Israel pounded Lebanon with its heaviest strikes yet on Wednesday, killing hundreds of people and drawing a threat of retaliation from Iran, which suggested it would be "unreasonable" to proceed with talks to forge a permanent peace deal with the United States. Israel and the United States both said the two-week ceasefire did not cover Lebanon, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the strikes would continue. "The United States will, working with Iran, dig up and remove all of the deeply buried ... Nuclear 'Dust,'" Trump said on social media. Though both the United States and Iran declared victory in a five-week-old war that has killed thousands, their core disputes remained unresolved. IRAN'S RULING ESTABLISHMENT SURVIVESCrowds took to the streets of Iran overnight to celebrate, waving Iranian flags and burning those of the United States and Israel.

Source: The Standard April 09, 2026 03:54 UTC