Donald Trump has suggested that he threw away Iran’s peace proposal after reading the “unacceptable” first sentence as diplomatic efforts to end the war reached a stalemate.Speaking onboard Air Force One on his journey back to the US from China, the US president said he had “looked at” Tehran’s response to a peace plan drawn up by Washington but “if I don’t like the first sentence I just throw it away”. Pressed on the content of the document, he told reporters it was “an unacceptable sentence”, adding: “If they have nuclear in any form, I don’t read the rest.” Trump launched the war in February with the stated aim of ensuring Iran does not build a nuclear weapon. His comments came after Iran’s foreign minister declared he has “no trust” in the Trump administration to help bring about a peace deal, but that the US were seeking fresh negotiations. Tehran is trying to give diplomacy a chance but will only negotiate with Washington if it believes it is serious about peace, Abbas Araghchi said on the sidelines of the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting in New Delhi. Oil prices rise 3% to $109 a barrel as peace appears distantOil prices rose around 3 per cent to near $109 a barrel on concerns over a lack of progress in resolving the conflict.It follows the failure of landmark talks between Donald Trump and Chinese president Xi Jinping to agree on any meaningful path towards peace in Iran. Alex Croft15 May 2026 20:01Fresh Lebanon talks aim to extend ceasefireA fragile ceasefire in Lebanon due to expire on Sunday, abd discussions between Lebanese and Israeli officials were set to continue on Friday after what a senior State Department official said were productive talks on Thursday. Hezbollah opposes the talks, in which Israel is insisting on the group's disarmament.Thousands have been killed in Israel’s ongoing attacks in Lebanon, which began after Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel in early March in response to the US-Israeli attacks on Iran. Alex Croft15 May 2026 19:00UAE rejects Iranian allegations and says it reserves 'full sovereign' rights to respond to threatThe United Arab Emirates has said it reserves the full sovereign, legal, diplomatic and military rights to respond to any Iranian threat or hostile act, in a new statement released on Friday. It said it categorically rejects Iran’s allegations and attempts to justify Iranian attacks that targeted the UAE during the BRICS meeting on Friday. The UAE had been accused of working with the US and Israel to attack Iran. Maira Butt15 May 2026 18:09Smoke rises behind buildings following an Israeli airstrike in the southern city of Tyre on May 15 (AFP/Getty)The strikes came as Lebanon and Israel remained locked into talks aimed at extending a ceasefire - which has failed to comprehensively halt attacks (AFP/Getty)Thousands have been killed in Lebanon since early March (AFP/Getty)Alex Croft15 May 2026 18:01Trump lambasts reporter inches from his face on flight from China and calls him ‘treasonous’ over Iran questionPresident Donald Trump labeled a reporter “treasonous” and “fake” for his coverage of the ongoing Iran war during a tense exchange aboard Air Force One.While en route to Washington after a three-day summit in Beijing, Trump was pressed about the situation in Iran — where the conflict is currently paused under a fragile ceasefire — after he indicated the military campaign could soon continue.“What would be the use in repeating the bombing?” New York Times White House and National Security Correspondent David Sanger asked, standing just a few feet from the GOP president. “You did it for 38 days and you did not get the political changes in Iran.”Read the full story belowMaira Butt15 May 2026 17:48Beijing: Iran war has no reason to continueChinese president Xi Jinping did not comment on his discussions with Donald Trump about Iran, despite claims by the US president that the pair agreed on several issues. Beijing’s foreign ministry did, however, issue a blunt statement outlining Beijing's frustration with the Iran war."This conflict, which should never have happened, has no reason to continue," it said.Alex Croft15 May 2026 17:27Merz and Trump hold call over IranWe’re hearing from German chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has said he had a good phone call with US president Donald Trump following his trip to China. The leaders agreed that Tehran must return to the negotiating table, open the Strait of Hormuz, and not be allowed to have nuclear weapons, Mr Merz said on X. He added that they discussed reaching a peaceful solution in Ukraine and “coordinated their positions ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara”.Alex Croft15 May 2026 16:53Alex Croft15 May 2026 16:21German economic growth to take significant hit because of Iran warEconomic growth in Germany will likely take a significant hit from the effects of the Iran war in the second quarter, the federal economy ministry warned on Friday.Growth was just 0.3 per cent in the first quarter."Rising prices, supply chain issues and uncertainty are weighing on sentiment among businesses and households," the ministry said in its monthly report.Alex Croft15 May 2026 15:50Iran says ships entering Hormuz must cooperate - ICYMIIranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi has said that ships entering the Strait of Hormuz must cooperate with the Iranian navy after reports emerged of a ship being seized outside a UAE port.Araghchi said: “In our view, the Strait of Hormuz is open to all commercial ships, but they must cooperate with our naval forces."Araghchi is in India for the Brics summit.The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said it received reports that the ship seized yesterday was taken by unauthorised personnel while anchored 38 nautical miles northeast of the UAE port of Fujairah.Indian authorities said that an Indian-flagged cargo ship sank off the coast of Oman after an attack sparked a fire aboard the vessel while it was en route from Somalia to Sharjah, another UAE port. They did not say who attacked the ship.India’s foreign ministry called the incident “unacceptable” and condemned continued attacks on commercial shipping and civilian mariners.Alex Croft15 May 2026 15:18