Trump threatens to charge U.S. tolls in Strait of Hormuz if final Iran deal not reached in 60 days

Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz after Israel’s continued attacks in Lebanon.

TYRE, Lebanon — Iran on Saturday said it had closed the Strait of Hormuz because of Israel’s continued attacks in Lebanon and warned that while negotiators were going to Switzerland for talks with the United States on the interim agreement, not much likely will happen if the fighting doesn’t stop.

U.S. President Donald Trump, in response, threatened to impose U.S. tolls in the crucial waterway if a final deal with Iran isn’t reached in 60 days, saying the money would be for “services rendered as the Guardian Angel to the countries of the Middle East.” His social media post underscored that the agreement calls for toll-free travel for 60 days.

The announcements indicated a rough start to technical-level U.S.-Iran talks that key mediator Pakistan said will begin Sunday, with Qatari mediators also participating.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance left for Switzerland on Saturday evening, just as Iranian state TV posted video showing Iran’s negotiators arriving there. They include parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and central bank and oil officials, among others. The deal calls for billions of dollars of Iran’s assets to be unfrozen.

Talks were meant to start Friday, but the Iranians initially canceled their plans to attend because of escalating fighting in Lebanon. Negotiators for the U.S. and Qatar, with help from Iran, worked out an agreement between Israel and Hezbollah to tamp down hostilities, according to U.S. and regional officials who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Vance told reporters he would be in Switzerland “for a day or two” but was optimistic on making progress in the nuclear talks and on a ceasefire in southern Lebanon.

Negotiations toward a final agreement will begin once key commitments are upheld, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said. If they are not, “the memorandum of understanding as a whole will be jeopardized.”

The strait once again becomes a challenge

But the strait has emerged again as a focus. Iran’s joint military command said it was closed because of the U.S. “clear breach of its commitments” by failing to end the war. The interim deal is meant to stop fighting on all fronts.

The U.S. disputed Iran’s announcement.

“Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz. Traffic continues to flow, and U.S. forces are monitoring the situation to ensure this remains the case,” said Capt. Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for U.S. Central Command. The military said that 55 merchant ships transited Saturday with more than 17 million barrels of oil.

The global economy braced for more uncertainty.

Ships began transiting after the interim U.S.-Iran agreement was signed earlier in the week, a milestone that left plenty of questions unanswered. The U.S. lifted its blockade of Iran’s ports and is allowing Tehran to sell its oil freely— terms that have left some in Congress asking whether the war was worth it.

Vance earlier confirmed that top negotiators Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff were already in Switzerland and working through technical details of anticipated negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program. The interim deal gives negotiators 60 days to reach a nuclear agreement, but the issue is intricate and the time can be extended.

Israeli attacks in Lebanon kill at least 16

A Hezbollah official told The Associated Press that Iran informed the militant group that Tehran will not reopen the strait until Israel announces publicly that it will comply with a “comprehensive ceasefire” in Lebanon and an end to military operations there. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly.

The official also said Hezbollah will commit to a ceasefire if Israel does.

An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with regulations, later said the military had received “updated directives from the political echelon to cease fire.” The official said the military is operating in a defensive manner in Lebanon, which includes the right to respond to Hezbollah attacks.

The official also said five Israeli soldiers had been killed in the past 48 hours in southern Lebanon.

Earlier Saturday, Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed at least 16 people, including two children, hours after reports emerged of a ceasefire agreement there. Seven people remained trapped under the rubble after the strikes hit the southern city of Nabatiyeh and nearby villages, Lebanon’s National News Agency said.

The death toll in the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah has now surpassed 4,000, Lebanon’s health ministry later announced.

An Israeli military official said Hezbollah fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in southern Lebanon overnight. Israel’s army said it struck dozens of Hezbollah targets and militants.

On Friday, the Israeli ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, said Israel “remains firmly committed to an immediate ceasefire” if Hezbollah honors the agreement and ceases hostilities.

A conflict that could sink the U.S.-Iran deal

Neither Israel nor Hezbollah are signatories to the deal between the U.S. and Iran.

Hezbollah and Israel went to war just days after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on Feb. 28, with Hezbollah firing rockets and drones at northern Israel and Israel seizing large swaths of southern Lebanon.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to keep Israeli forces in southern Lebanon until any threat to Israel is eliminated. Hezbollah has refused to halt its attacks unless Israel commits to withdrawing from Lebanon.

Fighting continues near the Israel-Lebanon border

A strike on Lebanon’s Barish village killed four members of a family: parents and two children. In Arab Salim village, a body was pulled from a destroyed house, and in Doueir and Kfar Rumman villages, drone strikes killed a person on a motorcycle and a Lebanese soldier. Nine people were killed in strikes in Qannarit, Sohmor and Shehour villages.

Israeli jets flew low over the coastal city of Tyre.

“Our entire lives would change if there’s a ceasefire,” said one resident, Hussein Khoshman.

Some residents of northern Israel doubted the fighting would stop.

“I don’t believe in a ceasefire because it doesn’t exist,” said Miriam Hod in Metula.

By Kareem Chehayeb, Bassem Mroue And Munir Ahmed

Mroue reported from Beirut and Munir from Islamabad. Associated Press writers Abby Sewell in Beirut, Samy Magdy in Cairo, Seung Min Kim and Konstantin Toropin in Washington and Jamey Keaten in Zurich, Switzerland, contributed to this report.