Wednesday morning that his government supports Trump's decision to suspend strikes against Iran for two weeks, but that the ceasefire doesn't include Lebanon. Pakistani Prime Minister Sharif had announced the Iran-U.S. ceasefire, would also take effect in Lebanon.
Hezbollah said in a statement that it insists the U.S.-Iran ceasefire includes Lebanon. But the militant group said, "if the Israeli enemy does not adhere" to it, then "no party will commit to it, and there will be a response from the region, including Iran."
Iran condemned the continued assault on Lebanon and said it was the U.S. government's responsibility to put an end to it. In a post on social media, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said, "The ball is in the U.S. court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments," above a screenshot of the Pakistani statement including Lebanon in the truce.
Trump, meanwhile, echoed Netanyahu's understanding of the deal. Asked by a PBS reporter why Lebanon was not included, he said, "Because of Hezbollah. They were not included in the deal. That'll get taken care of too."
Gulf countries seek to upgrade their defense ties to the U.S.
As the U.S. and Iran prepare to enter negotiations on Saturday, Gulf Arab countries are seeking to enhance defense cooperation with the U.S. military, an official from the region, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to outline these demands publicly, told NPR.
Gulf countries have relied on U.S. defense systems to intercept recent Iranian missile and drone attacks.
The official said Gulf countries want a U.S.-Iran deal to include a framework to protect energy facilities in the region and a way to enforce freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. Much of the oil, gas and fertilizer passing through the strait to markets in Asia comes from the Persian Gulf.
On Thursday, the Saudi and Iranian foreign ministers held their first official phone call since the war started. A statement issued by the Saudi foreign ministry said the two "discussed ways to reduce tensions to restore security and stability in the region."
Lebanon mourns over 250 killed from Israeli attacks
Church bells rang across Lebanon and warplanes tore the skies Thursday morning as the country observed a national day of mourning following the deadliest day of the current Israeli invasion. More than 250 people were killed Wednesday, according to Lebanon's civil defense, in Israeli attacks that hit densely-populated residential areas far from Hezbollah's strongholds, including along Beirut's seaside Corniche promenade.
The Israeli military said it conducted the largest attack so far, with 100 strikes in 10 minutes in Beirut on Wednesday, killing the nephew of a Hezbollah leader. The military issued evacuation orders for the capital's suburbs, but then attacked central Beirut. That city has swelled in recent weeks with people fleeing the Israeli invasion in the country's south, which has displaced more than a million people. More than 1,160 were wounded in Wednesday's strikes, according to the country's civil defense department. Lebanon's army said four soldiers were among those killed.
On Thursday, Israel struck a bridge in Lebanon. Hezbollah, which had held its fire on the first day of the ceasefire, fired rockets into northern Israel on Thursday.
The violence marred the start of a two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran in the wider Middle East war. But Israeli officials justified the assault by asserting that the new deal did not include a pause in its fight against Lebanon's Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
The International Committee of the Red Cross says it's outraged by such attacks in densely populated urban areas. Israeli military spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani explained why Israel made a surprise attack on Beirut.
"Leading up to this operation, we've seen Hezbollah disperse over different areas, taking advantage of the warnings that we provide for civilians to also hide for themselves among the civilians, moving, trying to scatter their operations in different locations and to hide behind civilian locations," he said.
Watchdog says 3 journalists killed by Israeli strikes in Lebanon and Gaza
The Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday Israeli airstrikes killed three journalists in Lebanon, and Gaza.
Al Jazeera said its correspondent Mohammed Wishah is the 11th journalist from the network to be killed in Gaza.
Two years ago, Israel said Wishah was a "key terrorist in Hamas" who posed a threat to its troops.
The Israeli military repeated that allegation in a statement after his killing on Tuesday, but did not say why he was targeted six months into a ceasefire in which hundreds have been killed in Gaza.
Also Tuesday, CPJ said reporters Ghada Dayekh and Suzan Khalil were killed in a blitz of Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon that hit Hezbollah and civilian neighborhoods.
One of the journalists worked for a Hezbollah-affiliated news outlet.
According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Israel's military has killed more than 260 Palestinian journalists in Gaza in the past two and a half years.
CPJ says Israel's attacks on the press should be independently investigated as war crimes.
As Iran controls the Strait of Hormuz, confusion reigns and ships remain idle
Trump has repeatedly said that the deal is dependent on the free movement of ships in the Strait of Hormuz to ease the global energy crisis. The strait is a critical throughway that carries about a fifth of the world's oil and provides the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.
Before the war broke out, Iran allowed an average of 120 to 150 ships per day to sail through unimpeded. But in the last five weeks, that traffic has come to a grinding halt. And despite Tuesday's announcement of ceasefire terms that required Iran to reopen the strait for safe passage, more than a hundred ships remained effectively stalled.
Details about the strait's status remain unclear. While Iran announced it had ceased transit operations in response to Israel's continued attacks on Lebanon, the White House denounced the reports as false and said closing the waterway would be completely unacceptable.
If the strait was open, hundreds of other ships in and around the strait still chose to stay put out of an abundance of caution. Ship owners, insurance companies, and seafarers say they are seeking clarity as Iran threatens to attack any vessel transiting without permission.
Erik Broekhuizen, a U.S.-based ship broker and energy consultant with Poten & Partners, told NPR that another concern for the ships is Iran's decentralized military command.
"You don't really know who to talk to, who is in charge, and whether all the sort of regional commanders have gotten the memo that the strait is open and they should stop attacking vessels," Broekhuizen said.
More than 20 ships have been attacked by Iran since the war began.
Operators are also confused by Iran's new fee system and how payments will be collected as the government rolls out new toll procedures. According to analysts, several oil tanker operators said they have paid at least $1 million to transit the strait.
An English language VHF broadcast was blasted to the hundreds of ships in and around the strait on Wednesday. It warned those aboard idling ships that they need permission before they try to transit.
Lauren Frayer in Beirut, Daniel Estrin in Tel Aviv, Aya Batrawy in Dubai and Jackie Northam in Washington, D.C. contributed to this report.
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