Iran threatens British warships in Strait of Hormuz

 Iran has threatened to strike British and French warships in the Strait of Hormuz if they try to help reopen the waterway.

Britain announced on Saturday it was deploying HMS Dragon, a type 45 destroyer, to the Middle East ahead of its “potential role” described as a “strictly defensive and independent” mission.

Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s deputy foreign minister, said warships “potentially accompanying the illegal and internationally unlawful actions” of the US “will be met with immediate decisive response”.

Earlier today, Tehran said it had sent the Washington a counterproposal to Donald Trump’s 14-point plan to end the more than two-month old war.

Tehran has proposed that the current phase of negotiations focus solely on ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, ruling out an immediate deal over the future of its nuclear programme – a major sticking point in negotiations.

Benjamin Netanuhu, Israel’s prime minister, said Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium had to  be “taken out” before the US-Israeli war against Iran could be considered “over”.

08:52pm

That’s all for today

Thanks for following our live coverage of the war in the Middle East. 

We’ll be back soon with more updates and analysis.

08:37pm

Iran rejects US demand to dismantle nuclear facilities

Iran has rejected US demands to dismantle its nuclear facilities and will not suspend enrichment of uranium for 20 years, sources have said. 

The counter-demands were delivered to the US via Pakistan in a multi-page response on Sunday, sources told the Wall Street Journal. 

Tehran is proposing an end to the war and a gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to commercial vessels, with the US also lifting its blockade of Iranian ships. 

A deal over Iran’s nuclear issues would then be negotiated over 30 days, with Tehran accepting that some of its highly enriched uranium would be diluted and the rest transferred to a third country.

In its response, Iran also demanded that the uranium would be sent back to the country should negotiations fail. 

It also accepted a suspension of uranium but for a shorter period than the 20-year timeline proposed by Washington. 

08:28pm

Jailed Iranian peace laureate moved to hospital in Tehran

Iran’s imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize winner ⁠Narges Mohammadi has been moved to a hospital in the capital and has been granted ​a suspension ‌of her sentence on heavy bail, according to her family. 

Mohammadi, 54, won the prize in 2023 while in prison for a campaign to advance women’s rights and abolish the death penalty. She suffered a heart attack two weeks ago.

Her family had called for her to be transferred from Zanjan, northwest of Tehran, ‌where she ‌was serving ⁠her sentence and where she had been initially taken to hospital, so that she could receive better medical care.

She is now at Tehran Pars ⁠Hospital for treatment by her own medical team after being transferred by ambulance, the Narges Mohammadi Foundation said in a statement.

08:00pm

Trump expected to ‘apply pressure’ on Xi over Iran

Donald Trump is expected to press Chinese President Xi Jinping on Iran when he visits Beijing next week, a senior administration official has said.

“I would expect the president to apply pressure,” the official said in a call with reporters, speaking on condition of anonymity, adding that Mr Trump had done so in previous calls with the Chinese president.

07:34pm

Netanyahu to speak with Trump

Benjamin Netanyahu will hold a phone call with Donald Trump in the coming hour, according to reports in Israeli media.

Channel 14 reported that Mr Netanyahu left a press conference in the Dead Sea to return to Jerusalem for an ‘urgent’ phone call.

Mr Trump cut a frustrated figure as he posted about Iran earlier today, lambasting Barack Obama’s Iran deal and claiming Tehran “will be laughing no longer”.

Earlier today, the Israeli prime minister told CBS in a pre-recorded interview that the war with Iran was “not over” and that the US should enter Iran to take its stockpile of enriched uranium.

07:09pm

Trump attacks Obama in latest Iran rant

Donald Trump has attacked Barack Obama’s nuclear deal in his latest rant about Iran.

The US president accused his predecessor of “giving Iran a major and very powerful new lease on life”.

“Hundreds of Billions of Dollars, and 1.7 Billion Dollars in green cash, flown into Tehran, was handed to them on a silver platter,” Mr Trump claimed, referring to the JCPOA negotiated by the US under Mr Obama.

Mr Trump went on to attack “Sleepy Joe Biden” and claimed the “Iranians have been ‘tapping’ us along, keeping us waiting, killing our people with their roadside bombs, destroying protests, and recently wiping out 42,000 innocent, unarmed protestors, and laughing at our now GREAT AGAIN Country.

He concluded his post: “They will be laughing no longer! President DONALD J. TRUMP.”

Mr Trump has long taken exception to the JCPOA, which was agreed between Iran and the US, France, China, Russia and Germany.

Under the deal, Iran agreed to limit its nuclear program by reducing fuel cycle activities that could lead to the production of weapons-grade uranium. In return, Tehran was given sanctions relief.

07:04pm Analysis • Pictures

Analysis: Trump heads to China under shadow of ceasefire

Donald Trump’s goal to wrap up the Iran war before his delayed visit to China next week remains elusive.

Iran may have finally provided a response to the president’s peace proposal, but it ruled out any kind of deal on its nuclear programme – a central demand from Washington.

The US president hoped to arrive at the summit with Xi Jinping having secured a decisive victory – or at least a win he could sell as one – to leverage his negotiating position. Instead, he arrives vulnerable.

The trip was vaunted as a crucial chance to reset economic relations between the two adversaries and an opportunity to lessen the economic pain on American citizens inflicted by the trade war between both superpowers.

But Beijing’s deep economic ties with Tehran, the issue of Taiwan, and the tariffs levelled by both sides are the hazards Mr Trump must navigate when he arrives on Wednesday.

Crucially, he must do so under the shadow of a ceasefire that is struggling to hold, the Strait of Hormuz all but closed, and his approval ratings at a record low.