Pakistan PM says US-Iran ceasefire covers 'everywhere', including Lebanon

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday that the United States, Iran and their allies had agreed to a ceasefire "everywhere", including Lebanon, following mediation by his government to stop weeks of fighting.

"I am pleased to announce that the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States of America, along with their allies, have agreed to an immediate ceasefire everywhere including Lebanon and elsewhere, EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY," Sharif posted on X.

He added that Pakistan's capital Islamabad would welcome delegations from both countries on Friday to hold negotiations aimed at reaching a "conclusive agreement". 

"We earnestly hope, that the 'Islamabad Talks' succeed in achieving sustainable peace and wish to share more good news in coming days," he said. 

Both Tehran and Washington announced they had agreed to a two-week ceasefire barely an hour before the President Donald Trump's deadline to obliterate Iran was set to expire. 

Pakistan, which has forged a close relationship with Trump and is sensitive to developments in neighboring Iran, emerged as a channel for messaging between Tehran and Washington in recent weeks.

The war began when Israel and the United States launched strikes on Iran that killed its supreme leader on February 28, sparking retaliatory strikes from Tehran on Gulf nations and Israel.  

Lebanon has also been drawn into the conflict after Iran-backed group Hezbollah launched attacks on Israel, which has since carried out strikes, including on the capital, and launched a ground operation in the south of the country.  

10-point plan

Meanwhile, Tehran said Wednesday its 10-point plan for securing an end to the war with the United States would require Washington to accept its uranium enrichment programme and the lifting of all sanctions.

The Islamic republic claimed victory and said in a statement, released alongside a list of the 10 points published by state media, that the plan would require "continued Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, acceptance of enrichment, lifting of all primary and secondary sanctions."

Other key demands in the blueprint, offered through mediators in Pakistan, include US military withdrawal from the Middle East, an end to attacks on Iran and its allies, the release of frozen Iranian assets and a UN Security Council resolution making any deal binding.

"It is to be noted that the adoption of such a resolution shall render all these agreements binding under international law and shall constitute a significant diplomatic victory for the Iranian nation," the country's Supreme National Security Council said in a statement.

Expanded control over Hormuz

Crucially, the plan also calls for expanded Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for around a fifth of the world's oil that has been effectively blocked to maritime traffic since the start of the five-week conflict.

The announcement came after Pakistan made a last-minute proposal to avert massive US attacks on Iran, with Trump warning a "whole civilisation will die tonight" unless a deal was agreed.

The US president announced around 90 minutes before an 8:00 pm (0000 GMT) deadline that Washington had received the plan and that it looked like a "workable basis on which to negotiate."