Donald Trump has announced the Israel-Lebanon ceasefire will be extended by three weeks after talks at the White House

But a longer-term peace deal is ambitious and will take much more support from Washington to disarm Hezbollah, writes our State Department correspondent

Earlier, the US president spoke to the BBC - saying "whatever I'm doing, it seems to be working very well" when asked about his threats to Iran's "civilisation"

In later remarks to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump says "I don't want to rush myself" when it comes to making a deal with Iran

Meanwhile, US forces have boarded a ship carrying Iranian oil in the Indian Ocean, the US military says - Trump says the US has "total control" over the Strait of Hormuz

In Iran, top figures speak of "iron unity" after Trump's claims that the country's leadership is embroiled in infighting

Israel's defence minister says they are prepared to renew the war with Iran if the US gives the green light, and threatens to return Iran "to the dark and stone ages"

Edited by Oliver O'Connell and Toby Mann, with reporting from BBC Persian and teams across the Middle East

Trump's latest directive comes after US forces announced earlier this month they would intercept vessels travelling to or from Iran's ports.

US President Donald Trump hopes to put pressure on Iran by targeting two economic drivers - the huge tolls it demands ships pay to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and its oil revenue.

Trump previously told Fox News that "we're not going to let Iran make money on selling oil to people that they like and not people that they don't like".

Iran calls the blockade "piracy", and its top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, says reopening the strait is "not possible" while the US maintains its naval blockade.

The US says it has intercepted dozens of vessels since it began its blockade, and its defence department says it will continue to interdict vessels suspected of "providing material support to Iran".

Donald Trump says he has ordered the US Navy to shoot at any boat laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz.

"I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be... that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz," he says in a post on Truth Social.

He adds US mine “sweepers” are clearing the strait "right now".

After the Pentagon announced its forces had intercepted another vessel, this time in the Indian Ocean, here's the latest on the US's naval blockade of Iran:

The US operation in the Indian Ocean comes days after its forces boarded a tanker in its Indo-Pacific area of command.

On 21 April, the US Department of Defence published a post on social media, saying its forces intercepted and boarded the "stateless sanctioned M/T Tifani".

In the post, the department says: "We will pursue global maritime enforcement efforts to disrupt illicit networks and interdict sanctioned vessels providing material support to Iran - anywhere they operate."

US forces have interdicted a sanctioned vessel that is transporting oil from Iran, the country's defence department has posted on X.