Iran warns US must choose between ‘ceasefire or continued war via Israel’ 

The United States must decide whether it wants a ceasefire or continued war through Israel, Iran’s foreign minister said, warning that Washington was in violation of a two-week truce by allowing the Zionist regime to massacre hundreds of civilians in Lebanon.

“The Iran–U.S. Ceasefire terms are clear and explicit: the U.S. must choose, ceasefire or continued war via Israel,” Abbas Araghchi said in a social media post. “It cannot have both.”

The warning came just hours after Israel launched a massive wave of airstrikes across Lebanon, killing at least 254 people and wounding hundreds more.

Beirut’s southern suburbs, the Bekaa Valley and southern Lebanon were all hit in what was described as the deadliest wave of attacks since the war began last month.

Lebanon’s Health Minister called the escalation “very dangerous” and said ambulances and emergency aid centers had also been targeted.

‘The world sees the massacres’

Araghchi said the ceasefire agreement reached through Pakistani mediation explicitly included Lebanon.

“The world sees the massacres in Lebanon,” he wrote.

“The ball is in the U.S. court, and the world is watching whether it will act on its commitments.”

Iran holds US responsible

Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei issued a separate statement, strongly condemning the “savage attacks” on Lebanon.

He described the strikes as “an outrageous and shameful crime.”

Baqaei said the US government had committed, under the understanding reached with Iran through Pakistani mediation, that Lebanon would be included in the Iran-US ceasefire.

“As the Prime Minister of Pakistan has also stated, the cessation of war on the Lebanese front is one of the components of the Iran-US ceasefire understanding,” Baqaei said.

“Today’s crimes by the Zionist regime against Lebanon constitute a clear violation of this understanding.”

He warned of “very dangerous consequences” of the regime’s criminal actions, which include the mass killing of Lebanese people and the destruction of residential buildings.

The spokesman underscored the direct responsibility of the US government for the massacre.

Baqaei extended condolences to the families of the martyrs, wished a swift recovery for the wounded, and expressed solidarity with the people and government of Lebanon.

The two-week ceasefire between Iran and the United States was announced on Tuesday after 100 waves of Iranian retaliatory strikes under Operation True Promise 4.

But Benjamin Netanyahu immediately declared that the truce “does not include Lebanon.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt backed the Israeli position, contradicting statements from Iran and Pakistan, which mediated the deal.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had announced that the ceasefire covered “Lebanon and elsewhere.”

Mediator Pakistan confirms US-Iran ceasefire violated as Israel ravages Lebanon

Pakistan’s PM urges commitment to terms of a ceasefire agreed between Iran and the US.

On Wednesday morning, Israeli warplanes struck Tyre and Nabatieh in southern Lebanon, as well as Beirut’s southern suburbs.

More than 1,500 people have been killed in Lebanon since the regime escalated war on Lebanon in February, including at least 130 children.

Over 1.2 million people, one fifth of Lebanon’s population, have been displaced.

Entire villages near the border have been destroyed as Israeli forces push to create a “security buffer zone.”

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun condemned the latest strikes as a “massacre” and said the government would continue efforts to include Lebanon in regional peace.

Iran has repeatedly stated that any aggression against Hezbollah or Lebanon is considered aggression against Iran.

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