Iran has raised the idea of charging ships to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, drawing sharp attention due to the waterway’s vital role in global energy supply and the legal questions involved.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 16th of April, covering the latest developments you need to know.
The U.S. and Iran could resume peace talks over the next couple of days, U.S. President Donald Trump has said. Talks between Israel and Lebanon were held in Washington yesterday. Fuel prices have dropped below $100 a barrel. U.S. blockade on Iranian ports completes first day.
The United States' claims about China exerting military pressure on Taiwan are distorted, and demonstrate its "malicious intentions", a government spokesperson in Beijing said on Wednesday.
Greenland’s prime minister has appointed his predecessor to oversee foreign affairs, as pressure from Washington intensifies over the Arctic island’s future.
There are cautious signs of progress towards peace, as negotiating teams from the U.S. and Iran consider returning to Islamabad later this week to resume talks aimed at ending the Gulf conflict.
The Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP) has emerged as a landmark U.S.-backed connectivity project in the South Caucasus, linking Azerbaijan and Armenia through a proposed transit corridor seen as both an economic lifeline and a key test of long-term regional peace.
Since Monday, Monday (13 April), America has blocked traffic entering and leaving Iran's ports, in an escalation of the conflict in the Middle East. The consequences of that will continue to impact the global oil supply.
Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors to the United States will meet later in Washington to discuss a ceasefire, with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio attending.
Iran's ports were blocked by the U.S. military on Monday (13 April), President Donald Trump confirmed. Tehran has threatened to retaliate against its Gulf neighbours' ports and a U.S. official said there was continued engagement with Iran, and forward motion on trying to get to an agreement.
U.S. President Donald Trump warned that any Iranian ships approaching ports in the Strait of Hormuz would be "immediately eliminated" on Monday, as the U.S. started its blockade.
Tensions in the Gulf have sharpened dramatically after reports that the United States has begun a blockade of Iranian ports, a move already rippling through global markets and political circles.
A U.S. federal judge has dismissed Donald Trump’s defamation lawsuit against The Wall Street Journal, marking a setback in his ongoing legal battles with major media organisations he accuses of publishing misleading coverage.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is on a five-day visit to China, his fourth trip in four years, highlighting Spain’s push to strengthen economic and strategic relations with the world’s second-largest economy.
U.S. President Donald Trump forcefully criticised Pope Leo XIV late on Sunday in an unusually direct attack on the leader of the global Catholic Church, triggering a backlash from religious leaders and believers worldwide.
The Iranian President, Masoud Pezeshkian, said that the U.S. hegemonic approach has been the main obstacle to reaching a fair agreement, his office announced on Monday.
Pope Leo XIV is set to make history this April, becoming the first pontiff ever to visit Algeria. The trip forms part of a wider African tour, taking him to Angola, Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon from 13–23 April, and marks his first major overseas trip of 2026.
The U.S. military said it will begin a blockade of all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports and coastal areas on Monday after weekend talks failed to reach a deal to end the war with Iran at the weekend in Pakistan, jeopardizing a fragile two-week ceasefire.
Oil tankers are steering clear of the Strait of Hormuz ahead of a U.S. blockade later on Monday following failed peace talks between the U.S. and Iran over the weekend, shipping data showed.
U.S. Vice President JD Vance said the United States and Iran left peace talks in Islamabad without reaching an agreement early on Sunday, as negotiations extended into a second day, with both sides signalling continued tensions over key issues including the Strait of Hormuz and nuclear policy.
U.S. and Iranian negotiators held their highest-level talks in half a century in Pakistan on Saturday in an effort to end their six-week war, as President Donald Trump said the U.S. military had begun the process of clearing the Strait of Hormuz.
Britain’s plan to transfer the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, which host a strategic U.K.-U.S. military base, has been put on indefinite hold after the Trump administration withdrew its support.
Talks between the United States and Iran opened in Islamabad on Saturday (11 April) as the two sides sought to turn a fragile temporary ceasefire into a lasting agreement, amid disputes over Lebanon and sanctions relief.
Donald Trump’s flagship plan for post-war Gaza has come under scrutiny after reports that its financing is falling short of expectations, claims firmly rejected by the White House-backed Board of Peace.
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