Al Jazeera

By Lyndal Rowlands

    As the US and Iran prepare for talks in Pakistan, Israel continues to bombard Lebanon after killing more than 300 people and injuring at least 1,150 in a single day of strikes across the country on Wednesday.

    World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has called on Israel to withdraw a forced evacuation order affecting two key hospitals in Lebanon’s Beirut area as the country’s health system struggles to treat civilian casualties of Israeli attacks.

Saudi Arabia reveals how Iran attacks have affected oil production

By Resul Serdar Atas

Reporting from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    It is a rare case that Saudi Arabia is releasing a damage assessment, with the Ministry of Energy of Saudi Arabia saying that several pieces of critical infrastructure of companies have been hit multiple times.

    Gas facilities, the oil production facilities, the pipelines, the export terminals, oil tanks, and many more.

    Perhaps amongst them the most important one is the East-West pipeline, which is a critical lifeline not only for Saudi’s economic life, but also for the global energy market.

    The Saudi authorities are saying that the pipeline has been attacked multiple times and as a result the capacity has been reduced by 700,000 barrels of oil per day.

    And the Manifa production plant also was hit, according to Saudi officials. And that has caused a drop of 300,000 barrels of oil daily.

Shipping in Strait of Hormuz at a trickle despite US-Iran ceasefire

By John Power

Reporting from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

    Only handfuls of vessels have transited the critical Strait of Hormuz since Washington and Tehran announced a two-week pause in fighting, dampening hopes for a swift resolution to one of the worst global energy disruptions in history.

    Five vessels crossed the strait on Wednesday, down from 11 the previous day, and seven transited on Thursday, according to data from market intelligence firm Kpler.

    According to Lloyd’s List Intelligence, more than 600 vessels, including 325 tankers, are still stranded in the Gulf due to the continued blockage of the strait.

WATCH: Dozens of UN ambassadors condemn deadly attacks on peacekeepers in Lebanon

    Ambassadors from 65 countries have joined Indonesia’s UN envoy Umar Hadi to deliver a joint statement condemning attacks on UNIFIL, including the recent killing of three Indonesian peacekeepers in southern Lebanon.

‘They want to be a normal country’: Iran seeking to return to the global economy

    Alex Vatanka, a senior fellow at the Middle East Institute, says that while Iran may benefit financially from controlling the Strait of Hormuz, it stands to gain much more if it is able to have US sanctions removed.

    “What the Iranians are essentially asking for is a return to the global economy,” Vatanka told Al Jazeera from Washington, DC.

    “They want to be a normal country”.

    “In their 10 bullet points, they’re talking about removal of primary American sanctions, which basically means they’re open to the idea of American investing in Iran, as crazy that might sound right now,” Vatanka said.

    “They’re also talking about removal of secondary sanctions. That’s other countries other than the United States, being able to go and invest and trade with Iranians freely,” he said.

    “So if you’re Iran, you have a lot more to gain from becoming a normal country than remaining ostracised and playing the Strait of Hormuz as a card and as a source of revenue. Yes, you can get maybe up to $100bn a year by essentially blackmailing the global economy. But that doesn’t make you normal,” he added.

South Korea sends new special envoy to Tehran to address safety of vessels, citizens

    South Korea’s Foreign Ministry has appointed a new special envoy to Iran who will be dispatched to Tehran shortly, the country’s official Yonhap News Agency reports.

    Former ambassador to Kuwait Chung Byung-ha was named the new envoy and he will be responsible for coordinating the safe passage of South Korean vessels and citizens in the Middle East amid the war on Iran, according to Yonhap.

    Chung’s appointment was announced on Friday, one day after South Korea’s Foreign Minister Cho Hyun held a phone conversation with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

    According to Yonhap, 26 South Korea-linked vessels remain stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, which remains blocked to most shipping amid the US-Israel war on Iran.

    (02:50 GMT)

When and where are US, Iran holding talks

By Abid Hussain

Reporting from Islamabad

    Pakistan is hosting peace talks between Washington and Tehran that are set to begin this weekend in Islamabad.

    The White House has confirmed that US Vice President JD Vance will lead the American delegation, joined by President Donald Trump’s top envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner.

    Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi are expected to lead the Iranian delegation.

    Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is expected to formally host the talks and hold separate preliminary meetings with both sides on Friday or early Saturday morning, depending on when the teams arrive in the Pakistani capital.

Direct Israel-Lebanon talks first tabled weeks ago, only now Israel seems ‘amenable’

By Heidi Pett

Reporting from Beirut, Lebanon

    The prospect of direct negotiations with Israel was actually raised about a week into this war, and at that time, it was a very significant development. Lebanon and Israel have technically been in a state of war for decades.

    Now, when that prospect was first flagged by Lebanese politicians, Israel rejected it.

    At that time, Israel was not amenable to the idea; now it seems it is.

    But the state here in Lebanon is insisting – we had the president, Joseph Aoun, earlier today saying that the talks could not begin until there was a ceasefire here in Lebanon, and he stressed that the ceasefire needed to happen immediately.

    Amidst all of this talk of potential negotiations with Israel, of course, one of the key players is the actual party to the conflict, which is Hezbollah.

    They have said they are not open to the idea of direct talks, and if there is any movement towards that, a ceasefire needs to happen first.

‘Iran is not referring to it as a ceasefire’

    Al Jazeera spoke to Jeremy Scahill from Drop Site News about what the pause in fighting between the US and Iran really means – and if it will actually hold.

    As Scahill said, Tehran has not called the cessation of fighting a “ceasefire” and has also warned that its “fingers remain on the trigger”.

Tehran has moved from ‘battle for survival’ to ‘more strategic opportunities’

    Abas Aslani, a senior research fellow at the Iran-based Center for Middle East Strategic Studies, says that while the war began as a “battle for survival for Tehran”, it has shifted from an “immediate threat into more strategic opportunities”.

    “That’s why Iran thinks that there is a new status quo vis-a-vis the Strait of Hormuz, and why the country wants to benefit from the new situation,” Aslani told Al Jazeera from Tehran.

    However, Aslani added, from Iran’s perspective, there is a “trust deficit” as Iran and the United States head into mediated talks in Pakistan this weekend.

    “Specifically, on day one, Israel violated the terms of the negotiation. Later on, the United States said that Iran cannot have enrichment, contrary to the terms of the 10-point plan proposed by Iran,” he said.

Oil prices continue to climb as Strait of Hormuz shipping remains restricted

    Oil prices continued to rise in early Asian trading as investors remain concerned over restricted shipping flows through the Strait of Hormuz, as a shaky ceasefire between Iran and the US is tested by Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon.

    As of 01:00 GMT on Friday, Brent crude oil futures had edged 0.87 percent higher to $96.75 per barrel. US oil futures were also up more than 1 percent.

    US President Donald Trump accused Iran earlier of “doing a very poor job” of allowing ships through the Strait of Hormuz and warned Tehran against charging vessels to pass through the vital shipping waterway.

    Additionally, earlier attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil production capacity have cut the kingdom’s output by about 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) and reduced throughput on its East-West Pipeline by 700,000 bpd, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Thursday.

‘No change’ in Israel’s position on Lebanon attacks despite pressure, even from Trump

By Rob McBride

Reporting from Amman, Jordan

    As far as Israel is concerned, there seems to be no change in its position.

    No, there will be no letup in its strikes against Hezbollah. It still insists that Hezbollah is not covered, is not linked with Iran, in this agreement between Iran and the US.

    Hezbollah is regarded as just as much a threat to Israel as Iran itself. In fact, for many people in Israel, especially people living in the north of the country, it represents more of a threat, much closer to home.

    There is a sense in Israel that they are being bullied, if you like, almost pushed into trying to hold ceasefire talks, and where the pushing is coming from is the United States, and US President Donald Trump in particular.

    Everybody knows about the significance of this deal to President Trump, to the world economy, to making sure the Strait of Hormuz stays open.

    And we have seen that in phone conversations reportedly taking place between Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu.

    Significantly, one call on Wednesday where, apparently, Donald Trump told Netanyahu to “low-key it”. A comment that he later confirmed with US media that he had instructed his Israeli ally.

UK PM Starmer meets with UAE president

    British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been on a whistle-stop tour of the Gulf region following the announcement of a ceasefire between Iran and the United States.

    Starmer met with United Arab Emirates President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and expressed his solidarity with the people of the UAE following Iranian attacks, according to a Downing Street statement.

    The leaders also discussed the need for a full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and pledged to strengthen ties between the United Kingdom and the UAE.

    Starmer also visited Qatar, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

Iranian rabbi denounces US-Israeli destruction of Tehran synagogue

    A rabbi in Iran has denounced Israel after US-Israeli strikes destroyed a historical synagogue in Tehran on Tuesday during the holy week of Passover.

    “The Israeli regime’s claim about defending Jews is nothing more than a shameful lie,” Rabbi Younes Hamami Lalehzar said.

    Iran has the second-largest Jewish population in the Middle East after Israel.

More than 60 countries join Indonesia to condemn attacks on peacekeepers in Lebanon

    Ambassadors from dozens of countries have joined Indonesia’s UN envoy Umar Hadi to deliver a joint statement condemning “in the strongest terms the persistent attacks against UNIFIL”, including recent attacks that killed three Indonesian peacekeepers in Lebanon.

    The joint statement also noted that peacekeepers from France, Ghana, Indonesia, Nepal and Poland were injured in the recent attacks in southern Lebanon.

    The countries also expressed “deep concerns over the humanitarian situation in Lebanon, especially the significant civilian casualties, the extensive destruction of civilian infrastructure and the mass displacement of more than one million people”.

    The UN has said its preliminary findings showed that one of the peacekeepers was likely killed by Israeli tank fire on March 29, while two more were killed the following day by an explosive device the UN assessed “was most likely placed by Hezbollah”.

Japan to release more oil from emergency stockpiles

    Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has announced that 20 days’ worth of oil reserves will be released from early May onwards.

    Japan is dependent on the Middle East for 95 percent of its oil supply. The East Asian nation began releasing oil from its stockpiles in mid-March.

    In total, Japan is making available about 50 days’ worth of oil consumption. As of April 6, the country had enough oil for 230 days in its reserves.

HRW says Israel ‘systematically destroyed’ bridges crossing Lebanon’s Litani River

    The New York-based human rights organisation has said Israeli forces struck nine bridges over the Litani River and its tributary between March 12 and April 8, leaving only one operational crossing remaining between southern Lebanon and the rest of the country.

    “Between March 12 and April 8, Israeli forces systematically destroyed or severely damaged all main bridges connecting areas south of the Litani River to the rest of the country,” Human Rights Watch said in a new report analysing the attacks.

    The Qasmieh Bridge is now “the sole main remaining operational crossing”, HRW added.

    It said it had “analysed videos posted online showing the moment three of the bridges were struck, as well as photographs and videos of the aftermath from the strikes on the nine bridges and the road leading to Al-Khardali bridge”.

    Israeli officials have long threatened to invade Lebanon up to the Litani River, with far-right Israeli minister Bezalel Smotrich describing the vital river in Lebanon as “the new Israeli border”.

Iranians start to rebuild lives amid war

    This Iranian woman’s home was bombed by US-Israeli strikes.

    Many like her now have to rebuild their lives as ceasefire talks are set to begin between the US and Iran.

Australian prime minister visits Singapore for fuel security talks

    Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is visiting the Southeast Asian city-state as part of diplomatic efforts to shore up fuel supplies for Australia, as oil exports continue to be disrupted by the Iran conflict.

    Australia relies on imports for an estimated 90 percent of its refined petroleum products, with more than a quarter of that coming from Singapore. In turn, Australia is the second-largest supplier of liquefied natural gas to the Asian financial hub.

    Albanese will meet with Singaporean leader Lawrence Wong on Friday after a tour of Jurong Island, where Singapore’s key oil refining facilities are located.

    “It is in both of our countries’ interests to engage with each other to make sure that we are both reliable suppliers,” Albanese said on Thursday as he arrived in Singapore.