KYIV, April 7 (Reuters) - The Ukrainian military is participating in consultations on the Strait of Hormuz, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday, adding that Ukraine's maritime defence expertise is also of interest in Asia.

Kyiv sent several hundred specialists to the Middle East in the wake of the war in Iran, aiming to share its battle-tested approach in downing Iranian drones, which Russia used in the early years of its full-scale invasion.

April 8 (Reuters) - Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday requested that U.S. President Donald Trump make a two-week extension to a deadline he imposed on Iran to end its blockade of Gulf oil.

"To allow diplomacy to run its course, I earnestly request President Trump to extend the deadline for two weeks. Pakistan, in all sincerity, requests the Iranian brothers to open Strait of Hormuz for a corresponding period of two weeks as a goodwill gesture," Sharif said in a post on X.

The latest developments in the Middle East war:

- Trump says US will help with traffic in Hormuz strait -

US President Donald Trump said that the United States will help with the traffic buildup in the Strait of Hormuz, hours after Washington and Tehran agreed to a two-week ceasefire.

"The United States of America will be helping with the traffic buildup in the Strait of Hormuz. There will be lots of positive action! Big money will be made. Iran can start the reconstruction process," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

April 7 (Reuters) - Preliminary findings in a U.N. probe into the deaths of three Indonesianpeacekeepers in Lebanon last month show one was killed by an Israeli tank projectile and two others by an improvised explosive device most likely placed by Hezbollah, the U.N. said on Tuesday.

"These are preliminary findings, based on initial physical evidence," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told a news briefing, adding that a full investigation process was continuing that included engagement with the parties concerned.

By Yesim Dikmen

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy, April 7 (Reuters) - Pope Leo said on Tuesday that threats against the population of Iran are "unacceptable," in an unusual appeal hours after U.S. President Donald Trump said "a whole civilization will die tonight" in a social media post that shocked world leaders.

"Today, as we all know, there was this threat against the entire people of Iran, and this is truly unacceptable," said the pope, who has emerged as an outspoken critic of the Iran war.

BAGHDAD, April 7 (Reuters) - Iraqi armed group Kataib Hezbollah, which is aligned with Iran, said on Tuesday it would release abducted U.S. journalist Shelly Kittleson, adding that she must leave Iraq immediately.

Kittleson was abducted in late March in Baghdad.

Middle East news site Al-Monitor said Kittleson was a U.S. freelance journalist based in Rome who had covered several wars in the region and had contributed articles to the outlet.

A video purporting to show Kittleson was shared by a social media outlet close to Kataib Hezbollah on Tuesday.

PARIS, April 7 (Reuters) - French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Tuesday that he hoped U.S. President Trump would not go ahead with his latest threats against Iran.

"One does not erase a civilisation...This ultimatum is not the first that President Trump has set since the war started," Barrot told France 2 television.

"Obviously I hope he does not go ahead with his threats that would push the region but also the world in a new escalation that would be particularly dangerous," he added

By AJ Vicens

April 7 (Reuters) - Iranian hacking campaigns targeting equipmentused across multiple U.S. critical infrastructure sectors are escalating in response to hostilities, U.S. cybersecurity, law enforcement and intelligence agencies said on Tuesday.

The hackers are targeting publicly exposed programmable logic controllers and supervisory control and data acquisition displays, according to the advisory. The targeted devices are used to interact with or control certain critical infrastructure-related equipment and systems, the advisory said.

BEIRUT, April 7 (Reuters) - Bombardment in southern Lebanon on Tuesday forced a convoy of humanitarian aid organized by the Vatican's embassy for a besieged Christian town to turn back, a priest in the town told Reuters.

Thousands of Christians in several southern Lebanese towns have stayed in their homes despite the escalating fighting between Israel and Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, hoping their towns would be spared if they stayed on the sidelines of the conflict.

Donald Trump is no stranger to provocative language. But his threat to wipe out Iranian civilization and other recent menacing comments have prompted critics to question the US president's mental health.

The oldest elected president in American history has ramped up his apocalyptic rhetoric as his frustration grows with Tehran's refusal to make a deal to end the Middle East war.

Even some former allies have called for the 79-year-old Republican's removal from office after a series of outlandish and sometimes expletive-riddled social media posts.