Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said in his first message to the Iranian public that "there will be no retreat".

He said this had been demonstrated on the military front, in diplomacy and through what he described as the Islamic Republic’s supporters in the streets and their "resistance".

He added: "Now more than ever, the country needs unity and cohesion so that the Americans and Zionists will also be disappointed in this regard."

Israel must halt the expansion of settlements in the West Bank and curb growing settler violence, seven major Western nations said on Friday, accusing the Israeli government of aggravating tensions in the West Bank.

"Over the past few months, the situation in the West Bank has deteriorated significantly," Britain, Italy, France, Germany, Canada, Australia and New Zealand said in a joint statement.

"Settler violence is at unprecedented levels. The policies and practices of the Israeli government, including a further entrenchment of Israeli control, are undermining stability and prospects for a two-state solution."

A team of Qatari negotiators have arrived in Tehran to assist the US with their efforts to secure a peace deal that will bring an end to the war in Iran, Reuters reports.

Qatar, which also served as a mediator during the conflict in Gaza, had until now been reluctant to act as an intermediary in the current crisis after it was targeted by Iranian missiles and drones earlier this year.

Qataris were involved in mediating the conflict in Gaza(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

Marco Rubio has called on NATO countries to develop a "plan B" for opening the Strait of Hormuz in the event that Iran refuses to lift its blockade.

"What if Iran decides, 'We refuse to open the straits, we're going to own the straits and we're going to charge tolls for it'?" Rubio asked reporters after the NATO meeting in Sweden. "At that point, something has to be done about it."

Rubio said everyone affected would have to "start thinking" about contingency plans. "I don't know if that would be a NATO mission necessarily, but it would certainly be NATO countries that can contribute to it," he added.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir is en route to Tehran, according to Iranian state media.

Munir is expected to meet Iranian officials in Islamabad, according to the semi-official Tasnim News agency.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has said there was "slight progress" during talks with Iran amid uncertainty as to whether a deal will be reached or war will resume.

He spoke days after US President Donald Trump said he was holding off on a military strike on Iran because "serious negotiations" were under way.

Mr Trump has been threatening for weeks that the ceasefire reached in mid-April could end if Iran does not make a deal, with shifting parameters for striking such an agreement.

Mr Rubio spoke ahead of a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, where the the military alliance is expected to discuss what role it could play in helping police the Strait of Hormuz once the war is over.

Mr Rubio said he did not want to exaggerate the progress, saying there had been "a little bit of movement and that’s good".

Marco Rubio(Image: Getty Images)

UAE's presidential advisor says Iran's control of the Strait of Hormuz would set a serious precedent.

Anwar Gargash warned any move by Tehran to alter the status of the global shipping route would have severe global repercussions, including for Europe. He said European countries should view the move as one directly tied to their energy and trade security.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says 35 ships have crossed the Strait of Hormuz in the last 24 hours, including oil tankers, container ships and other commercial vessels.

The figure is still far less than the pre-war average of more than 100 ships a day. The Iranian paramilitary force insists the global shipping route remains open to traffic "with coordination and security provided by the IRGC Navy".

Vessels anchored in the Strait of Hormuz, off the port city of Khasab on Oman's northern Musandam Peninsula (file image)(Image: AFP via Getty Images)

US secretary of state Marco Rubio has called for action against attempts by Iran to create a toll system in the Strait of Hormuz.

Speaking ahead of a NATO meeting in Sweden, Rubio said: "Iran is trying to create a tolling system. They're trying to convince Oman, by the way, to join them in a tolling system in an international waterway. There is not a country in the world that should accept that."

If Iran were to charge tolls, "it will happen in five other places around the world", he added. "That's just not acceptable."

Indirect discussions between Tehran and Washington are ongoing, with Pakistan acting as a mediator, Iran's ISNA news agency reports.

It says the two sides are exchanging messages and draft texts in a bid to establish a framework for an agreement, with negotiators said to be "very close," reports Al Jazeera.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio says there are "good signs" a deal to end the Iran war could be in sight, but added he doesn't want to be "overly optimistic".

He told reporters: "So, let's see what happens over the next few days.

Rubio added that Iran's desire to impose a toll on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz was acting as an obstacle to a potential peace agreement.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio(Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

Republican leaders in the US House of Representatives suddenly cancelled a planned vote yesterday over a measure aimed at limiting Donald Trump's power to take military action against Iran.

The vote was pulled after Republicans appeared close to losing as several members were absent.

"Republicans cowardly pulled a scheduled vote on a War Powers Resolution - legislation that would have passed with bipartisan support and required the President to end the conflict in the Middle East," House of Representatives Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, Whip Katherine Clark and Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar said in a statement.

Democrats have repeatedly pushed for votes in both the House and Senate to restrict Trump's war powers over Iran, with some Republicans increasingly backing the effort in recent weeks.

Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency has reported that Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has held a meeting with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

The pair reportedly reviewed the latest proposals to end the US-Iran conflict.

The New York Times has reported that Iran and Oman are in talks over a payment system for ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz.

This comes despite warnings from the Trump administration.

NATO intelligence officials believe Russia is developing underwater nuclear missile systems which could be concealed on the Arctic seabed, according to reports.

Read the full story here.

Israeli forces have reportedly targeted an area between villages in the western countryside of Syria’s Deraa province, according to Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).

No information has been reported regarding casualties.

The White House is “very upset” with Nato members for “going into hiding” during the Iran war, US secretary of state Marco Rubio has said.

America’s top diplomat levelled his latest criticism as he headed to a meeting of counterparts from the military alliance in Sweden.

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is among those expected to attend.

While Mr Rubio did not specifically name the UK, Donald Trump has been scathing over Britain’s reluctance to be drawn into the conflict, accusing Sir Keir Starmer of being weak and deriding the Royal Navy.

It sparked reports the US could review its position on Britain’s claim to the Falkland Islands as punishment.

Marco Rubio(Image: Getty Images)

The United States will be sending an additional 5,000 troops to Poland, Donald Trump said on Thursday.

Trump, in a Truth Social post, cited his relationship with Poland's conservative nationalist president, Karol Nawrocki, as the reason behind his decision to send additional troops.

The announcement comes two days after Vice President JD Vance told reporters a US troop deployment to Poland had been delayed.

The US had been reviewing its troop presence in Europe and had long been expected to scale it back following demands from Trump that NATO take a larger ‌role in the defense of Europe.

"Based on the successful Election of the now President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, who I was proud to Endorse, and our relationship with him, I am pleased to announce that the United States will be sending an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland," Trump said in the post.

The Iranian ambassador has been presented with credentials, four months after the ceremony was postponed because of the suppression of protests in Iran.

Eshagh Alhabib presented his Letters of Credence to President Catherine Connolly at Aras an Uachtarain on Thursday.

In January, the Department of Foreign Affairs said the decision to delay the ceremony was taken after a “significant” number of Iranian demonstrators were killed and injured.

Protests sparked by the country’s ailing economy began in late December, and escalated into rallies opposing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his regime.

They continued despite the internet and telephone lines being cut off and thousands were killed and detained in a bloody crackdown by the Revolutionary Guard.

The FTSE 100 ended a see-saw session in the green, as rising mining stocks offset disappointing earnings and a higher oil price.

The FTSE 100 closed up 11.13 points, 0.1%, at 10,443.47. The FTSE 250 ended up 109.54 points, 0.5%, at 22,947.92, and the AIM All-Share rose 3.83 points, 0.5%, at 796.64.

Oil prices were back on the rise as International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol warned oil supplies could be “entering the red zone” if there is no progress towards resolving the Middle East war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude for July delivery traded higher at 107.98 US dollars a barrel on Thursday, up from 105.26 dollars at the time of the equities close in London on Wednesday.

A diplomatic deal between the United States and Iran would be unfeasible if Tehran implemented a tolling system in the Strait of Hormuz, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Thursday.

"No one in the world is in favour of the tolling system. It can't happen. It would be unacceptable. It would make a diplomatic deal unfeasible if they were to continue to pursue that. So it's a threat to the world if they were trying to do that, and it's completely illegal," Rubio said.

He also told reporters there had been some progress in talks with Tehran to end the US-Israeli war on Iran, but that Washington was dealing with "a system that itself is a little fractured."

"There's some good signs," Rubio said. "I don't want to be overly optimistic ... So, let's see what happens over the next few days."

Campaigners have cheered the Chancellor’s move to take aim at oil and gas profits with plans to close a tax loophole on overseas activities and raise hundreds of millions of pounds.

In a speech outlining cost-of-living support measures for households and businesses, Rachel Reeves said she would stop firms – including oil and gas giants such as BP and Shell – from reducing their tax liabilities by using corporate structures involving foreign branches.

She said some oil and gas groups that operate overseas through foreign branches “have structured their tax affairs in a way which ensures they pay little or no corporation tax on their UK energy trading profits”.

“Today we are putting an end to that practice,” she announced.

Iran's near-total internet blackout has entered its 83rd day, according to global internet monitor NetBlocks.

Iranian authorities first cut internet access for the country’s 92 million citizens on January 8 as nationwide protests intensified. Restrictions were partially eased on January 28, although severe disruption remained in place.

Authorities imposed a new blackout after US-Israeli strikes began on February 28.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has issued a directive that the country's near-weapons-grade uranium should remain in the country, two senior Iranian sources told Reuters.

Khamenei's alleged order is expected to further anger US President Donald Trump and complicate talks on ending the war in the Middle East.

Read more on this breaking story here.

Iran's Supreme Leader has issued a directive that the country's uranium should not be sent abroad(Image: ISNA/AFP via Getty Images)

Twenty Iranian sailors on board a vessel seized by US forces have returned to Tehran from Islamabad, according to Iran’s IRNA.

"The release was achieved after intensive consultations between Iranian Foreign Minister and his Pakistani and Singaporean counterparts," the report said.

Pakistan's army chief Asim Munir is heading to Tehran amid its efforts to mediate talks between Iran and the US to end the war in the Middle East, according to Iran’s ISNA news agency.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqv arrived in Tehran yesterday. It was his second visit in less than a week.

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller says Iran will "face punishment from our military" if Tehran fails to agree to a deal as negotiations appear to stall.

"This new team in Iran has a choice to make," Miller told Fox News. "They can either agree to a piece of paper that is satisfactory to the United States, or they can face a punishment from our military, the likes of which has not been seen in modern history. That’s the choice that they face."

Donald Trump insisted that negotiations with Iran were in the "final stages", but reiterated his familiar threats, saying the US would do things that are a "little bit nasty" if a deal is not reached.

"We’re in the final stages of Iran. We’ll see what happens. Either have a deal or we’re going to do some things that are a little bit nasty, but hopefully that won’t happen." Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday. "Ideally, I’d like to see few people killed, as opposed to a lot. We can do it either way."