An IRGC boat off the coast of Bandar Abbas, Iran .President Trump orders U.S. military to ‘shoot and kill’ Iranian boats mining Strait of Hormuz[File: Nazanin Tabatabaee/WANA via Reuters]
The U.S. also boarded another tanker it said was involved in smuggling Iranian oil, as the intensifying maritime standoff leaves a crucial global trade route at an effective standstill.
Here is the latest developments in the Middle ERast war
- STANDOFF AT SEA: The U.S. military says it has boarded another tanker involved in smuggling Iranian oil, as the intensifying maritime standoff between the two countries leaves the key Strait of Hormuz trade route effectively shut. Tehran attacked three commercial ships and seized two of them yesterday, saying the U.S. naval blockade is a “main obstacle” to new peace talks.
- MINE-CLEARING HORMUZ: President Donald Trump ordered the U.S. military to “shoot and kill” any Iranian boats laying mines in the strait, adding that the U.S. would intensify its efforts to clear mines that have helped choke off global shipping.
- TRUMP SAYS ‘NO TIME PRESSURE’: Despite the mounting global economic consequences, Trump said there is “no time pressure” in talks with Iran and “no time frame” on ending the war after he extended the ceasefire.
- ISRAEL-LEBANON CEASEFIRE: The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by three weeks, Trump announced on Truth Social. Shortly before Trump’s post, Hezbollah announced they had launched rockets at northern Israel that the Israel Defense Forces said they had intercepted.
- DEATH TOLL: Iran’s forensics chief said nearly 3,400 people had been killed in the country since U.S.-Israeli strikes began Feb. 28. More than 2,300 people have been killed in Lebanon, 32 have been killed in Gulf states, and 23 have died in Israel. Thirteen U.S. service members have been killed, and two more died of noncombat causes.
- Strait of Hormuz– Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, said Iran has acted “entirely” lawfully in its actions involving the Strait of Hormuz. “From a legal perspective, both under international law and domestic law, the measures taken regarding the Strait of Hormuz are entirely lawful,” he said, according to SNN, a state-affiliated Iranian news agency.
- Trump says he wants PM Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to meet at White House– “I think we’ll do it during the three-week period, ideally. I mean, I’d like to suggest over the three-week ceasefire, right, if you can do that,” he said. “We’re here. We’ll do it in the Oval Office.”
- Trump also said Hezbollah will have to be dealt with.
- “They’ve agreed to an additional three weeks of, I guess, no firing, ceasefire, no more firing. Let’s see. We hope that happens, not going to happen between them, but they do have Hezbollah to think about,” Trump said.
- Israel waiting for U.S. green light to return Iran to ‘the dark and stone ages’
- Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a video statement Israel is “prepared to renew the war against Iran,” but the nation is waiting “for the green light from the U.S.”
Kuwait fully reopens its airspace –- The airspace at Kuwait International Airport has been reopened today, Kuwait’s General Civil Aviation Authority announced in a statement on X. The move was made in coordination with international authorities.
- Next round of Israel-Lebanon talks will take place at the White House, officials say– Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to join the discussions, which were originally expected to be held at the State Department.
- NBC/YL
