Colombian President Calls for Halt to Israel Strikes on Lebanon

Colombian President Gustavo Petro called on Israel to stop its missile strikes on Lebanon and urged world leaders to uphold a U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding. Writing on X, Petro said the agreement "must be respected by all nations" while Colombia holds the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council this month.

He framed the appeal as support for a "Pact for Life and Peace" and said the U.S. president deserved "humanity's full backing" to end the conflict.

Arabia's former intelligence chief Prince Turki al-Faisal wrote in an Asharq Al-Awsat op-ed that Gulf states should form a joint defense network. He called for Iran to abandon regional dominance and disband proxies such as Hezbollah and the Houthis, and for Israel to end what he described as "bloody brutality" and seizure of Arab lands.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance told reporters before departing for Switzerland that the talks would address Iran's nuclear program and the Lebanon ceasefire. He said the U.S. team expected "a lot of work to be done" during the meetings.

Iran's parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf posted on X upon arrival in Switzerland, invoking victims from Minab and stating that "the innocent children of Minab and all the martyrs of our beloved Iran" were watching the negotiations. Iranian state media published photos of the delegation boarding a Minab-168 aircraft bound for Zurich.

The U.S. president posted on Truth Social that no tolls would be charged for passage through the Strait of Hormuz during a 60-day ceasefire period unless imposed by the United States.