Donald Trump convened a White House Situation Room meeting on Saturday morning to discuss the renewed crisis around the Strait of Hormuz and negotiations with Iran, according to reporting from Axios. A senior US official told Axios that unless there is a breakthrough in peace talks, it appears that the war could reopen within days. There is still no firm date for negotiations to resume this weekend, despite Trump’s hopes to end the conflict before the ceasefire expires on Tuesday. JD Vance, Marco Rubio, Pete Hegseth and Scott Bessent, among other senior government officials, were present at today’s meeting.
Iranian officials say they have reversed the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and reimposed restrictions on the vital shipping lane after the US said it would not end its blockade of Iranian ports. A UK maritime agency reported that Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ships had fired at a tanker as it attempted to pass through the strait on Saturday. Reuters reported an Indian-flagged vessel carrying crude oil had also been attacked while in the waterway. Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya joint military command said on Saturday that Tehran had restored the strait to its “previous status” and was now “under strict management and control by the armed forces”. Iran said the restrictions would remain if Washington did not “ensure full freedom of navigation for vessels traveling from Iran to destinations and from destinations to Iran”.
The IRGC warned in a statement published by semi-official news agency Tasnim News that it would blockade the Strait of Hormuz again as of today. “Approaching the Strait of Hormuz will be considered cooperation with the enemy, and any offending vessel will be targeted,” the IRGC statement read, citing the US blockade as a ceasefire violation.
Iran is not yet ready to hold a new round of face-to-face talks with US officials, a senior Iranian official said Saturday, citing Washington’s refusal to abandon “maximalist” demands on key issues. Iranian deputy foreign minister Saeed Khatibzadeh also said his country will not hand over its enriched uranium to the US, rejecting claims made by Donald Trump. He added that Iran was seeking the finalization of a “framework agreement” before moving to an in-person meeting.
Pope Leo XIV said Saturday that it is “not in my interest at all” to debate Donald Trump about the Iran war, but that he would continue preaching the Gospel message of peace.
The Israeli military killed two Unicef-contracted truck drivers at a water point in the northern Gaza strip, forcing the UN agency to suspend its operations in the area. Two other people were also injured in the attack that occurred at the Mansoura water-filling point in Gaza City.
India said it had called in the Iranian envoy to New Delhi and flagged its “deep concern” over the attack on two Indian-flagged ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday. One of the vessels attacked was identified as the Sanmar Herald. India’s top foreign ministry official asked the Iranian ambassador to convey India’s view to Iranian authorities and resume at the earliest the process of facilitating India-bound ships across the strait.
The US military is preparing in the coming days to board Iran-linked oil tankers and seize commercial ships in international waters, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing US officials.
Hezbollah has denied it was involved in the deadly attack against UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, which killed a French soldier, Florian Montorio. A UN peacekeeper was killed and three others were injured after a patrol came under attack from “non-state actors”. French president Emmanuel Macron suggested Hezbollah was responsible, but Hezbollah-owned al-Manar TV denied any involvement. Unifil called on the Government of Lebanon to swiftly initiate an investigation.
Donald Trump has warned Iran not to “blackmail” the US with its flip-flopping on the status of the Strait of Hormuz, but again struck a positive tone that a deal with Iran could be possible.
Iran’s supreme national security council said it is reviewing “new proposals” put forward by the US, relayed by the Pakistani army chief, Asim Munir. It added that it will resume control over the Strait of Hormuz “until the end of the war is definitively concluded”, warning that as long as the US naval blockade of Iranian ports continues, Tehran will “regard it as a breach of the ceasefire and will prevent the conditional and limited reopening of the Strait of Hormuz”.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) issued two further alerts relating to attacks and suspicious activity near the Strait of Hormuz: a container ship “being hit by an unknown projectile” north-east of Oman, and suspicious activity (a splash) near a cruise ship east of Oman. Earlier, UKMTO reported IRGC ships had fired at a tanker.
Donald Trump questioned Spain’s financial performance and NATO contributions in a Truth Social post, while Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez criticized attacks against the multilateral system, widely interpreted as a swipe at Trump.
A senior Hezbollah official, Mahmud Qamati, said his group is not concerned by Lebanon’s planned direct talks with Israel, labelling them a failure.
The US Central Command (Centcom) said American forces were enforcing a naval blockade of Iranian ports, claiming 23 ships have complied with their orders to turn around. Apache helicopters were providing a visible presence in support of freedom of navigation.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed carrying out strikes in southern Lebanon yesterday in response to what it said were ceasefire violations by Hezbollah, identifying “terrorists” who posed an immediate threat.
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