Iran vows to fight back, oil prices rise as Trump rejects peace proposal as “unacceptable”

Similar fighting between Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israeli forces continued over the weekend into Monday, when the Israeli Defense Forces warned many civilians to evacuate their homes as the death toll in Lebanon neared 3,000.

The violence has continued despite a ceasefire signed by the Lebanese and Israeli governments last month, and the fighting has complicated efforts to broker a peace deal between Washington and Tehran.

On Monday, Hezbollah released a video purportedly showing strikes on IDF forces in southern Lebanon, with Iran’s proxy group claiming “confirmed hits.”

IDF spokesman Avichay Adraee, in his latest emergency warning to the people of Lebanon using social media, told residents of nine villages in the south of the country to leave their homes.

An IDF strike in an area where residents received no such warning killed eight members of one family on Saturday, according to the New York Times. On Sunday, hundreds of mourners gathered in the coastal town of Sidon for the family’s funeral. Among the dead are a couple, their three children and a six-month-old grandson, according to the Times.

IDF and Hezbollah strikes have intensified in recent days. More than 450 people have been killed in Lebanon since the ceasefire agreement was signed. Israeli officials say 18 soldiers and two civilians have been killed since fighting with Hezbollah escalated in early March.

Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health says at least 2,846 people have been killed since March 2, and more than a million have been forced to flee their homes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the joint war between his country and the US that began on February 28 “achieved a lot, but it is not over yet.”

Netanyahu told Major Garrett of CBS News in an interview with 60 Minutes that the war will not end, “because there is still nuclear material, enriched uranium that needs to be removed from Iran. There are still enrichment sites that need to be eliminated. There are still proxies supported by Iran. There are ballistic missiles. here, and there is work to be done.”

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Iranian President Masoud ⁠Pezeshkian said on Sunday the country “will not bow down to the enemy,” and vowed that the Islamic Republic’s ruling regime “will vigorously defend the country’s interests.”

“When it comes to negotiations or negotiation, it doesn’t mean surrender or retreat,” he said in a message posted on social media before President Trump rejected Iran’s response to the latest US peace proposal.

“The goal is to support the rights of the Iranian nation and protect the country’s interests with strong force,” Pezeshkian said.

Iran is willing to fight “whenever necessary,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei said Monday, adding that the regime would also continue to use negotiations, “whenever we see fit.”

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Baqaei was asked how Iran would react if the US launched a new attack on the country.

“We fight whenever necessary,” he said. “Whenever we see fit, we use diplomacy as a tool to protect the interests of the Iranian nation.”

Baqaei said Iran “has shown that it is determined to pursue national interests and legitimate rights” by using “sincere and meaningful engagement processes.”

“The other side must prove itself,” he said, referring to the US “It must show that it is serious about this. So far, it has failed.”

He previously said that Iran did not seek specific concessions in its response to the latest US peace proposal: “The only thing we sought was Iran’s legal rights.”

President Trump dismissed Iran’s response on Sunday as “absolutely unacceptable.”

President Trump is expected to fly to Beijing on Wednesday to meet with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, and the war with Iran is likely to be at the forefront.

Mr. Trump is under increasing pressure to end the war and calm energy markets that have sent fuel prices soaring for two months. He is expected to try to lean on President Xi to use his influence with Tehran to get them to agree to a deal.

“I would expect the president to apply pressure” on Iran, an unnamed senior administration official told reporters on Sunday, according to French news agency AFP. This officer said Mr. Trump expressed concern about China continuing to strengthen the coffers of Iran and Russia by buying oil – despite US sanctions – “multiple times” during calls to Xi, and China’s sale of military and military goods twice.

“I expect that conversation to continue,” the official said.

It is possible that there will be American sanctions against Chinese organizations regarding the war in Iran, the official told AFP.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei expressed hope on Monday that China would instead use the trip to strengthen Tehran’s positions and back down from US demands for a peace deal.

“Our Chinese friends know very well how to use these opportunities to warn of the consequences of US illegal and tyrannical actions on regional peace and security,” he said, “as well as economic stability and international security.”

CBS/AFP

Iran’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday it had called for an end to hostilities across the region and the release of frozen Iranian assets abroad in response to the latest US peace proposal, which President Trump rejected on Sunday.

“We didn’t want to be released. The only thing we wanted was Iran’s legal rights,” said ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei on Monday during a weekly briefing.

He said Tehran’s demands include “an end to the war in the region,” ending the embargo on US ships in Iranian ports and shipping, and “the release of the assets of the Iranian people, who have been unjustly trapped in foreign banks for years.”

Mr. Trump on Sunday rejected Iran’s response as “It is absolutely unacceptable.”

“We are focusing on what is urgent,” said Baqaei on Monday. “What is urgent is to end the war by all means, including Lebanon.”

Baqaei said Iran is also willing to ensure “safe maritime navigation in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz” while “stopping illegal actions and maritime interference by the United States against commercial ships.”

Iran’s approach is, “very responsible and rational … to prioritize urgent issues and focus on solving them, rather than discussing topics whose history shows that, at least twice, led to war.”

The Trump administration has so far insisted that any peace deal includes Iran’s commitment to severely curtail, if not completely eliminate, its nuclear enrichment program.

CBS/AFP

President Trump sets Iran conditions for ending Middle East war “totally unacceptable” suggested the possibility of renewed tensions and sent oil prices higher in early Asian trade on Monday.

President Trump said in his Public Truth forum that he “just read the response from the so-called ‘Iran Representatives.’ I don’t like it — it’s NEVER ACCEPTABLE!”

Global energy markets were unnerved by the prospect of an imminent deal to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz shipping lanes. The price of a barrel of international Brent crude returned to above $100 a barrel on Monday morning.

The US West Texas Intermediate oil contract rose to the $100 barrel mark in early Monday morning trading, as investors eyed further supply disruptions over the crisis, where Tehran has imposed a total embargo.

CBS/AFP

Iran’s shaky ceasefire was tested again on Sunday when a drone set fire to a ship off the coast of Qatar, while the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait reported drones entering their territories.

The UAE has blamed Iran for the latest attack, the latest threat at the end of the month, which the Trump administration says is still in effect.

No victims have been reported, and no one has claimed responsibility.

CBS/AP