Israel strikes Lebanese village after warning several areas
Israel's air force struck a Lebanese village on Friday following warnings for several areas of imminent attacks against Hezbollah, after the Iran-backed militants rejected a truce brokered by the United States.
The Israeli military's Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee on Friday warned residents of six towns and villages including south Lebanon's Sarafand, a town on the coastal road between Tyre and Sidon, to immediately evacuate.
He earlier warned residents of three villages north of the Litani River in southern Lebanon to leave their homes.
Lebanon's state-run National News Agency reported mass displacement from the three villages named in the warning, and it subsequently reported a strike on one of the villages, Arqoun.
Overnight, Israeli strikes killed seven people in the southern Lebanese city of Tyre, a source from Lebanon's civil defense told AFP.
Iran official says any accord with U.S. will have to fully guarantee Iran's national interests
Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, told Iranian state broadcaster IRIB that any agreement with the United States must fully safeguard the country's interests, stressing that Tehran will not sign or accept any understanding unless all concerns are resolved.
Gharibabadi emphasized Iran's independence in decision-making, saying the Islamic Republic "does not wait for the green light of any country" and acts strictly according to what it considers its own interests. He also pointed to Iran's recent military response to the U.S. and Israel, describing it as a decisive show of strength.
From inside Iran's Evin Prison, journalist Reza Valizadeh pleads for medical help for him and other American captives
In a recorded phone call from inside Iran's Evin Prison, Iranian-American journalist Reza Valizadeh made a plea to the U.S. government to obtain medical help for him and other Americans detained in Tehran's notorious prison.
"Even if treating our diseases is a big demand, it would have at least asked the Iranian authorities to reduce not all the physical pressure and mental torture against us in captivity, but at least some of it," Valizadeh said in the recording recently obtained by CBS News.
Since the U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes against Iran three months ago, the country has been under a near-total internet blackout, imposed by the regime, with little to no communication between the detained American and his advocates. Valizadeh's message was transmitted after the regime loosened those restrictions last week.
Trump: "Hezbollah called us and said, 'How about stopping?''"
Despite a statement from Hezbollah saying it had rejected the terms of a ceasefire in Lebanon, President Trump insisted Thursday, "Hezbollah called us and said, 'How about stopping?'"
"I think you're gonna see things happen over there," Mr. Trump told reporters Thursday in the Oval Office. "That's been like a little bit of a different world, but it's interconnected with Iran. And it would be really nice if Lebanon could have some peace. Lebanon's been under attack for so many years. They're always like an underdog. And it would be really nice if it could end."
Iran has said any lasting peace deal with the U.S. and Israel would also have to include an end to hostilities in Lebanon.
Mr. Trump said he has spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Lebanese leadership and Hezbollah leadership about ending the conflict there.
Trump says he considered sending in troops to remove Iran's uranium early in war, but decided against it
If Iran doesn't voluntarily give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium, President Trump appeared skeptical Thursday of the idea of sending troops into Iran to remove it.
Iran's near-weapons-grade uranium is a key point of contention in its talks with the U.S., and Mr. Trump has pushed for Iran to agree to have it removed in exchange for any longer-term deal.
Asked by a reporter if he had considered sending in Navy SEALs or Army Rangers to remove the uranium, Mr. Trump responded: "Yeah, but I didn't want to be Jimmy Carter," likely referring to a failed Carter-era mission to rescue American hostages in Iran.
Mr. Trump said his administration considered a special operation to take Iran's uranium early in the war, but he decided that Iran "would've found out," and an operation of its kind would have taken weeks and required heavy equipment to be dropped into Iran.
He also said "there's no reason" to carry out such a mission.
Trump says Iran has "some missiles left, but very few compared to what they had"
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Thursday, President Trump reiterated a claim he's made several times that the U.S. has "essentially wiped out" Iran's military.
"There's some missiles left, but very few compared to what they had," he said.
Mr. Trump said if Iran were to kill U.S. troops, he would consider that "a good reason" to restart the war, which the U.S. says is still in a ceasefire despite recent missile attacks from both Iran and the U.S. military. "If they kill U.S. troops, I think I would [restart the war] very quickly," he said.
Iranian Foreign Minister says war "became a source of strength for Iran"
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, in an interview with Lebanese media outlet Al Mayadeen, said the war "became a source of strength for Iran."
"Yes, we suffered many losses, but from a strategic standpoint, we achieved major accomplishments," he said, according to a translation from the outlet.
Araghchi also said Iran's response to the initial U.S.-Israeli strikes in late February surprised many.
"No one expected us to be able to endure and resist for 40 days," he said, adding it was "no small matter" for Iran to "compel them to seek negotiations and request a ceasefire."
House blocks Rep. Rashida Tlaib's war powers resolution on Lebanon
The House rejected a war powers resolution on Thursday to constrain President Trump in Lebanon after Democratic leaders came out against it.
The resolution, introduced by Democratic Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, directs the president to remove U.S. armed forces "from Lebanon" within seven days of the measure's adoption. It failed in a 92 to 324 vote, with two voting present.
"Currently, there are no U.S. servicemembers involved in combat operations or hostilities in Lebanon," House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Democratic Whip Katherine Clark and Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar said in a statement before the vote.
Democratic leaders said another war powers resolution introduced Wednesday by Tlaib with updated language was "the best legislative vehicle to keep U.S. troops out of Lebanon" and they would work with her to "build consensus" on it. They noted the new version had the support of Rep. Gregory Meeks of New York, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee who has led the push in the lower chamber to rein in Mr. Trump's ability to wage war without congressional authorization.
