Morning update

Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

The US and Iran are "very close" to a memorandum of understanding, Vice President JD Vance said, adding that this would extend the ceasefire by 60 days.

However, the truce has been rendered fragile due to continued exchange of fire and criticism between the two countries. In their latest spat, the US ⁠Central Command denied Iranian reports of a US aircraft that was shot down in Bushehr.

Here are some of the latest updates from across the region: 

Pakistani Foreign ⁠Minister Ishaq Dar ​is set to visit Washington ‌on Friday to meet with US Secretary of State ​Marco Rubio. Islamabad continues to mediate peace negotiations between the US and Iran, despite the shaky ceasefire.

The Department of State said it was sanctioning several entities and individuals linked to Iran's oil economy. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday signalled plans for Israel to control 70 percent of the Gaza Strip. "We currently control 60 percent of the Gaza Strip, and my directives are to move toward controlling 70 percent," the Israeli premier said during a seminar in the Jordan Valley.

The Israeli army is facing mounting pressure over its inability to stop Hezbollah’s armed drone attacks, Al Jazeera reported. The drones have killed Israeli soldiers occupying southern Lebanon as well as troops in northern Israel.

An Israeli strike on the Zeitoun neighbourhood, Gaza City, killed one Palestinian and injured several others. Elsewhere in the territory, civil defence workers battled a massive blaze in Khan Younis following an Israeli attack on a residential block containing displacement tents and commercial warehouses.