Iranian lawmaker says ceasefire used to rebuild forces

President Donald Trump and members of his administration were likely targets of a suspect who opened fire on a security agent guarding the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington, US Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Sunday.

The man fired a shotgun at a Secret Service agent at a checkpoint in the Washington Hilton hotel before being subdued and arrested. Trump and first lady Melania Trump were escorted out of the dinner.

“It does appear that he did, in fact, set out to target folks that work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” adding the suspect likely traveled by train from Los Angeles to Chicago and then to Washington.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hezbollah’s actions are undermining the ceasefire with Lebanon and warned of a strong response, on Sunday.

“Hezbollah’s violations are, in practice, dismantling the ceasefire,” Netanyahu said during a weekly cabinet meeting.

Under the terms of the truce, extended last week, Israel retains the right to respond to threats from the group, with Netanyahu pledging to act “vigorously.”

President Donald Trump and members of his administration were likely targets of a suspect who opened fire on a security agent guarding the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington, US Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Sunday.

The man fired a shotgun at a Secret Service agent at a checkpoint in the Washington Hilton hotel before being subdued and arrested. Trump and first lady Melania Trump were escorted out of the dinner.

“It does appear that he did, in fact, set out to target folks that work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” adding the suspect likely traveled by train from Los Angeles to Chicago and then to Washington.

A senior Iranian lawmaker said the ceasefire was accepted to rebuild military capacity and replenish weapons, remarks aired on state television on Sunday.

Ebrahim Azizi, head of parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said the pause in fighting offered “an opportunity to reload and strengthen the armed forces.”

“Some ask whether accepting a ceasefire at this stage was right or not. My answer is that it was necessary to rebuild capabilities and improve our forces,” Azizi said.

Iran’s steel industry has lost about 10 million tons of annual production capacity after Israeli and US attacks, Etemad newspaper reported on Sunday.

The figure amounts to about 25% to 30% of the country’s steel production capacity, according to estimates cited in the report.

Iran’s steel industry was “not in good shape” following the strikes, according to the report.