Iran says Strait of Hormuz will be closed over Israel attacks on Lebanon

After Iran's announcement, US Central Command (Centcom) said safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz "remained intact" and commercial ship traffic had increased on Saturday, with 55 merchant ships transiting. It was not clear whether Centcom was referring to before or after Tehran's announcement.The move comes days after the US and Iranian presidents signed an initial agreement aiming to end the war, including in Lebanon, with immediate effect. It includes a commitment from both sides to further talks to reach a final deal over the next 60 days.Israeli officials said then they had no intention of withdrawing Israel's forces from Lebanon and insisted the conflict with the Iranian-backed group Hezbollah was separate from the war on Iran.The Israeli military confirmed a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah went into effect at 16:00 local time (14:00 BST) on Friday, but later a spokesman said its forces would "continue to remove immediate threats".Israel has continued to strike Lebanon. On Saturday, a family of four - a father, a mother and their two children - was killed in the town of Barich in southern Lebanon, state media reported.The Israeli military said it had struck "dozens" of targets from Hezbollah, after the group fired more than 50 projectiles at Israeli forces in the region.Hezbollah has accused Israel of repeatedly violating the ceasefire, and said the group has the right to "defend their land and sovereignty" in the face of ongoing Israeli attacks.The US government has criticised Israel's ongoing operations in Lebanon, which was drawn into the war when Hezbollah launched rockets into Israel in retaliation for US-Israeli strikes that killed Iran's supreme leader.