Report: Qatar held talks on secret Iran deal during war to save its gas facility

LiveLive Updates June 12, 2026Share to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeKey EventsJune 12, 2026June 12, 2026London judge sentences Palestine Action activists for raid at Israeli Elbit defense factoryProtesters are detained by police outside Woolwich Crown Court, London, during a hearing where Palestine Action activists are due to be sentenced over a break-in at the U.K. base of an Israel-based defence firm, Elbit Systems site, in London, Friday. Credit: Yui Mok/APProtesters are detained by police outside Woolwich Crown Court, London, during a hearing where Palestine Action activists are due to be sentenced over a break-in at the U.K. base of an Israel-based defence firm, Elbit Systems site, in London, Friday. Credit: Yui Mok/APA London judge sentenced four Palestine Action activists to several years in prison for acting as terrorists when they raided an Israeli defense factory in the United Kingdom and smashed equipment with the intent of disrupting production of weapons they feared would kill people in Gaza.The break-in at Elbit Systems caused 1.2 million pounds ($1.6 million) in damage and led to a clash with security guards and law enforcement that left a police officer with a broken back.Justice Jeremy Johnson ruled that the crime went beyond the criminal damage convictions of the four because they aimed to stop the defense company from operating or force the British government to stop its production, which he said gave the crime a "terrorist connection.""Each defendant agreed to take part in high-level actions, and did so with the shared aim of shutting down Elbit and ending what they regarded as British complicity in Israeli war crimes," Johnson said. "The action was designed to influence the U.K. government and also to intimidate a section of the public, and was for the purpose of advancing an ideological or political cause."Report: Qatar held talks on secret Iran deal during war to save its gas facilityQatarEnergy's liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facilities, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar, in March. Credit: Stringer/ReutersQatarEnergy's liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facilities, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar, in March. Credit: Stringer/ReutersQatar held clandestine talks with Iran during the war, offering to help it rock global energy markets in exchange for Tehran sparing its critical Ras Laffan gas field, The Washington Post reported, citing U.S. officials.According to the report, Iran didn't promise not to strike the plant, which provides a fifth of the world's natural gas, but Qatar believed it could secure a tacit understanding. Doha reportedly offered to shut down gas production, shaking global energy markets and putting pressure on the United States and Israel. The plant was shut down on the third day of the war.According to U.S. officials cited in the report, CIA and senior Trump administration officials were aware of the Qatari offer to Iran after it was intercepted during U.S. monitoring of Iranian leaders' communications.According to The Post, Iran struck the plant in March, destroying sections of the facility along with critical infrastructure that accounted for 20 percent of its liquified gas production, jeopardizing international multibillion-dollar contracts.Police arrest Arab Israeli woman on suspicion of terror incitement on social mediaPolice arrested an Arab Israeli woman in her 50s on suspicion of incitement for terrorism on social media, adding that she will remain in custody until Sunday and that her interrogation continues.The Israel Police say the woman, a resident of Taibe in central Israel, posted content that included words of praise and support for an attack that killed one and wounded five others in central Israel earlier this week. The Israeli army later identified the man killed as Master Sgt. (Res.) Haim Kalomiti, 55, from the town of Tzur Natan.In the post for which she was arrested and interrogated, the woman suspect called the perpetrator of the attack "the martyred fighter" and explained that, "If he had killed a Palestinian Arab like him, no one would have asked or cared."4 hours agoPakistan's PM: 'Can confirm final, agreed-upon text' of U.S.-Iran deal reachedPakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Iran and the United States reached a final agreement, adding that Islamabad is working with the sides to finalize the deal."Amid ongoing intense mediation efforts by Pakistan, we are fully aware of [an] incessant misinformation campaign being waged by those who want to sabotage the peace deal," he wrote."Setting aside the noise, we can confirm that a final, agreed-upon text of the peace deal has been reached and Pakistan is now working closely with both sides to finalize the next steps. Peace has never been this close as it is now."Araghchi says U.S.-Iran deal 'never been closer'Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran's and Washington's deal "has never been closer" and urged against speculating on its details."The Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding has never been closer. Pending its finalization, the media should refrain from entering speculation about its content," Araghchi wrote on X."In line with our responsible and transparent approach, all details will be shared with the public in due course."Katz: Israel keeps Iran strike option after U.S. deal, won't pull out of Lebanon, Gaza, SyriaIsraeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the Israeli military to remain alert for possible strikes on Iran even after Washington and Tehran strike a deal."We will have the ability to act independently to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons," he wrote on X. "Israel will not withdraw from the security zones in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza," he wrote.Katz also said Israeli forces will remain deployed in the West Bank's refugee camps, located in the Palestinian Authority's Area A. "The IDF will not withdraw from the terrorist camps in northern Samaria, which have been evacuated of residents, and if necessary, the operation will be expanded to additional terrorist camps."Meanwhile, the Israeli military began constructing a permanent military outpost in the West Bank city of Jenin for the first time since the 1993 Oslo Accords.Chen Maanit and Yarden Michaeli contributed to this report.7 hours agoTrump says Iran leaked 'fake' deal terms, calls leaders 'very dishonorable people'U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran's statements on the agreement with the United States were false, calling it "weak and pathetic.""The terms that Iran leaked out to the Fake News have NOTHING to do with the terms that were agreed to, in writing," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. "What they said, including their weak and pathetic statement on having a deal, bears no relation to the truth."According to Trump, the Iranians are "very dishonorable people to deal with. With them, there is no such thing as dealing in good faith. AMAZING!" He added, "They better get their act together, and FAST!"Vance disputes Iran deal reports, says assets stay frozen until terms are metU.S. Vice President JD Vance disputed media reports of what he said a "bizarre" misrepresentation of the Iran deal after Tehran released information on the deal."I'm seeing a lot of fake information about a potential deal," he wrote, "First, the Iranians are not receiving any cash, and no funds are being released for simply signing a deal or attending a meeting." He added, "If the Islamic Republic of Iran meets its obligations, then economic benefits will flow to them and to the entire region."Earlier on Friday, Iran's Mehr news agency said the terms also included other key U.S. concessions, including a commitment to withdraw its forces from around Iran and present a plan for rebuilding the shattered Iranian economy.The agency said that final negotiations will focus on nuclear and economic issues and will exclude discussions about Iran's missile program. "The United States and its allies must submit plans for Iran's reconstruction worth at least $300 billion," the Mehr report said.Hezbollah confident any U.S.-Iran deal will include Lebanon, lawmaker saysHezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah talks in Beirut, Lebanon, November 9, 2017. Credit: AZIZ TAHER/ REUTERSHezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah talks in Beirut, Lebanon, November 9, 2017. Credit: AZIZ TAHER/ REUTERSHezbollah is confident that Iran will insist ⁠on Lebanon being ‌included in a deal with the United States, a leading Hezbollah ‌politician said on Friday, as hopes grew for an agreement between Tehran and ⁠Washington.Hezbollah, founded by Iran's Revolutionary Guards in 1982, entered the regional conflict in ⁠support of Tehran on March 2, opening fire at Israel and prompting an Israeli offensive that has killed thousands of people in Lebanon. Iranian officials have repeatedly insisted on an end to fighting in Lebanon as part of any wider ‌agreement."If the agreement happens, we have complete confidence in the Islamic Republic ... we have ‌confidence that it will insist on any agreement including the file of Lebanon," Hassan Fadlallah, a Hezbollah politician, said in an excerpt of a speech broadcast by the group's al-Manar TV.In the NewsReport: Qatar Held Talks on Secret Iran Deal During War to Save Its Gas FacilityUAE to Unlock Billions of Dollars for Iran, Sources SayLondon Judge Sentences Palestine Action Activists for Raid at Elbit FactoryLife Is Hell as Iranians Dream About 'The Day After'Slovenia's New Government Announces It Will Lift Sanctions on IsraelRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMISix-year-old Boy Punctures a Magritte Iconic Masterpiece at Israel MuseumOne Killed, Five Wounded in Terror Shooting Rampage in Central IsraelGermany Is Paying a Price for Its Sweeping Support for IsraelNetanyahu May Find His Way Back From Trump's Humiliation, but Back to What?What's the Difference Between Jewish and Palestinian Terror?Netanyahu's Middle East Doctrine Has Collapsed – and It's Costing Him Washington