Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday said Israel's top priority was to secure the "dismantling" of Hezbollah in its first direct talks with Lebanon in decades.

"In the negotiations with Lebanon, there are two central objectives: first, the dismantling of Hezbollah; second, a sustainable peace... achieved through strength," he said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated peace talks with Tehran could resume this week, as the United States turned the screws Wednesday with a naval blockade it said had cut off maritime trade with Iran.

Trump's hint came as Israel and Lebanon agreed to open direct negotiations after a rare face-to-face meeting in Washington, with Israel's war with Hezbollah ongoing despite the ceasefire with Tehran.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that China has agreed not to send weapons to its close partner Iran and that he has received personal assurances from leader Xi Jinping.

Iran's foreign ministry said Wednesday that Tehran's right to enrich uranium was "indisputable" although the level of enrichment is "negotiable".

In a weekly press briefing, foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said the right to peaceful use of nuclear energy could not be "taken away under pressure or through war".

Iran said Wednesday that exchanges with the United States via Pakistan had continued following failed negotiations over the weekend.

"Since Sunday, when the Iranian delegation returned to Tehran, several messages have been exchanged through Pakistan," said foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei in a weekly press briefing.

Dozens of boats carrying activists and aid for Palestinians in Gaza set sail from the northeastern Spanish city of Barcelona on Wednesday.

Organizers of the Global Sumud Flotilla say that more than 70 boats and 1,000 people from around the world will participate, with campaigners saying it's the biggest civilian-led mobilization of its kind against Israel's actions in the Palestinian territory.

Senior UAE and Iranian officials held a call to discuss de-escalation on Wednesday, UAE state media reported, the first high-level call since ties deteriorated over the U.S.-Iran war.

Eighteen months after the nation's largest Arab American community helped propel Donald Trump to a second term as president, the prayers have not stopped.

In Dearborn, just outside of Detroit, families wait restlessly for word from relatives abroad, hoping they are safe, and mourning those already lost.

Iran's military warned on Wednesday it would block trade through the Red Sea, along with the Gulf and Sea of Oman, if the U.S. naval blockade continues.

In a statement carried by Iranian state television, the head of Iran's military central command center said if the U.S. continues with its blockade and "creates insecurity for Iran's commercial vessels and oil tankers", it will constitute "a prelude" to violating the ceasefire.

head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog said Wednesday that "very detailed" measures to verify Iran's nuclear activities must be included in a potential U.S.-Iran agreement to end their war in the Middle East.

International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi stressed the need for the thorough verification regime for Iran's nuclear program, as U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that a second round of talks with Iran could happen over the next two days.