Iran on Monday described U.S. proposals to end a month-long war in the Middle East as “unrealistic, illogical and excessive” and launched further missile strikes on Israel as oil prices continued to climb following Yemen’s Houthi entry into the conflict.
Israel’s military said two drones from Yemen were intercepted on Monday, two days after the Iran-aligned Houthis fired missiles at Israel for the first time since the start of the U.S.–Israeli war with Iran.
It also said missile strikes targeted military infrastructure in Tehran, as well as Iran-backed Hezbollah sites in Beirut.
U.S. President Donald Trump issued another warning to Iran on Monday to reopen the Strait of Hormuz - a waterway through which around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass - or risk U.S. attacks on its energy infrastructure.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran had received messages via intermediaries indicating Washington’s willingness to negotiate.
This followed a meeting of the foreign ministers of Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Türkiye in Islamabad on Sunday (29 March) to discuss mediation efforts.
However, Baghaei dismissed the U.S. proposals, telling a press conference on Monday: “Our position is clear. We are under military aggression. Therefore, all our efforts and strength are focused on defending ourselves.”
A Pakistani security official said direct U.S.–Iran talks were unlikely this week, although efforts to facilitate dialogue were ongoing.
Baghaei also confirmed that Iran’s parliament is reviewing a possible withdrawal from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Tehran denies seeking nuclear weapons, despite Washington citing that concern as a reason for its 28 February attack.
While U.S. President Donald Trump said talks had taken place “directly and indirectly”, he also warned Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face strikes on key infrastructure, including energy facilities and Kharg Island.
Separately, Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf dismissed U.S. proposals as a “wish list”, accusing Washington of trying to secure through diplomacy what it failed to achieve militarily.
Meanwhile, lawmakers have introduced two urgent draft bills: one proposing withdrawal from the NPT in response to security threats, and another focusing on shipping regulations in the Strait of Hormuz, including new fees and restrictions on adversaries’ tankers.
The month-long war has spread across the region, killing thousands, causing unprecedented disruption to energy supplies and weighing on the global economy.
Brent crude futures rose by $2.42, or 2.2%, to nearly $115 a barrel by 11:16 GMT on Monday, and were on course for a record monthly rise.
The Houthis’ attacks on Israel have raised the prospect that they could target and block a second key shipping route, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
The oil market has all but discounted the prospect of a negotiated end to the war and “is bracing for a sharp escalation in military hostilities”, said Vandana Hari of oil market provider Vanda Insights.
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South Korea is close to finalising an agreement to import crude oil from Kazakhstan, according to Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan, as the country seeks to diversify its energy supplies amid disruptions in the Middle East, he said on Sunday, 12 April, according to Reuters.
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.
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.
Memorial events were held in Tehran’s main squares on Wednesday (8 April) to mark the 40th day since the killing of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who died during U.S.-Israeli attacks on 28 February.
Israel has reprimanded Spain’s most senior diplomat in Tel Aviv after a giant effigy of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was blown up in a Spanish town.
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.
Nine suspects were arrested on Saturday (11 April) in connection with a terror attack targeting a police post in Istanbul’s Beşiktaş district.
Millions of Orthodox Christians across the globe celebrated Easter, known as Holy Pascha, on Sunday (12 April) with midnight liturgies, candlelight processions and deeply rooted local traditions reflecting centuries of faith.
Russia and Ukraine accused each other of violating a 32-hour ceasefire introduced to mark Orthodox Easter on Saturday (11 April). Russian officials said Ukrainian drones attacked targets in the Kursk and Belgorod border regions, injuring five people.
An Indian healthcare provider plans to invest $50 million in diagnostic and pharmaceutical projects in Uzbekistan’s Namangan region, aiming to expand access to advanced medical services between 2026 and 2028.
Nine suspects have been formally arrested over last week’s gun attack near Israel’s consulate in Istanbul, judicial officials have said. The assault left one attacker dead and two Turkish police officers lightly wounded.
Azerbaijani and Armenian civil society representatives have convened for a new round of dialogue under the ‘Peace Bridge’ initiative, as both sides seek to sustain engagement ahead of key political developments in the region.
The reopening of Azerbaijan’s embassy in Iran reflects the “special relationship” between the two countries, a regional expert has said.
Cement maker Lafarge was found guilty by a French court on Monday (13 April) of paying millions to jihadist groups, including ISIS, to keep a plant running during the Syrian civil war.
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