A MARTÍNEZ, HOST:
At the official level, there are ceasefires in both the Iran war and the Lebanon war, yet we have reports this morning of fighting on both fronts.
STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:
The U.S. and Iran have been trading long-distance fire, while Israel is expanding ground operations in Lebanon, even capturing a castle. Now Iran says it's suspending talks with the United States. In a few moments we'll talk with a State Department spokesman. We begin with the facts.
MARTÍNEZ: We're joined by NPR's Greg Myre in Tel Aviv. Greg, let's start off with the fighting in Iran.
GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Yeah. The U.S. military says American aircraft fired on a number of Iranian sites over the weekend. Now, they include a radar station, some drones and a command center for drones. And this included an attack on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz. Now, the U.S. says it acted because Iran had earlier shot down a U.S. Predator drone. The U.S. military says this U.S. drone was flying over international waters. And just this morning, Iran says it's fired on a U.S. military base in the region. It didn't say which one. However, Kuwait's military says the country has come under attack from missiles and drones and defended itself, and the U.S. does have a number of bases in Kuwait.
MARTÍNEZ: OK. So where does this leave talks to end the war in Iran?
MYRE: President Trump remains confident. He took to Truth Social this morning and said, quote, "Iran really wants to make a deal, and it will be a good one for the USA." And then he went on to say, "just sit back and relax. It will all work out well in the end. It always does." But just a few hours later, an Iranian news agency said Iran's negotiating team would stop exchanging messages with the United States. The report by the Tasnim News Agency said it was in response to Israel's ongoing military operations in Lebanon and Gaza. The U.S. and Iran have been going back and forth exchanging proposals, mostly through Pakistan. Now, we should caution that this is coming from a news agency considered close to Iran's Revolutionary Guards, but we haven't heard this directly from a top Iranian official.
MARTÍNEZ: All right. So that's Iran. Let's now turn to Lebanon. That's where Israel claimed military advances over the weekend.
MYRE: Yeah. Israeli forces captured this 900-year-old hilltop castle in southern Lebanon, and it's part of Israel's deepest push into that country in decades. An Israeli flag is now flying over the Beaufort Castle, and from this site, the Israelis have a commanding view over southern Lebanon. The Israelis say Hezbollah was using this area to fire on nearby northern Israel. And this is a historic castle that carries a huge amount of symbolism. It was a scene of battles ever since the Crusaders built it back in the 12th century. And more recently, Israel captured it in a bloody battle during a 1982 invasion of Lebanon. Israel remained there until it withdrew from Lebanon in 2000. So this raises memories of that long Israeli occupation and certainly questions about how long Israel plans to stay this time.
MARTÍNEZ: How much is the fighting in Lebanon tied to efforts to end the Iran war?
MYRE: Yeah. They're very closely related. Fighting in Lebanon certainly complicates the Iran talks and could potentially undermine them. Iran issues almost daily statements supporting Hezbollah, and it says peace efforts must address the wars in both Iran and Lebanon. Yet Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, keeps saying he wants Israeli forces to keep going in Lebanon. Just this morning, he issued a statement saying he's ordered the military to attack Hezbollah's strongholds in the southern suburbs of Beirut.
MARTÍNEZ: That's NPR's Greg Myre in Tel Aviv. Greg, thanks.
MYRE: Sure thing, A. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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