Three Saudi-flagged supertankers carrying 6 million barrels of crude sailed through the Strait of H
ormuz on Thursday, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump signed a deal with Iran to end the war that has disrupted global energy supplies.
But in Lebanon, where more than a million people are displaced by the fighting, Israeli forces lau
nched fresh airstrikes on Thursday morning, raising doubt about how far Trump will go to force his wartime allies to halt an offensive he has now pledged to end.
Trump put his signature on Wednesday on the “memorandum of understanding” to end the war, as did Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, bringing it
into effect two days earlier than previously expected. It calls for the immediate opening of the Strait of Hormuz and lifting of a U.S. blockade of Iran’s ports.
Though shippers say it will still take time for transit across the strait to reach pre-war levels, with a need yet to ensure safe access and clear mines, there were immediate signs of an impact.
Ships which once might have concealed their positions by switching off their transponders were now broadcasting their locations, poised to transit the strait.
Benchmark Brent crude futures prices fell by another 2% to below $78 a barrel, lowest since the shooting began. LCOc1
The U.S.-Iranian memorandum starts the clock on a 60-day negotiation period to reach a final settlement to the war, which Trump launched in February alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
But Israel, which launched an invasion in March and has since seized a large swathe of southern Le
banon in its pursuit of Hezbollah militants who opened fire across the border in support of Iran, was excluded from the negotiations.
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Iran has always said any peace deal must also cover Lebanon. In an apparent major concession to Iran, the memorandum signed by Trump explicitly calls for t
he “permanent termination” of the war in Lebanon and for its “territorial integrity and sovereignty” to be ensured.
With Lebanon among the peace effort’s most delicate issues, Trump in recent days has become openly critical of his ally’s operations there, accusing Israel of unnecessarily destroying entire buildings to hit Hezbollah fighters.
Israel has said it has no intention of withdrawing from Lebanon, whatever Trump negotiates. It r
eleased a new map on Thursday showing an expanded southern area occupied by its troops, which it describes as a buffer zone.
Two Israeli officials, including a senior official close to Netanyahu, told Reuters Israel was holding negotiations with the United States to keep Israeli troops in Lebanon.
The senior official described those talks with Washington as “stubborn” and said Israel w
ould not back down. The other official said the outcome would depend on whether Trump “decides to force the issue” by threatening repercussions on Israel.
While fighting in Lebanon tamped down at the start of this week when Trump first announced the deal had been reached, it has ticked up again over the past few days, and continued on Thursday morning after Trump’s signature.
