The latest developments in the Middle East war:

- Air raid sirens in Israel -

Air raid alerts sounded across Israel, including in the commercial hub of Tel Aviv and the southern coastal city of Ashdod, after rocket fire from Lebanon.

There were no immediate reports of casualties, but Israeli media reported that air-defence systems had intercepted at least one incoming rocket.

Earlier Friday, Hezbollah said it had launched three waves of rocket and drone strikes against Israeli soldiers on both sides of the border as well as a town in northern Israel.

MADRID, April 9 (Reuters) - Spain's Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares on Thursday accused Israel of violating international law and a newly brokered two-week ceasefire in the Middle East by carrying out airstrikes on Lebanon on Wednesday.

Spain has emerged as one of the most vocal critics among Western nations of U.S. and Israeli actions in Iran and Lebanon, closing its airspace to any aircraft involved in a conflict Madrid has called reckless and illegal.

PARIS, April 9 (Reuters) - The ceasefire agreed by Iran and the United States must also cover military actions in Lebanon, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Thursday, adding France condemned "massive" Israeli strikes the previous day.

Barrot added that he expects Iran to make a series of concessions as part of the peace talks due to start in Pakistan.

WASHINGTON/DUBAI/TEL AVIV, April 9 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump vowed to retain military assets in the Middle East until a peace deal with Iran is reached and warned of a major escalation in fighting if it failed to comply, as oil prices rose on concerns over supply and restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz.

Trump said in a social media post U.S. ships, aircraft and personnel with additional ammunition and weaponry would remain in place to destroy, if necessary, "a substantially degraded enemy", but expressed confidence that a lasting deal would be agreed and followed.

LONDON, April 9 (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said Israel's pounding of Lebanon was "deeply damaging" and said that conflict must end to prevent the U.S.-Iran ceasefire from being destabilised.

"We want to see Lebanon included in the ceasefire," she told Times Radio on Thursday. "We want it extended to cover Lebanon, because otherwise that will destabilise the whole region."

"That escalation that we saw from Israel yesterday was deeply damaging, and we want to see an end to hostilities."

(Reporting by Muvija M; editing by Kate Holton)

NEW DELHI, April 9 (Reuters) - An Iranian delegation will arrive in Pakistani capital Islamabad on Thursday night for talks to resolve conflict with the U.S. and Israel, Iran's ambassador to Pakistan said on Thursday.

"Despite skepticism of Iranian public opinion due to repeated ceasefire violations by Israeli regime ... Iranian delegation arrives tonight in Islamabad for serious talks based on 10 points proposed by Iran," ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam said in a post on X.

(Reporting by Sakshi Dayal; Editing by Christopher Cushing)

By Rami Ayyub, Maayan Lubell and Emily Rose

JERUSALEM, April 9 (Reuters) - Even as the U.S. and Iran seek to cement a ceasefire, Israel is seizing more territory from its neighbours in preparation for a long, drawn-out conflict across the Middle East.

Israel's creation of "buffer zones" in Gaza, Syria and now Lebanon reflects a strategic shift after the attacks of October 7, 2023, one that puts the country in a semi-permanent state of war, six Israeli military and defence officials told Reuters.

April 9 (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper will say on Thursday that shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which carries around a fifth of the world's oil and gas, must be toll-free, countering a push by Iran to control the vital waterway.

Iran has said it wants to charge fees for ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz. Before the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, the strait was formally treated as an international waterway.

US President Donald Trump said late Wednesday that US forces deployed near Iran would remain stationed in the area until a "real agreement" is reached, as Washington enters a fragile two-week ceasefire with Tehran.

The truce reached Tuesday showed signs of unravelling, with Israel bombarding Lebanon and Washington contradicting some of Iran's demands to end the war ahead of planned talks.

April 8 (Reuters) - U.S President Donald Trump said all U.S. ships, aircraft, and military personnel would stay in place in and around Iran until it fully complied with a deal.

"All U.S. Ships, Aircraft, and Military Personnel, with additional Ammunition, Weaponry, and anything else that is appropriate and necessary for the lethal prosecution and destruction of an already substantially degraded Enemy, will remain in place in, and around, Iran, until such time as the REAL AGREEMENT reached is fully complied with" Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday.