WASHINGTON: Two US warships have reportedly passed through the Strait of Hormuz, the first such transit since the war with Iran began, as President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States had started &quot;clearing out&quot; the strategic waterway. The US Navy guided-missile destroyers passed through the strait with no issues reported, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing three US officials. The operation was not coordinated with authorities in Tehran, US media outlet Axios said. &quot;We&#39;re now starting the process of clearing out the Strait of Hormuz,&quot; Trump said on his Truth Social platform, calling it &quot;a favor&quot; to countries such as China, Japan and France that &quot;don&#39;t have the Courage or Will to do this work themselves.&quot; He insisted that Iran is &quot;LOSING BIG!&quot; in the conflict, while acknowledging that Iranian mines in the strategic strait &ndash; through which a fifth of the world&#39;s crude passes &ndash; still pose a threat. &quot;The only thing they have going is the threat that a ship may &#39;bunk&#39; into one of their sea mines,&quot; Trump wrote. US officials did not immediately respond to AFP requests for comments about the reports. The key shipping lane off the coast of Iran has been virtually blocked by Tehran since the United States and Israel started bombing Iran on February 28, though reopening the strait was ostensibly a condition of the shaky ceasefire put in place earlier this week. Senior Iranian and American officials began negotiations in Pakistan on Saturday, in a bid to bring to an end a conflict that has plunged the Middle East into violence and sent shockwaves through the world economy. In an earlier post, Trump said that empty tankers were headed to the United States from around the world to purchase oil, without providing details.

A view of the vessels passing through Strait of Hormuz following the two-week temporary ceasefire reached between the United States and Iran on the condition that the strait be reopened, seen in Oman on April 08, 2026. (AFP)

Middle East

Two US warships transited the Strait of Hormuz as President Donald Trump said the United States began clearing the vital waterway amid Iran conflict, while negotiations started in Pakistan Saturday.

US warships transit Strait of Hormuz: media

BEIJING: China and North Korea should &quot;enhance coordination&quot; on international and regional issues, Beijing&#39;s Foreign Minister Wang Yi told North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during talks on Friday, according to Chinese state media. Wang is on a two-day trip to North Korea, his first visit since 2019, to step up ties between the East Asian neighbors following their resumption of transport links halted since the Covid-19 pandemic. China is North Korea&#39;s top trading partner and a vital source of diplomatic, economic and political support. &quot;China and North Korea should, while firmly safeguarding their respective sovereignty, security and development interests, further enhance communication and coordination in major international and regional affairs,&quot; Wang said during a meeting with Kim in Pyongyang on Friday, Xinhua reported. &quot;China is willing to work with North Korea to... maintain close communication and interaction, promote practical cooperation, and infuse new contemporary meaning into the traditional friendship between China and North Korea,&quot; Wang said. Wang&#39;s visit comes as the administration of US President Donald Trump mounts a push to revive high-level talks with Pyongyang, eyeing a potential summit this year, potentially during Trump&#39;s visit to Beijing in May.

This picture taken on April 9, 2026 and released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on April 10, 2026 shows Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (L) shaking hands with North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui at the Geumsusan Guesth

Asia

Wang is on a two-day trip to North Korea, his first visit since 2019, to step up ties between the East Asian neighbors following their resumption of transport links halted since the Covid-19 pandemic.

China FM calls for closer ties with North Korea in Kim meeting

Web Desk

US and Iran confirm coming to Islamabad for peace talks, Israel continues to strike Lebanon as Tehran guarantees safe passage for maritime traffic through the vital Strait of Hormuz for two weeks, Pakistan PM Sharif invites delegations from both countries to Islamabad, 'to further negotiate for a conclusive agreement to settle all disputes.'



Day 40: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Web Desk/AFP

The White House rules out a possible US nuclear strike against Iran ;Russia and China veto UN resolution on reopening Strait of Hormuz. 

Day 39: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump warned that &quot;a whole civilization will die&quot; in Iran on Tuesday if the country does not heed his ultimatum to accept US war demands.&nbsp;&quot;A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don&#39;t want that to happen, but it probably will,&quot; Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.&nbsp;Trump did not give details but he has already said the US military could bomb Iran&#39;s bridges, power plants and other civilian infrastructure into the &quot;stone age.&quot;&nbsp;Trump has announced a deadline of midnight GMT Tuesday for Iran to end its de facto closing of the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow, strategic waterway used to transport oil and other commodities.&nbsp;On Monday, he said a temporary cease-fire proposal being circulated was insufficient.&nbsp;Iran has rejected US pressure, with state media reporting that the authorities are insisting that instead of just a cease-fire it wants a full end to the war.&nbsp;In his Truth Social post, Trump left the door open for a last-hour agreement.&nbsp;&quot;Now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight,&quot; he wrote.&nbsp;Trump said Monday that starting late evening in Washington, DC on Tuesday, US forces would destroy &quot;every bridge in Iran&quot; and cripple &quot;every power plant&quot; in the country -- something that many experts say would be a blatant war crime.&nbsp;US and Israeli warplanes have been continuously bombing Iran since February 28 and on Tuesday, even before Trump&#39;s threat about ending &quot;civilization,&quot; Tehran said that its crucial oil export terminal on Kharg island was under attack.

Americas

Donald Trump warned Iran that “a whole civilization will die” if it ignores a US ultimatum to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, as US and Israeli strikes continue and Iran demands a full end to the war

Trump warns 'whole civilization will die' in Iran if ultimatum expires

Iran fires missiles at Israel as strikes intensify across the region, Trump issues fresh threats and ultimatums, and tensions rise after attacks on energy sites, military targets and infrastructure, deepening instability across the Middle East.

Day 36: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

WASHINGTON:&nbsp;US President Donald Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday and named his former personal lawyer to serve as the acting chief of the Justice Department. The US president announced the move in a social media post. &quot;Pam Bondi is a Great American Patriot and a loyal friend, who faithfully served as my Attorney General over the past year,&quot; Trump said on Truth Social. &quot;Pam did a tremendous job overseeing a massive crackdown in Crime across our Country.&quot; Bondi &quot;will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector,&quot; the president said, and will be replaced on an interim basis by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who Trump described as &quot;a very talented and respected Legal Mind.&quot; According to The New York Times, Trump may name former Republican congressman Lee Zeldin, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, to be the next attorney general.In the meantime, the post will be filled by Blanche. &#39;Honor of a lifetime&#39;Bondi, in a post on X, said serving as attorney general had been &quot;the honor of a lifetime&quot; and said she will &quot;continue fighting for President Trump&quot; in her unspecified new private sector job. &quot;Over the next month I will be working tirelessly to transition the office of Attorney General to the amazing Todd Blanche,&quot; she said. &quot;I remain eternally grateful for the trust that President Trump placed in me to Make America Safe Again.&quot; Bondi&#39;s ouster comes nearly a month after Trump fired Kristi Noem as the head of the Department of Homeland Security.&nbsp;Democratic lawmakers welcomed Bondi&#39;s firing. Bondi served as a prosecutor for 18 years before being elected Florida&#39;s attorney general in 2010, the first woman to hold the post.&nbsp;She was reelected to a second term in 2014.

Bondi 'will be transitioning to a much needed and important new job in the private sector,' the president said, and will be replaced on an interim basis by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who Trump described as 'a very talented and respected Legal Mind.'

Trump sacks attorney general Pam Bondi, replaces with lawyer Todd Blanche

WASHINGTON: The United States on Wednesday lifted sanctions against Venezuela&#39;s interim President Delcy Rodriguez, who took power after Washington ousted her predecessor Nicolas Maduro in a military operation in January.&nbsp;Rodriguez&#39;s name was deleted from the &quot;Specially Designated Nationals List,&quot; according to a post on the US Treasury&#39;s Office of Foreign Assets Control website.&nbsp;Rodriguez welcomed the decision, writing on X that it was part of the &quot;normalization and strengthening&quot; of bilateral relations.&nbsp;&quot;We trust that this progress will allow for the lifting of the sanctions currently in force against our country, and make it possible to build and guarantee an effective binational cooperation agenda for the benefit of our peoples,&quot; she added.&nbsp;Ties between Washington and Caracas have warmed since Maduro&#39;s ouster, with Rodriguez complying with US President Donald Trump&#39;s demands for Caracas to open up its energy industry to American companies.&nbsp;Rodriguez served as Maduro&#39;s deputy and was sanctioned by Washington for being a key official in his government, alongside officials including former defense minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez and Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello.&nbsp;Rodriguez fired Lopez in mid-March, but she has been walking a fine line between demands from Washington and those from her own backers since Maduro&#39;s toppling.&nbsp;Cabello, who remains in office, is seen as one of her key backers.&nbsp;On Monday, the US Embassy in Caracas resumed operations after being closed for seven years, the State Department said.&nbsp;The reopening came after the US military operation that seized Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores from Caracas on January 3, taking them to New York to face drug trafficking charges that they deny.&nbsp;The operation killed around 100 people in Venezuela, according to authorities there.

The US lifts sanctions on Venezuela’s interim leader Delcy Rodriguez after Maduro’s ouster, aiming to improve ties. Rodriguez welcomes the move and seeks broader relief, as relations warm and cooperation with Washington increases.

US lifts sanctions on Venezuelan interim leader Delcy

MATANZAS: A Russian oil tanker docked in a Cuban port on Tuesday to deliver the first crude shipment to the crisis-hit island since January after Washington gave a reprieve from its fuel blockade.&nbsp;The Anatoly Kolodkin, a tanker under US sanctions, entered the port of Matanzas, east of Havana, after sunrise to bring 730,000 barrels of crude following a three-week journey from Russia.&nbsp;US President Donald Trump&#39;s decision to let Russia deliver the oil avoids a confrontation with Moscow and provides temporary relief to a country that has endured blackouts, fuel rationing and dwindling public transportation.&nbsp;&quot;It&#39;s great that the country is receiving oil because we need it for the crisis we are facing,&quot; Yoanna Rivero, a 49-year-old pharmacy worker who was exercising near the port, told AFP.&nbsp;Felipe Serrano, a 76-year-old security guard, was waiting for the Russian ship to arrive.&nbsp;&quot;This is crucial for us to be able to survive because the country is paralyzed,&quot; he said.&nbsp;Analysts, however, said the shipment would give Cuba only a brief respite.&nbsp;&quot;It can offer temporary breathing room, but it does not come close to resolving the scale of the deficit the country is facing,&quot; Ricardo Torres, a Cuban economist at American University in Washington, told AFP.&nbsp;&quot;It is clearly not enough,&quot; he said, noting Cuba&#39;s power problems are &quot;structural rather than episodic.&quot;&nbsp;The Russian crude will be refined to produce gasoline for transportation as well as diesel and fuel oil for backup power generators, Irenaldo Perez, deputy director of the state-run oil firm CUPET, told official media.&nbsp;Analysts say it could take around three weeks to refine and distribute.&nbsp;The Cuban foreign ministry thanked Russia for its solidarity, saying on X &quot;this valuable assistance arrives amid the energy blockade imposed by the United States, which is trying to strangle the Cuban people.&quot;&nbsp;The Russian embassy in Cuba said on X it was its &quot;duty to help our Cuban brothers under these difficult conditions!&quot;

Europe

A Russian tanker delivered 730,000 barrels of crude to Cuba after US eased blockade. The shipment offers temporary relief from fuel shortages and blackouts, but analysts say it is insufficient to solve Cuba’s ongoing energy crisis.

Russian oil tanker docks in Cuba after US blockade relief

JERUSALEM: Israel will reduce its military imports from France &quot;to zero&quot; in retaliation for French policies it deems hostile towards its interests, a defense ministry spokeswoman told AFP on Tuesday.&nbsp;&quot;The Director General of the Ministry of Defense, Amir Baram, has decided to reduce defense procurement from France to zero, diverting those funds to &#39;Blue and White&#39; (Israeli) procurement or to allied nations&quot;, the spokeswoman said.&nbsp;According to the French parliament, Paris does not export weapons to Israel, but components to be used in defense systems or to be re-exported to third countries.&nbsp;Israeli armament procurement from French defense companies totaled around $260 million between 2015 and 2024, according to the most recent French parliamentary report on military exports, which said global sales in 2024 topped $25 billion.&nbsp;The Israeli spokeswoman added that the decision was in retaliation for several French government steps perceived as hostile to Israel.&nbsp;Those were recognizing a Palestinian state, Israel&#39;s exclusion from defense shows in France and &quot;the recent ban on Israeli aircraft carrying munitions intended for the war against Iran from transiting French airspace&quot;.&nbsp;The Israeli announcement came as the French government said on Tuesday that it was surprised US President Donald Trump had accused France of being &quot;very unhelpful&quot; for not allowing Israel-bound planes carrying military equipment to use its airspace during the Iran war.&nbsp;The French presidency said in a statement that the decision was &quot;consistent with French policy since the start of this conflict&quot;.&nbsp;Israel&#39;s defence ministry accused France of &quot;harming Israel&#39;s defense activities and the strategic cooperation between the two countries,&quot; adding it viewed the moves &quot;with great severity&quot;.&nbsp;&quot;The French ban was imposed despite prior coordination, despite explanations that the munitions were intended solely for use against Iran, and despite the understanding that this effort serves the security of Europe&quot;, the spokeswoman said.&nbsp;On February 28, the US and Israel launched a massive military campaign against the Islamic republic, which has spiralled into a regional war.

Israel says it will cut French defense imports to zero, citing hostile policies including recognizing Palestine, airspace restrictions, and exclusions from defense events, amid tensions during the Iran conflict and strain in bilateral military cooperation.

Articles tagged with "US President Donald Trump"

US warships transit Strait of Hormuz: media

China FM calls for closer ties with North Korea in Kim meeting

Day 40: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Day 39: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Trump warns 'whole civilization will die' in Iran if ultimatum expires

Day 36: All you need to know about US-Israel war on Iran

Trump sacks attorney general Pam Bondi, replaces with lawyer Todd Blanche

US lifts sanctions on Venezuelan interim leader Delcy

Russian oil tanker docks in Cuba after US blockade relief

Israel says will reduce French defense imports 'to zero'

US warships transit Strait of Hormuz: media