Issued on: 04/06/2026 - 01:10Modified: 05/06/2026 - 05:30
Israeli strikes in eastern Lebanon and near the southern city of Tyre killed eight people, the Lebanese health ministry said Thursday as the Israeli army said one of its soldiers was killed combat. Hezbollah earlier rejected a US-backed ceasefire plan agreed by the Lebanese and Israeli governments, demanding that Israel withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon. Read our live blog to see how the day's events unfolded.
Oil little changed on uncertainty over US-Iran peace deal
Oil prices were little changed on Friday following sharp declines in the previous session, with prospects dimming for a near-term end to the US-Israeli war with Iran after the Hezbollah militia rejected a new ceasefire in Lebanon.
Brent crude futures LCOc1 fell 21 cents, or 0.22%, to $95.24 a barrel by 0003 GMT after settling down 2.84% in the previous session.
US West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 was at $92.94 a barrel, down 10 cents, or 0.11%, following a 3.1% loss on Thursday.
Civil defence says Israeli strikes kill at least 11 in Gaza
Israeli airstrikes on Gaza have killed at least 11 people, a spokesman for the civil defence agency in the Palestinian territory told AFP.
Nine people were killed in strikes on apartments in the northwest and southwest of Gaza City, Mahmoud Bassal said.
Two others were killed in drone strikes in the southwest and the city centre, which targeted police, the spokesman said, adding that there were 15 wounded.
Israeli strikes in south and east kill at least eight people, Lebanon health ministry says
An Israeli strike in eastern Lebanon killed five people on Thursday, while another attack near the southern city of Tyre killed three more, the Lebanese health ministry said.
The strikes also left eight wounded, including three children and two women. They came a day after the Lebanese and Israeli governments agreed a ceasefire plan for Israel's war with Hezbollah, which the group has rejected.
FRANCE 24's Antonia Kerrigan reports from Beirut.
Israeli military says soldier killed in southern Lebanon
The Israeli military says one of its soldiers was killed in southern Lebanon, the first fatality since the announcement of a new ceasefire plan.
Captain Eitan Shmuel Lemberg, 21, "fell in combat", the military said in a brief statement. A military source told AFP that he was killed by a missile fired by the Hezbollah militant group at an Israeli tank.
Huge Tehran rally marks Shiite holiday
Iranians attended a rally in support of the country's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei and to commemorate Eid al-Ghadir in Tehran earlier today.
Eid al-Ghadir commemorates the events of Ghadir al-Khumm during which Shiites believe that the Prophet Mohammed appointed Ali ibn Abi Talib, his cousin and son-in-law who was among the first Muslims, as his successor.
Credit: AFP
Russia could help resolve the Iranian crisis, Putin says
President Vladimir Putin said that Russia has a trusting relationship with Iran and so could help resolve the Iranian crisis.
Rubio condemns Iran's 'outrageous' attacks on Kuwait
Meeting Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah in Washington, Rubio "condemned Iran's outrageous and unacceptable attacks targeting Kuwait International Airport and other parts of the country and expressed condolences for those killed and injured in that attack," according to a State Department readout.
Rubio met with Kuwaiti foreign minister
UN chief condemns killing of Serbian peacekeeper in Lebanon
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the killing of a Serbian peacekeeper in southern Lebanon, demanding that those responsible be brought to justice.
The Serbian, who died from wounds sustained Wednesday from mortar fire at his base, is the seventh peacekeeper from the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) killed since Lebanon was drawn into the war in early March.
"The secretary-general again urges all actors to respect the cessation of hostilities announced on 16 April 2026," said Stephane Dujarric, his spokesman.
"All attacks on peacekeepers must be promptly investigated, and those responsible must be effectively prosecuted and held accountable," Dujarric said, noting that UNIFIL had launched its own investigation.
Hezbollah rejects latest ceasefire agreement as Israeli strikes kill 4 in Lebanon
Hezbollah on Thursday rejected the latest ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Lebanese government while Israeli strikes killed at least four people, according to local authorities, with a UN peacekeeper killed in the crossfire. FRANCE 24's Renée Davis reports from Beirut, Lebanon.
France throws weight behind Israel-Lebanon ceasefire
President Emmanuel Macron has expressed France's support for the ceasefire in Lebanon after the announcement of an agreement in Washington.
The French head of state told reporters on a visit to Montenegro: "We support the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel and everything that helps restore peace, combat terrorist activities, and fully establish Lebanon's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
"France is, of course, as we have always been, available to move forward along this path. A coordination mechanism has been put in place where the United States and France are working together," he added.
"If the ceasefire is serious, this is the mechanism that must be reactivated, so that we can follow up and verify its implementation."
Israel strikes Lebanon despite 'last chance' ceasefire deal
Israel will continue to strike Lebanon for the time being and won't be withdrawing from the south, Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday, after Lebanon and Israel agreed to a ceasefire contingent on Hezbollah halting attacks. Watch the full report below.
UN nuclear watchdog concerned by lack of access to Iran sites
The UN nuclear agency says in a confidential report seen by AFP that a lack of access to verify nuclear material in Iran poses a "proliferaton concern", calling on the Islamic republic to "engage the agency constructively".
"While the agency acknowledged that the military attacks on Iran's nuclear facilities and sites have created an unprecedented situation, it is critical for the agency to conduct verification activities in Iran without delay," the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) says in the report.
London activists attempt to erect statue of jailed Palestinian leader
Activists have tried to erect a statue of Marwan Barghouti in London’s Parliament Square, before police intervened.
A popular Palestinian leader, Barghouti has been imprisoned by Israel since 2002.
Israel's top court strikes down ban on ICRC prison visits
Israel's Supreme Court has struck down a government ban preventing International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegates from visiting Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons.
In its judgement issued on Wednesday, the court found that the government had not offered sufficient justification for the blanket ban, which was imposed following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
The ICRC welcomed the decision, saying it was "ready to resume our visits to detainees in Israeli places of detention".
"We are continuing our dialogue with the Israeli authorities to resume our work in detention as soon as possible," it said in a statement.
The ICRC stressed that access to detainees -- including the ability to meet with them privately -- constitutes an obligation under international law.
Hezbollah chief urges Lebanon to end 'farce' of direct Israel talks
Hezbollah chief says northern Israel will not be safe while Lebanese villages are bombed
Lebanon's Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said on Thursday that as long as Lebanese villages were being bombed and people were being killed, northern Israel will not be safe.
Hezbollah rejects latest ceasefire agreement as Israeli strikes kill four in Lebanon
Hezbollah on Thursday rejected the latest ceasefire agreement reached between Israel and the Lebanese government, demanding a complete Israeli withdrawal. The announcement came as Israeli strikes killed at least four people, according to local authorities, and a UN peacekeeper was killed in the crossfire.
Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem, in a written statement read on TV, said the agreement’s demand that Hezbollah fighters leave southern Lebanon under fire would mean “surrender, defeat and achieving the enemy’s goals.”
“What we are concerned about is an end to the aggression, ceasefire and Israel’s withdrawal,” he said. “We did not make any commitment to any party to stop resisting as long as there is occupation,” he added.
Lebanon president says deal announced in Washington 'last chance' for comprehensive Israel truce
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that an agreement on implementing a ceasefire announced in Washington after talks with Israel was the “last chance” to reach a comprehensive truce.
“The results of the fourth round of negotiations, and the statement issued from it, which included very important points in Lebanon’s favour, represent the last chance to enter into a final, comprehensive ceasefire. Each party bears responsibility” if it fails to respond positively, Aoun said, according to a statement from his office.
Aoun said Lebanon would inform the United States of its position “as soon as responses are received from the concerned internal parties, particularly Hezbollah”, adding that the US would determine the ceasefire’s start date and “President Donald Trump will be the direct guarantor of its implementation”.
Yesterday's key developments:
(FRANCE 24 with Reuters, AP and AFP)
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