Israel and Hezbollah trade strikes ahead of high-stakes US-Iran talks

US President Donald Trump, pictured in the Blue Room on Monday, is facing fresh fury from long-time Iranian hardliners.

Public polling has consistently shown Trump’s war with Iran is backed by a large majority of Republican voters and has even more support from those who consider themselves MAGA-aligned.

Nevertheless, the administration and allies have scrambled to contain the fallout this week as deepening fears over Trump’s management of the war — and fragile ceasefire — with Iran spilled into public infighting among some of his most prominent allies.

A ceasefire deal Trump announced ahead of Tuesday’s deadline sparked new fury from those who initially defended Trump’s war. Longtime Iran hardliners on the right, including Fox News’ Mark Levin, are lamenting that Trump appears willing to back away from military action that could further cripple the country.

Read the full story here.

A food delivery bike drive close to a plume of smoke rising from the Zayed Port following a reported Iranian strike in Abu Dhabi on March 1.

The United Arab Emirates says it will reassess which regional partners it can “rely on” and review its national priorities after bearing the brunt of Iranian attacks during the US-Israel war on Iran.

UAE presidential adviser Anwar Gargash said Abu Dhabi will “scrutinize” its “regional and international relationships” while strengthening an economic and financial system that boosts resilience.

“The rational review of our national priorities is our path to the future,” Gargash wrote on X.

The comments come as the UAE takes a cautious line on the ceasefire with Iran, seeking clarification on Tehran’s commitment to the truce and calling for the unconditional reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

Last month, Gargash criticized “major” Arab and Islamic nations for failing to support Gulf Arab countries in “times of hardship.”

“The Arab Gulf states were a support and partner to all in times of prosperity… so where are you today in times of hardship?” he said at the time.

Gargash told CNN this week that Abu Dhabi will “double down on our relationship with the United States” as a result of the war and expects to see “Israeli influence become more prominent in the Gulf, not less.”

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli airstrike that targeted the outskirts of the southern Lebanese village of al-Taybeh on Friday.

Israel and Hezbollah are continuing to exchange strikes as high-stakes talks between the US and Iran are set to take place in Islamabad this weekend.

Here’s what you need to know:

CNN’s Laura Shahman, Lex Harvey, Rayhana Zaiter, Charbel Mallo, Adam Pourahmadi, Vanessa Yurkevich, Chris Isidore and Matt Egan contributed reporting.

Oil prices are up almost 1% today as few vessels are venturing through the critical Strait of Hormuz, despite the current ceasefire between the United States and Iran. It is the second consecutive day of price rises following a 13.3% drop on Wednesday after the truce was announced.

Additional upward pressure on prices comes from attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil and natural gas facilities, including the crucial East-West Pipeline, reported by state-run Saudi Press Agency.

The report, which cited an anonymous official from the Ministry of Energy, did not state when the attacks took place, but indicated that recent attacks on the kingdom’s energy infrastructure are having a significant impact on the production and transport of oil. Damage to the East-West Pipeline has led to the loss of “approximately 700,000 barrels per day,” while other infrastructure attacks have reduced capacity by a further 600,000 barrels, the agency said.

Around 6 a.m. ET, Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was 0.9% up on the day at $96.8 a barrel. WTI, the US benchmark, rose by a similar margin to $98.9.

Stock markets were mixed. Most major markets in Asia ended the day in the green. Europe’s main indexes were also slightly higher in morning hours, while US futures were little changed.

“We maintain our view that the ceasefire will hold, not because we are any closer to (a) solution but because it is in the interest of both parties not to continue with the war,” Mohit Kumar, an economist at Jefferies, wrote in a note today.

Customers fill up at a Chevron gas station near the Pacific Ocean in El Segundo, California, on Wednesday.

Americans are finally catching a bit of a break on prices at the pump.

The national average for regular gas declined to $4.15 a gallon on Friday, according to AAA.

The decline from $4.17 a gallon on Thursday marks the first time average US gas prices have fallen by more than a penny since the war with Iran started in late February.

Analysts have cautioned, however, that gas prices are unlikely to return to the pre-war levels below $3 a gallon anytime soon.

Even under the best conditions, gas prices famously go up like a rocket but only fall like a feather.

Any declines today will be limited by the fact that oil remains very expensive, flirting with $100 a barrel, compared with below $60 at the start of the year.

Despite the ceasefire with Iran, maritime traffic through the critical Strait of Hormuz remains limited. Not only that, but energy facilities in the Middle East have been damaged, personnel have been evacuated and production sidelined by a lack of storage. It will take time and money to undo all of that.

Prime Minister of Lebanon Nawaf Salam sits for an interview with CNN.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam will travel to Washington, DC in the coming days, after Israel asked for direct negotiations with Lebanon, a Lebanese government source told CNN on Friday.

It comes as a fragile two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran is holding, for now, but is under strain, particularly over the issue of whether or not attacks in Lebanon are included in the truce.

Israel has continued strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon despite the ceasefire, including a major wave of attacks on Wednesday that killed at least 300 people, according to Lebanese authorities.

CNN has approached the White House for comment.

President Donald Trump attends a news conference at the White House in Washington, DC on Monday.

The contrasts are remarkable.

One president chose diplomacy. Barack Obama and a large international coalition negotiated a deal with Iran to shelve its nuclear program for a decade over the objections of an outraged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who came to Congress in 2015 to speak out against the deal and the American president.

Another president chose war. Donald Trump, years after tearing Obama’s deal into shreds, and after becoming frustrated with talks for a new nuclear deal, brought Netanyahu into the White House Situation Room, according to a New York Times report. The Israeli prime minister sat across the table from the US president and sold him on a sneak attack against Iran without consulting allies in Europe or the Middle East.

However the war with Iran ultimately ends — talks will get underway in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Saturday to try to build on a fragile ceasefire — Trump will want to declare that the outcome is better than what his predecessor Obama achieved without going to war.

Trump rarely talks about Iran without trashing Obama and the 2015 nuclear deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA.

Read Zachary B. Wolf’s full analysis here.

Hezbollah said it launched a fresh attack on Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon on Friday morning.

The Iran-backed militant group said in a statement it targeted the troops with a rocket barrage in Wata Al-Khiam shortly before 6 a.m. local time.

Hezbollah also said it targeted Israel’s border settlement Kiryat Shmona, in response to “the enemy’s violation of the ceasefire agreement.”

Israel and Hezbollah have continued to exchange strikes since the uneasy US-Iran ceasefire began, with officials urging for the truce to also encompass their conflict.

This post has been updated with additional information.

Satellite imagery provided by the European Space Agency shows large plumes of thick black smoke rising at Saudi Aramco’s vital Abqaiq processing facility on Wednesday.

Saudi Arabia confirmed attacks against its oil and gas facilities, including the crucial East-West Pipeline, state-run Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported, citing an anonymous official from the Ministry of Energy.

The report dated Thursday did not say when the attacks took place but it said one Saudi national was killed and seven others wounded.

The SPA report indicated recent attacks on the kingdom’s energy infrastructure have had a significant impact on both the production and transport of oil, affecting more than one million barrels a day.

Attacks on the East-West Pipeline have lead to the loss of “approximately 700,000 barrels per day” while other infrastructure attacks have reduced capacity by a further 600,000 barrels per day, SPA said.

“That would bring the regional total of supply impacted to 12.1 million bpd (barrels per day),” Amena Bakr, an analyst at data intelligence and analytics platform Kpler, told CNN, referring to the overall impact across the Gulf region.

Gulf nations have mostly remained tight-lipped in recent week on exactly how much damage has been wrought on their oil and gas producing facilities by Iran’s attacks.

Bakr added that the East-West Pipeline “has been key to bypassing” the blocked Strait of Hormuz.

“Moreover we are not seeing any improvement with regards to flows via Hormuz,” she added.

CNN previously reported that satellite imagery provided by the European Space Agency showed fire and large plumes of thick black smoke rising from Saudi Aramco’s vital Abqaiq processing facility following reports of an Iranian attack Wednesday. The cause of the fire seen in the satellite image was not immediately clear.

The image was taken on April 8 at around 10:00am local time (03:00am ET) just hours after President Trump announced a two-week ceasefire between the US and Iran.

Saudi Aramco’s Abqaiq facility, located in eastern Saudi Arabia, is the world’s largest crude stabilization plant and provides around 5% of global oil supplies, according to the company. The facility is a starting point for the East-West Pipeline.

The 1,200 kilometer pipeline is one of two in the region that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz, where the war in Iran has caused significant trade disruption.

CNN has reached out to Saudi Aramco for comment.

Photos from the Associated Press show displaced people desperately waiting for donated food in Beirut on Thursday after fleeing Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon.

Displaced families on Thursday extend their hands while waiting for donated food in Beirut beside the tents they use as shelters after fleeing Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon.

Lebanon on Wednesday experienced the heaviest round of Israeli attacks across the country since the war began, including in capital, Beirut. Large explosions were heard and smoke was seen at the Israel-Lebanon border, with residents telling CNN there was no safe place to go. Israel says it targeted Hezbollah positions across the country.

More than 1 million people have been displaced in Lebanon since the start of the latest conflict. At least 1,888 people have been killed and 6,092 injured since the conflict began, according to the health ministry on Thursday.

Displaced families on Thursday extend their hands while waiting for donated food in Beirut beside the tents they use as shelters after fleeing Israeli bombardment in southern Lebanon.

Israel’s massive strikes on Lebanon this week are threatening to derail a fragile ceasefire with the US and Iran. Disagreements as to whether Lebanon was included in the ceasefire deal remain a key sticking point.

Meanwhile, the United States and Iran are preparing to begin their high-stakes talks in Islamabad which is expected to begin on Saturday, according to the White House.

Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, coupled with President Donald Trump’s tariffs, is squeezing farmers as fertilizer and diesel prices rise.

CNN’s Jeff Zeleny spoke with two Iowa farmers who shared their concerns as a new planting season begins:

Iowa farmers hit hard by Iran war and tariffs

The war in Iran, coupled with President Donald Trump’s tariffs, is squeezing farmers as fertilizer and diesel prices rise. CNN’s Jeff Zeleny spoke with two Iowa farmers who shared their concerns as a new planting season begins.

01:45 • Source: CNN

Iowa farmers hit hard by Iran war and tariffs

01:45

For context: The Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints, ordinarily carries about a fifth of global oil and natural gas supplies and a third of the world’s urea fertilizer exports.

The waterway may be officially reopening for business since the US-Iran ceasefire, but shipping company executives and analysts told CNN that uncertainty surrounding the agreement is still making transit too risky right now. Only a few ships have made the journey in recent days.

CNN’s Hanna Ziady, Vanessa Yurkevich, Chris Isidore and Matt Egan contributed to this report.

In northern Malawi, Suteny Williams Nsamba is struggling to buy fertilizer for his small farm, where he grows corn, groundnuts and tobacco. The war in Iran sent living costs soaring, and he warns if shipping disruption continues into Malawi’s crop-growing season in November, a “devastating low yield” is inevitable.

“The prices of many commodities will rise, and life will be unbearable,” he told CNN.

Nsamba’s struggles echo across Africa, with economies hit hard as fuel prices surge and the obstruction of trade routes leads to shortages of fertilizer during the key planting season.

The two-week ceasefire announced between the United States and Iran brings hope, but even if it holds, few expect a swift return to normality. Aliko Dangote, the owner of Africa’s largest oil refinery in Nigeria, told CNN last month that it may take several months for oil prices to stabilize.

While nowhere has been spared the impact of the Iran war, African countries – which rely heavily on imports of fuel, food, and fertilizer – are especially vulnerable.

Read the full article here.

The lives of millions of people across the Middle East – and the fate of the global economy – will hinge on the outcome of make-or-break talks between the US and Iran this weekend in Pakistan.

A fragile two-week ceasefire that paved the way for the talks is holding for now. But Israel’s massive deadly bombardment of Hezbollah and disagreements over whether Lebanon is included in the truce, could still derail the meetings.

Here’s what we know about the talks, which begin Saturday morning local time in Islamabad, according to the White House:

Read more about what’s at stake in the talks here.

We have been reporting on the developments in the Middle East, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israel sought direct talks with Lebanon on disarming Hezbollah, but said Beirut is not part of the ceasefire deal. Read what we know so far here.

Catch up on other headlines:

CNN’s Donald Judd, Lauren Said-Moorhouse, Jennifer Hansler, Mohammed Tawfeeq, Michael Rios and Yoonjung Seo contributed reporting.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced Israel wants direct negotiations with Lebanon on disarming Hezbollah and establishing peaceful relations. He insists that Lebanon is not part of the Iran ceasefire deal. A Lebanese official said there would be “no negotiations under fire.”

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Lebanon says it will not negotiate with Israel while under attack

A Lebanese official told CNN there would be “no negotiations under fire” in response to Israel’s plan to start “direct negotiations” with an aim of ending hostilities, while an Israeli source told CNN there is “no ceasefire” and that the “talks will be held under fire.” In a separate video message, Netanyahu reiterated there will be no ceasefire with Lebanon as he orders these talks. CNN's Nada Bashir reports from Lebanon.

01:20 • Source: CNN

Lebanon says it will not negotiate with Israel while under attack

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Lebanese officials told CNN their government has not heard about a potential meeting between Israel and Beirut in Washington, DC, next week after an Israeli official and a US official said negotiations between Israel and Lebanon were expected to begin at the US State Department.

Lebanon’s foreign ministry and the presidential palace have not been officially notified of Netanyahu’s invitation to open talks, a Lebanese official said.

Netanyahu’s decision to seek direct negotiations with Lebanon comes at US President Donald Trump’s request, sources told CNN. Trump told NBC News in an interview that he asked Netanyahu to be “a little more low-key” in operations in Lebanon as the US seeks to negotiate an end to the war with Iran, with talks expected to be held Saturday in Pakistan.

Israel’s attacks across Lebanon are threatening to derail the uneasy US-Iran ceasefire. At least 303 people were killed in the Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday, according to the Lebanese health ministry.

The Strait of Hormuz may be officially reopening for business, but shipping executives and analysts say uncertainty surrounding the ceasefire is still making transit too risky right now. Explicit approval and safety assurances from Iran, clear guidance on how and when to transit and a long-term view of the strait’s future are all missing so far, shippers told CNN.

The strait’s future has real impacts on everyday Americans: Average gas prices are up 40%, about $1.18, per gallon since the start of the war, according to AAA. Getting gas prices back to the pre-war $3 a gallon level is still a long way off, even if oil begins to flow freely again.

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'No room for diplomacy,' Iranian senior official tells CNN

05:48 • Source: CNN

'No room for diplomacy,' Iranian senior official tells CNN

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Kamal Kharazi, a senior adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, has died after being injured in what Tehran said was a US-Israeli strike that targeted his home earlier this month.

Kharazi, “who had previously been injured following an attack by the American-Zionist enemy, was martyred a few hours ago,” Iranian official media announced Thursday.

Kharazi’s wife was killed in the strike, while he was critically injured and rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment, Iranian officials said last week.

CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen interviewed Kharazi in Tehran in March in an exclusive conversation conducted with the permission of the Iranian government, as required under local regulations.

In that interview, Kharazi told CNN he believed that Iran could sustain the conflict for an extended period and said he did not see room for diplomacy. He predicted that the war would end only through the economic pain it inflicts.