Beirut: 203 dead - Islamabad waits - the Strait of Hormuz is closed and Germany calls on Israel to end the attacks

Yerevan - The ceasefire is one day old. Three ships have passed through the Strait of Hormuz. All three with connections to Iran. 230 loaded tankers are waiting for passage. They are still waiting.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh told the British broadcaster BBC that the strait would be opened as soon as the United States ended its aggression and Israel stopped attacking Lebanon. One cannot have both, he said. That was the message Iran had clearly sent to Washington and into the Oval Office.

Israel has not stopped attacking Lebanon.

Wednesday was the deadliest day in the current Israel Hezbollah war. 203 people were killed, more than 1,000 were injured. Several districts of Beirut were hit simultaneously during rush hour and without warning. Hospitals called for blood donations. Doctor Wael Jarrosh said his hospital admitted around 70 injured within ten minutes of the strikes. That destroyed them psychologically. Survivor Rabee Koshok described from his hospital bed how he saw a bright flash of light and someone flying through the air and landing dead next to him.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday that Israel would continue to strike Hezbollah with force, precision and determination. Anyone who acts against Israeli citizens will suffer consequences. Defense Minister Israel Katz claimed Hezbollah is seeking a ceasefire after the heavy attacks and more than 200 fighters killed in a single day. The claims could not be independently verified. Israel said the ceasefire with Iran does not apply to its war against Hezbollah. Pakistan, which mediated the ceasefire, said it also applies to Lebanon.

Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned on X that ongoing Israeli attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon would lead to clear costs and strong responses. Violations of the ceasefire would bring explicit and strong responses. He wrote that the fire should be extinguished immediately.

Iran’s ambassador in Pakistan had posted on X on Thursday morning that Tehran’s negotiating delegation would arrive in Islamabad during the night. Then he deleted the post. Without comment.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi met with the American Chargé d’Affaires Natalie Baker to discuss the situation in the Middle East and the upcoming talks. He confirmed that US Vice President JD Vance, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are expected as special guests and that a comprehensive security plan has been developed.

China’s Ministry of Defense denied reports that Chinese companies with ties to the People’s Liberation Army had sold information about the movements of American forces to Iran during the war. Spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang called the reports false information and said China has always taken an objective and impartial stance.

The head of Iran’s nuclear agency, Mohammad Eslami, told journalists in Tehran that the right to uranium enrichment is a necessary condition for any ceasefire with the United States. It is part of the necessary elements that no one is talking about. At the same time, Trump claims Iran has given up enrichment. Iran has not confirmed this.

US Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of Central Command, said in a video message that Iran has suffered a generational military defeat. The United States and Israel have systematically destroyed Iran’s ability to conduct large scale military operations for the coming years.

Houthi leader Abdul Malik al Houthi, by contrast, called the ceasefire a major victory for Iran. Iran ultimately defeated the enemy. He confirmed that his group prevented Israel and the United States from using the Red Sea for attacks on Iran and praised Hezbollah for one of its greatest battles in Lebanon.

France’s Foreign Minister Jean Noël Barrot said European and other partners are finalizing plans for an escort mission for ships in the Strait of Hormuz as soon as hostilities effectively end. Around 15 countries are ready to participate. Sultan al Jaber, head of the state oil company Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, said 230 loaded ships are waiting for passage. No country has the legitimate right to determine who may pass under what conditions. What Iran is doing is not freedom of navigation. It is coercion.

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni warned parliament of unpredictable economic consequences if Iran were to impose transit fees in the Strait of Hormuz. She indicated that the EU should suspend the Stability and Growth Pact in the event of a further escalation of the crisis, similar to during the Covid crisis.

Israeli forces fired warning shots on Wednesday at an Italian convoy that is part of the UN peacekeeping mission UNIFIL in southern Lebanon. Italy strongly condemned this. Meloni said Israel had been repeatedly urged to stop the military escalation and guarantee the safety of the UNIFIL mission.

Germany calls for …, Merz proposes …

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the severity with which Israel is conducting the war there could cause the entire peace process to fail. He has called on Israel to end its further intensified attacks. Germany will, in coordination with the United States and European partners, resume talks with Iran in order to make its own contribution to the success of the peace negotiations. Merz said the Iran war has become a stress test for NATO, and he does not want it to further burden transatlantic relations. In a phone call, he offered Trump to continue the discussion about the future of the alliance before the NATO summit in July in Ankara. It is his firm intention to do everything to preserve NATO’s protection for Europe - including the United States, because this alliance currently has no substitute.

Spain’s Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares instructed his ambassador in Tehran to return. Spain had closed the embassy at the start of the war. Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar called Spain an eternal disgrace.

South Korea urged its citizens in Lebanon to leave the country as quickly as possible. The scope and intensity of the Israeli attacks are no longer comparable to what they were before, said Ambassador Geon Gyusuk. Areas where many South Koreans had previously lived and that were considered relatively safe are no longer safe.

In Iran, mourning ceremonies began on Thursday marking the 40th day after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the war on February 28. His body has still not been buried. His son Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei is leading the country as the new Supreme Leader - without ever having appeared in public.

The talks in Islamabad are expected to begin this weekend. We will be on the ground.

The Strait of Hormuz is closed.