Pakistan pushes for US-Iran negotiations, Israeli strikes on Lebanon continue

HEADLINES IN BRIEF

• Speaking at a news conference, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Pakistan was working to "bring the two parties to the negotiating table" and prevent efforts to undermine the peace process. READ MORE BELOW

• Israeli twin strikes on southern Lebanon killed one person and damaged an ambulance, Lebanese state media and the health ministry said, with the latter condemning the "continued targeting" of rescuers. READ MORE BELOW

• Pakistan's interior minister is visiting Iran to discuss regional security, stability and other developments, the Pakistani foreign office said, as Islamabad tries to mediate a resolution to the US-Israel war on Iran. 

• Global oil supply will fall by 4.3 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 4%, this year, according to the latest forecast released by the International Energy Agency (IEA). Demand is expected to slump by 1.6 million barrels per day, compared with its forecast slump of one million barrels in its previous monthly report in July.

• A US helicopter fired missiles into the engine room of a Panama-flagged cargo ship that attempted to break the US blockade of Iran's ports, the United States military said.

• Pakistan denounced an attack by Houthi fighters on a vessel in the Red Sea in which three of its citizens were killed. Yemen's coastguard said the strike left six dead, including Pakistanis and an Indonesian citizen. 

• The United States will sponsor a new round of talks between Israel and Lebanon in early September in Rome, a State Department official announced. "The conversations will continue in Beirut, Jerusalem, and Washington in the interim," the official said on condition of anonymity. "We feel good about the trajectory."

IN DETAIL

Pakistan working to bring US and Iran to negotiating table

Speaking at a news conference, foreign ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said Pakistan was working to "bring the two parties to the negotiating table" and prevent efforts to undermine the peace process.

The comments come amid continuing efforts to implement the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at restoring the ceasefire between the US and Iran, while also resolving disputes over the Strait of Hormuz.

Andrabi said Pakistan's deputy prime minister and deputy foreign minister held talks with officials from Iran, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait on August 10.

The Pakistani and Iranian foreign ministers exchanged views on "efforts to promote peace and stability," he said.

Pakistan's interior minister Mohsin Naqvi is visiting Iran to discuss regional security, stability and other developments, the Pakistani foreign office said, as Islamabad tries to mediate a resolution to the Middle East war.

Iranian state news agency IRNA reported that Naqvi met with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni.

"He is discussing bilateral relations, security, regional security and stability, and constructive engagement amongst the parties in the region and regional developments," Pakistani foreign ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi told reporters in Islamabad.

The Iranian government's website said Naqvi conveyed to Pezeshkian "a message from the Pakistani prime minister and the chief of the army," without specifying its content.

Lebanon 'condemns' Israeli attack on rescue teams

Israeli twin strikes on southern Lebanon killed one person and damaged an ambulance, Lebanese state media and the health ministry said, with the latter condemning the "continued targeting" of rescuers.

The incident is the latest Israeli attack despite an ongoing truce in the war between Israel and Hezbollah.

Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said the strike targeted a vehicle in the southern city of Nabatieh, while the health ministry reported two wounded.

The NNA later said one person succumbed to their wounds.

The ministry said the Israeli military struck again when rescuers from the Risala Scouts Association, linked to the Hezbollah-allied Amal movement, came to the scene, damaging the ambulance.

"The ministry reiterates its condemnation of the enemy's continued targeting of rescue teams, which constitutes an unacceptable violation of international humanitarian law and all international norms," it said.

Lebanon's civil defense meanwhile said its personnel were targeted by a drone strike while they were trying to extinguish a bushfire, also in the Nabatieh area.

No one was wounded, but the incident forced them to leave the site.