HEADLINES IN BRIEF

• Vessels hit and military targets attacked across Iran, Kuwait and Bahrain as Iran and US accuse the other of ceasefire violations. READ MORE BELOW.

• Hormuz to stay under Iranian control for 30 days, says FM, as he calls for a security framework with neighbouring Gulf countries. READ MORE BELOW.

• One soldier in Hezbollah clashes in southern Lebanon, Israeli authorities announce.

• Trump lashes out via Truth Social: “​The Islamic ​Republic‌ of Iran ​will ​no longer exist.”

• Second ship struck on Saturday by Iran in Strait of Hormuz slows transiting traffic as security concerns mount.

• Days after Israel and Lebanon shake hands in Washington, Hezbollah politician warns of internal conflict, as plans to disarm the militia solidify. READ MORE BELOW.

• Despite mounting tensions, international benchmark Brent crude oil continues to hover at $72.

Overnight strikes between US and Iran threaten two-week-old peace plan, as Trump sends fresh warning 

The US and Iran have shared overnight strikes for the second night running, as the two countries accuse each other of ceasefire violations. 

US Central Command (Centcom) confirmed a fresh assault on 10 Iranian targets around the Strait of Hormuz, including Sirik, Bandar-e Lengeh and Qeshm Island, after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacked a commercial, Panama-flagged oil tanker with a drone on Saturday. 

In a statement, Centcom said Iran had been “given a chance to honor the ceasefire agreement but elected not to”, referring to a previous Iranian strike on a separate, Singaporean-flagged ship that was crossing Hormuz on Thursday. 

The IRGC also released a statement, saying the US had attacked five coastal posts in Iran, under what it labelled a “the pretext of the IRGC Navy confronting the offending ship”.

In response to the coastline bombing, Iran launched within hours ballistic attacks on US infrastructure at “eight key pieces of infrastructure” at Kuwait’s Ali al-Salem base, and the Fifth Naval Fleet in Port Salman, Bahrain.

Across Bahrain, sirens could be heard, and Kuwait activated air defences in response to what it called “hostile missile and drone threats.” 

According to a US official, there are no reported US casualties or major impacts or damage to US facilities.

The third consecutive day of US-Iran strikes throws into question the stability of the Memorandum of Understanding that was signed by both parties just over two weeks ago. 

The plan, designed to give either side 60 days to iron out negotiations towards lasting peace, stipulated that the Strait of Hormuz was to be opened immediately, with ships and tankers able to pass through an ease the 4-month chokehold on global shipping.

New transit restrictions introduced by the IRGC complicated matters this week however, and escalated when the Singaporean-flagged cargo vessel Ever Lovely traversed the strait from the south rather than the north, as laid out by Iran. 

US president Donald Trump, who had already accused Tehran of foolishly violating the ceasefire agreement, took to Truth Social in the early hours of Sunday to threaten the country with annihilation.

“There may come a point when we are no longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started. If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!”

Trump has previously said he would send Iran “back to the Stone Age”, and posted back in April that “a whole civilization will die tonight” as the war heated up. 

Iran’s top diplomat calls for security framework as wider region pulled into US-Iran retaliations

Hours after a wave of missiles and drones was launched at Bahrain and Kuwait, Iran’s foreign minister has called for the establishment of a security framework with Gulf countries.

Speaking at a new conference in the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, Abbas Araghchi insisted a new framework should be reached that “includes all countries in the region and without the presence or interference of any country from outside the region.”

His comments follow an interview between Qatari PM Sheikh Mohammed and the Financial Times, during which the Gulf leader said that countries across the region were seeking to establish a new security framework with Tehran, with the aim of restoring long-term stability. The interview was published on Wednesday 24 June. 

Araghchi also went on to warn against any attempts by the US to “adopt new or separate arrangements” regarding Iranian-sanctioned Strait of Hormuz routes, and that doing so would “increase tensions” in the Middle East.

To this end, Araghchi stated that the strait would remain under total Iranian control over the next 30 days, and that after all obstacles are removed, “the Strait of Hormuz will return to its pre-war capacity.” 

He pushed all parties to “adhere to the memorandum of understanding and not to allow this MOU to deviate from its course,” in the wake of continued exchanges between Washington and Tehran.

The US has yet to issue a response to the 30-day effective takeover by Iran of the strait. 

Israeli strikes in Lebanon’s south, days after deal in Washington agreed

One Lebanese national and one Israeli soldier have been killed in southern Lebanon, days after a deal between the two countries was signed in Washington under the watch of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Israeli drones struck the southern Lebanese town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa on Saturday, additionally wounding at least two people, according to Lebanese state media. The news agency also reported further airstrikes in the area including near the Lebanese village of Deir Seryan on Sunday. 

The Israeli military offered little detail beyond confirming it had targeted someone it considered a threat to its troops on the ground. They also said that a solider had been killed during overnight on Sunday, during an encounter with Hezbollah operatives near Deir Seryan.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah's leader Naim Qassem made his position on Friday's US-brokered peace framework clear, rejecting it entirely and accusing Beirut of capitulating to outside pressure at the expense of Lebanese sovereignty.

The group had no seat at the table when the deal, which agrees to disarm Hezbollah, was negotiated, and continues to show little interest in being bound by it.

On Sunday, Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah warned of “internal conflict” in Lebanon over the country's agreement with Israel, a day after the country's prime minister Joseph Aoun spoke with US President Donald Trump to say that the Lebanese state “will assume its responsibilities” in implementing the framework agreement.