Iran has stated it will not engage in any negotiations with the United States in Islamabad, Pakistan, as long as Israel continues its military operations in Lebanon. According to Iran’s Fars News Agency, citing an unnamed source, the Iranian negotiating team has not traveled to the Pakistani capital and has no plans to attend peace talks under the current circumstances. This directly contradicts reports from some US media outlets claiming that an Iranian delegation had already arrived in Islamabad.
Yenişafak reported that Iran has formally informed Pakistani authorities that it will only consider participating in peace talks with the US once a ceasefire is secured in Lebanon. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei further clarified that any discussions aimed at ending the war depend on Washington fully honoring ceasefire commitments across all fronts, especially in Lebanon.
These developments follow intensified Israeli attacks on Lebanon, despite ongoing diplomatic efforts related to a two-week ceasefire that the US and Iran reportedly agreed upon on Tuesday, with Pakistan acting as a mediator. While Pakistani officials and Tehran maintain that the truce also applied to Lebanon, both Washington and Tel Aviv have denied this.
The violence has escalated sharply. The Lebanese Civil Defense reports that since Wednesday, Israeli forces have ramped up strikes across Lebanon, killing at least 303 people and injuring 1,150 others. According to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, an earlier Israeli offensive that began on March 2 has now resulted in a total of 1,888 deaths and 6,092 wounded.
