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Pakistan’s foreign minister, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, told the American chargé d’affaires in Islamabad that dialogue and diplomacy remain the only workable path to regional stability, urging Washington and Tehran to consider extending the ceasefire and give negotiations more time.

Saudi Arabia has reaffirmed support for Pakistan’s continuing diplomatic efforts, with Prince Faisal bin Farhan and Ishaq Dar agreeing that dialogue and engagement remain essential to lasting peace and regional stability.

Pakistan said late Tuesday that it is still awaiting formal confirmation from Iran on whether Tehran will attend the proposed Islamabad peace talks, as the ceasefire nears expiry and Islamabad intensifies last-minute diplomacy to keep negotiations alive.

Iranian's foreign ministry has said that Pakistan is now their only official intermediary with the United States, placing Islamabad at the centre of one of the the world's most sensitive diplomatic channels.

The Israeli military has said it confirmed the veracity of a viral photograph which appeared to show one of its soldiers smashing a statue of Jesus Christ to pieces with a sledgehammer in southern Lebanon.