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An apparent Iranian attack on a fully loaded Kuwaiti crude oil tanker at Dubai Port sparked a fire that was later extinguished, authorities said.
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) said early on Tuesday that the Al Salmi tanker was struck in an Iranian attack while anchored at the port in the United Arab Emirates, causing damage to the vessel and a fire on board.
Hundreds of U.S. Special Operations Forces, including Navy SEALs and Army Rangers, are now in the Middle East, as well as thousands of Marines and Army paratroopers, according to sources familiar with the deployments.
The sources said having the forces in the region gives President Trump military options in Iran, including operations that could target opening the Strait of Hormuz, take oil from Kharg Island or seize Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium.
The New York Times first reported the forces had arrived in the region.
BANGKOK — Asian nations are increasingly competing for Russian crude oil as an energy crisis mounts amid the month-old war by the U.S. and Israel against Iran, which has choked off roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply.
Much of the oil from the mostly shut Strait of Hormuz was headed for Asia, hit hardest by recent energy shocks. Over the weekend, Iran-backed Houthi rebels entered the conflict, further threatening shipping.
The United States is in direct talks with Iranian leaders over terms for ending the war, including exchanges with parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Ghalibaf, President Donald Trump said Monday.
Asked if Ghalibaf was someone the U.S. could work with, Trump said in an interview with the New York Post, “We’re gonna find out … in about a week.”
Iran-US war latest: Trump makes new Tehran threat if peace deal not reached ‘shortly’ The Independent
from news.google.com
Rights advocates, UK lawmakers raise concerns over evictions affecting Christians in Pakistan’s capital www.christiandaily.com
from news.google.com
China, Pakistan lay out 5-point Mideast plan to end Iran war | Daily Sabah Daily Sabah
from news.google.com
Iran took its shot at the United States, and the response came fast, coordinated, and overwhelming. But while American firepower reshaped the battlefield, Moscow was already cashing in on the rising oil prices and the fractured attention that followed.
UAE pushes for invasion as Gulf urges Trump to bomb until leadership change in Iran Türkiye Today
from news.google.com
Israel said on Thursday that it had killed Commodore Alireza Tangsiri, the head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN).
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz said Tangsiri had been killed in a “precise and lethal operation” along with other senior naval commanders in an overnight strike.
“The man who was directly responsible for the terrorist operation of mining and blocking the Strait of Hormuz to shipping was blown up and eliminated,” Katz claimed.
Since a joint U.S.-Israeli airstrike killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on February 28, scores of Iranian senior officials have also been killed. According to the Associated Press, two anonymous sources—an intelligence official and a person briefed on the operation—said that hacked Iranian surveillance cameras helped plan the initial attack.
Camera hacking has become a recurring feature of modern warfare. Hamas hacked Israeli cameras before the October 7, 2023, attack; Russia has hacked them in Ukraine, and Iran has hacked them in Israel. But the cameras in question are not exotic spy technology. They’re often unremarkable, much like millions of other devices around the world.
Two people were killed in Abu Dhabi after debris from an intercepted missile fell on Sweihan Road, the emirate’s media office said this morning, adding that three others were injured and several vehicles were damaged.
Wednesday on “The Alex Marlow Show,” host and Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow talked about Iran.
Marlow said, “So, the sweeping of these mines can be a massive job, a real pain in the butt, very time-consuming, but it wasn’t as many mines as I had feared initially yesterday. So I’m hoping it’s just a bargaining chip, because Trump has laid out what he needs in order to…take his foot off the gas.”
The U.S. Postal Service is seeking to temporarily place a fee on packages due to rising fuel prices as the war in Iran continues to rattle energy markets.
The 8% fuel surcharge on packages under Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, USPS Ground Advantage, and Parcel Select is expected to take effect on April 26 and remain in place until Jan. 17, 2027. The Postal Regulatory Commission must review and approve the fee before it is enacted. If approved, first-class stamps and other mail services would not be affected.
“Transportation costs have been increasing, and our competitors have reacted with a number of surcharges,” the service said in a statement on Wednesday. “We have steadfastly avoided surcharges, and this charge is less than one-third of what our competitors charge for fuel alone.”
The development comes as the war in Iran has triggered the largest disruption to the global energy supply in history, due largely to Iran’s sweeping blockage of the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices have spiked roughly 40%, approaching a record $120 a barrel earlier this month before stabilizing slightly.
Just weeks earlier, Larry Fink expressed hope for a “neutralized Iran,” framing the conflict as a good investment opportunity
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has warned of an impending global recession if the US-Israeli war on Iran drags on and oil prices remain above $100 a barrel. The stark prediction comes just weeks after Fink framed the conflict as a good long-term investment opportunity.
In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC this week, Fink said oil prices could stay above $100 per barrel for years if Iran “remains a threat,” potentially hitting $150 and sparking “a probably stark and steep recession.”
President Trump suggested late Wednesday he’s avoiding describing the military conflict with Iran as a “war” because of concerns around the fact that Congress hasn’t authorized military force.
“I won’t use the word ‘war’ because they say, if you use the word war, that’s maybe not a good thing to do,” the president said at an event for House Republicans’ fundraising arm. “They don’t like the word ‘war,’ because you’re supposed to get approval, so I’ll use the word ‘military operation,’ which is really what it is.”
The U.S. is preparing to send thousands more troops to the Middle East, prompting speculation about a ground attack on Iran amid conflicting accounts of peace talks.
The Pentagon is reportedly preparing to send about 3,000 troops from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East, alongside two Marine Expeditionary Units, to assist military operations in Iran. CNBC has contacted the White House and is awaiting a response.
Military experts said that the number of additional troops being deployed to the region appears to be consistent with plans for discrete and time-limited operations — rather than a sustained ground campaign.
Israel’s military said Thursday its forces had carried out a wave of strikes across Iran, as Tehran continues to insist that it will not negotiate on a peace deal. US President Donald Trump has warned he is ready to “unleash hell” if Iran does not accept a deal to end the nearly four-week Middle East war. Follow our liveblog for the latest updates.
NAJAF, Iraq — The Iraqi government on Wednesday accused the United States of attacking a clinic on a military base in western Anbar province, killing seven members of the Iraqi military and injuring 13. The incident could strain relations between the two nations amid the war in neighboring Iran.
from www.washingtonpost.com
While the war in Iran has sent gasoline prices soaring around the world, there are growing concerns about how the spike in the cost of other fuels could also affect consumers and the broader economy.
In Canada, the average price of diesel has surged to nearly $2.30 per litre — more than 50 per cent higher than just three months ago.
US-Iran conflict hands China’s Xi upper hand ahead of Trump meeting: Experts abcnews.com
from news.google.com
Kuwait, Saudi Arabia shoot down UAVs launched by Iran The Jerusalem Post
from news.google.com
Russia said Wednesday it was “deeply outraged” by a reported strike on the grounds of Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant, which it partially constructed and helps operate.
“We are extremely outraged by this reckless, irresponsible manifestation of a disastrous course,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website.
A projectile landed inside the plant’s compound late Tuesday but caused no damage, Iran’s atomic energy organization said, accusing the United States and Israel of attacking the facility.
Iran Tells UN ‘Non-Hostile’ Ships Can Transit Hormuz, If They Coordinate With Tehran gCaptain
from news.google.com
Russia is reportedly sending drones, medicine and food to Iran – this is a breaking story
from www.mirror.co.uk
US deploying 1,500 troops from 82nd Airborne
Chief national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin reports the latest on the conflict with Iran as about 1,500 additional troops and key staff are deployed to the Middle East.
Iran could significantly increase U.S. casualties if its elite military and proxy forces shift to guerrilla-style hit-and-run attacks in the region, a leading military analyst has warned.
SHADY “zombie” tankers have been seen passing through the mine-riddled Strait of Hormuz using the names of scrapped ships.
Iran has maintained an effective blockade of the vital Persian Gulf chokehold – through which 20 per cent of the world’s oil passes – since US-Israeli forces began their brutal bombing campaign of Tehran.