Britain Aligns with Iran on Israel's Aggression Towards Lebanon

Further negotiations will be held in Islamabad on Friday (10/4). The British government has aligned with Iran in urging Israel to stop its attacks on Lebanon. British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper on Thursday (9/4) called for the ceasefire between Iran and the United States to be extended to Lebanon amid Israel’s ongoing strikes. “I am deeply concerned about the increasing Israeli attacks in Lebanon. We have seen the humanitarian consequences and mass displacement of the population. We want the ceasefire to be extended to Lebanon,” Cooper told Sky News. She also announced plans to meet with the leadership of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to discuss the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, and reiterated that Iran must not impose fees on ships passing through those international waters. On Tuesday night, US President Donald Trump announced that an agreement had been reached with Iran for a two-week ceasefire. At the same time, Israeli fighter jets and artillery attacked dozens of settlements in southern Lebanon, including the major city of Tyre. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei described Israel’s attacks on Lebanon as a violation of the US-Iran ceasefire. In a separate incident, an Israeli airstrike in the town of Abbassiyeh killed at least seven people and wounded others, with the figure being provisional. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned that Israel’s attacks on Lebanon threaten to derail peace negotiations with the US. The Indonesian government, through its Ministry of Foreign Affairs, has strongly condemned Israel’s attacks on Beirut and several other areas in Lebanon. The militant group Hezbollah is reportedly in a difficult position amid the escalation of conflict with Israel. UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel expressed concern over the ongoing intensity of exchanges of fire around the UN’s area of operations.