President Donald Trump said Israel and Iran are "looking to do an immediate CEASEFIRE" after renewed clashes.
"Final negotiations on "Peace" are proceeding, subject to ignorance or stupidity getting in its way. The Blockade will remain in place, and in full force and effect, until a "Final Deal" is reached. Things should move quickly," Trump added in a social media publication.
The president is looking to deescalate hostilities that rose during the weekend after Israel targeted a Beirut suburb considered a Hezbollah stronghold following continued strikes against the northern region of the country.
Iran then launched ballistic missiles at Israel to follow through on its threat to avoid striking the area as it considered both fronts as part of a whole.
President Donald Trump publicly warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to retaliate to give room for diplomacy to move forward, but hours later Israel attacked anyway.
The IDF said "extensive" strikes were conducted, aimed largely at "strategic defense systems." "Recently, defense systems were deployed in numerous areas across Iran as part of the regime's efforts to restore its detection and defense capabilities, which were degraded during Operation Roaring Lion," the IDF added.
Iranian media reported explosions were heard in Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan, Tabriz and Kermanshah. Iran later conducted more missile strikes, while Yemen's Houthi rebels, also allied with Tehran, launched two as well. There have been no reports of casualties in Israel resulting from the attacks. Overall, Iran launched 24 ballistic missiles since Sunday night. All of them were intercepted or struck open areas.
Mohamed Ghalibaf, speaker of the Iranian Parliament, had threatened with strikes earlier on Sunday, saying that the U.S.'s continued blockade of the Hormuz Strait and the U.S.'s approval of Israel strikes in Beirut "turn the U.S.'s bases and assets in the region into legitimate targets."
Tehran had also condemned a report claiming that the U.S. is reportedly considering using frozen Iranian assets to finance the rebuilding by Gulf allies who sustained damages resulting from the country's strikes.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent directed a team to assess the cost of damages sustained by allied countries in the Gulf, CNBC noted.
The development came shortly after a top Iranian official said a deal with the U.S. is contingent on the unfreezing of funds. "The negotiations are at a deadlock and President Donald Trump must break this deadlock," Mohsen Rezaei, adviser to Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, told CNN.
He went on to say that if Trump "wants to reach an agreement with Iran, this $24 billion is a test of trust that Iran wants to have with Trump – this is a test that America must pass and the path will be opened." "This is our own money, not America's money," he added.
Originally published on IBTimes
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