Trump's ceasefire extension came hours before it was believed to be set to expire
We are closing this coverage now. For the latest updates, click here.
Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said reopening the Strait of Hormuz is “not possible” amid what Tehran calls “flagrant violations” of the current ceasefire by the US and Israel.
Ghalibaf posted on social media that a “complete ceasefire only has meaning if it is not violated through a naval blockade and the hostage-taking of the world economy,” asserting that the US naval blockade of Iranian ports and Israeli “warmongering” undermine truce commitments.
The remarks come amid ongoing diplomatic efforts — including a ceasefire extension and proposed talks in Pakistan — to end hostilities between Iran and the US. Iran insists that without full compliance by all parties, including lifting maritime restrictions, the strategic waterway will stay closed to international shipping.
The Pentagon announced that the Navy’s top civilian official, Secretary of the Navy John Phelan, is leaving his jobeffective immediately.”
President Trump says Iran peace talks could restart as soon as Friday, according to US media. New reports say Trump estimates they could begin within the next "36 to 72 hours." Trump said Iran's "fructured" leadership failed to come forward with a "unified proposal."
US President Donald Trump has claimed that Iran’s leadership is “seriously fractured” when he announced an indefinite ceasefire extension, while signaling that US pressure on Tehran will continue.
He said the truce would be kept in place to give negotiations "more time", while the US naval blockade on Hormuz and Iranian ports stays.
In response, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian made an immediate pushback: he called out Trump's “hypocritical rhetoric” in the middle of a war-tinged diplomatic standoff, in a message meant to travel far beyond Tehran.
Brent crude returned to the psychologically important $100-per-barrel mark early Thursday, underscoring renewed strength across global oil benchmarks as energy markets reacted to supply uncertainty and geopolitical risk.
A market snapshot taken at 8:21 pm GMT (5.21 am Tokyo, on April 23, 2026) showed Brent crude at $101.5, up $2.97 or 3.02% on the session.
US President Donald Trump has not set a deadline by which Iran must submit a peace proposal, the White House said on Wednesday.
"The president has not set a firm deadline to receive an Iranian proposal, unlike some of the reporting I've seen today. Ultimately, the timeline will be dictated by the commander in chief," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told journalists.
US President Donald Trump does not consider Iran's seizure of two container ships to be a ceasefire violation because the vessels are not American or Israeli, the White House said Wednesday.
"No, because these were not US ships, these were not Israeli ships. These were two international vessels," Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News, when asked if Trump viewed it as a violation of the ceasefire that paused US-Israeli operations against Iran.
The US State Department has urged American citizens to leave Lebanon while commercial flight options remain available. The US Embassy in Beirut said it is closely monitoring the security situation in Lebanon. The security environment remains complex and can change quickly. "We recommend that American citizens in Lebanon who choose not to leave prepare contingency plans for emergency situations and to monitor the news for breaking developments," it said.
Iran's judiciary on Wednesday described as "false news" remarks by US President Donald Trump that the Islamic republic had reversed a decision to execute eight women, saying they had never faced the death penalty.
"Despite the claim from last night being exposed as a lie, Trump, just minutes ago in another post, claimed that the death sentences of eight protesting women who were supposed to be executed tonight in Iran have been cancelled, and thanked Iran!" the judiciary's Mizan Online website posted on X.
"Trump's empty hand in the field has led him to fabricate achievements from false news," it said, in response to the US president's remarks that Iran had halted alleged plans to execute eight women arrested over anti-government protests, after he urged Tehran to release them to help peace negotiations.
The US-Israeli war against Iran is "starting to weaken Europe", Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Wednesday.
"The war in our region is likewise starting to weaken Europe, and if we do not address this situation with an approach that prioritises peace, the damage caused by the conflict will be far greater," Erdogan told Steinmeier, according to a statement from the Turkish leader's office.
The United States blocked a plane carrying nearly $500 million in banknotes from delivering the cash to Iraq, US media reported on Tuesday, piling pressure on Baghdad to fight Iran-backed militant groups.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Washington has suspended cash shipments to Iraq and frozen funding for security programs following attacks on US interests in the country by groups showing solidarity with Iran.
Iraq has long walked a tightrope between the competing influences of its allies, neighboring Iran and the United States.
However, Iraqi leaders have struggled to maintain that delicate balance as war engulfs the Middle East.
An Iraqi government official told AFP only one shipment has not arrived, citing "logistical reasons due to the war" and airspace closure.
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said Iran had halted alleged plans to execute eight women arrested over anti-government protests, after he urged Tehran to release them to help peace negotiations.
