Iranian

Members reportedly agree rise of 206,000 barrels a day in May but move symbolic with strait of Hormuz effectively closedMiddle East crisis – live updatesIranian drones struck Kuwait’s oil infrastructure on Sunday, causing “severe material damage” that threatened to further disrupt oil supplies already hit by the US and Israel’s war with Tehran.It came hours before members of the Opec+ group that represents major global oil suppliers gathered to discuss how to bolster output despite Iran’s effective closure of the crucial strait of Hormuz shipping route. Continue reading...

State department said niece and grandniece of Qassem Soleimani, killed in 2020 US drone strike, celebrated attacks against US soldiersUS federal agents have arrested the niece and grandniece of the late Iranian military commander Qassem Soleimani after the Trump administration’s top diplomat, Marco Rubio, revoked their lawful permanent resident status, officials said on Saturday.“Hamideh Soleimani Afshar and her daughter are now in the custody of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement,” or ICE, the state department said in a statement. Continue reading...

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps said it was combing an area near where plane came down in south-western Iran; Israeli military strikes ‘Hezbollah infrastructure’ in Lebanon capitalUS F-15E jet confirmed shot down over Iran as Tehran releases wreckage imagesHello and welcome to our continuing live coverage of the US-Israeli war on Iran and its impact on the region, the world and the global economy.Iranian and American forces were racing each other early on Saturday to recover a crew member of the first US fighter jet to go down inside Iran since the start of the war.Tehran rejected a US proposal for a 48-hour ceasefire, said Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency, citing an unnamed source. There was no immediate comment from the US. Earlier, the Wall Street Journal reported that Iran had officially told mediators it was unwilling to meet with US officials in Islamabad in the coming days.The UN force in Lebanon said a blast at one of its positions had wounded three peacekeepers, two of them seriously, in the third such incident in a week.Israeli fire killed a man in Syria’s Quneitra province in the south near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, Syrian state media said. The man was killed in an attack by “an Israeli tank”, the Sana agency said, while state TV said a car was targeted.An Egyptian national was killed and four others wounded after a fire at a gas complex in Abu Dhabi, caused by falling debris from an intercepted attack, the government media office said. Two of the four people hurt were from Egypt, while the others were from Pakistan, it said.Trump asked lawmakers to approve a $1.5tr defence budget for 2027 as the US faces rising costs from its war with Iran and mounting global security commitments. The proposal would lift Pentagon spending by more than 40% in a single year – the sharpest increase since the second world war.The US embassy in Lebanon said Iran and allied groups could seek to target universities in the country, where Tehran-backed Hezbollah is at war with Israel and Israeli troops are carrying out a ground invasion.Three tankers, including one co-owned by a Japanese company, crossed the strait of Hormuz by hugging close to Oman’s shore –a rare transit route – maritime traffic data showed on Friday. With agencies Continue reading...

People leaving Iran for Turkey tell of impact of bombs and internet blackouts, while others are travelling the other way to be closer to relatives in perilHe could not help but splutter out a laugh at the question. Amir, whose name has been changed for his safety, had just crossed the Kapıköy border point in eastern Turkey, a mountain pass between snow-topped peaks that is one of the few gateways to the west from Iran.Until a few weeks ago, this was a busy place, popular among Iranian daytrippers coming across to Turkey to do some shopping in the lively city of Van, a further two hours drive west, or to spend a couple of nights out in its discreet Iranian-only nightclubs and bars serving alcohol. Continue reading...

Activists accuse Iran’s regime of crackdown on civil society as whereabouts of Nasrin Sotoudeh are unknownIs Iran using the war to hide a surge in executions?The prize-winning Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh has been arrested in Tehran, according to her family, as activists accused the regime of cracking down on civil society under cover of the war with Israel and the US.Sotoudeh’s daughter Mehraveh Khandan said her mother was taken from her home in Tehran late on Wednesday and that her whereabouts were unknown. Khandan suspected the arrest may be related to recent interviews about the war, in which Sotoudeh criticised the government. Continue reading...

• Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy commenced large-scale military exercises in the Persian Gulf on April 1, deploying multiple warships and missile systems near the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz. • US Central Command deployed additional naval assets to the region in response, with Pentagon officials stating the move is designed to "ensure freedom of navigation" and protect commercial shipping lanes critical to global energy markets. • The Iranian exercises follow recent diplomatic tensions and represent the latest in a series of military posturing events that have increased risk premiums on global oil prices by approximately 3% this week.

Visa ban makes Iranian-Australian feel her adopted country is a ‘home that doesn’t support you’Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastHedieh Jamshidian feared the window to see her mother, living in Tehran under waves of airstrikes, was closing.The Australian government had just announced it could block some visa holders from entering the country. So, Jamshidian, a 32-year-old Iranian Australian, decided to act quickly. Within a week she bought her mother, who held a three-month tourist visa, a ticket to Sydney. Continue reading...

Experts say the US believes it is entitled to resources it desires – a perspective president has supported for decadesDonald Trump said this past weekend he wants to “take the oil in Iran” by seizing control of a key export hub, echoing a refrain he has returned to for over a decade.It’s a sign of his disregard for international law and belief in “fossil-fuel imperialism”, experts say. Continue reading...

• US and Israeli forces conducted strikes Tuesday on major Iranian steel facilities, including the Mobarakeh Steel Company in Isfahan and the Khuzestan Steel Company, marking continued escalation of military operations. • President Donald Trump stated American forces will withdraw from Iran within "two to three weeks," signaling a potential end to the ongoing military campaign that began last month. • Iran reported at least 249 women and 216 children killed in US-Israeli attacks since the war's start, while Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected ceasefire proposals and demanded a complete end to hostilities.

• President Trump yesterday escalated rhetoric by renewing threats to 'completely obliterate' Iranian power plants, oil production facilities, and possibly all infrastructure. • The statement comes amid ongoing U.S. military pressure on Iran, with diplomatic outcomes remaining unclear after three months of conflict. • This hawkish posture risks further entangling the U.S. in the region, potentially impacting domestic politics and midterm races.