Trump says he’ll finish conflict by ‘mutual determination’ with Netanyahu as Hegseth ensures Tehran will ‘give up’: Live updates

Donald Trump said yesterday ending the war with Iran will be a “mutual” decision made with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Speaking by phone with The Times of Israel, Trump said Netanyahu will have input on resolving the conflict.

‘I think it’s mutual … a little bit. We’ve been talking. I’ll make a decision at the right time, but everything’s going to be taken into account,’ said Trump.

by Rory Tingle

Iran might be 3,000 miles away, but its ongoing war with the US and Israel will be felt in our wallets.

The fallout from the conflict may last for months, with Brits facing a knock-on effect through higher energy and petrol bills, mortgage rates and grocery prices – not to mention the cost of holidays.

The price of a barrel of oil has rocketed over $100 (£75) for the first time in years as tankers ground to a halt and wells came under attack, prompting fears of a spike in inflation.

Meanwhile, growing international instability is hammering stock markets, with the FTSE 100 dropping more than 100 points on opening this morning.

With no end to the conflict in sight, the hit to Britain’s economy is looking increasingly serious. Here’s how you could feel the impact:

Here are some pictures of Israeli security forces and first responders gathering by a destroyed vehicle at the site of an Iranian strike in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv.

Several blasts rocked central Israel today after the military reported it had detected new missiles launched from Iran.

One man was killed at a construction site bringing the total number of deaths in Israel since the start of the war to 11.

French President Emmanuel Macron has announced the G7 will discuss a possible release of strategic oil reserves as nations meet for crisis talks on the Middle East.

Macron, whose country holds the rotating presidency of the world’s most advanced economies, said ‘the use of strategic reserves is an option being considered.’

A possible meeting of G7 heads of state and government could take place this week, Macron told journalists on his way to Cyprus.

‘A coordination among G7 heads of state and government this week on the issue of energy is being examined,’ he added.

French Finance Minister Roland Lescure will chair a video meeting of G7 finance ministers at 1:30 pm Paris time (12:30pm UK time).

The gathering will ‘review the situation in the Gulf from an economic point of view’ and the events of recent days, the ministry said.

Iran has accused European countries of creating the conditions that led to the United States and Israel attacking the Islamic republic and triggering a war.

‘European countries have unfortunately helped create these conditions,’ said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei during a weekly press briefing.

‘Instead of insisting on the rule of law, instead of standing up to the bullying and excesses of the United States, they spoke and agreed with them at the UN Security Council regarding the discussion on restoring sanctions, and all these things together emboldened the American and Zionist parties to continue committing their crimes.’

This is the moment a fire broke out at Bahrain’s only oil refinery as Tehran continues to target energy sites across the Gulf.

Oil prices soared to more than $100 a barrel for the first time in four years today amid global fears over supply disruptions.

After Bahrain’s sprawling Al Ma’ameer oil facility was hit, causing a fire and damage, the country’s state-owned energy firm Bapco declared force majeure – the latest Gulf producer to activate the legal clause.

Energy producers in Qatar and Kuwait earlier made similar declarations, which are a warning that events beyond their control may lead them to miss export targets.

Vladimir Putin has backed Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.

‘I would like to reaffirm our unwavering support for Tehran and solidarity with our Iranian friends,’ Putin said in a message to Khamenei, adding that ‘Russia has been and will remain a reliable partner’ to Iran.

‘At a time when Iran is confronting armed aggression, your tenure in this high position will undoubtedly require great courage and dedication,’ the Russian leader said.

Iran has downplayed the likelihood of a ceasefire while Tehran is under attack, Iran’s Student News Network has reported.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said there is ‘no point to talks about anything’ barring defence and ‘crushing retaliations’ against its ‘enemies’.

Baghaei then reiterated Tehran has no war to fight with its Muslim neighbours but must target ‘facilities used by aggressors’.

The foreign ministry spokesperson also denied any Iranian attack against Turkey, Azerbaijan and Cyprus, pointing instead at what he called ‘false flag attacks.’

Israel’s first responders said one person was killed by shrapnel as several blasts rocked central Israel today.

It comes after the military reported detecting new missiles launched from Iran.

‘After performing resuscitation efforts, we had to pronounce the death of a man, approximately 40 years old,’ Magen David Adom said in a statement, adding that the death occurred at a construction site in central Israel.

It added that another man was seriously injured and evacuated for treatment, with both casualties having sustained ‘several shrapnel injuries to their bodies’.

First responders say at least 11 people have been killed and dozens injured in Israel since Iran began firing missiles at the country in retaliation for joint US-Israeli strikes.

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to protect Brits from the the economic impact of the Iran war as oil prices soared to more than $100 a barrel.

The Prime Minister warned longer conflict goes on ‘the more likely the impact on our economy’ as he met with members of the public.

Sir Keir said: ‘People are also rightly worrying what this means for life at home – their bills, their jobs, their communities.

‘I want to address those concerns head on. I will always be guided by what is best for the British public. And no matter the headwinds, supporting working people and their families with the cost of living is always top of my mind.’

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s son has been wounded in the Iran war, it emerged today after he was named as the country’s new Supreme Leader.

Mojtaba, 56, the second son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was excluded from a list of three senior clerics his father reportedly identified last year, but on Sunday was announced as his successor after being appointed by the regime’s 88-person assembly.

The ‘vengeful’ hardline cleric is already marked for assassination by Israel after it vowed to ‘eliminate’ whoever succeded the late Ayatollah, having killed him and Mojtaba’s wife Zahra Haddad-Adel in strikes on the first day of the conflict.

In one report on his ascension to Supreme Leader on Iranian state TV, it refers to him as being wounded in the war.

The anchor describes him as ‘janbaz’, or wounded by the enemy, in the ‘Ramadan war,’ which is how media in Iran refer to the current conflict.

It does not elaborate on how he was injured, although his wife and father were killed in Israeli strikes on Tehran.

by Eliana Silver

Iran has unleashed a huge attack overnight on countries in the Gulf, with Bahrain experiencing the highest number of casualties since the beginning of the war.

32 people were injured in an Iranian attack on Bahrain’s island of Sitra, the interior ministry said, after Bahrain’s Bapco refinery was hit by drones overnight.

All of the wounded were Bahraini citizens and there were four ‘serious cases’, including children, the health ministry said in a statement carried by the state news agency.

The wounded included a 17-year-old girl who suffered severe head and eye injuries, and a two-month-old baby, according to the ministry.

‘As a result of the blatant Iranian aggression, injuries among citizens were reported, one of them serious, and a number of houses in Sitra were damaged as a result of an attack by drones,’ the ministry said.