War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

Commercial supplies of jet fuel may worsen this summer despite the improving situation in the Strait of Hormuz, AFP reports quoting EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen.

Since June 15, traffic has been steadily increasing through the strait, which normally sees around a fifth of the world’s oil and gas exports.

Jorgensen says that even with the pickup in maritime traffic through the strait, it will take time for energy markets to recover.

“It will still take some months to get back to normal for oil and some years to get back to normal on gas because of the destruction of infrastructure in the region,” he states.

Jorgensen says that in “the short term, there will most likely be a more serious situation with regard to the commercial stocks when we reach the end of the summer”.

He adds that EU nations may need to release jet fuel supplies to avoid shortages and that the officials will monitor the situation.

Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah has rejected the agreement between Israel and Lebanon signed in Washington, DC, Al Jazeera reports.

“The course being pursued by the Lebanese authorities amounts to unilateral, gratuitous concessions that will only undermine the country and serve the interests of the Israeli enemy,” he says in a statement carried by Lebanese outlet Al-Mayadeen, adding that the agreement “risks creating dangerous internal divisions”.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Lebanese civilians displaced from the so-called “security zone” that Israeli forces established in south Lebanon will not be allowed to return home after a new deal was announced with Lebanon and the US, AFP reports.

“We are maintaining the original security zone at all times, outside the range of anti-tank fire. We are not allowing Hezbollah to enter it, nor are we allowing the civilian population to enter,” Netanyahu says in a pre-recorded video shared with Israeli media, shortly after a trilateral framework agreement was announced in Washington.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israeli forces will remain in south Lebanon until Hezbollah disarms, shortly after the announcement in Washington of a framework agreement with the United States and Lebanon, AFP reports.

“The most important thing is, first of all, that Israel remains in the security zone in southern Lebanon. This is a major achievement, and we will maintain it as long as Hezbollah has not disarmed,” Netanyahu has said in a pre-recorded video shared with Israeli media.

Netanyahu adds that Israel’s military will also allow the Lebanese army to control territory in “two pilot areas”: one south of Lebanon’s Litani River and another north of it.

US President Donald Trump says that Iran still retains some military capability, citing an attack on a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz a day prior.

“They have some capability, not much. They’re not winning or anything,” he tells an event hosted by the Faith and Freedom Coalition. “They shot a drone yesterday at a big ship going to the Hormuz strait.”

Trump notes that Iran launched four drones, but the US took down three of them.

He has also reiterated his claim that Iran’s military has been largely destroyed, with no navy, air force and radar, adding that their drone capacity is down by 82 per cent, their missile capacity has been cut by 80pc and that 90 pc of their “rocket launchers” have been destroyed.

US President Donald Trump claims fuel prices will drop to $2.50 a gallon.

“Very soon, we’re going to be at $2.50 [for] gasoline,” he tells an event hosted by the Faith and Freedom Coalition.

Iran’s foreign minister has discussed regional developments with his British counterpart, according to Al Jazeera.

In their phone call, Abbas Araghchi has updated Yvette Cooper on the progress of negotiations with the US, and both sides have stressed their commitment to regional stability, Iran’s Mehr news agency reports.

US Secretary Marco Rubio says that although a framework agreement has been signed between Israel and Lebanon, there is still much to be done, Al Jazeera reports.

“It’s the beginning of the beginning,” Rubio said at the signing ceremony. “There’s a lot of work ahead. Today is the first step. The first step is sometimes the hardest one.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has announced a framework agreement between Israel and Lebanon after talks in Washington, Reuters reports.

The United Nations is working with countries to resume the evacuation of hundreds of ships and thousands of stranded seafarers from the Strait of Hormuz after the effort was halted earlier this week, Reuters reports citing a top US agency official.

The UN’s International Maritime Organisation said on Thursday it had “temporarily paused” its evacuation initiative after a container ship operated by Taiwan’s Evergreen was attacked.

Some 115 vessels and around 2,500 seafarers were able to sail through the strait before evacuations were paused, IMO Secretary-General Arsenio Dominguez tells a virtual news conference.

Dominguez adds he is working “vigilantly” with several parties and was having conversations with countries, particularly Oman, the United States and Iran, “in order to find these guarantees that were provided at the beginning, that vessels will not be targeted”.

“As soon as I get further confirmations of that, we’re ready to re-initiate the process of evacuation,” he states, though he adds he cannot provide a timeframe for a resumption.

Israel and Lebanon are expected to sign a framework agreement in Washington, Reuters reports citing senior Israeli officials, who have not immediately provided further details.

The Lebanese Ministry of Health says the overall toll from Israeli attacks since March 2 has risen to 4,243 dead and 12,186 wounded, Al Jazeera reports.

US President Donald Trump has accused Iran of launching at least four attack drones at a cargo ship off the coast of Oman yesterday.

“One of the drones solidly hit the upper deck of a large and very expensive cargo carrying ship. Damage was done, but the ship was able to proceed on its way,” he writes on Truth Social. “We knocked down three other Drones.

“Obviously, this is a foolish violation of our ceasefire agreement.”

World oil prices have extended sharp losses on optimism for traffic flows in the Strait of Hormuz, despite the suspension of a UN evacuation programme.

The price of Brent North Sea crude, the international benchmark, plunged more than 5 per cent to around $71.50 a barrel, and the main US contract, West Texas Intermediate, shed 4.5pc to under $69.

The UAE’s National Emergency Crisis and Disaster Management Authority has issued a statement saying that earlier messages warning residents about a possible missile threat had been due to a technical malfunction, Al Jazeera reports.

It says the issue was resolved by specialised teams and that officials apologised for the disruption.

The UAE has been the Gulf country hardest hit by Iranian missiles during Tehran’s war with the US, with significant disruption to daily life amid missile alarms and loud explosions from interceptions.

Traffic levels in the Strait of Hormuz have fallen back from Wednesday’s high, but vessels continue to use a non-Iranian-approved passage despite a ship being struck by a projectile, tracking platforms show according to AFP.

At least 42 commodity vessels — including tankers carrying oil, gas, and dry bulk such as fertilisers — crossed yesterday, Kpler’s tracking platform showed, down from a high of 57 on Wednesday.

Ten of those vessels entered the Gulf, while 32 exited. Half of the 42 vessels used a southern passageway hugging the coast of Oman.

Another 29 commodity vessels had already crossed the strait by this afternoon, 10 coming into the Gulf and 19 leaving, according to Kpler.

Seventeen of those vessels used the Omani route, despite a Singapore-flagged container ship reporting that it had been struck while using the passageway on Thursday, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre.

Lebanese Foreign Minister Youssef Raggi says he spoke with the secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Jasem Albudaiwi, conveying his “appreciation for the support expressed in the joint ministerial statement” for the Lebanese-Israeli negotiations mediated by the US, Al Jazeera reports.

In a statement posted on X, Raggi says the ministry “highly appreciated” the references to Lebanon in the GCC-US statement.

“Particularly its welcome of the ongoing US-mediated negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, its emphasis on preserving the negotiation process and keeping it separate from any other track, and its affirmation that Lebanon cannot achieve full sovereignty as long as non-state armed groups retain military capabilities,” the statement reads.

“The ministry also welcomes its call for the complete disarmament of all such groups and for the Lebanese state alone to have the exclusive authority to use force,” it adds.

A total of about 115 vessels and 2,500 seafarers have been evacuated from the Strait of Hormuz since Tuesday, the head of the UN maritime body says, according to AFP.

International Maritime Organisation (IMO) secretary-general Arsenio Dominguez gave the update after the body on Thursday suspended its efforts to evacuate some 600 ships and 11,000 sailors, following an attack on a vessel in the Gulf of Oman.

Dominguez told an online press conference that “115 [vessels] have evacuated in the last three and a half days, representing around 2,500 seafarers that have now safely left the Strait of Hormuz.”

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar says 22 Iranian crew members of a tanker seized by the US have arrived in Pakistan.

“Arrangements are now being finalised in close collaboration with the Iranian Missions in Pakistan to facilitate their earliest and safe return to their homeland,” he writes on X. “We remained in close contact with the US and Iranian authorities throughout this process.”

Dar adds that this is the fourth group of Iranian crew members whose repatriation has been facilitated by Pakistan in the last two months.

“So far, we have assisted in the repatriation of over 70 Iranian brethren (including today’s group of 22) through Pakistani territory,” he adds, thanking Tehran for the “trust they have reposed in Pakistan”.

Crude prices have plunged by about 3 per cent, on course for steep weekly losses, as more oil tankers exit the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply concerns, even though a cargo vessel was hit near Oman on Thursday, Reuters reports.

Brent crude futures fell by $2.42, or 3.2pc, to $72.84 a barrel by 1323 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate lost $1.97, or 2.7pc, to $69.95.

Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for ending the ceasefire in Lebanon after four Israeli troops were wounded in the country’s south, Anadolu reports.

“There are soldiers who have been injured. We can strike and bomb hundreds of targets,” Ben-Gvir says, referring to a Thursday incident in which four Israeli soldiers were wounded in southern Lebanon, according to a report by Yedioth Ahronoth.

During a security cabinet meeting on Thursday, the extremist minister described the incident as “an opportunity for the agreement to collapse.”

Although his position did not appear to gain support during the meeting, other ministers reportedly voiced frustration over operational restrictions imposed on Israeli forces under the ceasefire arrangements in Lebanon.

The Israeli army claims to have killed seven Hezbollah members who allegedly transferred weapons near soldiers in southern Lebanon, Al Jazeera reports.

In a statement on Telegram, the army claims it struck the alleged fighters near the so-called “security zone” in the al-Manzala area that was used as a “combat and observation post”.

The “security zone” is an area of southern Lebanon that Israeli forces are occupying north of the Israeli border.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, the United Arab Emirates’ Foreign Minister, has discussed regional developments in a phone call with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, according to the official WAM news agency.

“During the call, the overall situation in the region and the latest regional developments were discussed, following the agreement on the memorandum of understanding between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran and its signing by the two countries,” WAM reports.

The UAE’s top diplomat has stressed the importance of full commitment to the terms of the US-Iran agreement during the call, adding it will “ensure an immediate and comprehensive cessation of hostilities in the region, respect for the sovereignty of states and the principles of good neighborliness, strict adherence to international law, and the protection of maritime routes and freedom of international navigation, including ensuring the smooth flow of traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, expressing his hope that the ongoing negotiations would lead to positive results that would lead to achieving sustainable security and stability in the region”.