Iranian and US officials have been sent to Pakistan for the next round of peace talks.
US President Donald Trump is sending envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Islamabad to ‘hear the Iranians out’, according to the White House.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in the capital on Friday and held a series of meetings with Pakistani officials.
However, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei has said Araghchi would be meeting only ‘Pakistani high-level officials’ and that ‘no meeting is planned’ with the US.
US Vice President JD Vance, who led the US delegation in the first round of talks with Tehran that collapsed, will not attend the second round of negotiations, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Friday.
She noted that he will remain on ‘standby’ to travel to Pakistan should peace talks become serious and said it was not a case of the VP being sidelined by President Trump.
In a statement, Leavitt said last night: ‘Steve and Jared will be heading to Pakistan tomorrow to hear the Iranians out.
‘The president, the vice president, the secretary of state, will be waiting here in the United States for updates, and the vice president, I understand, is on standby and will be willing to dispatch to Pakistan if we feel it’s a necessary use of his time.’
The latest effort to broker a deal comes as an indefinite ceasefire has paused most fighting, but economic fallout is still mounting with global energy shipments disrupted by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Pakistan has been trying to get US and Iranian officials back to the table after Trump this week announced an indefinite extension of the ceasefire with Iran, honouring Islamabad’s request for more time for diplomatic outreach.
The White House had said on Friday that Witkoff and Kushner were going to meet with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. But shortly after Araghchi arrived in Islamabad, his ministry said any talks would be indirect, with messages conveyed between the two sides by Pakistani officials.
Iran’s Foreign Minister leaves Islamabad after talks with Pakistani PM
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has now left Islamabad, Iran’s state-run media IRNA said.
Mr Araqchi had met with Pakistan’s Army Chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, for talks today at the Serena Hotel.
Iran described the meeting as ‘bilateral talks’, with Pakistan acting as a mediator between the US and Iran.
The Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif posted an update on X after the talks, writing that the meeting was ‘warm’ and ‘cordial’.
PM Sharif wrote: ‘Had a most warm, cordial exchange of views on the current regional situation. We also discussed matters of mutual interest, including the further strengthening of Pakistan-Iran bilateral relations.’
Earlier, Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister, Ishaq Dar, said the meeting between Sharif and Araghchi had ‘lasted around two hours’ and that Pakistan’s PM had ’emphasised on the importance of dialogue and diplomacy for the peace and stability in the region and beyond’.
While the US has said Iran wants face-to-face talks, Iran said there are no plans yet for a direct meeting.
Iranian official meets with Pakistani PM
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with the Pakistan military’s chief of staff and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
Araghchi wrote on Telegram that they spoke about regional developments, including Iran’s red lines for negotiations.
Araghchi didn’t offer further details, but said Tehran would continue engaging with Pakistan’s mediation efforts ‘until a result is achieved.’
France’s Emmanuel Macron says he wants to see Strait open soon
French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated on Saturday that he was focused on efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a day after the head of TotalEnergies warned of global energy shortages if the Iran war continues for months.
Macron, speaking at a news conference in Athens alongside Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, said panic caused by geopolitical uncertainty can in itself lead to shortages.
‘Our goal is to achieve a full reopening in the coming days and weeks, in accordance with international law, guaranteeing freedom of navigation without tolls on the Strait of Hormuz. Then things can gradually return to normal,’ Macron said.
Four people killed in Lebanon
Four people were killed on Saturday in Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon, Lebanon’s state news agency reported.
On Friday, six people were killed in Lebanon, the deadliest day during the ceasefire that was recently extended.
US says it’s hunting for explosive mines in latest push to open the Strait of Hormuz
President Donald Trump says the US Navy is clearing Iranian mines from the Strait of Hormuz.
Sweeping for underwater explosives could take months despite a tenuous ceasefire between the United States and Iran in the weekslong war, experts say.
Any future claims that the US cleared the waterway where 20 per cent of the world’s oil typically passes might fail to convince commercial freighters and their insurers that it is finally safe.
Seeking out mines is one of the latest tactics announced by the Trump administration to get traffic moving again through the strait, as rising energy prices and wider economic effects pose a political risk.
Drone view of oil tanker HELGA berthed at one of Iraq’s southern offshore oil terminals near Basra as it prepares to load crude oil, becoming the second vessel to arrive since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, April 24, 2026
Iran will respond if US blockade continues
Iran’s military said on Saturday it would respond if the United States maintained its blockade of Iranian ports, calling it ‘banditry’ and ‘piracy’.
In a statement carried by state-run media outlet IRIB, the military’s central command Khatam Al-Anbiya said that if ‘the invading US military continues blockading, banditry, and piracy in the region, they should be certain that they will face a response from Iran’s powerful armed forces’.
‘We are ready and determined, while monitoring the behaviour and movements of enemies,’ it added.
IN PICTURES: Smoke rises over Lebanese village following Israeli strikes
Smoke rises in Lebanon after an explosion, as seen from the Israeli side of the Israel-Lebanon border, in northern Israel, April 25, 2026
Smoke billows from explosions in the southern Lebanese village of Khiam on April 25, 2026, where the Israeli army has detonated residential homes. Israel and Lebanon extended their shaky ceasefire by three weeks on April 24, as Iran’s foreign minister prepared for meetings with officials in Pakistan, which has been mediating efforts to end the wider Middle East war
Iranian president calls on people to save electricity
Iran’s president has urged people to reduce their use of electricity after American and Israeli strikes damaged the country’s energy infrastructure, state media reported.
President Masoud Pezeshkian said the government aims to ‘control consumption’ of electricity, according to the Iranian state television.
‘Instead of turning on 10 lights at home, turn on two lights. What is wrong with that?’ he said.
He said the US and Israel ‘destroyed our infrastructure,’ and noted that the US imposed a blockade on Iran’s ports.
Iran’s internet blackout enters 8th week
It has been eight weeks since the Iranian regime blocked the country’s access to the internet, according to web monitoring service NetBlocks.
‘The disruption, now entering its 57th day after 1344 hours, stifles the voices of Iranians, leaves friends and family out of touch and damages the economy,’ the watchdog said.
Iran not in Pakistan for ‘nuclear talks’
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has ‘no assignment related to nuclear talks’ during his trip to Pakistan, the head of Iran’s national security committee has said.
Speaking to journalists last night, Ebrahim Azizi said the foreign minister is in Islamabad ‘only for discussions on bilateral relations’.
The US has demanded that Iran end its nuclear programme and says the condition should be part of any peace deal.
Iran defence ministry says US seeks ‘face-saving’ way out of war
Iran’s defence ministry on Saturday said the US was seeking a ‘face-saving’ way to exit the war, as American envoys travelled to Pakistan for peace negotiations.
‘Our military power today is a dominant force, and the enemy is looking for a face-saving way to escape the war quagmire it has become trapped in,’ media outlet ISNA quoted a ministry spokesperson as saying.
Israel and Hezbollah continue to exchange fire
The Israeli Defence Forces said today it had struck Hezbollah rocket launchers overnight in three areas across southern Lebanon.
It said the launchers posed an ‘immediate threat’ to IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians.
Hezbollah also said this morning it had targeted the Israeli army.
It comes after Hezbollah and Israel agreed to a ceasefire earlier this month. Both sides have accused each other of violating the truce.
File photo: Resident Mohamad Ali Hijazi stands next to an excavator clearing the rubble of destroyed buildings at a residential area in Tyre on April 23, 2026, after his family was killed in an Israeli strike minutes before a ceasefire took hold
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