Hamas welcomes US-Iran ceasefire talks in Pakistan

Islamabad: The ministry said in a statement that Dar commended the US commitment to achieving lasting regional and global peace and stability.

Vance walks on the red carpet with Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar,

Vance walks on the red carpet with Pakistan’s Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, Chaarge d’Affaires of the US Embassy in 
Islamabad Natalie A Baker, and Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Raza Naqvi.

The Palestinian group Hamas is backing the talked to nd the US-Israeli war on Iran.

“We look forward to the success of the efforts exerted by Pakistan, the sponsor of these negotiations, and the other mediating countries, in creating hope for positive outcomes that will strengthen stability, foster unity among Arab and Islamic nations,” its statement read.

The Saudi Defence Ministry said Pakistani forces, including fighter and support aircraft, arrived at a Saudi airbase on Saturday as part of a defense deal between the two countries.

The Ministry said the forces were deployed at the King Abdulaziz Air Base, which was repeatedly attacked with drones and missiles during the Iran war.

The deployment aims at “enhancing joint military coordination … and supporting security and stability at both regional and international levels,” it said.

The pact that was signed in September defines any attack on either nation as an attack on both.

Both the White House and Pakistan announced Saturday’s meeting between US Vice President JD Vance and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

Vance was accompanied by President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner.

Sharif’s office said the prime minister told the US delegation that Pakistan looks forward to continuing its facilitation efforts to help both sides make progress toward sustainable peace.

Search continues for missing after Israeli strikes in Beirut. Civil defense crews used cranes on Saturday to search through partially collapsed apartments, three days after Israeli strikes hit a six-story building in Beirut’s seaside neighborhood of Caracas.

The Israeli military struck some 100 sites that it said were connected to Hezbollah in the capital and other parts of Lebanon on Wednesday, killing more than 300 people, including more than 100 women and children.

Civil defense officials said six people were killed in the Caracas building and a missing teenager was believed to be buried under a collapsed roof.

Najib Merhi, the owner of a snack shop on the bottom floor, said the strike came as a shock because “this is a touristic area, a safe area, an area that is shared between all the social fabric of this country.”

Third-country mediators in Pakistan to assist US-Iran peace talks

Officials from the region said on Saturday that Egyptian, Saudi, Chinese and Qatari officials are in Islamabad to indirectly facilitate the talks.

The officials were speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter.

JD Vance arrives in Islamabad, received by Pakistani ministers

United States Vice President JD Vance arrived in Islamabad on Saturday, April 11, for talks with Iran. He will be heading the US delegation that includes President Donald Trump‘s special envoy Steve Witkoff and his son-in-law Jared Kushner.

The US delegation was received by the Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, and the Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.

The ministry said in a statement that Dar commended the US commitment to achieving lasting regional and global peace and stability.

The Iranian delegation, led by Parliament Speaker Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf, was already in Islamabad. Before departing for Pakistan, Vance warned Iran not to “play” the US.

He expressed hope that the parties would engage constructively and reiterated Pakistan’s desire to continue facilitating efforts toward a lasting, durable resolution of the conflict.

Hours later, Ghalibaf said discussions would only take place if there is an Israeli ceasefire in Lebanon and the release of blocked Iranian assets.

Israel-Lebanon negotiations are likely to begin next week

Negotiations between Israel and Lebanon are expected next week in Washington, according to The Associated Press. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, April 9, said he had approved direct talks, while the Lebanese government has not yet responded. Attacks intensified on Friday, April 10, between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

At least 1,953 people in Lebanon have been killed by Israeli strikes, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. At least 303 people were killed on Wednesday, April 8, alone.

Iran has come in good faith, Ghalibaf says Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, leading the Iranian delegation for peace talks, said the US should accept Iran’s rights if it wants a deal.

He made the remarks late Friday after arriving in Islamabad, on the agreement to end the six-week war.

Although Iran does not trust the United States, it has come to Islamabad in good faith, Ghalibaf told reporters, according to the IRNA agency.

Tasnim news agency, which is close to the powerful Revolutionary Guard, reported that the Iranian delegation is scheduled to meet with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at noon Saturday.

Iran’s negotiating team, chaired by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and including Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, met late Friday with Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir.

The meetings come ahead of high-stakes talks between Iran and the US in Islamabad, which aim at reaching a permanent end to the war in the Middle East.

Pakistan’s government has set up a state-of-the-art media center to facilitate Pakistani and foreign journalists covering the talks between the United States and Iran, Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said.

Members of the media work at a media centre setup for the coverage of the US-Iran talks in Islamabad, Pakistan, April 11. Tarar told reporters the facility at the Jinnah Convention Center offers high-speed internet and a range of free services to support media coverage. 

Shuttle services have been arranged to transport journalists between the media center and a hotel in the city’s main shopping mall.

Pakistan has announced visa-on-arrival for journalists and official delegations traveling from the United States and Iran for the talks, which have been dubbed the “Islamabad talks.”

Inside the media center, rows of workstations equipped with laptops and charging points allow reporters to file stories. Large screens broadcast major domestic and international television channels. The facility also has designated areas for live stand-ups, press briefings, and interviews.

Hezbollah hits Israeli tank in southern Lebanon
Hezbollah continued its attacks by targeting an Israeli tank in Al-Adisa town in southern Lebanon with a guided missile and a drone, which it said was a “confirmed hit.”

Meanwhile, the Israeli military launched two raids on the outskirts of southern Lebanon in the towns of Taybeh and Asshit.  zz