A few minutes before she spoke to reporters outside the White House, Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared on Fox News to discuss Iran's seizure of two cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz earlier today.

She was asked if that action by Iran constitutes a violation of the ceasefire.

"No," she says. "These were not US ships, these were not Israeli ships."

For context: BBC Verify understands the first ship targeted by the IRGC on Wednesday morning was a Greek-owned vessel called the Epaminondas. IRGC Naval Command said both it and the Panama-flagged MSC-Francesca had been seized after endangering maritime security "by operating without the necessary permits and tampering with navigation systems".

The Iranians are "acting like a bunch of pirates", Leavitt says, touting US blows to Iran's navy and the success of its naval blockade on Iranian ports.

Asked whether the US could consider striking the boats, Leavitt says the US "could", and that the president has "many options" on the table. But she says the seizures were only carried out by two small boats and Iran's navy is otherwise "obliterated".

With no timeline, Trump gets flexibilitypublished at 20:47 BST

20:47 BST

Bernd Debusmann Jr
White House reporter

We've just wrapped up a brief and repetitive gaggle at the White House with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, who came out to speak to reporters just outside the West Wing.

Multiple reporters tried, in multiple ways, to ask about President Trump's plans for the ceasefire and when any negotiations might, in fact, take place.

Leavitt's answers were short on details, but she clearly sought to make one thing clear: as far as the administration goes, at least publicly, there is no timeline.

She also pushed back on reporting from some US outlets earlier today that the ceasefire could expire in days, or that a second round of negotiations is around the corner.

The lack of a timeline is likely strategic. As we've been reporting, this gives the Trump administration significant flexibility to let the blockade and the economic stranglehold on Iran bite, in the hopes that what Leavitt termed "pragmatists" in Iran can come up with a proposal without pushback from hardliners.

At the same time, it allows Trump to avoid a return to full-scale military action that many Americans are weary of, and that could upset already nervous global markets.

Image source, Getty Images

Asked how long Americans should expect the war to go on, Leavitt says Trump will ultimately dictate the timeline, "and he will do so when he feels it's in the best interests of the United States and the American people".

Leavitt has now finished speaking. Our White House reporter is about to share his analysis of what we just heard, so stick with us.

Leavitt is asked if the White House knows who in Iran will have the "final sign off" on a deal.

"The White House and our intelligence community certainly has a good understanding," she says.

But she emphasises "we want to see a unified response".

There has been a lot of different messaging coming from Iranian leaders, she says, describing it as "public nonsense" that is not the same tone they are striking privately.

Leavitt says reports of a three to five day deadline for the extended ceasefire are "not true".

The White House press secretary says Trump has not set a deadline, is "satisfied" with the naval blockade, and "understands Iran is in a very weak position".

"The cards are in President Trump's hands right now," she tells reporters.

Karoline Leavitt begins her comments by referencing Trump's extension of the ceasefire yesterday, saying the US is waiting for a unified proposal from Iranian leaders.

She says there's a lot of "internal division" among Iran's leaders in a battle "between the pragmatists and hardliners".

The US's economic attacks against Iran continue during the ceasefire, she adds, including the US naval blockade that has stopped Iranian oil exports.

The ceasefire has no firm deadline, she confirms.

Image source, Reuters

Press secretary Karoline Leavitt is now speaking with media outside the White House. There was a delay to her appearance while she appeared on Fox News.

You can watch live above.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is scheduled to speak with reporters outside the White House shortly.

We'll bring you any information from her on Iran, and you can watch live at the top of this page.

Image source, Getty Images

Plans for peace talks between Iran and the US remain uncertain as Iran accuses the US and Israel of "blatant violations" of the ceasefire agreement.

Here are the key points from the last few hours:

US-Iran

• Iran's chief negotiator with the US, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said it was "not possible" to re-open the Strait of Hormuz due ceasefire "violations"
• Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the US blockade, threats and a "breach of commitments" are the obstacles to negotiations
• It follows an Iranian attack on three cargo ships in the strait earlier on Wednesday - two of which were seized for "inspection" by the IRGC Navy
• US President Trump was quoted earlier in US media saying it's "possible" that talks with Iran could resume by Friday

Israel-Lebanon

• In Lebanon, President Joseph Aoun said talks were under way with Israel to "extend the ceasefire deadline"
• Aoun also condemned the death of a second French peacekeeper following an attack that hit a UN patrol on Saturday. French President Macron blamed Hezbollah, who have denied responsibility

• Lebanese state media reported two people were killed in an attack on a car in southern Lebanon, with the IDF confirming it struck a vehicle it says "posed a threat" to Israeli troops

Israel says it struck a vehicle in southern Lebanon after it approached Israeli troops in a "manner that posed an immediate threat to their safety".

It follows an earlier report from Lebanese state media that two people had been killed following an Israeli attack on a car in the village of al-Tir.

In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it identified two vehicles that had "departed from a military structure used by Hezbollah".

It says it determined that those in the vehicle had violated the ceasefire and posted an "imminent threat" after crossing Israel's "forward defence line", before one vehicle, and the building the vehicles had departed from, was struck.

The IDF says it has since received reports that two journalists were injured in the strikes, adding it is "not preventing rescue teams from reaching the area".

It says that it "does not target journalists" and that the details of the incident are under review.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian says the US blockade of Iranian ports, threats and what he describes as a "breach of commitments" are the main obstacles to "genuine negotiations" with the US.

He says Iran has "welcomed dialogue and agreement and continues to do so", in a post on X.

He adds that the "world sees your endless hypocritical rhetoric and contradiction between claims and actions".

His comments come after US President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that he would extend the ceasefire, but the US blockade of Iranian ports would continue.

Jonathan Josephs
Business reporter

The head of the UN’s International Maritime Organisation has called for “innocent seafarers to be released immediately”.

While he hasn’t mentioned them by name, it seems quite clear he’s talking about the crews of the MSC Francesca and MSC Epaminondas, which have been detained by Iran.

Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez also made an unusually pointed criticism in saying “I cannot understand why companies would take risks and endanger seafarers’ lives".

These two cargo ships had been stuck in the Gulf since the start of this conflict. They seem to be part of a convoy that made a break for it over the weekend after the Strait of Hormuz briefly appeared to reopen.

There’s still no word from Switzerland-based MSC which normally tries to keep a low profile. Some of its rival shipping companies have made clear that the safety of their crews and vessels is their top priority.

Nearly 20,000 seafarers remain stranded in the Gulf and Dominguez pointed out it's uncertain when they will be able to return home, which means “there is much more work to be done”.

Ultimately only an end to the hostilities can make the Strait of Hormuz safe for the ships that the global economy depends upon.

Image source, COPERNICUS SENTINEL-2/Reuters

Bernd Debusmann Jr
White House reporter

Image source, EPA

It's been an extremely - and abnormally - quiet day at the White House today.

Even with the world's eyes fixed firmly on Iran and whether - or not - talks will resume anytime soon, there has been silence from the White House, and very little from Donald Trump other than his recent post claiming that eight executions in Iran have been halted.

The only other "news" at the White House today has, so far, been a very brief and so far unexplained security alert which prompted the evacuation of journalists outside on the lawn. It is unclear what that was about.

Reporters here have been busy inundating the White House press office with questions on the administration's next steps on Iran, or busy calling officials to try get any insight.

The subsequent stories in the US media have been thin on details, anonymously sourced and often contradictory.

Unless something changes, we have no expectation of seeing Trump on-camera today. His public schedule is entirely comprised of closed-door policy meetings for the rest of the day.

Iran's chief negotiator in talks with the US, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, has just said it is "not possible to reopen the Strait of Hormuz considering all the blatant violations of the ceasefire".

Those "violations" include the US naval blockade of Iranian ports - which he says amounts to taking the global economy "hostage" - and "warmongering" by Israel "on all fronts".

Seemingly referring to the US and Israel, Ghalibaf posts on X that "they did not achieve their goals through military aggression, nor will they through bullying.

"The only way forward is to recognise the rights of the Iranian people."

It was thought Gahlibaf would hold talks with US Vice-President JD Vance in Pakistan this week - but they are yet to begin.

Donald Trump last night announced an extension to the US-Iran ceasefire that was due to expire today. This morning, Iran said it had "seized" two cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

Image source, EPA

Attacked cargo vessel drops anchor near UAE, tracking data showspublished at 17:17 BST

17:17 BST

By Paul Brown

One of the three container ships attacked earlier in the Strait of Hormuz, Euphoria, appears to have dropped anchor near a port in the United Arab Emirates, according to MarineTraffic tracking data analysed by BBC Verify.

UAE-owned Euphoria was attacked eight nautical miles west of Iran, according to the maritime security firm Vanguard. No damage to the ship or injuries to crew has been reported.

Iran has not commented on Euphoria, but has said it seized the other two vessels - MSC Francesca and Epaminondas - both of which reported damage resulting from the attacks. Their most recent broadcast positions indicates neither has moved far since the attacks occurred.

However, MarineTraffic data indicates Euphoria returned to sailing southwards after the reported time it was attacked, entering anchorage about 13 nautical miles from the port of Khor Fakkan at around 14:00 BST.

Image source, MarineTraffic

The cargo ship’s final intended destination is currently listed as Jeddah, on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast.

Monitoring vessel traffic through their location data has limitations as ships can turn their trackers off, or they can try to obscure where they are by “spoofing” - broadcasting a false position.

Ghoncheh Habibiazad
Senior reporter, BBC Persian

Image source, Getty Images

While Iran is still under a near-total internet blackout since 28 February, there are some who have access.

Although the authorities have rejected a so-called "tiered" access system, Iran has been granting selective access to certain groups.

Aside from some like journalists and pro-establishment users who had access since day one, access has recently been given to groups such as business owners, university lecturers, and more recently, doctors.

But what about those whose jobs rely on the internet and who are not part of the selected groups?

Iran’s communications minister says about 10 million people, out of a population of around 90 million, depend on "stable internet" and that the ongoing blackout threatens their jobs.

Some of them have had to pay large sums to buy connections, mainly routed through Starlink devices, which are themselves illegal in Iran.

The BBC has been talking to a few people whose lives depend on creating content on social media, and they have lost large portions of income because of the outage.

“My income has been reduced to one-third since the outage,” a freelance teacher told the BBC. He said he is using a domestic messaging app to hold his classes but that it "got disconnected 10 times today".

An official from the Iranian Chamber of Commerce estimated last week that internet outages cost $30-40m (£22-30m) daily in direct losses and $70-80m (£52-59m), including indirect impacts.

Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun has condemned the killing of a second French peacekeeper in southern Lebanon following an attack on a United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil) patrol.

Earlier, French President Macron announced the death of the second French citizen following Saturday's attack, which he blamed on the Iran-backed group Hezbollah - which has denied involvement.

In a statement posted by Aoun's office, it says he "renewed his condemnation of the incident, reiterating his condolences to the French state and the Unifil leadership".

The Greek-owned container ship Epaminondas has been attacked near the Strait of Hormuz but it's unclear whether it was detained by Iran, according to Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis.

“I can confirm that there was an attack against the Greek cargo ship, but I cannot confirm that this has been seized by the Iranians," Gerapetritis told CNN.

He said it was attacked and has faced "extensive damage". Greek media is reporting that the shipping ministry denies that it has been detained.

Earlier, the IRGC said that the ship, along with the MSC Francesca, was "seized" and directed towards the Iranian coast, Iranian media reported.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre said it was approached by an IRGC gunboat, which opened fire and caused significant damage to the bridge.

Update at 16:41:This post and headline has been updated to include more comments from the Greek foreign minister's interview with CNN

Image source, COPERNICUS SENTINEL-2/Reuters

Image source, Getty Images

Donald Trump says "it's possible" that a second round of peace talks with Iran could begin by Friday, according to the New York Post.

The newspaper says it was told by Pakistani officials that talks might be possible within the next "36 to 72 hours". When the Post put this to Trump, the US president replied in a text message: "It’s possible! President DJT."

Yesterday, Trump announced that he would extend the ceasefire with Iran, set to expire on Wednesday evening, to allow the regime more time to create a "unified proposal" to end the war.

Some Iranians trying to get on with their lives, while others are defiantpublished at 15:22 BST

15:22 BST

Lyse Doucet
Chief international correspondent, in Iran

The first reactions here to President Trump’s ceasefire extension, by spokesmen on social media, was predictable, sceptical, defiant.

Mahdi Mohammadi, an adviser to Iran’s lead negotiator, dismissed it as meaningless, a ploy to buy time for a surprise attack. It underlines the deep distrust here about US diplomacy.

Previous rounds of talks - last year and this year - were shattered by surprise Israeli-American attacks.

Iran has its own commitment to keep as part of this ceasefire. But it’s making it clear it won’t open the strategic Strait of Hormuz, on its conditions, until the US lifts its naval blockade and releases its seized vessel - that’s the political logjam now.

And there’s no clear sign of how and when it will be resolved. When we speak to Iranians here, we hear a range of views, not surprisingly. Iranians taking to the main squares in this city every night in response to the government’s call to show solidarity, are also defiant.

Others tell us they’re just trying to get on with their lives, exhausted by years of failed nuclear talks, spiralling prices, tightening security and surveillance, and all the many restrictions on their lives, their futures.

The BBC's chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet is reporting from Tehran on condition that none of her material is used on the BBC's Persian Service. These restrictions apply to all international media organisations operating in Iran.