Netanyahu: Iran’s nuclear programme 'crushed' in war

 Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to “continue to fight Iran” as the US met for top-level peace talks with the Islamist regime on Saturday.

In a defiant television address, the Israeli prime minister insisted that the war had succeeded in “crushing” Iran’s military capabilities and nuclear programme.

“We have succeeded in crushing the nuclear programme, and crushing the missile programme,” Mr Netanyahu said.

He added: “They wanted to strangle us, and [now] we are strangling them. They threatened us with annihilation, and now they are fighting for survival.”

In a later social media post, he stated that “Israel under my leadership will continue to fight Iran’s terror regime and its proxies”.

The Israeli leader said he wanted a peace deal with Lebanon “that will last for generations” as the death toll from Israeli air strikes on its northern neighbour reached 2,000.

His comments came as JD Vance, the US vice-president, led the highest-level meeting of American officials with Iran’s counterparts since the Iranian revolution of 1979.

At a meeting convened in Islamabad by Pakistan, Mr Vance held direct talks with Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker, on the first day of talks aimed at ending the conflict.

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Here are the most important developments of the day:

A US delegation led by JD Vance, the vice-president, has met Iranian negotiators in Islamabad for face-to-face peace talks. The meeting marks the highest-level contact between the US and Iran since the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Iranian state media has reported that the US made “unacceptable demands” during the talks, with both sides said to be far apart on finding a solution to the Strait of Hormuz.

Donald Trump said the US had started an operation to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz as a “favour” to the rest of the world. Two US warships passed through the waterway in an attempt to create a safe route for commercial vessels, the US military said. Iran has contested that any US military vessels passed through the waterway.

Lebanese casualties from the war between Israel and Hezbollah have risen above 2,000. The Lebanese government is set to meet an Israeli delegation in Washington for talks on ending the conflict next week.

Benjamin Netanyahu said that he wanted a peace deal with Lebanon that would “last generations”. The Israeli prime minister also claimed that the campaign against Iran and its proxies was not over and boasted that the five-week military campaign “crushed” Iran’s nuclear programme.