<div id="readability-page-1"><div><p>[DUBAI/CAIRO/WASHINGTON] Israel and Lebanon extended their ceasefire for three weeks at a meeting at the White House on Thursday (Apr 23) brokered by President Donald Trump, who said he was prepared to wait for “the best deal” to end his conflict with Iran.</p><p>Fighting between Israel and Iranian-backed Hizbollah militants in Lebanon has been one of a number of sticking points to resolving the wider eight-week regional conflict, along with Iran’s nuclear ambitions and control of the crucial Strait of Hormuz.</p><p>Trump said he was in no rush to reach a peace agreement and wanted it to be “everlasting,” while continuing to assert that the US had a clear upper hand in the naval stand-off in the Strait.</p><p>A day after Iran flaunted its tightened grip over the key shipping corridor, Trump dismissed the threat posed by Iran’s “little wise-guy ships” and said he believed Teheran was hamstrung from making a deal because its leadership was in turmoil.</p><p>On Thursday, he said the US Navy has orders to “shoot and kill” Iranian boats laying mines in the strait and the US could knock out in a day any refurbishing of weapons that Iran may have made during a ceasefire in place since Apr 8. </p><div> <figure> <img height="712" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/aeddb894e2c435ae693695beb238dbf8050b14cd4cd931edebf85e535b34bf95?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="1068" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/aeddb894e2c435ae693695beb238dbf8050b14cd4cd931edebf85e535b34bf95"/> <figcaption>Iranian state television broadcast footage of troops pulling up in a speedboat alongside the MSC Francesca in the Hormuz strait on Apr 22. <span>PHOTO: REUTERS</span></figcaption> </figure> </div><p>But navigation in the passage remained effectively blocked, and the Iranian capture of two huge cargo ships was a reminder that the US struggles to keep control of the strait and Teheran continued to cause trouble for oil markets and pose major strains to the global economy. The US has maintained a blockade</p><div><div><h3>Navigate Asia in<br/>a new global order</h3><p>Get the insights delivered to your inbox.</p></div></div><h2>Iranian unity</h2><p>Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei on Thursday rejected Trump’s claim of disarray in the leadership describing it as “the enemy’s media operations” to maliciously undermine Iranian unity and security.</p><p>“Unity will become stronger and more solid, and enemies will become weaker and more humiliated,” he said in a post on X, as he remained out of the public eye since taking over from his father, the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who was killed by US strikes in the early days of the war that began on Feb 28.</p><p>Trump said this week he would indefinitely extend what had been a two-week ceasefire with Iran to allow for further peace talks, which have yet to be scheduled.</p><div><div><div><p>SEE ALSO</p><div><div><div><div><p><img height="3424" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/7788b16ba12b1c6d94337a27a38b5d514d3b503c9c663da4bc9783fd4b32a243/query-ZHByPTEmZj13ZWJwJnc9MjQw?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="5136" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/7788b16ba12b1c6d94337a27a38b5d514d3b503c9c663da4bc9783fd4b32a243/query-ZHByPTEmZj13ZWJwJnc9MjQw"/></p></div><p></p><h3><span>Lebanon-Israel ceasefire extended by 3 weeks after White House Oval Office meeting</span></h3><p></p></div></div><div><div><div><p><img height="760" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/625735eb89e8b5e7d88cdfaa79635bae03caaf6686fe62a0038adfac68603f8c/query-ZHByPTEmZj13ZWJwJnc9MjQw?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="1140" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/625735eb89e8b5e7d88cdfaa79635bae03caaf6686fe62a0038adfac68603f8c/query-ZHByPTEmZj13ZWJwJnc9MjQw"/></p></div><p></p><h3><span>Is Trump’s indefinite ceasefire with Iran the prelude to peace?</span></h3><p></p></div></div><div><div><div><p><img height="2046" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/fc6afe4df7f85658c8efba99bfccad70fa7b03a438c3b7834c7ed456b4643674/query-ZHByPTEmZj13ZWJwJnc9MjQw?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="3436" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/fc6afe4df7f85658c8efba99bfccad70fa7b03a438c3b7834c7ed456b4643674/query-ZHByPTEmZj13ZWJwJnc9MjQw"/></p></div><p></p><h3><span>Oil jumps as Iran tensions simmer with Hormuz flows blocked</span></h3><p></p></div></div></div></div></div></div><p>“Don’t rush me,” he said when asked how long he was willing to wait for a long-term peace deal. “I want to make the best deal ... I want to have it everlasting.”</p><p>He ruled out the use of nuclear weapons, telling reporters they were unnecessary because the US had “decimated” Iran with conventional arms.</p><p>“No, I wouldn’t use it. A nuclear weapon should never be allowed to be used by anybody,” Trump said when asked by a reporter at the White House.</p><h2>Deadly week</h2><p>Despite the extension of their ceasefire, fighting continued in southern Lebanon as Israeli forces continued to pound the Iranian-backed Hezbollah targets following some of the deadliest days since their earlier deal to halt fighting on Apr 16.</p><p>The Israeli military said on Thursday that it killed two armed individuals in southern Lebanon after identifying them approaching soldiers and posing what it described as an immediate threat.</p><p>Those killed by Israeli strikes this week included Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil, according to a senior Lebanese military official and her employer, <em>Al-Akhbar</em> newspaper.</p><div> <figure> <img height="760" src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/fe04d6e99117a1219d6d221c61a8394dac75d1ee52b4fd1ed0ab5b874a4a6001?x-oss-process=image/auto-orient,1/interlace,1/resize,w_1440,h_1440/quality,q_95/format,jpg" width="1140" original-src="https://imageproxy.pbkrs.com/https://cassette.sphdigital.com.sg/image/businesstimes/fe04d6e99117a1219d6d221c61a8394dac75d1ee52b4fd1ed0ab5b874a4a6001"/> <figcaption>Smoke rises from a village in southern Lebanon as the Israeli army operates in the area on Apr 23. <span>PHOTO: REUTERS</span></figcaption> </figure> </div><p>Hizbollah said it carried out four operations in south Lebanon on Wednesday in response to Israeli strikes. The group was not present at the ceasefire talks in Washington.</p><p>Israel has sought to make common cause with Lebanon’s government over Hizbollah, which was founded by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and which Beirut has been seeking to disarm peacefully for the past year.</p><p>Separately, before the announcement in Washington on Thursday, Israel warned it was ready to restart attacks on Iran.</p><p>Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel was waiting for a “green light” from the U.S. to resume the war, saying that if it did, it would begin by targeting Khamenei and “return Iran to a dark age.” REUTERS</p><div><p>Decoding Asia newsletter: your guide to navigating Asia in a new global order. <span>Sign up here to get Decoding Asia newsletter.</span> Delivered to your inbox. Free.</p></div></div></div>

<p>Israel and Lebanon have extended their ceasefire for three weeks, facilitated by President Trump, who aims for a lasting peace deal with Iran. Despite the ceasefire, fighting continues in southern Lebanon, with Israeli forces targeting Hezbollah militants. Trump emphasized the U.S. military's readiness to counter Iranian threats in the Strait of Hormuz, while Iran's leadership dismissed claims of disarray. The situation remains tense, with potential for renewed conflict as Israel awaits U.S. approval to escalate military actions against Iran.</p>

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Israel, Lebanon extend ceasefire as Trump seeks ‘best deal’ with Iran