In the day's other headlines, Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers today that talks,

indeed, are continuing with Iran and that the regime has engaged as never before on the issue

of its nuclear program.

They have agreed to negotiate aspects of their nuclear program that just a month ago or just

a year ago, they were refusing

to even mention, much less into discussions about.

Secretary Virbio was speaking during his first appearance before Congress since the Iran

war started.

His assurances came despite Iran's claims that it has stopped all dialogue with the U.S.

through regional mediators.

Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee took aim at Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, saying it gives Tehran the upper hand in talks.

We have made our adversary in a stronger negotiating position.

We are the strongest nation on the planet Earth and we're in a stalemate with Iran.

And now we're begging to get back

into a deal that you all trashed in the first place. There's no one begging. I don't know where

you're getting this perception that Iran is stronger. Rubio also said in his testimony that

U.S. negotiators have seen signs that Iran's new supreme leader has been engaging with the talks, though only through

intermediaries.

Meantime, Israeli drone strikes killed at least 11 people in southern Lebanon today.

Just one day after President Trump said Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah had

agreed to dial back the fighting.

This hospital complex in the southern port city of

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