Regional
Israel strikes Tehran as Trump says US negotiating to end war
Israel struck the Iranian capital Tehran on Wednesday, Israeli military and Iranian media said, as President Donald Trump said the U.S. was making progress in its efforts to negotiate an end to the war, with reports of a 15-point plan sent to Tehran.
The Israeli Defense Forces said in a Telegram post it had launched a wave of strikes targeting infrastructure across Tehran. The semi-official Iranian SNN News Agency said the strikes hit a residential area in the city, with rescuers searching the rubble, Reuters reported.
Kuwait and Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday they had repelled fresh drone attacks, without stating where they originated. Drones targeted a fuel tank at Kuwait International Airport, causing a fire but no casualties, Kuwait’s Civil Aviation Authority said.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said it had launched a new wave of attacks against locations in Israel including Tel Aviv and Kiryat Shmona, as well as U.S. bases in Kuwait, Jordan and Bahrain, Iranian state media reported.
Trump said on Tuesday the U.S. was in “negotiations” to end the war, which has already killed thousands and created the worst energy shock in history, leading to global fuel shortages and roiling markets.
Stocks rose and oil prices fell on Wednesday on reports the U.S. is seeking a month-long ceasefire and had sent a 15-point plan to Iran for discussion, raising hopes for a resumption of oil exports out of the Persian Gulf.
Trump told reporters at the White House the U.S. was talking to “the right people” in Iran to end hostilities, adding the Iranians wanted to reach a deal very badly.
Iran’s powerful parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf on Monday dismissed such reports as “fake news.”
15 POINT PLAN SENT TO IRAN
The New York Times reported on Tuesday that Washington sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war in the Middle East. Israel’s Channel 12, quoting three sources, said the U.S. was seeking a month-long ceasefire to discuss the 15-point plan.
A source familiar with the matter confirmed that the U.S. had sent a plan to Iran but provided no further details.
The Israeli media outlet said the plan would include the dismantling of Iran’s nuclear programme, ceasing support for proxy groups, such as Lebanon’s Hezbollah, and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran on February 28 after saying they had failed to make enough headway in talks aimed at ending Iran’s nuclear programme, although mediator Oman said significant progress had been made.
Since then, Iran has attacked countries that host U.S. bases, struck Gulf energy infrastructure and effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, conduit for a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas.
Iran has told the United Nations Security Council and the International Maritime Organization that “non-hostile vessels” may transit the Strait of Hormuz if they coordinate with Iranian authorities, according to a note seen by Reuters on Tuesday.
The effective closure of the waterway, where 20% of the world’s oil and gas normally transits, has created the worst energy supply shock in history, sent fuel prices soaring, and disrupted global aviation.
PAKKISTAN OFFERS TO HOLD US-IRAN TALKS
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Tuesday he was willing to host talks between the U.S. and Iran on ending the war, a day after Trump postponed threats to bomb Iranian power plants after what he called “productive” talks.
Pakistan has long-standing ties to neighbouring Iran’s Islamic Republic and has been building a relationship with Trump.
Despite reports of negotiations, the Pentagon is expected to send thousands of soldiers from the U.S. Army’s elite 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday, adding to a massive U.S. military buildup.
The forces will add to the 50,000 U.S. troops already in the region and accelerate Washington’s massive U.S. military buildup there, fuelling fears of a longer conflict.
Regional
Trump accuses Iran of ceasefire breach in Hormuz, issues stark warning
U.S. President Donald Trump has accused Iran of violating a ceasefire agreement in the Strait of Hormuz and warned of sweeping military consequences if tensions escalate further.
In a message posted on Truth Social, Trump claimed that Iranian forces “fired bullets” in the vital shipping corridor, describing the incident as a “total violation” of the ceasefire. He alleged that the gunfire was directed at a French vessel and a United Kingdom-flagged freighter, though the claims have not been independently verified.
Trump said U.S. representatives would travel to Islamabad for negotiations, indicating that diplomatic efforts are continuing despite rising tensions.
The comments come amid heightened friction between Washington and Tehran over maritime security. The Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments, has long been a focal point of confrontation between Iran and Western powers.
In his post, Trump also claimed Iran had moved to close the waterway, while asserting that a U.S. “blockade” had already effectively halted traffic. He argued that such a closure would primarily harm Iran, estimating losses of up to $500 million per day.
He added: “In fact, many Ships are headed, right now, to the U.S., Texas, Louisiana, and Alaska, to load up, compliments of the IRGC, always wanting to be ‘the tough guy!’.”
In his sharply worded warning, Trump said that if Iran does not accept what he described as a “fair and reasonable deal,” the United States could target key infrastructure, including power plants and bridges.
“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran.
“NO MORE MR. NICE GUY! They’ll come down fast, they’ll come down easy and, if they don’t take the DEAL, it will be my Honor to do what has to be done, which should have been done to Iran, by other Presidents, for the last 47 years. IT’S TIME FOR THE IRAN KILLING MACHINE TO END!” he wrote.
Iran has not yet publicly responded to the remarks.
Analysts note that any escalation around the Strait of Hormuz carries significant global risks, given the route’s central role in international energy supplies.
Regional
Ships crossing Hormuz need OK from IRGC, unfreezing funds part of deal, Iran official says
The official added that certain routes through Hormuz would remain open, but added that those would need to be determined as secure by Iran.
All ships can sail through the Strait of Hormuz but this needs to be coordinated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a senior Iranian official told Reuters, adding that unfreezing Iranian funds was part of the deal.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi wrote on X that the strait was open after a ceasefire accord was agreed in Lebanon, while U.S. President Donald Trump said he believed a deal to end the Iran war would come “soon”, although the timing remains unclear.
Hundreds of ships and 20,000 seafarers have remained stranded inside the Gulf waiting to pass through the key waterway, which handles about 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flows.
The Iranian official said transits would be restricted to lanes that Iran deemed safe, adding that military vessels were still prohibited from crossing the strait.
“Releasing Iran’s funds was part of the agreement for reopening the strait,” the official noted, referring to an estimated $30 billion in frozen revenue, generated mainly from oil and gas exports, blocked amid U.S. sanctions on Tehran.
It was not immediately clear if this included or excluded the established Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS) lanes for entering and exiting the Gulf used by international shipping since the 1970s.
“Even U.S. vessels would be permitted, excluding military ships,” he said.
The official added that certain routes through Hormuz would remain open, but added that those would need to be determined as secure by Iran.
“Navigation would take place in coordination with Iran, and with authorisation from the Guards and Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization to ensure the safety of shipping,” the official said.
Shortly after Araqchi’s statement, U.S. President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social: “IRAN HAS JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE STRAIT OF IRAN IS FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR PASSAGE”.
Trump added that the U.S. military blockade of ships sailing through the strait to and from Iranian ports, announced after talks with Iran last weekend in Pakistan which ended without agreement, remained in place.
Iranian state media, citing an unnamed official, said if the U.S. blockade persists, Tehran will consider it a violation of ceasefire and will re-close strait.
Iran could let ships sail freely through the Omani side of the strait without risk of attack under proposals Tehran has offered in talks with the U.S., providing a deal is clinched to prevent renewed conflict, a source briefed by Tehran told Reuters this week.
Iran has warned of mines placed in the strait, a threat taken seriously by ship owners, insurance underwriters, and firms sending cargo.
That threat is not fully understood and avoidance of the area by ships should be considered, a U.S. Navy advisory said on Friday.
“Status of TSS mine threat is not fully understood. Consider avoidance of that area,” the US Navy’s U.S. NCAGS agency said in the advisory sent to mariners and seen by Reuters.
It was not immediately clear whether the advisory was sent before or after the announcement about the strait being open.
Shipping industry associations said they were reviewing the situation.
“The announcement … by U.S. President Donald Trump that the Strait of Hormuz is fully open is inaccurate. The status of mine threats in the Traffic Separation Scheme is unclear,” said Jakob Larsen, chief safety and security officer with shipping association BIMCO.
“BIMCO believes shipping companies should consider avoiding the area”.
The UN’s shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), said it was reviewing the situation.
“We are currently verifying the recent announcement related to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, in terms of its compliance with freedom of navigation for all merchant vessels and secure passage,” said IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez.
Regional
Iran announces reopening of Strait of Hormuz
Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi announced on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz has been fully reopened to commercial shipping following the ceasefire in Lebanon.
In a statement posted on X, Araghchi said that all commercial vessels will be allowed to pass through the strategic waterway for the remaining period of the ceasefire.
He added that transit will take place along a coordinated route previously announced by Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization.
Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed appreciation on Truth Social for Iran’s decision to reopen the Strait of Hormuz completely.
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