Tel Aviv [Israel], June 4 (ANI): The Israeli army’s chief of staff, Eyal Zamir, has asserted that there is effectively no ceasefire in Lebanon, despite continuous efforts by US President Donald Trump to preserve the truce that initially came into effect in mid-April.
According to a report by The Times of Israel, Zamir made these remarks during a visit to a naval base in Haifa. His comments coincided with a fourth round of US-mediated discussions between Israel and Lebanon continuing in Washington, talks that have faced staunch opposition from the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah.
Zamir’s statement came as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed that channels of communication between Tehran and Washington remain open, though he acknowledged that attempts to negotiate an end to the wider regional conflict have yielded little progress.
In an interview with Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen television, which was cited by Iran’s Tasnim news agency, Araghchi stated: “Communications with the Americans have not been cut off, and messages have been exchanged regarding the need to stop aggression against Beirut, but no tangible progress has been made in the negotiation process.”
The Iranian Foreign Minister outlined strict parameters for any formal resumption of diplomatic talks. “Returning to the negotiating table is conditional on ensuring the rights of the Iranian people, ending the war in Lebanon, and stopping tensions in the region,” Araghchi stated, adding that exchanged draft texts are still under review by both sides.
Araghchi also issued a stern warning against any Israeli military actions targeting the Lebanese capital. “Any attack on Beirut will have grave consequences and will lead to a full-scale resumption of the war,” he told Al Mayadeen.
Emphasising Tehran’s position, Araghchi warned: “We will not remain silent” if Beirut comes under attack. He further revealed, “At the moment when Israel threatened to attack the suburbs of Beirut, we adopted a decisive stance and the Iranian armed forces were put on full alert for a counterattack.”
He issued another explicit warning, declaring: “Our armed forces are ready to strike Israel if it attacks Beirut.”
The warnings from Tehran followed recent threats from Israel to strike Beirut’s southern suburbs as part of its expanding military campaign against Hezbollah. However, Trump stated on Tuesday that he had successfully secured commitments from both Israel and Hezbollah to halt hostilities, presenting the development as a diplomatic success that averted a broader assault on the Lebanese capital.
Meanwhile, geopolitical tensions deepened across the Gulf following sharply conflicting accounts over a recent strike at Kuwait International Airport. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) rejected all allegations of responsibility for the destruction. According to Iranian state media, an IRGC spokesperson claimed the damage resulted from a malfunction involving a US-made Patriot air defence system, rather than an external Iranian attack.
This explanation was swiftly rejected by the US military. In a post on X, US Central Command (CENTCOM) directly countered the Iranian claim, stating: “Iran struck the civilian airport with drones in a deliberate, calculated, and unjustified attack.”
The dispute emerged after former Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani sharply criticised Iran’s recent operations in the region. Writing on X, Al Thani described the attacks on Bahrain and Kuwait as “astonishing” and “unjustifiable”, questioning the rationale behind the strikes and suggesting there were grounds to examine whether they had been planned in advance. While reiterating Qatar’s interest in maintaining positive ties with Tehran, he asserted that Doha would not be “blackmailed” and urged Gulf states to formulate a collective response.
Tehran has consistently argued that its military actions were direct retaliation for Gulf states allegedly facilitating US military operations against Iranian targets from their territories. Gulf governments have strongly denied those accusations, contending instead that Tehran is attempting to pressure regional countries into convincing Trump to end the military conflict.
The diplomatic fallout follows the attack on Kuwait International Airport, which Kuwaiti authorities confirmed caused extensive destruction and resulted in the first fatality in the Gulf since the ceasefire took effect on April 8. Officials reported one death and 63 injuries. Kuwait’s Foreign Ministry also noted that diplomatic facilities suffered structural damage, though it did not identify the specific missions affected.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed that the deceased victim was an Indian citizen and issued a strong condemnation of the strike on civilian infrastructure, stating: “We again call on all parties to cease such attacks.”
Detailing the offensive, Kuwait Defence Ministry spokesman Saud Abdulaziz Al-Atwan stated that 30 ballistic missiles and drones were launched in what he termed a “heinous Iranian aggression” that caused “significant material damage to the building”.
Kuwait’s state news agency reported that operations at the airport were temporarily suspended and arriving flights diverted after Terminal One was struck, though services were later restored gradually, allowing Kuwait Airways to resume its full operational schedule.
While the IRGC maintained in a statement that its forces had only targeted the Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait and the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain in response to actions involving an Iranian tanker and Qeshm Island, conspicuously omitting any mention of the civilian airport, CENTCOM stated it had “successfully defeated” the Iranian missile and drone attacks.
According to US Central Command: “Two Iranian missiles fired at Kuwait fell short or broke apart en route, and three missiles launched at Bahrain were immediately intercepted by US and Bahrain air defense forces.” CENTCOM later added on X: “All Iranian attacks on American forces failed.”
Bahraini authorities separately reported intercepting three missiles and several drones launched by Iran.
In a separate development, Iranian state media claimed that its naval forces had struck a US military vessel carrying a “command and control centre” in the Sea of Oman.
CENTCOM flatly dismissed the assertion, posting on X: “CLAIM: Iran is now claiming it has targeted a U.S. Navy destroyer in the Gulf of Oman.” US Central Command followed up by stating: “TRUTH: Iran is lying. U.S. military assets at sea continue to fly, sail, and operate safely and unimpeded.” (ANI)
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