The US and Israel on Feb 28 launched what they described as a “pre-emptive” joint strike against Iranian targets, with Trump announcing start of “major combat operations”
The US Navy said one of its guided missile destroyers enforced the US blockade against an Iranian-flagged vessels “attempting to sail to a port in Iran”.
UN chief Antonio Guterres has expressed his condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of an Indonesian UNIFIL peacekeeper who succumbed to his wounds after an Israeli strike on a UNIFIL position in southern Lebanon in March.
He also wished a “full and fast recovery” of the other injured.
“Six peacekeepers serving with UNIFIL have now been killed and several more have been seriously injured following recent incidents amid the hostilities between Hezbollah the Israel Defence Forces,” Guterres said on X.
Companies have paid out up to $4 million for last-minute passage of their vessels through the Panama Canal in recent weeks to cope with the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, The Associated Press (AP) news agency reports according to Al Jazeera, citing canal authorities.
The canal usually charges a flat rate for passage, but companies without a booking can pay extra in an auction to avoid waiting for several days to transit through the waterway.
With the Strait of Hormuz blocked, the AP reports that demand for these auctioned slots has skyrocketed, raising the going price, as commercial vessels increasingly use the Panama Canal.
The US Central Command (Centcom) says that the guided-missile destroyer USS Rafael Peralta (DDG 115) has intercepted an Iranian-flagged ship attempting to sail to a port in Iran yesterday.
The foreign ministries of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia have both issued statements condemning a recent drone attack on Kuwaiti border posts that originated from Iraq, according to Al Jazeera.
Bahrain expressed “full solidarity” with Kuwait and support for “all measures taken to preserve its security, stability, sovereignty, and territorial integrity”.
It also stressed the importance of Iraq’s government taking “immediate and decisive action to hold all those involved in these acts of aggression accountable and ensure they are not repeated”.
Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry expressed its “strongest condemnation” of the drone attacks and called on Iraq’s government to respond to “these threats to the Gulf states”.
The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has condemned “in the strongest possible terms” a recent drone attack originating from Iraq targeting border posts in Kuwait, Al Jazeera reports.
Kuwait’s army said earlier that two drones launched from Iraq targeted two northern border posts, causing damage but no casualties.
In a statement, the GCC’s Secretary-General Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi said the attack “constitutes a flagrant violation of the principles of good neighbourliness and all international laws and norms”.
The spokesperson for Iran’s Defence Ministry, General Reza Talaei-Nik, has stated that a “significant portion of the missile capabilities” of the country “remains unused”, Al Jazeera reports, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.
He also said that Iranian armed forces “maintained control over the skies of the occupied territories until the moment the ceasefire began”, according to Tasnim.
The Russian foreign ministry says that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his UAE counterpart, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed, have jointly called for the resumption of talks to secure a rapid, sustainable agreement to the Middle East crisis, Al Jazeera has reported citing Reuters.
According to Reuters, the ministers, in a telephone call, “expressed their shared view on the need to resume negotiations in order to promptly reach agreements on a long-term, sustainable resolution of the crisis, taking into account the legitimate interests of all countries in the region”.
US-Kuwaiti journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, who was detained in Kuwait over online posts related to the Iran war, has been released and departed the Gulf nation, Reuters reports.
A US State Department official said yesterday that Shihab-Eldin, 41, had left Kuwait.
Shihab-Eldin had been visiting family in Kuwait and was arrested on March 3, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). The media watchdog said he was charged with spreading false information, harming national security and misusing his mobile phone.
In an interview with theAssociated Press, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has ruled out renewal of Washington’s waivers for Iranian and Russian oil.
The spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry, Esmaeil Baqaei, has said on X that no meeting was planned to take place between the US and Iran.
“Iran’s observations would be conveyed to Pakistan,” he said. Talking about Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi’s visit to Islamabad, he said the delegation will be meeting with high-level officials in “concert with their ongoing mediation and good offices for ending American imposed war of aggression and the restitution of peace in our region”.
Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says he believes key sticking points in negotiations over nuclear issues can be overcome, Anadolu reports.
“As talks on [the] Iran war [are] set to resume tomorrow, I believe that one or two issues — particularly those that had been deadlocked in the nuclear dossier — can be resolved,” Fidan tells journalists after his programme at Oxford University.
Fidan adds that Turkiye is in almost daily contact with all parties involved in the negotiations and welcomes recent steps toward extending a fragile ceasefire.
“We welcomed the initial two-week ceasefire, but we also said at the time that it would not be enough to reach a final agreement,” he says. “That ceasefire has now been extended.
“We are trying to contribute positively and provide encouragement to all sides,” he adds.
European Council President Antonio Costa says “real peace” in the Middle East “can only be achieved by defending international law in a consistent and principled way”, Anadolu reports
Speaking after an informal EU leaders meeting, alongside European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Greek Cypriot leader Nikos Christodoulides, Costa says Europe is operating in a “challenging security environment” that requires a “360-degree vision for sustainable peace and security”.
“The European Union is not part of the conflict, but we will be part of the solution,” Costa states, referring to ongoing tensions between the United States, Israel, Lebanon and Iran.
He welcomes recent ceasefires involving the US, Iran, Israel and Lebanon, calling them “welcome developments,” but stresses that all parties must now “engage in good faith to achieve peace”.
“As we support diplomatic efforts towards reaching a negotiated solution to this conflict, our principles are clear: real peace can only be achieved by defending international law in a consistent and principled way,” he adds.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan says Israel has become a “direct threat to global security” and urges a “collective” international response, arguing growing instability can no longer be viewed through a purely regional lens, Anadolu reports.
Speaking at Oxford University on global reordering, Fidan says the world is experiencing not merely a geopolitical transition but a deeper transformation.
“What we are witnessing today is not a transition, but it’s rather a transformation,” he explains, arguing states can no longer “outsource their security, their diplomacy or their strategic imagination”.
Referring to the Iran war, which began with US and Israeli strikes, Fidan says the conflict dealt “a heavy blow to global prosperity, security and stability”.
“Israel’s systemic threat to destabilise the region has exceeded local borders and now constitutes a direct threat to global security,” he states, adding that such actions “demand a collective response from the international community as a whole”.
Earlier, Reuters reported that US President Donald Trump claimed while speaking to the news agency that Iran planned to make an offer aimed at satisfying US demands, as peace talks were expected to resume in Pakistan.
“They’re making an offer and we’ll have to see,” Trump said during a phone interview.
Reuters has now shared more details from the conversation, according to which Trump said he did not know what the offer would be yet.
When asked who the US was negotiating with, Trump said: “I don’t want to say that, but we’re dealing with the people that are in charge now.” He declined to provide names.
Asked what is needed to lift the blockade, Trump said: “I’d have to be able to answer that question later. I have to see what they’re offering.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has expressed his pleasure at welcoming Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi upon his arrival at Nur Khan Airbase near Islamabad.
Dar adds that he was accompanied by Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir and Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi.
“[I] look forward to our meaningful engagements aimed at promoting regional peace and stability,” he writes on X.
The Islamabad police say that the Red Zone and Extended Red Zone will be “completely closed to all types of traffic”, according to an advisory.
Similarly, the expressway from Korral to Zero Point will be closed to all traffic, while traffic can be stopped at different times along the Srinagar Highway.
“Entry of all types of heavy traffic into Islamabad from any direction or road will remain prohibited,” the police say. “Owners of heavy vehicles are requested not to travel towards Islamabad during these days to avoid inconvenience.”
Residents of Islamabad have been advised to follow an alternative traffic plan in case of road closures. The plan is as follows:
Residents of G-5, G-6, G-7, F-6, and F-7 should use Margalla Road via 9th Avenue for travel to and from Rawalpindi.
Traffic coming to and from Zero Point via Faisal Avenue will be diverted towards 9th Avenue.
If the road from Zero Point to Korral Chowk is closed, commuters can use Srinagar Highway to 9th Avenue, then Stadium Road, Murree Road (Chandni Chowk), and Rawal Road to reach Korral.
If Club Road is closed from Park Road, traffic will be diverted towards Tramri Chowk.
Citizens travelling between Bhara Kahu and Rawalpindi should use Korang Road, Bani Gala, and Lehtrar Road.
Those travelling between Rawalpindi Saddar and Islamabad should use either Colonel Sher Khan Road via Fakir Aipi Road or 9th Avenue.
Heavy traffic travelling from Peshawar to Lahore via GT Road should use the motorway from Taxila, Chakri Interchange, Chak Beli Road, and then rejoin GT Road at Rawat.
Heavy traffic travelling from Lahore to Peshawar via GT Road should use Chak Beli Road from Rawat to Chakri Interchange, then travel via the motorway towards Taxila.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has said that trucks carrying medicines and other pharmaceutical products will not be stopped from entering Islamabad, which remains under tightened security ahead of potential US-Iran peace talks.
As part of the security arrangements, heavy vehicles and trucks have been denied entry into the city, leading to shortages of items such as medicines.
Media reports, shared by Naqvi on X, showed that trucks carrying medicines, vaccines and other items have been parked outside the city.
“Pharmaceutical vehicles will not be stopped. We will ensure that they face no hurdles in delivering medicines across Islamabad,” the minister says.
Similarly, Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon has issued a statement saying that certain heavy vehicles will be allowed entry into the city.
“Special permission has been granted for vehicles bringing petroleum products, food items, and medicines to enter the city,” he says on X.
“In this regard, the district administration is in continuous contact with foodstuffs, vegetable and fruit distributors, the Drug Regulatory Authority, the pharmaceutical industry and petrol pump owners and suppliers.”
Memon adds that none of these vehicles are being barred from entering the city, and that the ban on other heavy vehicles will remain in place “until further orders”.
