Paris (France) (AFP) – The latest developments in the Middle East war:
– **Reopening Hormuz ‘not possible’** – Iran’s parliament speaker said 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 two countries’ 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.
– **Trump says halted executions** – US President Donald Trump 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… and terminated the planned execution,” he said on his Truth Social platform. Iran’s judiciary called the claim “false news”, saying the women had never faced the death penalty.
– **War ‘weakening’ Europe** – The war is “starting to weaken Europe”, said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “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… will be far greater,” Erdogan told his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, according to a statement from the Turkish leader’s office.
– **Talks ‘possible’: Trump** – A second round of US-Iran talks could take place within the next three days, the New York Post reported, citing Trump and unnamed Pakistani sources. “It’s possible!” Trump reportedly told the Post by text message, when asked about sources in Pakistan, which mediated the first round of talks, adding 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 giving a source or further details.
– **Lebanon war toll, damage** – Israeli strikes killed three people in Lebanon despite an ongoing 10-day ceasefire, Lebanese state media said, adding that Beirut would request an extension of the truce during upcoming talks with Israel in Washington. More than 2,400 people have been killed and more than a million displaced in the country since Iran-backed Hezbollah drew the nation into the war on March 2. Israeli attacks on Lebanon have damaged or destroyed more than 50,000 housing units in the country, a government estimate said.
– **Iran hanging** – Iran hanged a man convicted of links to Israel’s Mossad spy agency, the judiciary said. Two NGOs based outside the country said he worked for the Iranian atomic energy organisation.
– **Iran Guards say two ships seized** – Iranian forces targeted three container ships, seizing two and firing on a third, global security monitors and the country’s Revolutionary Guards said. Tehran has said vessels must seek permission to leave or enter the Gulf through the strait, a route that in peacetime accounts for around a fifth of the world’s oil and gas exports along with other vital commodities.
– **$500-mn cash shipment to Iraq blocked** – The United States blocked a plane carrying nearly $500 million in banknotes from delivering the cash to Iraq, US media reported, piling pressure on Baghdad to fight Iran-backed militant groups. The Wall Street Journal reported that Washington had 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.
– **Oil prices climb** – Oil prices climbed Wednesday, while stocks were mixed as investors waited to see if peace talks would resume. Brent North Sea was again trading above $100 a barrel, while the main US contract, West Texas Intermediate, traded back above $90. Both main oil contracts had risen around three percent Tuesday.
– **Iran cargo ship targeted** – A cargo ship leaving Iran was fired upon and stopped in the water, a British maritime agency reported, as the United States continued its blockade of Iranian ports.
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© 2024 AFP
