US-Iran Deal Sparks Alarm as Signing Looms
Pakistan announces remote signing ceremony for June 14 as Israeli officials call the agreement a 'catastrophe'.
US-Iran Deal Sparks Alarm as Signing Looms — Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on the evening of June 13 that a ceremony for the remote signing of a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran will take place in Islamabad on Sunday, June 14.[^1] The deal, according to a senior US official briefing Reuters, includes Iran's commitment to never develop nuclear weapons, the export of enriched uranium to the US, and the dismantling of its nuclear program.[^2] Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baghai, however, stated that Iran will continue to charge a fee for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and the unfreezing of assets is an integral part of the deal.[^3] The conflicting signals have deepened the diplomatic fog. Israeli sources reacted with alarm, with one calling the agreement a 'catastrophe' and another saying 'Trump set us up.'[^4] President Trump dismissed the reports as 'fake news,'[^5] but the clock is ticking toward Sunday's ceremony. Meanwhile, France yesterday hosted a diplomatic conference in Paris titled "Paris Call for Peace," bringing together representatives of Israeli and Palestinian civil society.[^6] The event, covered by Haaretz, is part of broader European efforts to channel the negotiations into a sustainable framework. Canada's foreign minister Anita Anand announced an additional US$100 million allocation for humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip on Friday, signaling continued Western engagement even as the Iran deal dominates headlines. The juxtaposition of a nuclear agreement and a humanitarian pledge underscores the layered nature of Middle East diplomacy—where security deals and humanitarian needs are negotiated simultaneously but not necessarily aligned. Metula council head slams government as civil society warns on healthcare, violence — Head of Metula Council David Azulai harshly criticized the government and the IDF after a stormy night of rocket fire from Lebanon, saying that 'children again ran frightened in pajamas to safe rooms' and that the government is 'world champions' in statements but 'Third division' in execution[^1]. His frustration echoes a broader dilemma in Israeli political c