Diplomatic contacts resume as Lebanon strikes raise pressure
Talks involving Qatar, Pakistan and regional officials are active again as Israeli attacks in Lebanon and Gaza add urgency to US-Iran diplomacy.
By Sofia Marchetti · World Affairs Correspondent
3 min read
Diplomatic contacts linked to Iran and the United States have picked up again in Switzerland, Tehran and Cairo, according to Al Jazeera. The renewed activity comes as Israeli attacks in Lebanon, Gaza and the occupied West Bank add pressure to talks that regional officials are trying to keep alive.
Al Jazeera correspondent Osama Bin Javaid reported from Burgenstock, Switzerland, that Qatar’s prime minister remained at the site longer than expected after meeting Switzerland’s foreign minister, who he said is helping arrange the contacts. He also reported that Pakistan’s interior minister was in Tehran for meetings with Iranian officials, while Pakistan’s foreign minister was in Cairo with officials from Turkiye, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
Al Jazeera said a witness reported seeing Jared Kushner, Donald Trump’s son-in-law, in Burgenstock. The network also cited reports that other US figures, including Steve Witkoff, could travel there.
Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is expected to meet Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Tehran, ISNA quoted Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei as saying. IRNA, citing an official source, said Naqvi’s trip is part of Islamabad’s efforts to follow up on Iran-US negotiations; the report said Naqvi previously met Araghchi and Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni on June 7.
Lebanon toll rises
Israel killed at least 12 people in Lebanon since dawn, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported. The agency listed deaths in Sohmor, Kfar Reman, Barish, Arab Salim, Deir ez-Zahrani, Doueir and Shahour, including one Lebanese soldier and four members of one family in Barish.
The Lebanese army said on X that Israeli attacks had reached wide areas of southern Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley, killing and wounding people and damaging property. The army accused Israel of trying to block any solution that could restore stability in Lebanon and said an army member was killed on the Kafr Reman-Nabatieh road.
Patrick Bury, a defence and security specialist at the University of Bath and a former British army officer, told Al Jazeera that Israel’s escalating attacks on Lebanon show a clearer gap between Israeli security aims and US interests over Iran. He said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces domestic pressure but still appears to have backing to continue fighting Hezbollah and Iran, while Washington and Tehran both have reasons to keep a deal alive.
Imad Salamey, an associate professor at Lebanese American University, told Al Jazeera that Israel appeared to be using Lebanon to disrupt the emerging US-Iran arrangement. He said next week’s Lebanese-Israeli talks could clarify both Israeli and US intentions.
Gaza and West Bank attacks continue
Gaza’s Health Ministry said Israeli attacks killed at least five Palestinians and injured 43 others over the past 48 hours, despite a ceasefire announced last October. The ministry said 1,012 people have been confirmed killed and 3,208 injured since that ceasefire took effect.
In the occupied West Bank, Wafa news agency and Al Jazeera reported Israeli raids and restrictions in several areas. Israeli forces arrested five Palestinians in overnight operations in Deir Abu Mishaal and Nablus, sealed al-Mughayyer’s last remaining entrance, and barred farmers from harvesting wheat in the Beit Furik plain, according to those reports.
The Palestinian Foreign Ministry condemned Israeli authorities over control of land belonging to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate in occupied East Jerusalem’s Silwan neighbourhood. The ministry said Israeli officials expelled the Patriarchate’s representative, confiscated equipment, uprooted trees and fenced off the area.
Iran’s IRNA news agency quoted Esmail Qaani, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force, warning Israel that fighters in Gaza could carry out major operations. Qaani referred to Hezbollah’s drone capabilities and said Israel should be careful about Gaza.
This story draws on original reporting from Al Jazeera.