Pakistan’s military head Gen. Asim Muni with Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Tehran, May 23, 2026

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US-Israel Wars, Day 86: A 9-Point “Final Draft” For A Settlement With Iran?

UPDATE 1855 GMT:

Iran’s senior officials, including Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, are in Doha for discussions with Qatari mediators.

“The focus of the delegation’s visit to Doha is on issues relating to the Strait of Hormuz and highly enriched uranium,” a regional diplomat said.

The Iranians are seeking the earlier release of some of Tehran’s frozen assets, said the source.

Claims are circulating that Qatar has also proposed extension of a $12 billion loan to Iran for humanitarian purposes.

UPDATE 1850 GMT:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised more strikes on Lebanon.

“I have ordered an even greater acceleration of our operations,” Netanyahu said in a video. “We will intensify our blows, increase our firepower, and we will crush [Hezbollah].”

UPDATE 1620 GMT:

Lebanon’s Health Ministry raises the toll to 3,185 killed and 9,633 wounded by Israel’s attacks since March 2.

UPDATE 1318 GMT:

Iran says 32 ships have passed through the Strait of Hormuz after “obtaining permission with the coordination and security of the IRGC [Revolutionary Guards] Navy”.

The ships include oil tankers, container ships, and other commercial vessels.

UPDATE 1009 GMT:

Donald Trump told leaders of several Arab and other Muslim countries during a Saturday conference call that, once a deal to end the US war on Iran is concluded, he wants their nations to sign peace agreements with Israel.

“Two US officials with direct knowledge” spoke about the cal with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, and Bahrain.

The leaders, especially those of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Pakistan — none of whom have formal diplomatic relations with Israel — were surprised by Trump’s request. “There was silence on the line, and Trump joked and asked if they are still there,” a US official said.

Trump said his envoys, son-in-law Jared Kushner and real estate devloper Steve Witkoff, will follow up in the coming weeks.

“I would like to thank, thus far, all of the countries of the Middle East for their support and cooperation, which will be further enhanced and strengthened by their joining the Nations of the historic Abraham Accords,” Trump posted on social media on Sunday.

He floated the idea of Iran joining the “Abraham Accords” one day with the Islamic Republic recognizing Israel for the first time.

Saudi officials demand that Israel commits to an irreversible and time-bound path for a Palestinian state as a condition for the normalizing of relations.

Trump followed up on social media on Monday, saying it should be “mandatory” for countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan, and Pakistan – to sign up to the Accords.

I am mandatorily requesting that all Countries immediately sign the Abraham Accords, and that, if Iran signs its Agreement with me, as President of the United States of America, it would be an Honor to have them also be part of this unparalleled World Coalition.

UPDATE 0958 GMT:

Lebanon President Joseph Aoun says Israel’s withdrawal from the south of the country is a “non-negotiable” requirement in talks in Washington.

In a statement marking Israel’s previous withdrawal from south Lebanon in 2000, Aoun said:

This year, the anniversary of the liberation comes as Lebanon is weighed down by a painful reality. Israeli attacks have not stopped and our dear southern villages are still suffering under a renewed occupation.

Lebanon will not accept this reality. The path to a full Israeli withdrawal will remain an uncompromised, constant national demand that the Lebanese state works to achieve through the option of negotiations.

Lebanon and Israel entered US-brokered talks last month and are preparing for a fourth round in early June, preceded by a meeting between military delegations at the Pentagon on May 29.

UPDATE 0956 GMT:

Three people were killed in separate drone attacks by Israel across southern Lebanon this morning.

The attacks targeted a vehicle on the Kfar Rumman-Jarmaq highway, another on the Jarmaq-Khardali road, and a motorcycle near the Usersif Hotel.

UPDATE 0818 GMT:

Iran Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei has cautioned that more work is needed to complete a framework deal to end the US-Israel War.

It is correct to say that we have reached a conclusion on a large portion of the issues under discussion.

But to say that this means the signing of an agreement is imminent — no one can make such a claim.

Baghaei said there are no “guarantees” which the Trump Administration will observe.

The spokesman said Iran will not require tolls from ships to pass the Strait of Hormuz; however, it is “normal that services will be provided that would require a price”.

He explained, “We are in contact with the countries bordering the Strait of Hormuz to provide security there and to protect their interests.”

UPDATE 0720 GMT:

Iran executed yet another detainee on Monday.

Abbas Akbari Feyzabadi, who took part in nationwide protests in January, was hanged on accusations of armed action in Isfahan Province in central Iran.

The Islamic Republic, alongside China as the world’s leading per capita executioner, has escalated hangings during the US-Israel War.

UPDATE 0717 GMT:

Two liquefied natural gas tankers crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, heading to Pakistan and China.

A supertanker carrying Iraqi crude for China left the Persian Gulf on Saturday after being stranded for nearly three months.

UPDATE 0640 GMT:

Amid the possibility of a framework deal to end the US-Israel War on Iran, the Brent crude oil price has fallen to a 2-week low.

Brent dropped by more than 5% this morning to $98.25 per barrel.

UPDATE 0637 GMT:

Lebanon’s Health Ministry raised the toll to 3,123 killed by Israel’s attacks since March 2.

Two people, including a paramedic, were killed on Sunday in Israeli raids. A day earlier 11 people, including six women and a child, were slain in a single strike in Sir al-Gharbiyeh in southern Lebanon.

Ahead of airstrikes this morning, the Israel Defense Forces have issued evacuation warnings for 10 villages and towns in the south.

Residents of Nabatiyeh at-Tahta, Al-Lwaiza, Sajd, Ain Qana, Harouf, Zibdin, Kfar Reman, Doueir, Adshit Al-Shaqif and Meidoun were instructed to evacuate at least a kilometer away.

UPDATE, MAY 25:

An Israeli soldier was killed on Sunday by a Hezbollah explosive drone in southern Lebanon.

Sgt. Nehoray Leizer, 19, was a combat engineer. He is the 23rd Israeli soldier killed, as well as a contractor, since Israel’s assault on Lebanon began March 2.

Another soldier was seriously wounded.

UPDATE 1604 GMT:

Eleven people, including six women and a child, have been killed by an Israeli airstrike on the town of Sir al-Gharbiyeh in the Nabatieh district of southern Lebanon.

Nine wounded include four children and a woman.

UPDATE 1305 GMT:

Rescue teams have recovered three bodies from the rubble of a house targeted by Israeli warplanes this morning in the town of Srifa in southern Lebanon.

UPDATE 1300 GMT:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office has followed up on its presentation of the possible US-Iran framework deal (see 1124 GMT).

An Israeli official said the deal is an initial understanding about the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz that will lead to further talks on a final agreement.

The official said that Netanyahu made it clear to Trump that Israel will not be constrained in responding to “all threats”, indicating it will continue attacks across southern Lebanon.

Netanyahu will convene a “limited” Security Cabinet meeting this evening to discuss the deal.

UPDATE 1203 GMT:

Ahead of airstrikes, the Israel Defense Forces have issued evacuation warnings for residents of ten villages and towns in southern Lebanon.

People in Mashghara, Deir al-Zahrani, al-Sharqiyah, Doueir, Qlaileh, Sohmor, Zibdin, Nabatiyeh at-Tahta, Arabsalim and Kfar Jouz are instructed to evacuate at least a kilometer away.

UPDATE 1158 GMT:

Continuing its crackdown during the US-Israel war, Bahrain has sentenced nine defendants to life in prison and two others to three years for allegedly collaborating with Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.

A court found the men guilty of “hostile and terrorist acts” with the gathering of information on sensitive sites and arrangement of financial transfers.

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry said on May 9 that it had arrested 41 people allegedly linked to the Revolutionary Guards.

UPDATE 1156 GMT:

The Iranian army claims downed an Israeli spying and surveillance drone in the Hormozgan Province in southern Iran.

The wreckage of a shattered Orbiter drone in cooperation with Iranian naval forces, the army said.

The Israel Defense Forces says it is “not familiar with the incident”.

UPDATE 1124 GMT:

A “senior Israeli official” has played down reports of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s concerns over a proposed framework deal to end the US-Israel War on Iran.

Trump told Netanyahu by phone last night that a final agreement will fully dismantle Tehran’s nuclear program, the official said.

Trump “clarified that he will stand firm in the negotiations on his longstanding demand for the dismantlement of Iran’s nuclear program and the removal of all enriched uranium from Iranian territory, and that he will not sign a final agreement without these conditions being met,” the official said.

Netanyahu thanked Trump for his “exceptional commitment to Israel’s security”.

UPDATE 0856 GMT:

One person has been killed and two others wounded by an Israeli raid on Bazouriyeh in the Tyre district of southern Lebanon.

Last night, an Israeli airstrike targeted a house in the town of Toura in the district, slaying one person and injuring two.

UPDATE 0828 GMT:

A “senior Iranian source” has emphasized to Reuters, “The nuclear issue will be addressed in negotiations for a final agreement and is therefore not part of the current deal. There has been no agreement over Iran’s highly-enriched uranium stockpile to be shipped out of the country.”

An “informed source” told the Iranian semi-official outlet Tasnim that disagreements remain over one or two clauses.

They said that the Pakistani mediator has been notified that if the obstruction continues, there will be no possibility of completing the memorandum of understanding.

UPDATE 0606 GMT:

Iran has executed another detainee.

The Mizan outlet of Iran’s judiciary said the victim was hanged for sending data about Iran’s defense industry to “the enemy”.

Tehran, alongside China as the world’s largest per capita executioner, has stepped up the killings during the US-Israel War.

UPDATE 0551 GMT:

Israel has destroyed a regional facility of Lebanon’s civil defense in Nabatieh in the south of the country.

Lebanon’s Directorate General of Civil Defense said the building had collapsed and a large number of vehicles and equipment were damaged by a direct hit from an Israeli airstrike.

There were no reports of casualties. Personnel had been moved to another location before the attack.

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Iran and the Trump camp are nearing a “framework agreement” to end the US-Israel War, but there is uncertainty over the details.

After a day of intense discussions in both Tehran and Washington, Donald Trump declared that the deal “has been largely negotiated”.

His proclamation followed calls with the mediator Pakistan, Israel, Turkey, and — perhaps most importantly — the Gulf States. He said a “Memorandum of Understanding” will be announced shortly, asserting that the Strait of Hormuz will be opened as part of the deal.

But through their Fars outlet, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards immediately pushed back Trump’s declaration about the waterway, controlled by Tehran soon after the launch of the US-Israel War on February 28.

They said Iran’s revised proposal, sent to the US via Pakistan, maintained its control over the Strait.

If a possible agreement is reached, the Strait of Hormuz will still be under Iran’s management. Although Iran has agreed to allow the number of passing ships to return to the level before the war, this does not at all mean ‘free passage’ to the pre-war situation.

The management of the Strait, determining the route, time, manner of passage, and issuing permits, will remain exclusively under the control and discretion of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Therefore, Trump’s claim in this regard is incomplete and does not correspond to reality.

Iranian officials said the proposal continues to focus on the Strait and the removal of the US blockade on Iranian ports; the lifting of sanctions and also reparations to Tehran for war damage; and an end to fighting on all fronts, which would include Israel’s attacks on Lebanon.

A US official acknowledged the end of the blockade, as Iran removes mines from the Strait and transit of ships resumes, and a partial lifting of sanctions. They said it would be a boon to Iran’s economy, but would give significant relief to the global oil market.

Iran’s nuclear program would only be discussed in a second stage. There was no mention — either from Tehran or Trump’s post — of the US demand that Iran move all its enriched uranium out of the country. American officials confirmed that the Iranian proposal did not settle the issue, but maintained that a general statement of Iran’s commitment was critical to the deal.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei added a jab at the Trump camp’s failure to defeat the Iranian regime:

The Next Steps?

A “regional official with direct knowledge” of the mediation said the deal includes an official declaration of the war’s end with a 60-day period for negotiations on the Strait, the US blockade, and the Iranian nuclear program.

The possible breakthrough followed four days of talks in Tehran between Pakistan’s mediators, military head Gen. Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, and Iranian officials such as Foreign Minisgter Abbas Araghchi.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif flattered Trump while saying Islamabad hopes to host a second round of talks between the US and Iran “very soon”.

An Israeli official said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in his call with Trump, expressed his concern that the proposal would end Israel’s attacks on Lebanon. A US official confirmed Netanyahu’s remarks about the ceasefire and other aspects of the framework, but said the Prime Minister did so respectfully and with deference.

The American official added:

If Hezbollah behaves, Israel will behave. Bibi [Netanyahu] has his domestic considerations, but Trump has the interests of the US and the global economy to think about.

An Israeli official said on Sunday that “the emerging deal is bad”. They declared that the framework shows Iran can weaponize the Strait of Hormuz in a way that is no less effective than possession of a nuclear weapon.