Paris (France) (AFP) – Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:
– **Turkey moots meeting in mediator Pakistan**
Talks between Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Turkey on the war in the Middle East could take place this weekend on Pakistani soil, Ankara said. Pakistan has emerged as a key mediator between Iran and the United States as the conflict drags on, with Islamabad serving as a go-between for messages passed between the two warring sides.
– **UN nuclear watchdog urges ‘restraint’**
The United Nations atomic watchdog repeated its call for “restraint” in the Middle East war after Israel struck two Iranian nuclear facilities, including a uranium processing plant. “IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi reiterates (his) call for military restraint to avoid any risk of a nuclear accident,” the International Atomic Energy Agency said on X.
– **Iran vows ‘heavy price’ for plant strikes**
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would exact a “HEAVY price for Israeli crimes,” after attacks on two of the country’s largest steel factories and nuclear sites. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards also warned employees of the region’s industrial sites “that have American shareholders as well as heavy industries allied with the Zionist regime…to leave their workplaces immediately,” as they vowed to carry out retaliatory attacks.
– **US ops finishing in ‘couple weeks’: Rubio**
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he expected Washington’s war objectives in Iran to be completed “in the next couple weeks,” regardless of whether the United States sends ground troops. “When we are done with them here in the next couple weeks, they will be weaker than they’ve been in recent history,” he told reporters in Paris after G7 talks. He also said Washington was open to diverting US weapons from Ukraine to the Iran war if needed.
– **Iran has sent ‘messages’: Rubio**
Rubio also said Iran had sent “messages” to the American side but had not responded to a US-proposed peace plan. “We’ve had an exchange of messages and indications from the Iranian system — whatever’s left of it — about a willingness to talk about certain things,” he said.
– **’Regime change’ unlikely: Merz**
The war is unlikely to lead to “regime change” in Iran, said German Chancellor Friedrich Merz. “If that’s the goal, I don’t think you’ll achieve it. It’s mostly gone wrong” in past conflicts, he said at a forum in Frankfurt, pointing to the Afghanistan war.
– **US, Israel strike Iran nuclear sites**
US-Israeli strikes hit a uranium processing facility in central Iran, the country’s atomic energy organization said. Israel’s army confirmed it had struck the facility and also a heavy water reactor in central Iran.
– **More than 300 US soldiers wounded**
More than 300 American troops have been wounded since the start of the war on February 28, US Central Command said. A US official who asked not to be identified told AFP that 10 US troops remain seriously wounded.
– **G7 calls for Hormuz reopening**
G7 foreign ministers urged an “immediate cessation” of attacks against civilians in the war and urged Iran to immediately restore freedom of navigation in the strategic Strait of Hormuz. A joint statement, released in the name of all G7 members, including the United States, “reiterated the absolute necessity to permanently restore safe and toll-free freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”
– **Israel hits Beirut, no warning**
A strike hit Beirut’s southern suburbs without warning from the Israeli military, Lebanese state media said, as AFPTV footage showed smoke rising from the area.
© 2024 AFP
