{"id":214425,"date":"2026-06-20T00:27:48","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T00:27:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/first-thing-us-iran-peace-talks-abruptly-cancelled-amid-renewed-israeli-strikes-in-lebanon-the-guardian\/"},"modified":"2026-06-20T00:27:48","modified_gmt":"2026-06-20T00:27:48","slug":"first-thing-us-iran-peace-talks-abruptly-cancelled-amid-renewed-israeli-strikes-in-lebanon-the-guardian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/first-thing-us-iran-peace-talks-abruptly-cancelled-amid-renewed-israeli-strikes-in-lebanon-the-guardian\/","title":{"rendered":"First Thing: US-Iran peace talks abruptly cancelled amid renewed Israeli strikes in Lebanon &#8211; The Guardian"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>JD Vance lambasts Israeli critics of proposed deal but does not travel to Europe as planned. Plus, at 82 years old, Keith Richards still gives some of the best interview quotes in town<br \/>Good morning. Talks due to take place today between the US \u2060\u2060and \u200bIran to implement a peace deal were <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jun\/19\/us-iran-talks-in-switzerland-cancelled\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">abruptly cancelled<\/a>. The White House said the US still looked forward to \u201cbeginning technical talks as soon as possible\u201d. Hezbollah-linked media reported Tehran was delaying sending its delegation due to Israel\u2019s ongoing military campaign in Lebanon.<br \/>The talks had been set to begin in the Swiss village of Obb\u00fcrgen two days after the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that opened a 60-day window to negotiate a permanent agreement over Iran\u2019s nuclear programme, while reopening the strait of Hormuz. The centre of the strait is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jun\/19\/normal-shipping-will-not-resume-in-strait-of-hormuz-until-mines-cleared\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">blocked with about 80 mines that will need clearing<\/a> for normal shipping to resume, the independent tanker owner trade body has said.<br \/><strong>What is happening in Lebanon?<\/strong> Hezbollah targeted Israeli forces near Nabatieh with several salvoes of rocket fire after Israeli shelling. Israel responded with a wave of airstrikes, killing at least 18 people and injuring 33. Iran has said Israel\u2019s attacks on Lebanon must end as part of any peace deal.<br \/><strong>What did JD Vance say to Israeli critics of the deal? <\/strong>In sharp words, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/19\/jd-vance-israel-iran-deal-critics\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">the vice-president said<\/a>: \u201cDonald J Trump is the only head of state in the entire world \u200cwho is sympathetic to the nation of Israel at this \u200cmoment in time.<strong> <\/strong>If I was in the cabinet of the Israeli government, I might not be attacking the only powerful ally that I have anywhere left \u200cin the entire world.\u201d<br \/><strong>Why does Trump\u2019s Iran entanglement echo the Jimmy Carter years?<\/strong> In <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jun\/19\/trump-iran-deal-legacy\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">this excellent analysis piece<\/a>, Robert Tait reminds us that one of Trump\u2019s earliest political forays was lambasting the Democratic president during the 1980 Iran hostage crisis. Tait says Trump now finds himself in a position that uncannily resembles that of his predecessor \u2013 unable to bend Iran to his will despite superior US military power.<br \/>Luigi Mangione\u2019s legal team said they would <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/18\/luigi-mangione-psychiatric-defense-abandoned\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">no longer pursue a psychiatric defense<\/a> in his upcoming state trial over the killing of the UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state and federal charges. His state trial is scheduled to start on 8 September. His federal trial, which involves stalking charges, is due to begin on 13 October.<br \/>The Barack Obama presidential center <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/18\/obama-library-chicago-trump\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">opened in Chicago<\/a> amid a musical fanfare and paeans to democratic principles. Featuring appearances by a cast of musical stars and retired politicians from across the spectrum, it was a seemingly perfect antidote to the crass spectacle of cage fights on the White House lawn.<br \/>Without naming the current White House occupant, Barack and Michelle Obama launched full-frontal attacks on Trump\u2019s authoritarian approach, depicting it as an affront to American values.<br \/><strong>What did the former president say?<\/strong> Obama defined American democracy as \u201ca belief that our military and law enforcement owe allegiance not to any president or political party, but to the people and our constitution \u2026 a belief in the peaceful transfer of power\u201d. With the former Republican president George W Bush in attendance, Obama went out of his way to namecheck adversaries in a tribute to a bipartisanship largely forgotten during Trump\u2019s era.<br \/><strong>The Grammy-nominated producer Tay Keith <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/music\/2026\/jun\/19\/tay-keith-music-producer-travis-scott-drake-death-grammy-nominated\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">has been found dead<\/a><\/strong> at his apartment in Nashville. The 29-year-old worked with Drake, Travis Scott and Beyonc\u00e9.<br \/><strong>California\u2019s \u201c<\/strong><strong>billionaire tax\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/18\/california-billionaire-tax-ballot-tech-opposition\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">will make it<\/a> on to November\u2019s ballot<\/strong>, despite opposition from tech moguls.<br \/><strong>The Greater Manchester mayor, Andy Burnham, is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/politics\/2026\/jun\/19\/andy-burnham-wins-makerfield-byelection-paving-way-labour-leadership-challenge\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">returning to Westminster<\/a><\/strong> after winning a byelection, paving the way for a likely leadership challenge to the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer.<br \/><strong>Barbados\u2019s prime minister, Mia Mottley, has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/news\/2026\/jun\/18\/barbados-prime-minister-manifesto-slavery-reparations\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">announced a new reparations manifesto<\/a> from Caribbean leaders<\/strong>, asserting the \u201cmoral, ethical and legal case\u201d over the damage caused by hundreds of years of enslavement.<br \/>The professional baseball team York Revolution chose to forfeit a game <strong>after some of its players <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/sport\/2026\/jun\/18\/professional-baseball-team-cancels-game-after-players-refuse-to-wear-pride-jerseys\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">refused to participate<\/a> in the club\u2019s Pride Night<\/strong>.<br \/><strong>A man has been arrested on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/uk-news\/2026\/jun\/18\/man-arrested-after-boy-3-injured-in-cambridgeshire-zoo-crocodile-enclosure\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">suspicion of attempted murder<\/a> after a three-year-old boy ended up in a crocodile enclosure<\/strong> at a zoo in England and was injured.<br \/>Dr Satish K Pillai, the incident manager for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention\u2019s Ebola response, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/18\/cdc-emergency-ebola-funding\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">said<\/a>: \u201cCDC activities are focused on controlling the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of [the] Congo, controlling the outbreak in Uganda and ensuring our domestic readiness to respond in the unlikely event of cases.\u201d African health officials have said the outbreak could become the worst on record.<br \/>Peter Bradshaw judged that the beloved franchise needs new batteries, in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/film\/2026\/jun\/16\/toy-story-5-review-pixar-franchise-needs-new-batteries\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">a two-star review of the latest Toy Story instalment<\/a>, with his devastating conclusion that it is \u201cplayed out, and IP exhaustion has set in\u201d. More intriguing sounding is Thirst, an Icelandic movie featuring a 1,000-year-old vampire obsessed with removing men\u2019s genitals. Definitely aimed at a different audience, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/film\/2026\/jun\/16\/thirst-review-icelandic-gore-fest-body-horror-genitals\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Cath Clarke says<\/a> it is filmed in a trashy 1980s synth-heavy style. I\u2019m sold.<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/world\/2026\/jun\/19\/lebanon-nabatieh-city-ashura-ceremony-hezbollah-israel\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">William Christou has been in Nabatieh<\/a>, in Lebanon, attending the religious ceremony marking Ashura. It mourns the slaying of a holy figure in 680 but is also a symbol for Shia Muslims of resistance. This year it has a renewed meaning because of the Hezbollah-Israel war, which has killed more than 3,900 people in Lebanon, mostly Shia Muslims.<br \/>There was a time when the general consensus was that Keith Richards probably wouldn\u2019t live to see the end of the year, let alone see the birth of his great-granddaughter. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/music\/2026\/jun\/19\/keith-richards-great-grandad-mick-jagger-rolling-stones-you-now\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">Alexis Petridis interviews the 82-year-old Stones legend<\/a> who just keeps rolling on.<br \/>Since returning to office in January, the Trump administration has rolled back numerous science and climate initiatives, but after an outcry from scientists and lawmakers it has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/18\/ocean-monitoring-system-reversal-trump-administration\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">reversed its decision<\/a> to dismantle a vital $368m deep-sea observation system.<br \/>There\u2019s something of a new gold rush under way in the American west after the Trump administration reclassified gold and silver as critical minerals. With demand for gold at record levels and new mining projects approved in California, Oregon and Nevada, lands that long enjoyed protection are in effect up for grabs. Lone Pine, population 1,882, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/18\/california-mining-lone-pine\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">is fighting back<\/a>.<br \/>First Thing is delivered to thousands of inboxes every weekday. If you\u2019re not already signed up, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/info\/2018\/sep\/17\/guardian-us-morning-briefing-sign-up-to-stay-informed\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">subscribe now<\/a>.<br \/>If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email <a href=\"mailto:newsletters@theguardian.com\" data-link-name=\"in body link | mailto:newsletters@theguardian.com\">newsletters@theguardian.com<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/rss\/articles\/CBMiswFBVV95cUxQVDY1blBSR1BIWDU3OUhsUTJzOXFpREVrN0hBdUtHM09FWm03cnVkY2pWUThEV1JJelB1d0VBa0FCcVpjREdNcm1EU2dJdjhmQ2hLODhPOTJiQUNSUjZWQVljWlRBM2hFb2VlR3hpRmpjUXVwcDZ2bXN0RG84b0pRZ190LTQ5OTdvWDc2WVZIVjdMNnlQVWZuRG5MeE5id1hqREpKZGVjY2hub29VaDVXV21uMA?oc=5\">source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>JD Vance lambasts Israeli critics of proposed deal but does not travel to Europe as planned. Plus, at 82 years old, Keith Richards still gives some of the best interview quotes in townGood morning. Talks due to take place today between the US \u2060\u2060and \u200bIran to implement a peace deal were abruptly cancelled. The White [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":214426,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-214425","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-us","8":"entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214425"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/214425\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/214426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=214425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=214425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}