Iran War Highlights: Iran not interested in continuing US conflict, foreign minister Araghchi tells China

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Gharibabadi wrote on X:

"Two hundred nights have passed since the streets of Iran have borne witness to the presence of a people who have not bowed before the enemy. Two hundred nights, a narrative of the solidarity and steadfastness of a nation that has kept the name and prestige of Iran alive through its resilience. This is not merely two hundred nights; it is two hundred pages from the history of a nation that has brought its enemies to their knees."

China urges Iran and the US to exercise restraint, remain rational and return to the interim peace deal signed in June, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in Beijing.

Wang called for the resumption of negotiations, urging Tehran and Washington to “rebuild the negotiation mechanism” based on previous agreements.

China urged all parties to reopen the Strait of Hormuz quickly, saying this is necessary to protect international energy transportation and global supply chains.

Beijing warned against further regional escalation, saying it does not want tensions to spread into Yemen and the Red Sea.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is not interested in continuing the conflict with the US and wants to return to a diplomatic solution.

Araghchi made the remarks during talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing, where he briefed him on the latest developments in West Asia and the Gulf.

China urged Iran and the US to return to the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and revive negotiations to resolve the conflict.

Wang said the continued US-Iran conflict was not in the common interest of the parties or the international community, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry readout.

China called on both sides to exercise restraint, rebuild the negotiation mechanism and hold substantive consultations on issues of concern.

Araghchi said Iran was prepared to return to diplomatic channels while defending what it considers its legitimate rights.

The Iranian foreign minister said Tehran considers the US-Iran MoU to remain in force and called on Washington to honour its commitments.

The IDF said it eliminated Jihad Samih Mahmoud Ismail, identifying him as a Hamas Nukhba squad commander who infiltrated Israel during the October 7 attack.

Ismail was allegedly involved in an encounter with Israeli Armored Corps soldiers from Tank No. 3, according to the IDF.

The IDF said he was also involved in the abduction of Captain Omer Neutra, Staff Sergeant Oz Daniel and Sergeant Nimrod Cohen.

During the encounter, Tank No. 3’s driver, Sergeant Shaked Dahan, was killed, the IDF said.

Two pumping stations on Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline were damaged in an attack last week, according to assessments from three oil and security sources, Reuters reported.

Pumping stations 8 and 9 were hit, the sources said, while the timeline for repairs remains unclear.

The 1,200-km (745-mile) East-West Pipeline, operated by Saudi Aramco, temporarily shut down on Friday after a drone attack that Saudi officials said came from Iraq.

The pipeline has 11 pumping stations and two pressure-relief stations, according to industry assessments.

The facility has been a key alternative to the Strait of Hormuz, which has been largely closed by war for the past six months.

"Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. That was an important objective of American foreign policy for the last half-century," Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson, said during a press conference.

"That's taken care of, and now we got to get gas prices down. But I want to remind you as well: There's another big factor of why gas prices are high. This is the result of bad Democrat policy." (CBS News)

Brent crude fell below $108 a barrel after gaining 4% over the previous two sessions, as traders assessed supply damage and whether the rally had become excessive.

The recent gains pushed Brent’s 14-day relative strength index above 70, a level often associated with technically overbought conditions.

Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline remains shut following drone strikes, with uncertainty over when operations will resume.

Riyadh is increasing crude sales from outside the Strait of Hormuz, indicating efforts to maintain exports despite the pipeline disruption.

CBS News reported that images taken by US troops show significant damage to American military facilities in the Middle East following Iranian strikes.

The images, taken at a US base in Saudi Arabia and two facilities in Kuwait, reportedly show a destroyed aircraft, shredded tents and badly damaged trailers.

The news outlet quoted a US service member as saying the damage to American bases had not been fully communicated to the public.

The Houthis denied responsibility for the alleged drone attack on Mecca.

Saudi officials, however, said their forces intercepted and destroyed the drone before it entered the city’s airspace.

According to Saudi-led coalition spokesman Col. Turki al-Maliki, the rebels fired a ballistic missile toward the city in 2017.

Separately, the Houthis claimed they had shot down an F-15 fighter jet operated by the Saudi-led coalition over Yemen’s central Marib province.

Oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have recovered somewhat as tankers increasingly use a route near Oman, with guidance from US forces.

Estimates put current flows at around 5 million to 7 million barrels per day, although the exact figure is difficult to establish because ships can switch off their tracking systems.

That remains less than half the volume recorded before the war began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28, keeping pressure on global energy markets.

As Saudi Arabia weighs its response to the Houthi escalation, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi was in China, Iran's biggest oil customer.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi called on the United States and Iran to exercise restraint and reopen the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible. Beijing also expressed concern about the conflict spreading into Yemen and the Red Sea.

China has so far avoided direct involvement in the war.

Sweden has expelled an employee of Iran’s embassy and summoned the Iranian ambassador.

Sweden accused Iran of threatening Jewish and Israeli interests in the country.

Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer said Iran has conducted activities threatening Sweden’s security over a long period.

Stockholm said the alleged activities targeted people opposed to the Iranian regime, as well as Jewish and Israeli interests.

Strömmer said criminal networks were used to carry out some of these activities.

In a statement posted on X, Kuwait’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the Houthi drone attack targeting Mecca, describing it as a “cowardly and reprehensible act” and an “affront to Muslims everywhere”.

Kuwait expressed full solidarity with Saudi Arabia, commended the country’s air defences for intercepting the drone, and emphasised that Saudi Arabia’s security is closely linked to the security of Kuwait and other Gulf states.

Several Amazon data centers in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain hit by drone strikes in March cannot be reactivated, the company's cloud arm said on Tuesday.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) said it was unable to restart several sites in Bahrain and one in the UAE. AWS has three sites in Bahrain, according to its website.

"After a thorough assessment, we have determined that we are unable to restore access to the resources and data hosted exclusively in this Region," it said in a status update.

AWS said in early March that drone strikes damaged two of its data centers in the UAE and a facility in Bahrain.

The incidents, which occurred a few days after the United States and Israel began attacking Iran, were "a result of the ongoing conflict" in the Middle East, AWS said at the time.

— AFP

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun told AFP in an exclusive interview he wants a security agreement with Israel once it withdraws its troops as a possible prelude to peace, and is determined to disarm Hezbollah without a confrontation.

Speaking ahead of his departure to France on Wednesday, President Joseph Aoun said Lebanon wanted a new force, European or otherwise, to prevent a security vacuum after UN peacekeepers leave south Lebanon when their mandate expires at the end of the year.

He called on the United States, European Union and Arab countries to support Lebanon's military as it deploys across the country.

Lebanon under Aoun has committed to disarming Iran-backed Hezbollah, which dragged the country into the wider Middle East war by attacking Israel earlier this year.

— AFP

China has urged Iran and the United States to remain rational, exercise restraint and return to the Islamabad memorandum for substantive consultations, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Iranian counterpart in Beijing on Wednesday.

China's Foreign Minister told his Iranian counterpart that Beijing does not want to see regional tensions spill over further towards Yemen and the Red Sea, according to the statement.

Republican US Representative Thomas Massie introduced articles of impeachment against Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, saying he "must be held accountable" over the US war with Iran. The move is unlikely to pass but could force a vote in the House.

Iran's armed forces operation deputy said the country fears no wars when it comes to safeguarding its sovereignty and security.

Iran called on countries around the world to condemn what it described as "unilateral hegemonism and the law of the jungle".