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Iran war day 69: Tehran ‘reviewing’ US proposals; Israel bombs Beirut

Iran war day 69: Tehran ‘reviewing’ US proposals; Israel bombs Beirut

Trump says US-Iran talks are progressing as Tehran reviews a US proposal delivered through Pakistan. Published On 7 May 20267 May 2026 United States President Donald Trump has said the US has held “very good talks” with Iran and suggested a deal to end the conflict could be within reach, as Tehran says it is still reviewing a US proposal delivered through mediator Pakistan. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baghaei, said the proposal remains “under review” and that Tehran will communicate its response once it has “finalised its views”. Recommended Stories list of 1 itemend of list The diplomatic push comes amid continuing regional tensions, with uncertainty remaining over whether the negotiations can produce a breakthrough after weeks of military escalation and political threats between Washington and Tehran. Meanwhile, Israel has expanded its military campaign by bombing Beirut in the first strike on the Lebanese capital since a ceasefire, widely seen as fragile, came into force on April 17. Here is what we know: In Iran Iran reviewing US proposal: Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Baghaei said a US proposal to end the war is still “under review” by Tehran. Iran will convey its views to key mediator Pakistan after “finalising its views”, Baghaei told the ISNA news agency. Iranian speaker mocks US operations: Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf ridiculed recent military operations against Tehran, joking on social media that “Operation Trust Me Bro failed” and that Washington had now returned to “Operation Fauxios”. War Diplomacy Iran seeks China’s help: Tehran is looking forward to China’s support for a “new post-war” regional framework following its conflict with the US, said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a post on X. Pakistan PM ‘hopeful’: Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, a key mediator between Iran, the US and Israel, said he was “hopeful” the current momentum of negotiations would lead to peace in the region. Trump pushes for fast Iran deal: Trump is aiming to secure an agreement with Iran before the end of his upcoming trip to China, as negotiators work through a reported 14-point framework via Pakistani mediators. Reporting from Washington, DC, Al Jazeera’s Kimberly Halkett says the compressed timeline suggests the White House believes a breakthrough may be close, while also allowing Trump to project momentum before a high-profile foreign visit. Advertisement In the Gulf US warplane disables Iranian tanker: The US military says a Navy fighter jet fired on and disabled the rudder of an Iranian-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman after the vessel allegedly tried to breach Washington’s blockade of Iranian ports. In the US Trump predicts quick end to war: Trump says the conflict with Iran “will be over quickly” as Washington pushes for a deal over Tehran’s nuclear programme and the Strait of Hormuz blockade. Speaking to supporters, Trump said the US “cannot allow” Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon, according to the Reuters news agency. US threatens escalation: Trump threatened to resume bombing in Iran if it did not agree to a deal. “If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before,” Trump said in a social media post. In Israel Sirens sound in northern Israel: Israel’s military says it intercepted a “suspicious aerial target” launched from Lebanon after warning sirens sounded across northern Israel. In Lebanon Lebanon ceasefire under strain: Israeli forces are carrying out daily air strikes deeper inside Lebanon despite a US-brokered ceasefire, signalling a widening of the conflict beyond the country’s south. Hezbollah steps up attacks: Hezbollah says its fighters carried out 17 targeted strikes against Israeli forces inside Lebanese territory, accusing Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire. Global economy Hormuz closure hits global shipping: German shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd says the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is costing it about $60m a week in fuel and insurance, as companies avoid the waterway over fears of Iranian attacks and potential sanctions linked to IRGC-controlled transit procedures. China banks urged to halt refinery loans: Beijing’s financial regulator has reportedly advised major Chinese banks to pause new loans to five oil refineries sanctioned by the US over alleged links to Iranian oil, according to Bloomberg News. Adblock test (Why?)

The Gaza journalist killed on the day his daughter was born

The Gaza journalist killed on the day his daughter was born

Gaza City, Gaza Strip – May 7, 2025, was the day Amal Sobeih’s daughter was born. It was also the day her husband was killed. Yahya Sobeih saw little Sana come into the world. At six in the morning, he took Amal to the hospital as she struggled through labour pains. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list At the time, Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza was still raging, and military strikes across the enclave had not stopped. But the couple were filled with excitement as they prepared to welcome their third child, and the first sister to their two sons, Baraa and Kenan, who were four and three at the time. Amal explains that doctors told her she needed an emergency caesarean section after she arrived in the hospital, but aside from that, the delivery went smoothly. “It was a perfect day at the beginning … the delivery went quickly, the baby was healthy, and everyone was happy,” Amal says. “Yahya was overjoyed. He carried his daughter and kept telling everyone, ‘My beautiful princess is here.’” He went on to spend several hours with his wife and newborn daughter. He checked on them, recited the Islamic call to prayer into the baby’s ears, took photos of her, and welcomed relatives who arrived to congratulate him. Before leaving, Yahya told Amal he would step out briefly and return soon. “He asked me to rest and take care of myself. He said he would check on our two boys at home and bring some supplies for the baby, then come back so we could choose a name together,” Amal recalls. “Unfortunately, I did not know that would be the last time we would ever see Yahya.” Advertisement Yahya, who worked as a journalist, survived for five hours after the birth of his baby daughter, whose photo he proudly shared on social media while holding her in his arms. Later that day, Yahya was killed in an Israeli air strike targeting a commercial area in central Gaza City. The strike killed at least 17 people and wounded dozens more. Sana, whose birth last year coincided with the death of her father, Yahya Sobeih, at her family home in central Gaza City [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera] Shocking news Relatives gathered around Amal in the hospital were unsure how to break the news to her, so soon after she had given birth. Their only concern was how they would tell her while she remained in such a fragile physical and emotional state after delivery. But she knew something was up. “There were constant phone calls, tense faces, conversations that suddenly stopped whenever I came close. Even the medical staff kept checking on me, and my mother was whispering all the time,” Amal says. “I kept asking my mother, ‘Is something wrong? What’s happening?’ But nobody answered me clearly. Everyone spoke in a strange way,” she explains. “I picked up my phone and immediately called Yahya. I called more than 15 times, but he never answered, which was unlike him. He always answered me immediately or at least sent a message.” She only found out what had happened after she accessed the internet. “The headline appeared right in front of me: ‘Journalist Yahya Sobeih killed five hours after welcoming his newborn daughter,’” Amal says through tears. “I felt the blood freeze in my veins. I screamed uncontrollably because I could not believe it. I felt like I was losing my mind.” Yahya had been attacked while distributing sweets to relatives and friends in celebration of his daughter’s birth. Among those killed with him were his cousin, his closest friend and his brother-in-law – the same people who had been in the hospital only hours earlier congratulating him, holding the baby and taking photos. Amal says the shock was not only in losing him, but also in being unable to say goodbye. Still recovering from surgery, she was forced to remain lying in bed for hours. “I just wanted to see him one last time … to touch him, to say goodbye … but I couldn’t.” Yahya Sobeih was killed five hours after his daughter was born. He was able to hold her and take photographs with her before leaving the hospital [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera] A year of grief Amal had already lost her brother, his wife, and their three children in the war, as well as her sister and her four children, all killed in Israeli attacks. Advertisement But Amal calls the past 12 months, since the death of Yahya, “the year of grief”. She says she has battled through not one war, but two: the ongoing military conflict itself and the struggle of raising her children alone. Yahya’s sudden absence forced Amal into a reality she had never imagined, even though he had often prepared her for the possibility that he could be killed at any moment because of his work as a field journalist covering the war. “Every time I heard about a journalist being killed, I felt terrified,” Amal says tearfully. “But I never imagined I would lose him.” Only a few months after Yahya’s death, Amal was displaced with her three children to southern Gaza after the Israeli military announced a ground operation in Gaza City last September. She describes the suffering of searching for shelter and living in a tent under harsh conditions with a four-month-old baby and two young boys who were still struggling to understand their father’s absence. “Yahya was a source of support, a wonderful husband and father. We never lacked anything with him around, even during the war,” she says. “During the famine, he searched for food and paid whatever he could for his children. Losing him under such circumstances was unimaginably painful.” Gradually, Amal realised she had to become both mother and father to her children. Despite her grief, she decided to continue her husband’s path and began working for the same media company he worked for. “I try to continue my husband’s message,

French warship moves towards Hormuz for possible defensive mission

French warship moves towards Hormuz for possible defensive mission

Iran says it is reviewing a US proposal that Donald Trump says could bring the war to an end. Published On 7 May 20267 May 2026 A French aircraft carrier is heading south of the Suez Canal and into the Red Sea in preparation for a possible defensive mission aimed at restoring safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, the strategically critical waterway that has been effectively blocked amid the US-Israel war on Iran. The French Ministry of Armed Forces said on Wednesday the nuclear-powered Charles de Gaulle was en route to the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20 percent of the world’s traded oil transited prior to the war. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer are leading a multinational mission towards restoring freedom of navigation in the strait, which they say would be entirely defensive and deployed only once the war ended. “[It] may help restore confidence among shipowners and insurers,” Macron said on X. “It remains distinct from the parties at war.” Macron, who spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday, said he also intends to raise the matter with United States President Donald Trump. “A return to calm in the Strait will help advance negotiations on nuclear issues, ballistic matters, and the regional situation,” Macron wrote. “Europeans … will play their part.” France is framing the mission as a win-win solution for Iran and the US in an effort to incentivise them to agree. “What we are proposing is ⁠that Iran gains passage for its ships through the strait and in return commits to negotiating with the Americans on issues of nuclear materials, missiles, and the region, and we propose that the Americans, for their part, lift their blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and, in return, obtain Iran’s commitment to negotiations,” a French presidency official ⁠told the AFP news agency. Advertisement The announcement comes as Tehran says it is reviewing a US proposal that Trump says could bring the war to an end. Trump signalled progress in the negotiations on Wednesday, but at the same time threatened to resume bombing if Tehran did not accept the US plan. Iran played down reports that an agreement was close, saying it had yet to present its response to Pakistani mediators. Trump has frequently played up the prospect of an agreement that would end the war, but the two sides remain at odds over a variety of issues, ranging from Iran’s nuclear programme to its control of the strait. The Reuters news agency, citing a Pakistani source and another person briefed on the mediation, reported that the two sides were close to agreeing on a one-page memorandum to formally end the conflict. US media outlet Axios also said the two sides were “getting close” to an agreement on a memorandum, in which Iran would agree not to develop a nuclear weapon and halt enrichment of uranium for at least 12 years, it said. The US would lift sanctions and release billions of dollars in frozen Iranian assets, and both sides would agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 30 days of signing. The spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Esmaeil Baghaei, said Tehran has yet to provide its response to the US proposal and that “the investigation into the exchanged texts is ongoing”. Adblock test (Why?)

Rubio heads to Rome with Trump’s Iran clash looming over Pope, Meloni talks

Rubio heads to Rome with Trump’s Iran clash looming over Pope, Meloni talks

Secretary of State Marco Rubio previewed a high-profile trip to Rome from the White House briefing room Tuesday, delivering sharp warnings to Iran and flashing easy command of the podium that drew praise from conservative allies online. “The trip is really not tied to anything other than the fact that it would be normal for us to engage, and other secretaries of State have done that in the past,” Rubio said at the White House press conference on Tuesday of his trip to Italy.  The briefing came two days before Rubio is set to visit the Vatican and Italy for meetings amid heightened tensions between President Donald Trump, Pope Leo and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni over the U.S.-Iran conflict. Rubio used the briefing to defend the administration’s posture toward Tehran, downplay the timing of the Italy visit and signal that Washington is not backing off its pressure campaign. RUBIO TO VISIT ITALY, VATICAN AMID TROOP DRAWDOWN CALL, TENSION WITH TRUMP, POPE LEO: REPORTS “The message to Iran … these guys are facing real catastrophic destruction to their economy, generational destruction to their economy, generational destruction to the wealth of their country imposed on themselves by the actions that they’re taking,” said Rubio of Iran on Tuesday.  “They should check themselves before they wreck themselves in the direction that they’re going,” Rubio quipped, referencing Ice Cube’s rap song, “Check Yo Self.”  Rubio, a Catholic, is expected to meet with Pope Leo on Thursday morning, at a time when the pontiff has criticized the Trump administration’s Middle East peacemaking efforts. RUBIO OVERHAULING ‘BLOATED’ STATE DEPARTMENT IN SWEEPING REFORM “There has also been this threat against the entire people of Iran, and this is truly unacceptable,” the pope said in April. “There are certainly issues of international law here, but even more so a moral issue for the good of the whole entire population.” RUBIO’S TRUMP ADMIN JUGGLING ACT GROWS AS MEME-WORTHY ROLE LIST BECOMES REALITY The comments were seemingly in reference to one of Trump’s Truth Social posts, where he wrote, “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will… God Bless the Great People of Iran!” Trump told reporters on Wednesday in the Oval Office he only has one message for the Pope. “I can tell you this, that as far as the Pope is concerned, and it’s very simple. Whether I make him happy or I don’t make him happy, Iran can not have a nuclear weapon. And he seemed to be saying that they can. And I say they cannot, because if that happened, the entire world would be hostage. And we’re not going to let that happen,” he said. TRUMP MEETS WITH ITALIAN PM GIORGIA MELONI AT HIS MAR-A-LAGO RESORT Rubio will also meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has been distancing herself from the U.S. amid mounting domestic and political pressure over the widening Middle East conflict. The meeting comes as President Donald Trump intensifies pressure on NATO allies to align with the U.S. against Iran, including ordering the withdrawal of 5,000 troops from Germany — a drawdown expected to unfold over the next six to 12 months. Meloni said Tuesday she would not support any effort to reduce the U.S. military presence in Italy, drawing a contrast with Trump’s broader push to reposition American forces in Europe. Italy remains a key U.S. security hub in Europe, hosting nearly 13,000 active-duty American troops across six bases as of the end of 2025. Rubio heads to his high-profile meetings fresh off of social media commenters and conservative leaders applauding how well he stepped in for Karoline Leavitt behind the podium after she took maternity leave late last month. The secretary joked with reporters, fielded questions in multiple languages and delivered pointed warnings to Iran, giving supporters a glimpse of the presence he will likely carry into the Rome trip. “Marco Rubio is showing the nation & the world what we’ve known about him for decades,” said Republican Florida Rep. Carlos Gimenez on X. “Rubio is one of the most eloquent, articulate, & incredibly capable statesmen of our times.”  “President Trump made an EXCELLENT choice in him. He proves it every single day,” he added.

Rudy Giuliani out of ICU, continuing to recover in hospital: ‘He’s winning this fight’

Rudy Giuliani out of ICU, continuing to recover in hospital: ‘He’s winning this fight’

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is out of the ICU but will continue to spend time in the hospital before being discharged, according to a spokesperson for the former politician. “The mayor and his family appreciate the outpouring of love and prayers sent his way,” Ted Goodman, a political strategist who launched a livestream program with Giuliani, said in an update posted to social media on Wednesday. “Mayor Giuliani—the man who took down the Mafia, saved New York City, and ran toward the towers on September 11th—is the same fighter he’s always been, and he’s winning this fight,” he continued. Goodman added that the “power of prayer is working” and the former mayor “feels it,” encouraging people to keep them coming. RUDY GIULIANI’S PRIMARY CARE PROVIDER GIVES UPDATE ON HIS CONDITION Giuliani, 81, was hospitalized in critical but stable condition on Sunday because of severe breathing issues. On Monday, Giuliani’s doctor, Maria Ryan, told Fox News correspondent Danamarie McNicholl that he began feeling ill after returning from a trip to Paris, with his breathing deteriorating to the point that he required hospitalization and was placed on a ventilator. Ryan said his condition turned critical, prompting a priest to be called to his bedside to perform last rites. But by Tuesday, his condition had improved enough for doctors to remove him from the ventilator. He is now breathing independently and able to speak. RUDY GIULIANI HOSPITALIZED IN CRITICAL BUT STABLE CONDITION: ‘HE’S FIGHTING’ Ryan said she expects Giuliani to make a full recovery. “He’s a fighter — the way he was yesterday in such a critical condition, he did have a priest come anoint him,” Ryan said. “And all the prayers from around — it’s like a miracle. This guy’s got 9 lives, today he’s doing much better.” Giuliani has faced a number of health challenges in recent years but has remained active in public life. Earlier this week, Goodman noted Giuliani’s health history following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, when he was exposed to debris while responding at Ground Zero, later leading to a diagnosis of restrictive airway disease. He had also been seriously injured in a car crash in New Hampshire in August of last year, leaving him with a fractured thoracic vertebra, multiple lacerations and other injuries. President Donald Trump said after learning of Giuliani’s hospitalization on Sunday that he was the “Best Mayor” in New York City’s history. “Our fabulous Rudy Giuliani, a True Warrior, and the Best Mayor in the History of New York City, BY FAR, has been hospitalized, and is in critical condition,” Trump said, in part. Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.