Tehran, July 16: Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf has said the country’s national security is tied to maintaining “Iranian arrangements” in the administration of the Strait of Hormuz, stressing that Tehran will not allow the “enemy” to impose its will.

In a statement released on Wednesday (Local time), Qalibaf, also the head of Iran’s negotiating team, said that the United States seeks to deal blows to Iran whenever possible to advance its own interests, stressing that Iran should adopt its approaches during war or negotiations based on its national interests and security, realism, and long-term strategy.

He noted that Iran does not welcome war, “but we always must be ready for battle” to safeguard national security and interests.

Qalibaf added that diplomacy and negotiation should be pursued in parallel to ensure national interests, reports Xinhua news agency.

Addressing the recently signed peace memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the United States, which envisioned a 60-day negotiation period for a final agreement, the speaker said that the MoU is meaningful only when its provisions are honoured and implemented; otherwise, if Iran is not supposed to benefit from the deal, it sees no reason to remain committed to it.

The MoU, signed on June 18 and aimed at ending the war in the region on all fronts, including Lebanon, now hangs in the balance as clashes between Iranian and US forces have erupted over the past few days.

Meanwhile, the US military conducted a new round of strikes against Iran, US Central Command said early on Thursday (Indian time).

“At 3 p.m. ET (1900 GMT), U.S. forces launched operations for a second wave of strikes today against Iran,” the command wrote in a post on X. “The strikes are targeting Iranian military capabilities used to threaten vessels freely transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.”

Rome, July 16: Israel and Lebanon concluded a new round of talks in Rome, moving closer to launching a pilot project, under which control of parts of southern Lebanon would be transferred from Israeli forces to the Lebanese army, according to Italian media.

Israel and Lebanon have made progress on a mechanism for the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the first two “pilot zones” in southern Lebanon and agreed to continue negotiations at a later date, according to a report of the Italian news agency Agenzia Nova on Wednesday (local time).

The development came after the sixth round of US-mediated talks between the two sides concluded in Rome, the report said, citing sources close to the negotiations.

According to the report, the talks focused on implementing the framework agreement reached in Washington on June 26. The two sides further clarified the sequence and conditions for the withdrawal of Israeli forces, the deployment of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), the disarmament of Hezbollah, and the verification of the Lebanese state’s effective control over the areas concerned.

Sources said Israel is expected to proceed with the withdrawal from the first two pilot zones because the designated areas are considered to pose no direct threat to Israel’s security, Xinhua news agency said, quoting Agenzia Nova report.

The pilot project is intended to test the Lebanese army’s ability to take control of the areas, remove military infrastructure and prevent Hezbollah from re-establishing a presence before the mechanism is expanded to other parts of southern Lebanon.

Both Israel and Lebanon recognise that the overall process will take time, as Lebanon is seeking to restore state sovereignty in the south while avoiding internal instability, whereas Israel insists on verifiable security guarantees to ensure that areas vacated by its forces do not return to Hezbollah’s control, according to the sources.

Israel maintains that a full withdrawal remains conditional on the Lebanese army’s ability to establish lasting control over the territory and advance Hezbollah’s disarmament, the sources added.

The sixth round of talks, held at the US Embassy in Rome, followed a previous meeting in Washington late last month aimed at advancing a ceasefire framework. The parties also agreed to hold another round of talks, with the date yet to be determined.

Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has said hosting the talks reflects Italy’s role in supporting efforts to promote peace and stability in the Middle East.

Washington, July 16: The US military conducted a new round of strikes against Iran, US Central Command said early on Thursday (Indian time).

“At 3 p.m. ET (1900 GMT), U.S. forces launched operations for a second wave of strikes today against Iran,” the command wrote in a post on X. “The strikes are targeting Iranian military capabilities used to threaten vessels freely transiting through the Strait of Hormuz.”

Earlier on Wednesday (local time), the command said that it had begun launching a wave of strikes against Iran at 6 a.m. Eastern Time (1000 GMT), reports Xinhua news agency.

During the 90-minute wave, the forces launched precision munitions against coastal defence systems and cruise missile storage and launch sites on Greater Tunb Island.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said on Wednesday that it conducted retaliatory strikes against the US military facilities in Bahrain and Jordan, attacking their military infrastructure, aircraft shelters, key command centres and strategic drones, local media reported.

In a statement, the IRGC said its Aerospace Force targeted the US military base at al-Azraq in Jordan in response to renewed US aggression against Iran. The attack destroyed shelters which have US F-15, F-16, and F-35 fighter jets, and several MQ-9 strategic drones stationed at the base, Iran’s official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.

The IRGC claimed that a significant amount of US military attacks against Iran were conducted from American bases in Jordan. It urged the people of Jordan to end the presence of US forces in their country and prevent its territory from being used as a launchpad for attacks against Islamic nations and the Palestinian people. The IRGC also urged Jordanians to take up every opportunity to “destroy American institutions and expel the occupying US army from Jordan.”

In a separate statement, the IRGC said its navy attacked the US Fifth Fleet’s facilities in Bahrain, targeting the NSI management centre, large warehouses sheltering military parts and equipment, the command and control centre, and fuel storage facilities.

It said that the strikes were conducted in response to the US deploying its naval forces in the Indian Ocean and blocking maritime routes under the pretext of controlling the Strait of Hormuz, IRNA reported.

On Tuesday, the United States conducted a series of strikes against Iran after resuming a naval blockade of its ports in the strait.

Late Tuesday, the US military said it had hit dozens of military targets, including missile and drone sites, naval capabilities, and coastal defence systems, near the Strait of Hormuz and Iranian coastal areas in strikes lasting seven hours.