Iran temporarily reopened the Strait of Hormuz on Friday (17 April) following a ceasefire agreement in Lebanon, raising optimism about peace talks, but Tehran warned that it could close the crucial waterway again if the recent U.S. Navy blockade of Iranian ports continued.
Global shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has shown signs of partial recovery after Iran announced it was open to commercial vessels during a limited ceasefire, though uncertainty remains over security conditions and compliance rules.
Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping on Friday (17 April) for the first time since the U.S. and Israel killed Iran's ex-Supreme Leader in air strikes, triggering the Middle East conflict, at the end of February. A U.S. blockade on Iranian ports, however, remains in force.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 17th of April, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Despite celebrations and cheers in Beirut Thursday night, some people who are affected by the conflict in Lebanon are sceptical about the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon announced by U.S. President Trump on Thursday (16 April).
A 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel went into effect on Thursday at midnight local time and President Donald Trump said the next meeting between the United States and Iran may take place over the weekend, adding to optimism that the Iran war could be nearing an end.
France and Britain will chair a meeting on Friday (17 April) of around 40 countries aimed at signalling to the United States that some of its closest allies are ready to play a role in restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz once conditions allow.
Nations and organisations and Beirut react positively to the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The Lebanese authorities negotiated the pause with Israel after an historic meeting on Tuesday in the U.S with President Donald Trump making the announcement on Thursday 16 April.
Germany’s opposition party, The Left, on Thursday accused Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government of fuelling the war in Iran by exporting arms to Israel, as new figures revealed millions of euros in approved military sales.
Optimism grew on Thursday that the war in the Middle East may be near an end, with a key Pakistani mediator in Tehran and the administration of President Donald Trump talking up hopes for a deal that would open the crucial Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday that there was a "good chance" of a peace deal between Lebanon and Israel happening soon, after he announced a 10-day ceasefire between the two countries.
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.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 15th of April, covering the latest developments you need to know.
Canada, the UK, Australia, Japan and six other countries condemned the killings of United Nations peacekeepers in Lebanon on Tuesday while calling "for an urgent end to hostilities" in the country where Israeli attacks have killed more than 2,000 people since March.
Italy has suspended a long-standing defence cooperation agreement with Israel, marking a sharp shift in relations as tensions in the Middle East escalate.
Iran’s mission at the United Nations headquarters in New York has, in a letter to the Secretary-General and the Security Council President, demanded war compensation from five regional states over damages caused during Israeli-U.S. aggression against Iran.
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.
Israeli and Lebanese envoys are set to meet in Washington on Tuesday in a rare U.S.-driven diplomatic effort to halt escalating violence between Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon.
Amid fragile calm, António Guterres urged constructive U.S.- Iran talks, while Pope Leo XIV warned violence is spreading. Lebanon's President said an Israeli strike killed 13 security personnel in Nabatieh.
Lebanon is sliding deeper into a food security crisis as ongoing regional conflict disrupts supply routes and drives up the cost of basic goods, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has warned.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday (9 April) he is seeking direct talks with Beirut, a day after the deadliest bombardment of the war killed more than 250 people in Lebanon and put Donald Trump’s U.S.–Iran ceasefire at risk.
A fragile two-week ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran showed further strain on Friday, a day before they are to negotiate in Pakistan, as Washington accused Tehran of breaching promises on the Strait of Hormuz and Israel struck Lebanon with attacks that Iran has claimed violate the ceasefire.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has given an instruction for Israel to begin peace talks with Lebanon that would also include the disarming of Hezbollah.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry has condemned continued Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, which have left hundreds dead - mostly civilians - over the past 48 hours, as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has instructed his cabinet to begin direct peace talks with Lebanon.
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