Paris (France) (AFP) – The latest developments in the Middle East war:
– **’Tight’ gas markets**
The market for liquefied natural gas (LNG), which has been strained by the war, will remain “tight” through 2026 and 2027, the International Energy Agency said.
– **Oil prices rise**
Oil prices extended gains and stocks struggled as investors worried about a lack of progress in ending the Middle East crisis, with Tehran keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed and the US maintaining a blockade of Iranian ports.
– **Everyone needs ‘stability’**
“It is in everyone’s interest for stability to return as soon as possible and for the world’s economies to be reassured,” French President Emmanuel Macron said as he attended an EU summit in Nicosia, where talks with Middle East leaders were also scheduled.
– **US reward**
The US State Department is offering up to $10 million for information on the leader of the Tehran-backed Iraqi armed group Kataeb Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS), which Washington designates as a terrorist organization.
– **Israel-Lebanon ceasefire extended**
The ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended for three weeks, US President Donald Trump announced Thursday. “I think there’s a very good chance of having peace. I think it should be an easy one,” Trump told reporters, adding that he plans to meet with top leadership from both countries in the next couple of weeks.
– **Hezbollah fires on northern Israel**
Hezbollah said on Thursday it fired rockets at Israel, accusing it of “violation of the ceasefire and its targeting of the town of Yater in southern Lebanon”. Hezbollah said it targeted the Shtula settlement in northern Israel with rockets.
– **Trump says ‘clock is ticking’ for Iran**
Trump said Thursday the United States is under no pressure to end the war with Iran, but “the clock is ticking” for Tehran, as disruption from the conflict batters the world economy. He also ruled out striking Iran with a nuclear weapon. “A nuclear weapon should never be allowed to be used by anybody,” the US president told reporters at the White House.
– **US aircraft carrier arrives in Middle East**
The USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier has arrived in the Middle East region, the US military said Thursday, bringing the number of American navy battle groups in the theatre to three.
– **Iran welcome at World Cup**
Iran’s footballers will be welcome at this year’s World Cup, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday, distancing the US government from a proposal that Italy could take their place in the tournament. Rubio denied that Washington had asked the Iranian team not to come, but warned members of its delegation deemed to have ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) may be barred.
– **Israel awaits ‘green light’**
Israel’s defence minister, Israel Katz, said the country was “prepared to resume the war” and was awaiting a green light from Washington to return Iran to “the Stone Age”.
– **Trump’s Hormuz order**
Trump on Thursday said, “I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be… that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz”.
– **US forces board tanker**
The US Defense Department said Thursday its forces boarded a vessel in the Indian Ocean that was providing material support to Iran, the second time it had done so in three days.
© 2024 AFP
