Here's a round-up of the latest developments today in the conflict in the Middle East.

• US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will go to Islamabad to “hear the Iranians out,” says Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary
• Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi will also head to the Pakistani capital as part of a regional tour, the Iranian government confirmed in a statement without reference to the US
• The US has “certainly seen progress” from the “Iranian side” in recent days, says Leavitt
• US Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio will not attend talks, but are on “standby,” she says
• Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says a peace process between Israel and Lebanon is underway, but accuses Hezbollah of trying to sabotage the deal - in recent days both Israel and Hezbollah have accused each other of ceasefire violations
• Netanyahu has also confirmed Israel carried out attacks Thursday and Friday as the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issued a new evacuation order for parts of southern Lebanon
• Earlier, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Dan Caine held a press briefing - Hegseth said the US naval blockade of Iranian ports "is growing and going global"

Karoline Leavitt says the US has "certainly seen progress" from the "Iranian side" in the last couple of days.

The White House press secretary says the Iranians "want to talk" in person.

Leavitt goes on to say the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is another "win for the world" and she hopes there will be a day when the US can welcome the leaders of both countries.

The brief gaggle with reporters has now finished.

Leavitt says President Trump was flexible in granting an extension on the ceasefire with Iran.

He has decided to send Witkoff and Kushner to Islamabad "to hear the Iranians out", she says.

She adds that the Iranians want to talk in person, and that the president is "always willing to give diplomacy a chance".

She says the US hopes positive developments will come from meeting - "we'll see".

She says the vice president is on standby and the US is willing to dispatch him to Pakistan if it is deemed a good use of his time.

Image source, Pool

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is now speaking to reporters.

We just heard from her on Fox News a moment ago, where she said Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would head to Islamabad in Pakistan for further talks with Iran.

You can watch it live at the top of this page.

US Vice President JD Vance will not attend the fresh round of talks with Iran, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt tells Fox News.

Though Vance will not join Kushner and Witkoff at this point, he will be waiting alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other officials in case his presence is "necessary", Leavitt adds.

"The Vice President remains deeply involved in this entire process, and he'll be standing by here," she says. "Everyone will be on standby to fly to Pakistan if necessary."

US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner will head to Islamabad in Pakistan for further talks with Iran, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt tells Fox News just now.

The two will leave Saturday morning to continue the negotiations, she says.

Image source, Reuters

The news agency Reuters and US broadcaster CNN report that US special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner are heading to Islamabad for fresh talks, citing US officials.

Both report that they're due to meet Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi - who earlier confirmed he was heading to the Pakistani capital.

Carine Torbey
BBC Arabic correspondent, in Beirut

In the southern suburb of Beirut, there’s very little optimism following the announcement of the extension of the ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel.

People I spoke to told me they don’t trust Israel and they don’t think the ceasefire has solid grounds.

"What ceasefire are you talking about when the Israeli surveillance drone is still hovering overhead and when Israel continues to detonate villages and to occupy large parts of the south?", a taxi driver tells me.

A lady coming to check on her house says she only trusts the resistance - in reference to Hezbollah, but definitely not Trump and Netanyahu. She says she hopes for some peace but doesn’t believe it is coming.

Dahieh is an area where Hezbollah has large support and significant clout. It was included in the blanket evacuation orders issued by the Israelis. It was very heavily struck during the last escalation.

Hundreds of thousands of people fled it. Some are coming back to check on their properties and businesses and see with their own eyes the massive scale of destruction.

I asked a resident if he is coming back home. He replies: "Just to take some stuff. I don’t think it’s time yet."

Image source, Reuters

Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun has stressed that Lebanon's stabilty has wider repercussions as he spoke at a summit attended by EU leaders in Cyprus.

"Lebanon's stability is integral to the stability of the region," says in comments translated by the Reuters news agency.

Aoun warns that any instability "will not remain confined within its borders but will have repercussions for its neighbours and partners".

And the Lebanese president says that he hopes for his country to transition "from crisis management to recovery through enhanced cooperation with our European partners" through investment and economic integration.

As a reminder, an uneasy ceasefire remains in place between Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon and Israel, though the Israel Defense Forces have continued to issue evacuation orders to residents of southern Lebanon today.

Verified videos show IDF striking a village in southern Lebanonpublished at 16:58 BST 24 April

16:58 BST 24 April

Image source, X

By Tom Gould and Peter Mwai

BBC Verify has been examining videos of an Israeli strike on the village of Deir Aames in southern Lebanon today, following the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) issuing a warning to residents to evacuate the area.

The two clips we have verified show the same large explosion hitting a group of houses in the village, which is about seven miles (11km) from the border with Israel.

In a post on X issuing a warning earlier, IDF Arabic-language spokesperson Avichay Adraee said “Hezbollah's activities are forcing the IDF to operate against them” in the area and told residents to move more than 1,000m (3,000ft) from the village.

The IDF later published its own footage of the strike and said it hit “military structures” used by Hezbollah to fire rockets toward the Israeli village of Shtula near the border with Lebanon last night.

Image source, IDF

Image source, Reuters

In a video update on the conflict in the Middle East, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says a process to "achieve a historic peace between Israel and Lebanon" is now under way.

But he says it is "clear to us that Hezbollah is trying to sabotage this".

• For context, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Hezbollah have accused each other of ceasefire violations

Israel maintains "full freedom of action" against any threat, Netanyahu says, saying Israel carried out attacks on Thursday and Friday.

He adds that Israel is changing "the face of the Middle East" and they're fully cooperating with the US. He praises Donald Trump for "applying very strong pressure on Iran, both economically and military".

Image source, Reuters

Iran's Mission to the UN has called the US interception of a commercial vessel, named Touska, a "flagrant breach of international law".

Earlier, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth referenced the cargo ship by name at a news conference, after it was seized as part of the US's naval blockade on Iranian ports. US President Donald Trump had said the Touska was interdicted after failing to respond to a warning to stop.

Now, Iran's UN Mission says the ship was "carrying critical dialysis supplies and medical equipment" when it was interdicted on 19 April.

In a statement, it says this action breaches international law "including the peremptory prohibition of aggression, human rights and the right to life".

"This coercive and unlawful act endangers lives, undermines freedom of navigation, and places vulnerable patients at grave risk," it adds.

Carrie Davies
BBC Pakistan correspondent

Image source, EPA

When the news broke that Iran’s foreign minister was set to travel to Pakistan, there was a flurry of excitement. Could this mean that talks were back on?

Not for the moment.

The suggestion coming from Iran is that these are bilateral talks with Pakistan, not meeting America.

It’s fair to assume there will be talks about talks, but this is currently being presented as another part of diplomatic efforts by Pakistan, not peace talks.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says his trip to Islamabad, Muscat and Moscow is to "closely coordinate with our partners on bilateral matters and consult on regional developments".

In a post on X, he says: "Our neighbors are our priority".

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

Away from the Middle East, EU leaders are hosting a summit with their counterparts from Egypt, Syria and Lebanon in Cyprus.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told fellow leaders that the EU is willing to gradually ease sanctions on Iran in the event a comprehensive agreement is reached, according to the Reuters news agency.

"It is, so to speak, part of the contribution we can make to advance this process and, hopefully, lead to a lasting ceasefire," Merz said.

AFP is reporting comments from European Council President Antonio Costa, who said the Strait of Hormuz must "immediately reopen without restrictions and without tolling", adding that this is "vital for the entire world".

Speaking before the meeting, the bloc's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas warned that the world could end up with a more dangerous Iran if talks did not produce as strong an agreement as the 2015 Iran nuclear deal President Trump withdrew from during his first term.

Two US-sanctioned ships crossing Strait of Hormuzpublished at 15:33 BST 24 April

15:33 BST 24 April

Image source, MarineTraffic

By Thomas Copeland

We’ve been keeping an eye on two ships sanctioned by the US over their links to Iran as they travelled through the Strait of Hormuz today.

Ship-tracking data from MarineTraffic shows a crude oil tanker named Yuri began crossing the strait overnight before coming to a halt to the east of Larak Island, where it has remained throughout today. The tracking site shows the ship is loaded with cargo and had previously broadcast its location close to Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export port. The ship’s current destination is not known.

A second ship, a chemical tanker named Avon, also transited through the strait early this morning. It had spent much of this month sitting off the coast of the UAE and ship tracking data shows it is laden with cargo. It now appears to be heading out into the Gulf of Oman, where the US last week implemented a blockade line.

The US has intercepted multiple ships since introducing the blockade. The ships had either been travelling from Iranian ports or had previously been sanctioned by the US for their links with Iran. We will continue to keep an eye on these two ships to see if they approach the US blockade line.

Image source, EPA

US Vice President JD Vance was expected to fly to Islamabad on Tuesday for a round of peace talks between the US and Iran, but Air Force Two never took off and negotiations didn't resume.

Donald Trump subsequently announced that he would extend the ceasefire with Iran, which had been set to expire on Wednesday evening.

As we reported in the post below, Iran has now confirmed that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is set to travel to Islamabad tonight. We don't yet know the scope of the talks or whether the US will attend.

Pakistan has been acting as a mediator between Washington and Tehran. Our correspondent earlier reported that Islamabad has been preparing to host a second round of talks for nearly a week, resulting in severe disruption for residents.

Image source, Reuters

The Iranian government has confirmed that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will travel to Islamabad, Pakistan tonight.

In a post on X, it says he will partake in a regional tour, also visiting Muscat in Oman and Moscow in Russia, to discuss bilaterial relations, regional developments, and the latest on the war in Iran.

The post does not mention potential further peace talks in Pakistan between Iran and the US.

In a Telegram post earlier this afternoon, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it intercepted a drone before it crossed into Israeli territory. The update came after sirens sounded in several areas of northern Israel.

A "suspicious aerial target" was also identified near IDF soldiers in southern Lebanon, the IDF added.

In a separate post, the IDF issued new evacuation orders for Lebanon residents in the village of Deir Aames.

IDF spokesperson Avichay Adraee said Hezbollah has been carrying out activities in the area and people must evacuate immediately, urging them to stay at least 1,000m away from the village.

Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly referred to the village under new evacuation orders as Deir Ammar. It has now been changed to Deir Aames.

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

If you're just joining us, here's a recap of the top lines from US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Dan Caine's briefing earlier:

• Hegseth said Iran has a chance to "make a good, wise deal", adding that the US naval blockade of Iranian ports "is growing and going global"
• He added that the US wasn’t “anxious” to make a deal, echoing comments made by Donald Trump on Thursday
• As of Friday morning, a total of 34 ships have met the US blockade of Iranian ports and have been turned around, according to Hegseth
• However, Caine said one ship, the Touska, didn't abide by orders to turn around and was interdicted

• Two vessels that Iran shot at and seized in the Strait of Hormuz in recent days were "random ships" and not US or Israeli vessels, according to Hegseth
• He said transit through the strait is occurring but is much more limited" than people would like, adding that laying mines is a "violation of the ceasefire"