After another escalation of the situation in the Middle East, Iran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz to international shipping. The relevant statement was disseminated by the command of the "Khatam al-Anbia" forces, whose words were reported by the Fars agency.
The Central Command of the Iranian Army announced on Saturday that it has once again closed the strategically important Strait of Hormuz in response to Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon.
Justifying this decision, the Iranian Armed Forces Headquarters referred to the "bad faith and blatant violation by the U.S. of the first point of the agreement to end the war," as well as to the "constant and ongoing violations of the ceasefire in southern Lebanon," specifying that Israel refuses to withdraw its troops from the south of the country.
"This first measure is a response to the violation by the enemy, and if the aggression continues, additional steps will be planned and implemented to force it to comply with its obligations," the statement said.
Since the signing of the framework agreement between the U.S. and Iran, Lebanon has repeatedly been subjected to Israeli strikes. Earlier on Friday, Israel and Lebanon announced a ceasefire mediated by the U.S. and Iran; however, the south of the country was again under fire on Friday and Saturday.
The cessation of Israeli attacks on Lebanon was among the conditions of the Iran-U.S. memorandum of understanding to end the war.
On Saturday, it became known that U.S. Special Representative for the Middle East Steve Hickey and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Switzerland for negotiations on a bilateral agreement.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baghaei stated on Saturday that the Iranian delegation in Switzerland "will demand the fulfillment of the other party's obligations."
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