AP
Live updates: Trump vows to ‘kill’ Iranian warships that get near US blockade of ports
President Donald Trump and the U.S. military say a U.S. blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas will begin on Monday.
Edited By BRIDGET BROWN, LORIAN BELANGER, HRVOJE HRANJSKI, MIKE HARRISON, MICHAEL WARREN, LUENA RODRIGUEZ-FEO VILEIRA and DREW CALLISTER
Updated 9:54 PM GMT+3, April 13, 2026
Major developments we’re following:
The U.S. military announced it will begin a blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas on Monday, tempering U.S. President Donald Trump’s earlier vow to entirely block the strategic Strait of Hormuz, as early reports indicated that ships had stopped crossing the waterway. Trump confirmed that the blockade started at 10 a.m. EDT.
The move sets the stage for a showdown as Iran responded with threats on ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. Shortly after the blockade was set to begin, Trump warned on social media that Iranian warships that come “anywhere close” to the U.S. blockade will be destroyed by a “quick and brutal” strike. The president said had spoken to “the other side” Monday, suggesting he was still willing to engage with Iran.
The Israeli military, meanwhile, is pushing ahead with its air and ground offensive in southern Lebanon, engaging in fierce fighting with Hezbollah militants over a strategic town, while the group fires rockets and drones at northern Israel.
U.S.-born Pope Leo XIV pushed back Monday on Trump’s broadside against him over the U.S.-Israel war in Iran, telling reporters that the Vatican’s appeals for peace and reconciliation are rooted in the Gospel, and that he doesn’t fear the Trump administration.
Ceasefire talks between the U.S. and Iran ended in the early hours of Sunday without an agreement, raising questions about what happens when the current two-week truce expires on April 22. As the talks wrapped up in the Pakistani capital, Islamabad, both sides blamed each other for the failure.
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20 min ago
Navigating the legal questions of a US blockade
By DAVID KLEPPER
To meet international law, a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz must be officially announced and effectively and impartially enforced, legal experts tell the AP.
“You have to apply it to everybody going in and out of Iran,” said Raul Pedrozo, professor of international law at the U.S. Naval War College. “It doesn’t just apply to people we don’t like.”
The requirements are to warn mariners of any blockade and ensure it is enforced fairly and responsibly. International law experts will also be watching to see if the U.S. allows humanitarian aid, food or medicine to reach Iran.
“How it is carried out will determine whether it is lawful or not,” Todd Huntley, a retired Navy captain and director of Georgetown University’s National Security Law Program.
41 min ago
Netanyahu focuses on Iran in Holocaust speech
By JOSEF FEDERMAN
The Israeli leader says the war against Iran was a powerful contrast to the Holocaust.
In an address marking Israel’s annual Holocaust memorial day, Netanyahu said that while Jews were like an “abused animal crying in agony” at the hands of the Nazis, the modern state of Israel fights back against its enemies.
He then listed several Iranian nuclear sites alongside Nazi death camps.
“Had we not acted, the names Natanz, Fordow, Isfahan and Parchin might have been remembered eternally in infamy, just like Auschwitz, Treblinka, Majdanek, and Sobibor,” he said. “But we acted, and how—in an unprecedented historic partnership with President Trump and the United States.”
Netanyahu often uses the annual address to lash out at Iran.
9:12 PM GMT+3
All parties to the Iran war must respect freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, UN chief says
By EDITH M. LEDERER
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stresses that freedom for ships to transit the strait, a key waterway for about 20% of global oil shipments, is guaranteed in international law, his spokesman said.
Responding to a question about the blockade of the strait ordered by Trump, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said the U.N. chief’s position has been consistent: “No one should do anything that harms the freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”
After weeks of destruction following U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, Guterres believes “it is clear that there is no military solution,” Dujarric said Monday.
The secretary-general says the U.S.-Iran talks “underscored the seriousness of their engagement and constituted a positive and meaningful step toward renewed dialogue,” Dujarric said.
But an agreement cannot be reached overnight, and the secretary-general calls for the Pakistan-mediated talks and the ceasefire to continue, the spokesman said.
9:05 PM GMT+3
Finnish president says he doesn’t see US withdrawal from NATO; allies will assist after Iran war ends
By FARNOUSH AMIRI
During a panel on Monday, Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said that he “sees no signs” of America abandoning the trans-Atlantic alliance despite Trump’s threats over NATO countries’ refusal to help with the Strait of Hormuz.
“So don’t underestimate the interest of the United States to stay engaged with the alliance,” Stubb said at an event at the Brookings Institution.
The European leader has often leveraged his good relationship with Trump — the two men have played golf together and speak regularly — to argue against his “America First” posturing. Stubb also reiterated that a “coalition of the willing” would help ensure the critical waterway was opened after the war ended.
“It’s my job as president of Finland to try to save the situation and convince the Americans that without allies, it’s difficult to project power,” he said.
8:56 PM GMT+3
At least 2 tankers turn around after approaching the Strait of Hormuz
By TOQA EZZIDIN
The vessel-tracker MarineTraffic said Monday in a post on the social platform X that the ships reversed course within minutes of approaching the critical waterway, shortly after the U.S. blockade began.
It said one of the tankers departed the United Arab Emirates’ Sharjah anchorage on Monday, bound for China. It was not immediately clear where the second vessel was headed.
8:45 PM GMT+3
Iran war has some US water utilities facing a fluoride shortage
By DEVI SHASTRI
It’s not just gas prices: Some U.S. water utilities are reporting that the war is disrupting their ability to maintain recommended fluoride levels in the drinking water.
The Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies says it expects additional shortages as the war stresses the supply chain. Israel is a major supplier of the chemical used to fluoridate drinking water.
The number of water utilities affected so far is small, but the shortage is affecting hundreds of thousands of people.
Dentists say a short-term drop in fluoride levels should be fine for most people, but longer-term disruptions could put Americans, especially young children, at higher risk for tooth decay.
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8:23 PM GMT+3
Trump says ‘we’ve been called by the other side’ but offers no details on conversation
By COLLIN BINKLEY
President Donald Trump speaks outside the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, April 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump speaks outside the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, April 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Speaking outside the Oval Office on Monday, Trump suggested the U.S. is still willing to engage with Iran to negotiate a resolution.
“I can tell you that we’ve been called by the other side,” Trump said, adding, “We’ve been called this morning by the right people, the appropriate people, and they want to work a deal.”
Trump did not say who called or what was discussed.
8:08 PM GMT+3
Trump confirms that Strait of Hormuz blockade started at 10 a.m. EDT
By AAMER MADHANI
“We can’t let a country blackmail or extort the world because that’s what they’re doing,” Trump said of Iran.
Trump repeated his argument that safeguarding the strait is of greater concern to other parts of the globe than to the United States. The effective closure of the strait since the start of the war, however, has impacted global oil prices, leading to surging gas prices for American motorists and rising inflation on other goods.
“We don’t use this strait,” Trump said. “We have our own oil and gas, much more than we need.”
7:58 PM GMT+3
Trump says he won’t apologize to Pope Leo over Iran war criticisms
By WILL WEISSERT
Trump is refusing to apologize for sharply criticizing Pope Leo, saying that the pontiff “went public” in his criticisms of the war in Iran, and “I’m just responding.”
In comments to reporters outside the Oval Office, Trump added, “There’s nothing to apologize for” and said of Leo, “He’s wrong.”
President Donald Trump speaks outside the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, April 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump speaks outside the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, April 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Trump was also asked about posting an image of himself as a saint-like healer, which seemed to draw comparisons between himself and Jesus Christ.
The image was posted Sunday night and drew widespread condemnation from Evangelical Christian leaders and has since been taken down.
Trump said, “I did post it.” But he suggested it had something to do with the Red Cross and insisted: “It’s supposed to be me as a doctor making people better.”
7:32 PM GMT+3
Iranian official says US blockade will backfire
By JOSEF FEDERMAN
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei derided the blockade as a “revenge of choice” against the global economy.
“Is it ever worthwhile to cut off one’s nose to spite one’s face?!” he wrote on the social platform X.
7:30 PM GMT+3
Finland’s president says Iran ‘holds a lot of cards’ with control of Strait of Hormuz
By MATTHEW LEE
Finland President Alexander Stubb, left, attends a joint statement with France's President Emmanuel Monday, Feb. 23, 2026 at the Elysee Palace in Paris (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla; Pool)
FILE - Finland President Alexander Stubb, left, attends a joint statement with France’s President Emmanuel Monday, Feb. 23, 2026 at the Elysee Palace in Paris (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla; Pool)
The president of NATO ally Finland says that Iran has the upper hand in the war with Israel and the United States because it controls the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping lane though which a vast amount of the world’s oil supply transits.
Alexander Stubb said at an event at the Washington-based Brookings Institution think tank that control of the strait has become a “de facto nuclear weapon” for Iran, implicitly suggesting that the Trump administration had created the scenario by starting “a war of choice.”
“Iran holds a lot of the cards right now,” he said. “I’m afraid that that is the reality.”
7:25 PM GMT+3
OPEC oil production tumbled before US threatened blockade
By CHARLES SHEEHAN
The closure of the strait severely crimped output from OPEC last month. The 12-nation oil cartel, with members in the Middle East, Africa and Venezuela, said Monday that production tumbled by 7.89 million barrels a day in March, to 20.79 million barrels.
“Disruptions to shipping operations in the region raised persistent concerns about regional supply flows, while strong buying of prompt spot market barrels, production cuts, and declarations of force majeure further supported the upward price momentum,” OPEC said.
The organization said demand appears to be steady this year, but cut its forecast for the current quarter, citing the war.
7:16 PM GMT+3
Netanyahu spokeswoman rules out a ceasefire with Hezbollah
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Shosh Bedrosian told reporters Monday that Israel’s upcoming talks with Lebanon will focus on disarming Hezbollah and establishing peaceful relations between the two countries.
“We will not discuss a ceasefire with Hezbollah, which continues to carry out indiscriminate attacks against Israel and our civilians,” she said.
Israel and the Lebanese army have both been unable to forcibly disarm Hezbollah.
7:13 PM GMT+3
US-Iran ceasefire is holding despite failed peace talks, Pakistan’s prime minister says
By MUNIR AHMED
Efforts are underway to resolve the remaining disputes between Washington and Tehran as a two-week ceasefire brokered by Pakistan remains intact, said the country’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif.
In televised remarks at a Cabinet meeting, Sharif cautioned that peace efforts take time, citing past agreements such as the Geneva accords.
FILE - Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, meets with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, not pictured, about Iran, Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Islamabad. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)
FILE - Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, meets with U.S. Vice President JD Vance, not pictured, about Iran, Saturday, April 11, 2026, in Islamabad. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin, Pool)
6:20 PM GMT+3
China says the priority should be to maintain the Iran-US ceasefire
By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Monday said that the current priority should be to maintain the ceasefire between Iran and the United States and prevent conflict from reigniting in the Middle East.
Chinese top diplomat made the comments in a phone conversation with his Pakistani counterpart, Ishaq Dar, according to China’s Xinhua news agency.
Pakistan has been mediating between Iran and the U.S. and was able to bring them to historic, face-to-face talks over the weekend. However, the negotiations ended without an agreement, raising questions about the fate of the two-week truce.
6:05 PM GMT+3
Starmer and Macron to chair a leaders’ meeting on the Strait of Hormuz
By JILL LAWLESS
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says world leaders will meet this week to push for a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
Starmer said that with French President Emmanuel Macron, “I will convene a summit of leaders this week to drive forward the international effort” to end the conflict and unblock the key oil route.
He told lawmakers in the House of Commons on Monday the strait must reopen with “no conditions” and “no tolls.”
France and the U.K. have in recent weeks been spearheading international efforts to increase pressure on Iran to stop blocking the strait. They have also convened military planning meetings for an operation to provide security for shipping once the conflict ends.
It’s unclear what impact a U.S. blockade of Iran’s ports announced by Trump will have on those plans.
5:52 PM GMT+3
Spanish prime minister Sánchez returns to China seeking deeper ties amid Iran war tensions
By SUMAN NAISHADHAM
It’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s fourth trip in just over three years to the world’s number two economy.
His visit comes at a complex geopolitical moment as European leaders try to influence an end to the U.S.-Israeli war in Iran, and as Spain’s relationship with the U.S. has been strained by Sánchez’s vocal disapproval of the conflict.
Under Sánchez, Spain has sought to diversify its political relations with the world’s large powers, including Beijing.
On Monday, the prime minister urged China to assume a larger role in a multipolar world, speaking at a university in Beijing a day before he is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
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5:46 PM GMT+3
Trump says Iranian ships that come ‘anywhere close’ to US blockade will be destroyed
By COLLIN BINKLEY
The president made the comment on social media just after the blockade of Iran was expected to begin. Trump said Iran has some “fast attack ships” remaining even after much of its navy was destroyed by U.S. strikes.
“Warning: If any of these ships come anywhere close to our BLOCKADE, they will be immediately ELIMINATED, using the same system of kill that we use against the drug dealers on boats at Sea,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
He added: “It is quick and brutal.”
5:42 PM GMT+3
Germany’s foreign minister says Strait of Hormuz should remain ‘free and open’
By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER
Johann Wadephul told reporters in Berlin on Monday it is “urgently necessary to ... ensure that the Strait of Hormuz, which is, after all, an international maritime route, remains free and open.”
The foreign minister said keeping the strait open “is required by international law, and it must be observed by all; making this a reality must be the goal of us all.”
Wadephul did not further elaborate on Trump’s earlier vow to block the strait. He said Germany is focused on helping to resolve the conflict through diplomacy.
5:39 PM GMT+3
Where things stand on ceasefire talks
By JOSEF FEDERMAN
The current truce between the U.S. and Iran appears to be holding, with no word on whether negotiations will resume before it expires on April 22.
Pakistan’s foreign minister, Ishaq Dar, said his country will try to facilitate a new round of dialogue between Iran and the U.S. in the coming days. There was no immediate reaction from either side.
A key obstacle seems to be a perception on both sides that they won the war and that each has time on its side.
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5:39 PM GMT+3
Hezbollah keeps up fire on northern Israel ahead of Israel-Lebanon talks
By NATALIE MELZER
As the Israeli military pushed ahead with its air and ground offensive in southern Lebanon, the Lebanese militant group fired more rockets and drones at northern Israel on Monday.
Sirens rang out throughout the day in dozens of Israeli communities along the Lebanese border and in the city of Haifa, some 40 kilometers south, near key energy facilities.
The exchange of fire was taking place a day before Lebanon and Israel, which do not maintain diplomatic relations, were set to begin direct negotiations in the United States for the first time in decades.
The Israeli military said it intercepted more than 10 drones that crossed from Lebanon on Monday. The army says Hezbollah has fired over 250 projectiles since the temporary ceasefire was announced between the US, Israel and Iran last week.
5:32 PM GMT+3
Germany’s foreign minister says the world needs US, Israel and Iran to negotiate
By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER
Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul welcomed that the current truce is holding and urged the warring parties to keep negotiating for a solution to the conflict.
“The whole world is suffering from this. Here, we are engaged in crisis negotiations on the need to lower gasoline and diesel prices. On the African continent, there are now fears of widespread famine this summer because the necessary fertilizers cannot be transported. We have an acute shortage of fossil fuels in large parts of Asia,” he said during a joint press conference Monday with the South African Foreign Minister Ronald Lamola.
Nonetheless, Wadephul said Germany also supports “the American position that we need a credible and robust abandonment of Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear weapon.”
5:30 PM GMT+3
2,089 people in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli airstrikes in latest war between Hezbollah and Israel
By KAREEM CHEHAYEB
The Lebanese Health Ministry said in its daily casualty count Monday that among the killed are 252 women, 166 children, and 88 medical workers.
The number of wounded has increased to 6,762 people since the war began on March 2, when Hezbollah fired rockets towards northern Israel in solidarity with Iran, sparking Israel’s ground invasion and aerial bombardment campaign that displaced over one million people.
Ahead of anticipated direct talks in Washington on Tuesday, the strikes across both sides of the tense frontier and fierce ground fighting in southern Lebanon have intensified.
5:27 PM GMT+3
Iran war’s global energy crisis sharpens China’s advantage in clean tech
By CHAN HO-HIM, ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL, ANTON L. DELGADO
While most of Asia is being hit hard, China will likely benefit from war-related fossil fuel disruptions despite being the biggest purchaser of Iranian oil.
China leads the world in battery, solar and electric vehicle exports, and its industries are forecast to face a rise in demand for renewable products.
Chinese industry giants like vehicle-maker BYD and battery-producer CATL are well-positioned to capitalize on growing interest in low-emissions energy products as the world confronts the fragility of fossil fuels. That contrasts with a more fragmented U.S. approach that has promoted fossil fuels.
“China’s approach to energy sector development and geopolitics has been completely validated by the Iran conflict,” said Sam Reynolds with the U.S.-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
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5:23 PM GMT+3
Stage is set for an extraordinary showdown over shipping off Iran’s coast
By SAMY MAGDY, JULIA FRANKEL, MICHAEL CORDER
The U.S. military has vowed to blockade all Iranian ports to pressure Tehran into agreeing to open the crucial Strait of Hormuz and accepting a peace deal. Iran responded with threats on all the ports of U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
The showdown contains serious risks for the global economy and raises the specter that a ceasefire that is currently holding could collapse.
It was not clear if the blockade had started when the designated time of 10 a.m. EDT (2 p.m. GMT) arrived. Minutes earlier, a notice to mariners issued by the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency, which monitors maritime security, said the restrictions included “the entirety of the Iranian coastline, including ports and energy infrastructure.”
The notice added that transit through the strait “to or from non-Iranian destinations is not reported to be impeded by these measures,” but it added that ships “may encounter military presence” in the strait.
5:08 PM GMT+3
Israeli fire kills two Palestinians in Gaza, hospital officials say
By WAFAA SHURAFA
They were killed in two separate strikes in southern Gaza Monday, according to health officials at Nasser hospital, where the bodies arrived.
The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Where is the truce? Here is the truce,” said Mahmoud al-Faqaawy as he pointed at the motionless body of his cousin, covered in a white burial shroud in a hospital hallway. “They are saying a ceasefire, where is it?“
The Gaza Strip has seen near-daily Israeli fire and strikes since a fragile ceasefire was reached in October, with more than 750 Palestinians killed since then, according to figures from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.
5:05 PM GMT+3
The Israeli military claims deadly barrage in Lebanon last week killed over 250 Hezbollah militants, including senior commanders
By SAM METZ
A military official, speaking on condition of anonymity under briefing guidelines, said several senior commanders were killed, but provided no further evidence to support the casualty claims.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 357 people were killed, including more than 100 women, children and elderly. Based on those figures, Israel’s claims would require nearly all adult male casualties to be Hezbollah fighters.
The strikes were among the most expansive of the war and came as the United States and Iran entered into a ceasefire Israel said didn’t apply in Lebanon. The destruction and large number of civilian casualties drew condemnation from Lebanon and across the globe and prompted Trump to urge Israel to “dial it back.”
The military official said the timing of the April 8 operation was unrelated to the ceasefire. Israel said the next day that it would open peace talks with Lebanon. Negotiations are expected to begin on Tuesday in Washington, while Israel presses ahead with aerial and ground operations against Hezbollah.
4:44 PM GMT+3
Israeli medics says one wounded from Hezbollah fire
By JOSEF FEDERMAN
The Magen David Adom rescue service says a woman about 60 years old was lightly wounded by shattered glass in northern Israel.
4:19 PM GMT+3
Oil prices hit $100 again as US prepares for blockade of Iran ports
By YURI KAGEYAMA , MATT OTT
Oil prices have jumped to more than $100 a barrel again and Wall Street appears to be following global markets lower as the U.S. military prepared to blockade traffic to and from Iranian ports. In the Strait of Hormuz, most shipping has been stalled since the start of the war.
Futures for the S&P 500 and Dow Jones Industrial Average each fell 0.7% before the opening bell. Nasdaq futures slid 1%.
Trump announced the planned blockade after U.S.-Iran ceasefire talks in Pakistan ended without an agreement, and the U.S. military said the blockade involving all Iranian ports would begin Monday at 10 a.m. EDT.
Iran immediately responded with threats on all ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.
4:16 PM GMT+3
Iranian envoy says Tehran open to US talks if no ‘unlawful demands’
By SHEIKH SAALIQ
Iran’s ambassador to India said Tehran is open to talks with the United States if Washington refrains from making “unlawful demands.”
Mohammad Fathali was referring to talks held in Islamabad and said the main sticking points were Iran’s nuclear program, war reparations and sanctions relief.
Asked about the prospects for future negotiations, Fathali told reporters in New Delhi, “If they (the U.S.) accept our conditions, it is possible.”
3:55 PM GMT+3
Russia evacuates almost all of its personnel from Iran’s nuclear power plant
By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV
The chief of Russia’s state nuclear corporation said Monday it was pulling nearly all of its remaining personnel from Iran’s Russia-built nuclear power plant.
Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev said 108 workers were leaving the power plant in Bushehr, and only 20 will stay behind to keep watch of the equipment. Likhachev said Russia has coordinated the evacuation with Iranian authorities.
Since the start of the war, Russia has repeatedly voiced concern about projectiles hitting the territory of the plant, some of them landing near its nuclear reactor.
Russia had planned the near complete evacuation long before the ceasefire, removing about 600 personnel in several waves in March and earlier this month.
3:40 PM GMT+3
Spain’s government calls Trump’s naval blockade threat ‘senseless’
By SUMAN NAISHADHAM
Spain’s Defense Minister Margarita Robles condemned Trump’s threatened shipping blockade, saying it “makes no sense.”
“Since the war began, everything has been senseless,” Robles told Spanish broadcaster TVE on Monday. “Nobody knows the reason why this war started, a war that was supposed to be quick. This is just another episode of the downward spiral we have been dragged into, and that they have tried to drag the entire world into.”
Spain under Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has been Europe’s loudest critic of the U.S. and Israel’s military actions in the Middle East. The NATO member said earlier this month that its airspace was closed to the U.S. planes being used in Iran, and disallowed the U.S. from utilizing jointly operated military bases in southern Spain in the war effort.
3:23 PM GMT+3
Netanyahu says fighting to continue in Lebanon
By MELANIE LIDMAN
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said fighting is continuing in Lebanon on Monday. The fighting was focused on the Bint Jbeil area, a strategic point that has been the site of fierce battles between Israel and Hezbollah over the years.
Speaking at a cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said that Israel’s military is expanding beyond the five hilltops it controlled in southern Lebanon since the ceasefire with Hezbollah in 2024 towards a “solid, deeper security zone, which both prevents the danger of invasion and keeps the threat of terrorism away.”
Previously, Netanyahu said Israel wants to control the territory 8-10 kilometers (5-6 miles) from the border in southern Lebanon to remove the threat of short-range rockets or anti-tank missiles targeting Israeli cities and towns on the border.
3:10 PM GMT+3
Iran and Qatari foreign ministers discuss failed Islamabad talks
By SAM MAGDY
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke by phone with his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
The ministers discussed the Islamabad talks between Iran and the U.S. which failed to achieve a deal, according to the Iranian foreign ministry.
3:04 PM GMT+3
Iran’s Quds Force chief says U.S. will leave Mideast empty-handed
By SAM MAGDY
The U.S. will leave the Middle East without any achievements, Iranian media reported on Monday citing Brig. Gen. Esmail Qaani, commander of the powerful elite Quds Force.
He noted that the U.S. and Israel should remember how they left Yemen likewise empty-handed in a prior campaign, according to the Tasnim and Mehr semiofficial news agencies.
Qaani suggested that the Iranian-backed Houthis rebels could close the Bab el-Mandeb Strait as they did between 2023 and 2025. The attacks in Bab el-Mandeb prompted the U.S. to launch an air campaign against the Houthis. The rebels stopped attacking ships in the Red Sea after a deal with the Trump administration.
3:00 PM GMT+3
EU chief says bloc’s fuel bill is over $25B higher due to Iran war
By LORNE COOK
The European Union’s fuel bill has risen by more than $25 billion since the United States and Israel launched their war on Iran and is likely to mount,
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Monday.
“Our bill for fossil fuel imports has increased by over 22 billion euros – 44 days, 22 billion euros,” she said, noting that “the disruption of energy supplies will continue for some time to come.”
Von der Leyen recommended to EU governments that they start coordinating the way they use their oil stocks and store natural gas to avoid putting pressure on the market. She proposed to ease restrictions on state aid rules while the crisis lasts to help protect vulnerable consumers and sectors from high energy prices.
2:29 PM GMT+3
Trump is ‘bluffing’ over Hormuz threat, Iranian security official says
By SAM METZ
A U.S. threat to block the Strait of Hormuz is “more bluffing than reality,” according to Ebrahim Rezaei, a spokesperson for the Iranian parliament’s National Security Commission.
Rezaei warned that Tehran was prepared to respond if the situation escalates militarily.
“It will make the current situation (Trump) is in more complicated and will further agitate the market he is angry about, and we may also reveal other cards that we have not used in the game,” Rezaei said in a post on X.
2:24 PM GMT+3
Netanyahu spoke with Vance after Pakistan talks ended
By MELANIE LIDMAN
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that he has spoken with U.S. Vice President JD Vance about the negotiations in Pakistan.
Netanyahu said the pair spoke Sunday while Vance was on the plane returning from the negotiations in Islamabad.
Israel supports President Donald Trump’s “strong stance to impose a naval blockade on Iran,” Netanyahu said, adding that Israel backs the U.S. position that Iran must remove all of its enriched nuclear material and must refrain from any enrichment within Iran for several decades.
1:54 PM GMT+3
Maritime expert previews potential conflict in Strait of Hormuz
By SAM METZ
The coming days could be a stress test for the Strait of Hormuz and for the rules that are supposed to govern it, according to Sal Mercogliano, a maritime historian at Campbell University.
It remains unclear, he added, how the U.S. would track, intercept and board vessels moving from Iranian ports through the strait.
Any U.S. or Iranian attempt to choke off the waterway would run counter to the principle of freedom of navigation, said Mercogliano, who has testified before the U.S. Senate on commercial shipping and written for the U.S. Naval Institute.
“We are challenging the concept of freedom of the seas,” Mercogliano said on his “What’s Going on With Shipping?” podcast, which has more than 600,000 followers on YouTube.
1:34 PM GMT+3
Russia warns blockade of Strait of Hormuz will rattle global markets
By VLADIMIR ISHACHENKOV, ALTAF QADRI
FILE - Oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz as seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri, File)
FILE - Oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz as seen from Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri, File)
Russia said Monday that a U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will likely hurt global markets.
Asked to comment on the U.S. announcement of a blockade on Iran’s ports and coastline, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “Most likely, such actions will continue to negatively impact international markets, this can be assumed with a high degree of certainty.”
Peskov told reporters: “Many details remain unclear and incomprehensible, so I would refrain from making any substantive comments at this time.”
1:11 PM GMT+3
Iran and Saudi Arabia discuss Islamabad talks, Iranian media reports
By SAM MAGDY
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has spoken by phone with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, two Iranian semiofficial media outlets reported.
The ministers discussed the talks between the U.S. and Iran in Pakistan which failed to achieve a deal, Mehr News agency said, without elaborating further.
1:09 PM GMT+3
Israel strike on Hamas-run security point in Gaza kills 3
By SAM MAGDY
An Israeli airstrike killed at least three Palestinians in central Gaza Strip early Monday, hospital authorities said.
The strike hit a Hamas-manned security point just after midnight in the eastern part of Deir al-Balah city, in central Gaza, according to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital which received the dead men. One Palestinian was also wounded in the strike.
The military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The deaths were the latest among Palestinians in the coastal enclave since an October fragile ceasefire deal attempted to halt a more than two-year war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. While the heaviest fighting has subsided, the shaky ceasefire has seen almost daily Israeli fire.
1:06 PM GMT+3
US and Iran appear ‘sincere’ over ceasefire, Turkey says
By SUZAN FRASER
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has said the U.S.-Iran ceasefire could be extended for 45 to 60 days to allow the negotiations to continue.
Fidan, whose country has supported mediations efforts, said the U.S. and Iranian delegations presented initial “maximalist” positions during the talks in Pakistan, adding that Iran is expected to review U.S. proposals and respond.
“If the parties make good progress, an additional ceasefire could be introduced — lasting 45 to 60 days — so that negotiations can continue,” he said in an interview with state-run Anadolu Agency. He cautioned however, that Israel remains “a factor” that could disrupt the negotiations. The nuclear issue could also become a sticking point, he said.
“If the nuclear matter turns into an all‑or‑nothing situation, especially regarding enrichment, we could face a serious obstacle,” Fidan said. “But hopefully, with the support of mediators and other countries, we will try to overcome this as well.”
12:56 PM GMT+3
Union sounds alarm over crews stuck in Strait of Hormuz
By SAM METZ
A labor union said Monday that thousands of crew members stuck on vessels in and around the Strait of Hormuz are running short on basics and growing increasingly desperate.
Milind Kandalgaonkar, general secretary of the National Union of Seafarers of India, said that nearly 20,000 Indian crew members were stranded in the region.
“Many of these seafarers are reportedly facing acute shortages of food, potable water, and essential medical supplies,” he wrote in a letter to India’s national shipping board. He urged authorities to ensure supplies can reach the vessels, protect seafarers’ welfare and prepare evacuation plans if needed.
Tanker owners say the ceasefire has done little to ease conditions for mariners in the strait, where crews report dwindling food and fresh water.
12:46 PM GMT+3
US blockade of Iran could trigger Houthi disruption of Bab el-Mandeb, analyst warns
By SAM MAGDY
The U.S. blockade of Iranian ports could prompt the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen to disrupt transit through Bab el-Mandeb Strait, an analyst has warned.
“If the U.S. moves to impose a blockade on Iranian ports and Iran starts feeling the pain, the Houthis are very likely to escalate in the Bab el-Mandeb,” said Ahmed Nagi, a senior analyst for Yemen at the International Crisis Group think-tank.
The closure of Bab el-Mandeb would add “another layer” of pressure on the global shipping industry, he said.
12:40 PM GMT+3
Germany’s Merz says U.S.-Iran peace talks in Pakistan were not well prepared
By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER, MARKUS SCHREIBER
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends the cabinet meeting at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attends the cabinet meeting at the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, March 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has criticized the peace talks between the U.S. and Iran in Pakistan last week as not well prepared.
“I was not surprised by the decision to break off the talks in Islamabad,” he told reporters in Berlin on Monday.
“From the very beginning, I didn’t get the impression that they were really well prepared,” the chancellor said without further elaborating who exactly he was referring to with this criticism.
12:28 PM GMT+3
Lebanese Red Cross offices in Tyre hit by drone
By KAREEM CHEHAYEB
The offices of the Lebanese Red Cross in Tyre were hit by a drone strike on Monday, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported.
The strike in the southern coastal city killed a wounded person being transported and damaged Red Cross vehicles. The Israeli military did not immediately reply to inquires from The Associated Press.
The funeral was being held on Monday for a Lebanese Red Cross volunteer killed on Sunday in an Israeli strike that hit his team while on a mission in Beit Yahoun.
The Lebanese Red Cross operates in war-torn southern Lebanon in coordination with the UN peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL, and the Lebanese military.
12:23 PM GMT+3
France, U.K. to convene talks on Hormuz navigation mission
By SYLVIE CORBET
France and the U.K. will organize a conference with partners ready to contribute to a peaceful multinational mission to help restore navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, President Emmanuel Macron said.
In a post on X, Macron stressed “the need to restore free and unimpeded navigation through the Strait of Hormuz as quickly as possible.” He called for a “peaceful multinational mission,” adding: “This strictly defensive mission, separate from the warring parties to the conflict, is intended to be deployed as soon as circumstances permit.”
France and the U.K. have in recent years been working to set up an operation that would allow ships to cross the Strait of Hormuz once the fighting ends.
12:20 PM GMT+3
Japan’s Takaichi praises Pakistan’s mediation effort
By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), speaks during her press conference Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 in Tokyo. (Franck Robichon/Pool Photo via AP)
Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), speaks during her press conference Monday, Feb. 9, 2026 in Tokyo. (Franck Robichon/Pool Photo via AP)
Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi held telephone talks Monday with her Pakistani counterpart, Shehbaz Sharif, during which she expressed support for his mediation efforts for hosting U.S.-Iran talks in Islamabad.
Takaichi said she reiterated Japan’s position that what is most important is to promptly reach a final agreement and to de-escalate the situation through talks to ensure safe passages through the Strait of Hormuz.
Sharif said Pakistan hopes to cooperate with Japan in the effort, Takaichi said.
12:16 PM GMT+3
Israel’s military says ground operations in southern Lebanon extended
By KAREEM CHEHAYEB
Workers remove the rubble as rescuers keep searching for a missing woman and girl at a destroyed building that was hit on April 8, in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, April 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Workers remove the rubble as rescuers keep searching for a missing woman and girl at a destroyed building that was hit on April 8, in an Israeli airstrike in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, April 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Israel’s military said Monday that its troops have surrounded what they say is Hezbollah military infrastructure and have started ground operations in the strategic southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil and its surrounding areas, killing over 100 Hezbollah fighters.
Hezbollah did not immediately publicly announce anyone killed among their ranks, and Israel did not immediately acknowledge any fatalities among their forces. Hezbollah has not commented on the developments.
On Sunday Hezbollah claimed at least five attacks on Israeli troops in the town and its outskirts with rockets, artillery, and exploding drones. According to the group’s statements, the Israeli troops were positioned near a school, a hospital, and juncture that surrounds the heart of Bint Jbeil. The Israeli military said it attacked Hezbollah forces.
The town overlooks the UN-mandated Blue Line that divides Israel and Lebanon, just over 2 miles away, making it a strategic point for the Iran-backed group.
12:02 PM GMT+3
Pope Leo hits back at Trump over Iran war
By NICOLE WINFIELD, ANDREW MEDICHINI
Pope Leo XIV said that the Vatican’s appeals for peace and reconciliation are rooted in the Gospel, and that he didn’t fear the Trump administration.
“To put my message on the same plane as what the president has attempted to do here, I think is not understanding what the message of the Gospel is,” Leo told The Associated Press aboard the papal plane. “And I’m sorry to hear that but I will continue on what I believe is the mission of the church in the world today.”
History’s first U.S.-born pope stressed that he was not making a direct attack against Trump or anyone else with his general appeal for peace and criticisms of the “delusion of omnipotence” that is fueling the Iran wars and other conflicts around the world.
11:59 AM GMT+3
BREAKING NEWS UPDATES
JUST IN: Trump lambasts Pope Leo XIV, extending feud over Iran war with the pontiff
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
11:48 AM GMT+3
China expresses hope for continued ceasefire and end to war in Iran
By SIMINA MISTREANU
China regards the recent U.S.-Iran talks in Pakistan as “a step in a direction conducive to easing the situation,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Monday.
He called on the parties to abide by the ceasefire and resolve disputes through diplomacy. Guo said that the “root cause” of navigation disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz is the Iran conflict. “The way out is to achieve a ceasefire and end the fighting as soon as possible,” he said.
11:20 AM GMT+3
Germany will reduce energy tax for diesel and gas for 2 months
By KIRSTEN GRIESHABER
The roughly 17-cent (20 U.S. cent) per-liter reduction is intended to help cushion the impact of high energy prices linked to the Iran war.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Monday the measure “will very quickly improve the situation for drivers and businesses across the country, and especially for those who spend a great deal of time on the road, primarily for work-related reasons.”
11:08 AM GMT+3
Starmer says Britain doesn’t support Trump’s Iran blockade
By JILL LAWLESS
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference at Downing Street in London, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, Pool)
Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference at Downing Street in London, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, Pool)
Prime Minister Keir Starmer says Britain will not be part of a U.S. blockade of Iranian ports in response to the closing of the Strait of Hormuz. Starmer told BBC radio on Monday that “we’re not supporting the blockade” and “we’re not getting dragged into the war.”
He said U.K. efforts remain focused on reopening the key shipping route, whose closure has sent prices for oil and other commodities soaring.
Starmer spoke after U.S. President Donald Trump said Britain would send minesweepers to the strait.
Britain says it might help with mine-clearing in the waterway, but only after the fighting stops. Starmer said all Britain’s military capability is focused on getting the strait “fully open.” The U.K. is working with dozens of other countries on plans to restore security to shipping through the key oil route after the conflict.
11:07 AM GMT+3
Japan urges de-escalation
By MARI YAMAGUCHI
Japan urges de-escalation Japan has expressed support for the U.S.-Iran talks held in Pakistan over the weekend and that it continues to closely watch further development in hopes of an early de-escalation.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara told reporters Monday that his government believes that the most important thing is actually to achieve de-escalation, including ensuring the safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
11:01 AM GMT+3
ASEAN urges more ceasefire negotiations, opening Strait of Hormuz
By JIM GOMEZ
Southeast Asian countries urged the United States and Iran Monday to keep going with ceasefire negotiations, enforce a ceasefire and restore the safe passage of ships, seafarers and aircraft in the Strait of Hormuz.
10:46 AM GMT+3
Iran says no port in gulf region will be safe if its ports threatened
By SAM MAGDY
Iran threatened ports in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman after the U.S. announced a blockade on Iran’s ports and coastline.
“Security in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman is either for everyone or for NO ONE,” according to the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, IRIB. “NO PORT in the region will be safe,” the Iranian military said.
10:44 AM GMT+3
BREAKING NEWS UPDATES
JUST IN: Iran says no port in Persian Gulf or Gulf of Oman will be safe if its own ports are threatened as U.S. declares blockade
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
10:23 AM GMT+3
Iraqi oil exports plummet
By SAM MAGDY
Iraq’s oil exports plunged in March to 18.6 million barrels, down from 99.87 million in February due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, according to official figures released Monday.
The state-run Organization for Marketing of Oil said revenues also have fallen to just $1.95 billion, down from over $6.81 billion.
The figures showed that exports from the Kurdistan Region through Turkey’s Ceyhan port also dropped to 1.27 million barrels, down from 5.55 million barrels in February.
10:23 AM GMT+3
Oil prices start climbing, Asian shares drop
By YURI KAGEYAMA
Oil prices started climbing and Asian markets mostly declined Monday as the U.S. military prepared to blockade ships bound for or coming from Iranian ports and transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
On Monday, benchmark U.S. crude jumped $6.71 or nearly 7% to $103.28 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, rose $6.20, or 6.5%, to $101.40 a barrel.
Oil prices have been rising as shipping through the strait has essentially stalled since late February. Brent crude oil, the international standard, has gone from roughly $70 per barrel before the war in late February to more than $119 at times.
Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost 0.7% to finish at 56,502.77. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 shed 0.4% to 8,926.00. South Korea’s Kospi dipped 0.9% to 5,808.62. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 1.1% to 25,613.85, while the Shanghai Composite was little changed, inching up less than 0.1% to 3,988.56.
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