Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Israeli strikes on the country's south were a "clear message" on negotiations between the two countries, ahead of the next round of US-sponsored talks early next month in Rome.

Aoun condemned the "ongoing Israeli attacks" on the south and "repeated violations of the framework agreement... and international law on protecting civilians, which led to the death of an entire family in the village of Ansar", according to a statement from his office, adding that "these violations are a clear message on the negotiation process".

Lebanon said Israeli strikes in the south killed nine people, including three children, the deadliest raids since deals in June eased hostilities between Israel and Hezbollah.

Israel said it carried out retaliatory strikes against the Iran-backed Hezbollah, but Lebanon's prime minister said seven people killed in one of the strikes were not "military targets" and urged Israel to halt an "extremely dangerous" escalation.

Israel "escalated its attacks on the south" early Saturday, Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) said, reporting that warplanes struck a home on the outskirts of the village of Ansar and carried out a "series of airstrikes targeting the Ali al-Taher ridge", a strategic hill overlooking the Nabatieh area.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said seven people, including two women and three children, killed in an Israeli strike on Saturday were not military targets, after Israel said it struck Hezbollah "infrastructure".

"The seven martyrs of the Israeli strike on the village of Ansar are not 'military infrastructure' and the women and children who were killed are not military targets," Salam said, adding that "Israel must halt this escalation", which he said was "extremely dangerous and undermines efforts to consolidate stability in the south".

The Israeli military has said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon in response to an attack on its soldiers in a security zone.

US media has reported that US President Donald Trump was “joking” when he claimed he would declare the Strait of Hormuz “a territory of the United States” after defeating Iran.

During a New York political rally, Trump chuckled, stating, “After we finish defeating Iran… pretty soon I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States.”

However, Wall Street Journal reporter Brian Schwartz cited a senior White House official confirming Trump “has not met with his advisers” regarding the move.

An Israeli air strike in southern Lebanon has killed at least seven people and injured three others, according to Lebanese state media.

Lebanon’s National News Agency reported that Israeli warplanes destroyed a home in the town of Ansar, in the Nabatieh district. Emergency crews are working to clear rubble and recover victims at the site.

The latest strike is the deepest Israeli attack into Lebanese territory since a ceasefire took effect two months ago. State media also reported Israeli bombardment targeting the nearby Ali al-Taher hill.

Despite a June 26 framework agreement, ongoing Israeli strikes against Lebanon have resulted in 4,335 deaths and 12,277 wounded.

Iran has called on the US to accept defeat after President Donald Trump blasted Iran as "evil" and vowed to make Strait of Hormuz a part of America.

"This strait will be opened and closed only under Iran's command, and so long as you do not accept the reality of defeat and stop indulging in fantasies, Iran will continue to enforce the blockade," Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said in a post on X early on Saturday, showing little urgency toward restoring prewar trade.

"The Strait of Hormuz cannot be seized by a tweet or an aircraft carrier, by issuing an order or by delivering an election speech," he said.

United Arab Emirates' state-owned oil giant ADNOC has said one of its vessels came under attack in the Hormuz strait, the latest incident in the waterway at the centre of the US-Iran war.

The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) "confirmed that one of its vessels was attacked while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on the evening of Friday, August 14", according to the official WAM news agency, but reported no injuries.

US President Trump urges Americans to accept higher gas prices, adding he will soon declare Strait of Hormuz a territory of US. Iran responds by saying it is not intimidated by US threats.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi has said that Tehran would not be intimidated by threats or a show of force by Washington after US President Donald Trump said he would declare the Strait of Hormuz a US territory.

Commenting on Trump's statements, Gharibabadi said in a post on X that the strategic waterway would only be opened or closed under Iran's authority.