Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said Thursday that indirect negotiations were being held to end the war in Iran, using Islamabad as an intermediary.

Dar, who is also deputy prime minister, described speculation about "peace talks" as "unnecessary", adding: "In reality, U.S.-Iran indirect talks are taking place through messages being relayed by Pakistan.

U.S. President Donald Trump is ready to "unleash hell" if Iran does not accept a deal to end the nearly four-week Middle East war, the White House warned Wednesday, but a defiant Tehran said it did not intend to negotiate.

The ramped-up rhetoric dashed hopes of any imminent de-escalation as violence on the ground showed no sign of abating, with Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia all coming under fire.

Iranian state television, citing an unidentified senior official, said Wednesday that Iran had rejected a peace plan proposed by the United States to end the Middle East war.

Iran and Israel traded fresh missile and drone strikes Wednesday, with countries across the Middle East coming under fire as diplomats worked in the background to end the nearly four-week war.

Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

Iran fired cruise missiles at the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, the military said in a statement carried by state television, warning of further launches when the strike group's ships come in range.

Israel's Channel 12 on Tuesday published a 15-point U.S. document that is being reportedly developed to halt the war with Iran, amid Israeli concerns that the agreement could lead to uncertain outcomes.

U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Iran gave him a "very big present" related to the Strait of Hormuz, boosting his confidence that he was talking to the right people in Tehran to end the war.

The Israeli military said on Tuesday that it was operating "according to an unchanged plan" in Iran and Lebanon, regardless of any talks aimed at reaching an agreement to end the hostilities.

The U.S. and a group of regional mediators are discussing the possibility of holding high-level peace talks with Iran as soon as Thursday, but are still waiting for a response from Tehran, two sources with knowledge of the discussions told U.S. news portal Axios.