US-Iran ceasefire: Trump has not set deadline for Iranian peace proposal

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." Peace talks were expected to begin on Wednesday. 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.

"I very much appreciate that Iran, and its leaders, respected my request, as President of the United States, and terminated the planned execution," he said. Iran denied it planned to execute the women.

Iran's parliament speaker said on Wednesday that the Islamic republic would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz as long as the US naval blockade remained in place, calling it a "blatant violation of the ceasefire".

"A complete ceasefire only has meaning if it is not violated through a naval blockade... reopening the Strait of Hormuz is not possible amid a blatant violation of the ceasefire," speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X.

Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on Wednesday that the Islamic republic appreciates Pakistan's efforts to end the Middle East war, without commenting on a ceasefire extension announced by the United States.

Iranian state broadcaster IRIB reported that Baqaei was asked by journalists to comment on the truce extension, which US President Donald Trump said he approved following a request by Pakistani mediators.

"While appreciating Pakistan's efforts to end the imposed war and establish peace", Baqaei stressed that Tehran "is taking the necessary measures to safeguard Iran's national interests and security".

A second round of US-Iran talks could take place within the next three days, the New York Post reported Wednesday, citing unnamed Pakistani sources and President Donald Trump.

"It's possible!" Trump reportedly told the Post by text message, when asked about sources in Pakistan - which mediated the first round of talks - saying that a second round was "expected in Islamabad within the next 36 to 72 hours."

Trump on Tuesday extended a two-week truce in the war just as it was about to expire. A digital news outlet in Pakistan, News Post, reported the three-day time frame for more talks without a source or further details.

A second French soldier died on Wednesday from wounds suffered in a weekend ambush against UN peacekeepers in Lebanon blamed on Hezbollah, President Emmanuel Macron said.

A first soldier, staff sergeant Florian Montorio, was shot dead in the Saturday ambush, for which Hezbollah has denied responsibility.

"Corporal Anicet Girardin... brought home yesterday from Lebanon, where he was badly wounded by Hezbollah fighters, died this morning of the consequences of his wounds," Macron posted on X.

One of three soldiers hurt in the same attack, Girardin, a member of a specialist dog-handling unit, was part of a mission "to clear a route booby-trapped with an improvised explosive device", Armies Minister Catherine Vautrin posted on X.

"Coming under sustained fire from concealed Hezbollah fighters at very close range, he moved to aid his section leader who had just fallen, only to be seriously hit in turn," she added.

Macron and Vautrin offered their condolences to Girardin's family and loved ones.

On Saturday, a UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon came under attack with small arms fire leaving one French peacekeeper dead and three others wounded, two of them seriously.

French President Emmanuel Macron posted that the soldier, who was repatriated Tuesday from Lebanon “where he had been seriously wounded by Hezbollah fighters, died this morning from his injuries.”

Hezbollah had denied it was behind the attack.

Oil prices edged higher Wednesday while stocks were mixed after US President Donald Trump announced the extension of a ceasefire with Iran, prompting investors to wait and see if peace talks will resume.

With the Strait of Hormuz still blocked to Gulf energy transit, traders remain wary that strikes could resume - even though Wall Street indexes are at record highs after recovering losses since the Middle East war erupted in late February.

But analysts say expectations are high that both Trump and Iranian authorities want to end a war that has sent oil and gas prices soaring, threatening economic growth worldwide.

Solid corporate earnings and AI enthusiasm have also bolstered investor confidence, with dozens of blue-chip firms beating forecasts and billion-dollar tech deals spurring optimism among investors that recent equity gains will hold.

Israeli attacks on Lebanon during its latest war with Hezbollah damaged or destroyed more than 50,000 housing units in the country, a government estimate found on Wednesday.

"Within about 45 days (of the war), we had 17,756 destroyed housing units and 32,668 damaged housing units," Chadi Abdallah, head of the National Council for Scientific Research (CNRS), told AFP.

Israeli attacks on Lebanon killed more than 2,400 people and displaced more than a million since Iran-backed Hezbollah drew the country into the Middle East war on March 2.

The German government on Wednesday halved its growth forecast for this year as the energy shock triggered by the Middle East war hammers Europe's biggest economy.

The economy ministry said it expected GDP to expand 0.5 per cent in 2026, down from a projection of one per cent made in January. It also cut its forecast for 2027 to 0.9 per cent, down from 1.3 per cent.

Iran hanged a man on Wednesday convicted of links to Israel's Mossad spy agency, the judiciary said, with two NGOs based outside the country saying he worked for the Iranian atomic energy organisation.

The execution of Mehdi Farid was the latest in a number of hangings of high-profile convicts in an accelerating trend that has alarmed rights groups.

"Mehdi Farid... was hanged this morning for extensive cooperation with the terrorist spy service Mossad after the case was examined and the final verdict was approved," the judiciary's Mizan Online website said, adding that he had been convicted of the capital offence of "corruption on earth".

Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights, which monitors executions in Iran, said Farid had been working for Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation when he was arrested on May 31, 2023.

It said he was initially sentenced to 10 years in prison but then, in a new trial in July 2025, was sentenced to death on charges of spying for Israel.

Italy has slightly lowered its growth forecasts for this year and next to 0.6 per cent, Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said on Wednesday, as the Middle East war roils the global economy.

The eurozone's third-largest economy had previously forecast that GDP would increase 0.7 per cent this year and 0.8 per cent in 2027, Giorgetti told reporters after a cabinet meeting.

Growth for 2028 is also forecast at 0.8 per cent, down from an earlier 0.9 per cent, he said.

But Giorgetti said Italy's public deficit was still expected to fall below the European Union's threshold of three per cent of GDP this year, reaching 2.9 per cent.

The deficit stood at 3.1 per cent of GDP in 2025.

Lebanon will request a one-month extension of the ceasefire during its meeting with Israel in Washington on Thursday, a Lebanese official told AFP.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity given the sensitive nature of the topic, said "Lebanon will request an extension of the truce for one month, an end of Israel's bombing and destruction in the areas where it is present, and a commitment to the ceasefire".

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said Wednesday that "contacts are underway to extend the ceasefire period", which began last week and is set to expire Sunday.

Since the outbreak of war between Iran, Israel and the United States, colourful murals have sprung up across capital Tehran and other major cities, rich in symbolism and themes of resistance and defiance.

Murals and banners have long been a defining feature of Iran's urban landscape, particularly in Tehran, where such paintings in central squares mirror the state's political messaging and foreign policy.

Since the 1979 revolution which established the Islamic republic, such imagery has served as a medium to reflect ideology and collective memory.

In recent days, a mural in Tehran showed a US aircraft carrier carrying rows of coffins draped in American flags, surrounded by small Iranian-flagged boats and a helicopter.

The image evoked dominance at sea, as Iran's armed forces continue a blockade of the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas in peacetime.

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Wednesday that their naval forces stopped two ships attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz and directed them to the territorial waters of the Islamic Republic.

"The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval force this morning identified and stopped in the Strait of Hormuz two violating ships," the Guards said in a statement.

"The two offending ships... were seized by the IRGC's naval forces and directed to the Iranian coast."

They identified one ship as "MSC-FRANCESCA", which they said belonged "to the Zionist regime" in reference to Israel, and the other as "EPAMINONDAS", which they said was "tampering with navigation systems and jeopardising maritime security."

Iranian media are reporting that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has targeted three ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

The IRGC-affiliated Fars news agency says a vessel named Euphoria was hit and is now grounded off the Iranian coast.

According to Iranian reports, the ships MSC Francesca and Epaminondas were “seized” and redirected toward Iran, citing a statement from the IRGC Navy.

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, neighbouring Iran and the United States.

NATO chief Mark Rutte said on Wednesday the alliance would do "what's necessary to defend" its members including Turkey after intercepting four missiles fired from Iran and head into Turkish air space over the past weeks.

A member of the US-led defence alliance, Turkey, which borders Iran, has been largely spared the sort of retaliation from Tehran suffered by countries in the Middle East before the ceasefire.

NATO forces had shot down ballistic missiles fired from Iran for four times, prompting the alliance to deploy a new Patriot missile battery at Incirlik air base in southern Turkey.

"Iran is spreading terror and chaos, and you feel this prominently here in Turkey," Rutte told journalists on a visit to Turkey's largest defence electronics company Aselsan.

"NATO is prepared for such threats and will always do what is necessary to defend Turkey and all others. And we cannot do it alone," he added.

UAE motorists are unlikely to see a sharp drop in fuel prices in May, even as global oil markets ease from March’s peak.

Crude has pulled back—but not enough to signal a full correction.

• Brent crude is now trading close to $99.29 per barrel, up 0.82% on the day

• US crude stands at $90.71, rising 1.15%

• Both benchmarks gained around 3% in the previous session, showing renewed upward pressure

This follows a period where oil surged above $110–$120 in March, before easing into the current $90–$100 range.

Israel's foreign minister on Wednesday urged Beirut to make joint efforts with Israel to counter the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah, ahead of talks between the countries set to resume in Washington.

"Tomorrow the direct talks between Israel and Lebanon will resume in Washington DC. I call on the government of Lebanon - let's work together against the terror state that Hezbollah built in your territory," Gideon Saar said in a speech to diplomats at a function marking Israel's 78th Independence Day.

"This cooperation is needed by you even more than by us. It requires moral clarity and the courage to take risks. But there is no real alternative for ensuring a future of peace for you and for us."

A cargo ship leaving Iran was fired upon Wednesday and was stopped in the water, a British maritime agency reported, as the United States continued its blockade of Iranian ports.

"A master of an outbound cargo ship reports having been fired upon and is now stopped in the water. Crew are safe and accounted for. There is no reported damage to the vessel," the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said.

It said the incident took place eight nautical miles west of Iran.

Hard-line supporters of Iran's government held rallies across the country late Tuesday that included the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard bringing missiles and their launchers into public places for the first time since the ceasefire in the war with Israel and the United States.

The scale of the demonstrations served as a sign of defiance to Israel and the US, which devoted a lot of their airstrike campaign to decimating Iran's ballistic missile arsenal.

Iranian state media showed pictures, videos and wrote about missile demonstrations in Ahvaz, Arak, Bandar Abbas, Bushehr, Kerman, Tabriz, Tehran, Qom and Zanjan.

The missiles included the Faheh, the Kheibar Shekan, the Khorramshahr-4 and the Qadr.

Some of those include the cluster munitions used repeatedly against Israel during the war as a means to get around the country's air defenses.

Britain and France are gathering military planners from about 30 countries to flesh out details of a mission to provide security in the Strait of Hormuz - if and when the key shipping route reopens.

Britain's Defense Ministry said the two-day meeting at a U.K. command-and-control center in London aims to "turn diplomatic consensus into a detailed military plan."

The plan is for an international mission to protect merchant vessels, clear mines and provide reassurance, and is dependent on a "sustainable" ceasefire being reached in the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.

Countries, including France and the U.K., have pledged to send ships and mine-clearing drones.

Despite skepticism that the plan will ever be put into action, British Defense Secretary John Healey said Wednesday he is "confident that, over the next two days, real progress can be made."

China warned on Wednesday that the situation in the Middle East was at a "critical juncture" after US President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire to allow Iran more time to negotiate.

"The current regional situation stands at a critical juncture transitioning between war to peace; the paramount priority remains to make every effort to prevent a resumption of hostilities," Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a news briefing.

Iran's agriculture minister said a US naval blockade has had little impact on the country's ability to supply basic goods and food, citing strong domestic production and alternative import routes.

"Despite the US naval blockade, we have no problem in supplying basic goods and food because, due to the size of the country, it is possible to import from different borders," Agriculture Minister Gholamreza Nouri said on Tuesday.

"About 85 percent of agricultural products and basic goods are produced domestically, so the country's food security is established," he added, according to the official IRNA news agency.

The United States imposed a naval blockade on Iran's ports and coasts on April 13, days after a ceasefire was announced that paused its war with Iran.

Iran has strongly criticised the blockade, describing it as a violation of the ceasefire.

Britain's annual inflation rate jumped to 3.3 percent in March as the Middle East war sent oil and gas prices surging, official data showed Wednesday.

The Consumer Prices Index increased from 3.0 percent in the 12 months to February, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement.

"Inflation climbed in March, largely due to increased fuel prices, which saw their largest increase for over three years," Grant Fitzner, chief economist of the Office for National Statistics, said in a statement.

Iran hanged a man on Wednesday convicted of links to Israel's Mossad spy agency, the judiciary said, the latest in a string of executions against the backdrop of the war with Israel and the United States.

"Mehdi Farid... was hanged this morning for extensive cooperation with the terrorist spy service Mossad after the case was examined and the final verdict was approved," the judiciary's Mizan Online website said.

It was not immediately clear when he was arrested or when his trial took place, but the court found him guilty of "intelligence cooperation and espionage for the Zionist regime" under the capital offence "corruption on earth".

An Israeli strike on Lebanon's Bekaa region killed one person and wounded two others on Wednesday, Lebanese state media reported, despite an ongoing truce between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah.

"One person was killed and two others were wounded as a result of an attack carried out by an enemy drone at dawn on the outskirts of Al-Jabur in West Bekaa," Lebanon's state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported.

Hezbollah on Tuesday said it had launched rockets and attack drones at a site in northern Israel in response to "blatant" Israeli ceasefire violations, which it said included "attacks on civilians and the destruction of their homes and villages".

The Israeli military said that day that Hezbollah "launched several rockets" towards soldiers stationed in south Lebanon and that the military struck the launcher in response.

NNA on Wednesday reported Israeli artillery shelling and demolitions in southern towns Israel currently occupies.

An Iranian gunboat fired at a container ship off the coast of Oman on Wednesday, causing damage but no casualties, the UKMTO British maritime security agency said.

"The master of a container ship reported that the vessel was approached by one IRGC gunboat... that then fired upon the vessel, which has caused heavy damage to the bridge. No fires or environmental impact reported," the UKMTO said.

It added that the incident took place 15 nautical miles northeast of Oman and all the crew were safe.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in a post on X, said the United States Navy will continue its blockade of Iranian ports. He warned that Kharg Island oil storage is nearing capacity and that Iran’s fragile oil wells may be shut in, directly targeting the regime’s primary revenue sources.

Bessent added that the Treasury will maintain 'maximum pressure through Economic Fury' to disrupt Tehran’s ability to generate, move, and repatriate funds. He also cautioned that anyone facilitating covert trade or finance with Iran risks US sanctions.

He said the Treasury is freezing funds stolen by corrupt leadership on behalf of the people of Iran.

Donald Trump has extended the ceasefire with Iran, but Tehran has not yet confirmed whether it will attend a new round of peace talks with the U.S. later this week.

In an interview with the BBC, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Iran approached the first round of Islamabad talks 'with good faith and a sense of seriousness, but you have a negotiating party that has shown its lack of seriousness, lack of good faith.'

Donald Trump has claimed that Iran is 'collapsing financially' in a post on Truth Social, saying the country is 'starving for cash' and losing around $500 million a day.

Trump alleged that Iran’s military and police are complaining about unpaid wages and said Tehran wants the Strait of Hormuz reopened 'immediately'.

He added that the situation amounts to an 'SOS', amid ongoing tensions over the US blockade of Iranian maritime routes.

The disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is exposing a structural constraint in global energy markets: alternatives exist, but were they ever designed to fully replace the corridor?

The strait is not just another transit route. It is the only maritime exit from the Arabian Gulf to open seas. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development estimates that roughly 20%–25% of global seaborne oil and about 20% of liquefied natural gas pass through it each day. That concentration of flows explains why disruptions quickly translate into global price volatility.

The International Energy Agency has described the current outage as the largest oil supply disruption in history. Its Executive Director Fatih Birol said recently that it amounts to the “biggest energy crisis in history,” according to Reuters. Crude prices also surged as markets began pricing in prolonged supply disruption from the Gulf.

Read more here.

The United States has not moved a key missile defense system out of South Korea, a US military official said Tuesday, following reports that Washington was shifting parts of it to the Middle East.

The Washington Post reported last month, citing unnamed officials, that the United States was moving parts of its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system out of South Korea for use in its war with Iran.

The report had caused disquiet in South Korea, where the system is a pillar of national defense against nuclear-armed North Korea.

The commander of the US forces in South Korea said Washington had "not moved any THAAD systems" out of the country.

"THAAD still remains on the peninsula currently," Xavier Brunson said at a US Senate committee hearing in Washington.

"We are sending munitions forward (to the Middle East), and those are sitting right now waiting to move," Brunson said without providing further details.

Oil prices fell along with stocks Wednesday as investors assess the chances of US-Iran peace talks after Donald Trump extended his ceasefire at the eleventh hour but kept his blockade of the Strait of Hormuz in place.

With the two-week truce in its final hours, the US president said he would push the deadline back indefinitely following a request from mediator Pakistan and stressing the need to give Tehran's "fractured" leadership time to form a proposal.

He had previously indicated he would not extend the truce and warned he would resume bombing the Islamic republic when it expired.

The decision not to carry out fresh attacks on Iran but continue to prevent its ships from passing through the Strait - a major sticking point between the rivals - left traders awaiting clearer developments.

Iranian hard-liners rallied late Wednesday night as possible talks in Islamabad with the United States broke down, with members of Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard apparently bringing a ballistic missile on a mobile launcher to one event.

Footage aired by Iranian state TV showed men carrying Kalashnikov-style assault rifles riding atop a missile that resembled a Qadr ballistic missile in Iran's capital, Tehran.

Such Qadr missiles can release individual bomblets known as cluster munitions, which Iran used widely when attacking Israel during the war.

In a social media post accompanied by footage of warplanes, ships and US troops, CENTCOM highlighted remarks from US Central Command chief, Admiral Brad Cooper, speaking alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at a recent briefing.

“We are rearming. We’re retooling, and we’re adjusting our tactics, techniques and procedures,” Cooper said, adding that US forces are adapting during the ceasefire period.

The update comes after Donald Trump announced an extension of the truce with Iran, which had been set to expire today.

Trump offered a combative social media post Tuesday night after indefinitely extending a ceasefire in the Iran war after talks in Islamabad failed to materialize.

Writing on his Truth Social website, Trump contended that "Iran doesn't want the Strait of Hormuz closed, they want it open" so they can sell their crude oil.

Trump said if he allowed that to happen, there "can never be a Deal with Iran, unless we blow up the rest of their Country, their leaders included!"

It's unclear what the next step forward is to resume talks in Pakistan's capital.

Secretary-General António Guterres said the US announcement that it is extending the ceasefire will create "critical space for diplomacy and confidence-building between Iran and the United States," according to his spokesperson.

"We encourage all parties to build on this momentum, refrain from actions that could undermine the cease-fire, and engage constructively in negotiations to reach a sustainable and lasting resolution," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said late Tuesday.

The secretary-general "fully supports" Pakistan's efforts to facilitate U.S.-Iran talks and hopes its efforts "will contribute to creating conditions conducive to a comprehensive and durable resolution to the conflict," Dujarric said.

Crude oil futures spiked early on Wednesday, with Brent jumping 3.14% to $98.48 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rising 1.1% $90.66 as of 8.58 am Tokyo time on Wednesday (April 22, 2026).

The rise is US crude oil futures coincides with Washington’s announcement of an indefinite extension of the ceasefire with Iran.

WTI crude futures rose to as high as US$90.70 per barrel and were trading up 59 cents, or 0.7 percent, at $90.26.

Read more here.

US President Donald Trump has said the US will not lift the Hormuz blockade until a "deal" made. The US president's comments come amid uncertainty as Iran skips peace talks in Pakistan, and Iran-linked ships are seized by the US Navy.

US forces have boarded the crude oil tanker M/T Tifani in the Indian Ocean, marking what appears to be a new escalation in efforts to disrupt Iran-linked shipping. The move, confirmed by Pentagon, came as the 330-metre very large crude carrier (VLCC), built in 2003, was sailing far away from Hormuz while appearing fully laden with crude. The Tifani was reportedly carrying about 2 million barrels of crude loaded at Kharg, a key Iranian oil export hub, earlier this month. Tracking data showed the vessel passed Dondra Head on April 19 and entered Southeast Asia on April 20 before being boarded by US Marines.

The Middle East conflict and the disruption around the Strait of Hormuz are shaking confidence in the world’s most important oil chokepoint, according to International Energy Agency (IEA) chief Fatih Birol. He warned that even if the waterway reopens quickly, the oil market will not simply snap back to normal, because restoring output, shipping flows and investment "will take time".

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif  has thanked Donald Trump for extending the the ceasefire with Iran, saying the move will give diplomacy more time to progress.

In a post on social media, Sharif said he was expressing gratitude both personally and on behalf of Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, describing the extension as an opportunity for “ongoing diplomatic efforts to take their course”.

He added that Pakistan would continue to push for a negotiated settlement and voiced hope that both sides would respect the truce and work towards a comprehensive peace deal.

Sharif also pointed to a planned second round of talks in Islamabad, which he said could help secure a permanent end to the conflict.

US President Donald Trump issued a statement on Truth Social asserting that he was extending the ceasefire with Iran. He wrote: "Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal.

"I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other."

Day 53: Pakistan urges the US and Iran to extend their ceasefire

Day 52: Fighting to resume as ceasefire ends Wednesday: Trump

Day 51: Iran refuses new round of talks, say reports

Day 50: Indian ships reverse course in Strait of Hormuz

Day 49: Trump says Iran agrees to 'never' close Hormuz strait again

Day 48: Trump: Iran agreed to hand over its enriched uranium

Day 47: US optimistic about reaching peace deal with Iran

Day 46: 2 days to US-Iran talks in Pakistan? Trump thinks so

Day 45: US, Iran discuss 'another round' of direct talks

Day 44: US to begin 'blockade' of Iranian ports on Monday

Day 43: 3-way talks with the US and Iran begin in Pakistan

Day 42: Trump says Iran has 'no cards' as Vance heads for talks

Day 41: Kuwait condemns drone attacks, US warns vs Hormuz toll

Day 40: Trump agrees to suspend attack on Iran by two weeks