June 17, 2026

Israel Watch

Iran Pushes Too Far in Hormuz, and the U.S. Pushes Back – PJ Media– pjmedia.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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President Donald Trump authorized a direct response after an Iranian-flagged vessel moved into a restricted pattern of activity in the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. Navy forces intercepted and disabled the vessel after it failed to comply with repeated warnings. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth supported the operation, and the U.S. Central Command coordinated the response, stopping the vessel before it could continue its course through one of the world’s most contentious shipping lanes.

It was the first interception since the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports began last week. Iran’s joint military command called the armed boarding an act of piracy and a ceasefire violation, the state broadcaster said.

With the U.S.-Iran standoff over the strait sharpening and the ceasefire expiring by Wednesday, it was not clear where President Donald Trump ’s earlier announcement on new talks with Iran now stood. He had said U.S. negotiators would head to Pakistan on Monday.

US seizes Iranian vessel in Hormuz; Iran vows ‘retaliation soon’ — what we know– timesofindia.indiatimes.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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US President Donald Trump on Sunday claimed that American forces seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship TOUSKA after it tried to bypass a naval blockade near the Strait of Hormuz.Iran initially contradicted the claim, saying US forces were forced to retreat…

In a post on Truth Social he wrote, “Today, an Iranian-flagged cargo ship named TOUSKA… tried to get past our Naval Blockade, and it did not go well for them.”

Trump said the ship was warned by a US Navy guided missile destroyer in the Gulf of Oman to stop, but it did not comply.

“The US Navy Guided Missile Destroyer USS SPRUANCE intercepted the TOUSKA in the Gulf of Oman, and gave them fair warning to stop. The Iranian crew refused to listen, so our Navy ship stopped them right in their tracks by blowing a hole in the engine room. Right now, US Marines have custody of the vessel. The TOUSKA is under US Treasury Sanctions because of their prior history of illegal activity. We have full custody of the ship, and are seeing what’s on board!,” he further wrote.

Middle East crisis live: ceasefire under pressure as Iran says it has no plans for talks after US seizes ship | US-Israel war on Iran– www.theguardian.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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Esmail Baghaei, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson, has been quoted by Al Jazeera as having said that Iran has no plans for a new round of talks with the US, saying Washington has violated the agreement from its implementation.

The spokesperson also said Tehran can’t forget US attacks on Iran during previous diplomatic talks as he insisted that Iran will continue defending its national interests.

Behind Trump’s “Unstable, Insulting” Strategy To End The Iran War– www.ndtv.com

pgnewser April 20, 2026 0

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US President Donald Trump seems to have lost his appetite for war as the two-week ceasefire with Iran nears an end. He is oscillating between ominous and propitiatory approaches while asking Iran to make a permanent peace deal. Behind the scenes, he’s grappling with fear that the situation can turn into something similar to the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis –one of the biggest foreign policy failures of recent times, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Trump’s impulsive style has never before been tested during a sustained military conflict, and according to the report, his top aides are limiting the flow of information t

Iran Galvanizes Anti-American European Movement

pgnewser April 16, 2026 1

As 10,000 more U.S. troops head to the Persian Gulf, Trump promises the war will soon be over. The Senate failed again to check the President’s military actions. China looks to pry America’s allies loose, accusing the U.S. of destabilizing the world. Macron and Starmer followed China’s lead, holding a joint conference on the Strait of Hormuz.

The French president wrote on X that the gathering would include “non-belligerent countries ready to contribute, alongside us, to a multilateral and purely defensive mission aimed at restoring freedom of navigation in the strait when security conditions allow.”

Iran war ‘close to over’, says Trump. Sends 10k new troops– timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the war he launched with Israel on Iran was “close to over”, even as 10,000 additional US troops move into West Asia, and Pakistan army chief Asim Munir arrived in Tehran with a mediation team to try to prevent a renewal of the conflict. Quoting current and former US officials, The Washington Post reported that the US was sending the additional troops before the end of April as Washington tries to increase pressure on Tehran.

These include forces aboard the USS George H W Bush and the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group. It was previously announced that roughly 50,000 troops had been involved in operations in the war on Iran.The build-up comes amid efforts to extend the two-week ceasefire between US and Iran. A senior Iranian source told Reuters that Munir, who mediated the last round of talks, was in Iran “to narrow gaps” between the two sides. “I think you’re going to be watching an amazing two days ahead,” Trump told ABC News reporter Jonathan Karl, according to a post by the reporter on X, adding he did not think it would be necessary to extend the ceasefire. “I think it’s close to over, yeah. I mean I view it as very close to over,” Trump said in an interview on Fox Business Network conducted Tuesday and broadcast Wednesday. “We’ll see what happens. I think they want to make a deal very badly.”

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China’s Xi says rule of law must be upheld for Middle East peace – channelnewsasia.com

The international rule of law must be upheld for peace and stability to prevail in the Middle East, China’s President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday (Apr 14), in a rebuke of the US-Israeli war on Iran.

While Beijing has repeatedly criticised the US-Israeli campaign as illegal, Xi has made few public comments about the conflict. He will hold talks with US President Donald Trump in an expected meeting in Beijing next month.

The rule of law cannot be “used when convenient and discarded when not”, Xi told Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the visiting crown prince of Abu Dhabi, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

Xi vowed that China would play a “constructive role” in promoting peace talks in the Middle East, according to Xinhua.

His comments were part of four proposals he had put forth as a way to encourage peace in the region, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

“The sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of the Gulf countries in the Middle East should be sincerely respected,” Xi said.

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Trump snubbed from Macron’s Iran talks as Europe plans Strait of Hormuz mission – mirror.co.uk

US President Trump risks being sidelined by an angry Europe tomorrow over his “belligerent” Iran position.

French President Emmanuel Macron revealed that France will host a diplomatic summit with the UK in Paris on Friday to tackle the Strait of Hormuz crisis.

This summit will exclude Trump. Macron wrote on X, calling for the strait to be opened ‘as soon as possible.’

After speaking with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Macron announced the gathering would include ‘non-belligerent countries ready to contribute, alongside us, to a multilateral and purely defensive mission aimed at restoring freedom of navigation in the strait when security conditions allow.’, reports the Express.

The summit arrives as Trump begins to be shut out by multiple European nations from post-war Middle East discussions.

White House spokesperson Olivia Wales stated: “The United States doesn’t need help from any other country – the blockade is working perfectly, implemented by the greatest Navy in the world, while Iran’s navy is at the bottom of the ocean.”

U.S. Navy Destroyer Prevents Two Oil Tankers from Leaving Iran– www.breitbart.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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The U.N. Navy is aggressively enforcing the blockade against Iran, according to a U.S. official who said two oil tankers attempting to leave Iran were intercepted and turned back by an American destroyer on Tuesday.

The unnamed U.S. official told Reuters that two tankers departed from Iran’s port of Chabahar on the Gulf of Oman, only to be intercepted by a U.S. Navy destroyer that instructed them by radio to turn around. Both ships complied with the order.

Chabahar is a port city on the southeastern coast of Iran. It was originally constructed in 1983, to give Iran alternatives to shipping through the Persian Gulf during the long and bloody Iran-Iraq War.

In recent years, the Indian government made about $500 million in investments to expand the two major port complexes at Chabahar, giving them more deep-water berths for large cargo vessels.

Israeli NGO Files War Crimes Complaint Against Spain’s PM Alleging Iran Aid Enabled the Regime’s ‘Terror Machine’– www.breitbart.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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Spain’s prime minister is facing a complaint at the International Criminal Court alleging his government enabled Iran’s “terror machine” through dual-use exports, with the legal group behind the filing arguing that responsibility for war crimes extends to those who provide the means.

The complaint, filed Tuesday by Israeli legal advocacy group Shurat HaDin under Article 15 of the Rome Statute, calls on prosecutors in The Hague to open a criminal investigation — and consider issuing an arrest warrant — against Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and other senior officials.

The complaint alleges that Spain’s socialist government approved the transfer of approximately €1.3 million in dual-use components to Iran in 2024 and 2025, including materials linked to detonators and explosive systems.

According to the filing, the items were not benign industrial goods but “critical components that enable explosive devices to function,” transferred under circumstances in which their use in attacks against civilians was foreseeable.

At the core of the case is the allegation that materials classified as civilian “dual-use” goods function as essential components in weapons systems.

Iran capable of sinking all US naval ships in Persian Gulf, official says – World– tass.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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TEHRAN, April 16. /TASS/. The Iranian armed forces can sink all US naval ships in the Persian Gulf, which are within range of the country’s missiles, Mohsen Rezaei, a member of Iran’s Expediency Council, said.

“An extension of the ceasefire is not in our interests at all. That’s my personal opinion. Pressure has to be increased. Our launchers are aimed at these ships at the moment, and we would sink them all. None would escape, ” he told Iran’s state broadcaster in an interview.

According to Rezaei, there are currently reasons to maintain the ceasefire and hold talks simultaneously. “However, it’s a military lull, not a permanent ceasefire. This is how the supreme leader describes it,” he added.

The United States and Israel launched a military operation against Iran on February 28. Major Iranian cities, including Tehran, were struck. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps announced a retaliatory operation, targeting sites in Israel. US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE were also hit.

Attacks by Trump and Vance fuel debate over ‘Just War’ doctrine– www.washingtonexaminer.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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IS IRAN A ‘JUST WAR’? Pope Leo XIV has posted another provocative statement on X, calling for the world to “reject the logic of violence and war, and embrace peace founded on love and justice.”

“Enough of war and all the pain it causes,” he pontificated. It is just the kind of thing one might expect from the leader of the Catholic Church, but to President Donald Trump, it’s left-wing, liberal claptrap.

“Will someone please tell Pope Leo that Iran has killed at least 42,000 innocent, completely unarmed, protesters in the last two months, and that for Iran to have a Nuclear Bomb is absolutely unacceptable?” Trump posted on Truth Social late Tuesday night.

The fact that Trump just won’t let it go has alienated Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, once considered one of Trump’s closest allies, irked Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) among others in Congress, and started a debate over whether Iran is a “just war.”

Diplomatic efforts to end Iran war, reopen Strait of Hormuz intensify on multiple fronts– www.cbsnews.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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President Trump says leaders of Israel and Lebanon will speak Thursday, as Washington pushes to ease hostilities after the rivals’ first direct talks in decades on Tuesday.

“Trying to get a little breathing room between Israel and Lebanon,” Mr. Trump said late Wednesday on his Truth Social platform, apparently referring to the meeting held in Washington the day before – the first direct negotiations between senior officials from the two countries since 1993 — and to Thursday’s planned discussion.

He didn’t identify Thursday’s participants or give details but said, “It has been a long time since the two leaders have spoken, like 34 years. It will happen tomorrow. Nice!”

Israeli Army Radio, also known as GLZ Radio, said Thursday that, “Intelligence Minister Gila Gamliel confirmed in an interview that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.”

Donald Trump’s Blockade Is Headed for a Bust– www.truthdig.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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As soon as the negotiations between the U.S. and Iran ended without an agreement, President Donald Trump fired a volley of angry social media posts venting his frustration. As a concrete step to force Iranian concessions, he announced a blockade of Iranian ports along the Persian Gulf.

Cut off Tehran’s oil exports, the logic goes, and the regime will have no choice but to bend to Trump’s will.

This thought process is being echoed and amplified by influential Washington voices who should know better. Take Dennis Ross, a former Middle East peace negotiator, who argued that “the blockade always made more sense than seizing Kharg Island. It stops Iran’s exports, its revenues, is a counterpoint to their closing the Straits [of Hormuz].” He also thinks that the measure will “put pressure on China to pressure Iran.”

US turned down Russian offer to take Iran’s enriched uranium – Kremlin — RT World News– www.rt.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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Moscow remains open to reviving the proposal if it helps ease Middle East tensions, Dmitry Peskov says

Russia’s proposal to host Iran’s enriched uranium remains on the table despite having been previously rejected by the US, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.

The issue of Tehran’s nuclear program has long been a sticking point in talks with Washington. US President Donald Trump has demanded that Iran completely dismantle its nuclear infrastructure and hand over its enriched uranium stockpile, a proposal Tehran has rejected.

Iranian officials say they are not seeking a nuclear bomb but insist that uranium enrichment is their sovereign right and intended for civilian use. Tehran has previously indicated it could send some of its enriched uranium to a third country such as Russia and reportedly floated that idea in negotiations before the US and Israel launched their military campaign on February 28.

Lavrov says Iran has inalienable right to enrich uranium, defying Trump– www.foxnews.com

pgnewser April 16, 2026 0

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Russia’s foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said that Iran has an “inalienable” right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes during a state visit to China on Wednesday, according to the Times of Israel.

“The right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes is an inalienable right of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Lavrov said during a Tuesday press conference following a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, according to the Times of Israel.

Trump sends ‘thousands more US troops to Middle East’ to pressure Iran for deal– www.mirror.co.uk

pgnewser April 15, 2026 0

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Donald Trump is raising the pressure on Iran ahead of possible new talks by sending thousands more troops to the Middle East.

The US president has said that a second round of talks with Iran could happen “over the next two days” with negotiations held again in Islamabad as diplomats worked through back channels to arrange them.

And the prospect of talks come as the US Central Command says no ships made it past the blockade in the first 24 hours, while six merchant vessels complied with direction from US forces to turn around and re-enter Iranian waters.

More than 10,000 further troops could also be soon arriving in the region including about 6,000 aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush and several warships escorting it, said officials, reported the Washington Post.

And about 4,200 others with the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and its embarked Marine Corps task force, the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, are expected to arrive near the end of the month.

Trump threatens to ‘punish’ UK by pulling troops out of NATO over Iran support– www.mirror.co.uk

pgnewser April 15, 2026 0

Blurb:

NATO, a 32-member alliance, was formed in 1949 to counter the risk of Soviet attack, and now focusses protecting ally counties by promising that an attack on one member is considered an attack on all

The Trump administration is considering a plan to remove US troops from some NATO ally countries (file image)(Image: Getty)

US President Donald Trump and his administration are considering a plan to remove US troops from NATO ally countries considered to be unhelpful in the US conflict with Iran.

It is understood that the troops would be stationed in countries that have been more supportive of the US military campaign.

The US and Israel have carried out joint strikes on several Iranian sites since February 28. Iran has retaliated by targeting countries across the Middle East, plunging the region into conflict.

Trump on Tuesday, April 7, announced a two-week ceasefire, which appears to be on the brink as Israel continues to strike Lebanon, while Kuwait and the UAE have faced missile and drone attacks on Wednesday.

US says Iranian trade through Strait of Hormuz fully halted — RT World News– www.rt.com

pgnewser April 15, 2026 0

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The American military says the blockade of the vital shipping route has been “fully implemented”

American warships have effectively blocked Iranian trade through the Strait of Hormuz, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) has said.

“A blockade of Iranian ports has been fully implemented as US forces maintain maritime superiority in the Middle East,” CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper said in a statement on Tuesday evening.

“In less than 36 hours since the blockade was implemented, US forces have completely halted economic trade going into and out of Iran by sea,” Cooper added.

The markets are obsessed with the Strait of Hormuz. Why it matters less than you think– www.cnbc.com

pgnewser April 15, 2026 0

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… The U.S. ‘blockade’ of Iranian ports around the Strait of Hormuz (SOH) is under a week old.  When the U.S. naval blockade was announced, some worried it would make things worse by further enraging Iran or the rogue Iranian military, who may then attack ship traffic, ports, or people.  Thankfully, it’s been relatively calm. However we may be just one drone strike, one stray Iranian missile, or one nasty Hormuz mine blast from an escalation.  An assault directly on an American warship would send oil prices soaring.  It’s a scary and tentative time.

That said…

MY TAKE → The Strait of Hormuz is not as important to global energy as it was just a few weeks ago.  Here’s why.  Over the past few years, both Saudi Arabia and the UAE have very smartly built back-up pipelines. Those pipelines – a whopping 7 million barrels per day capacity in Saudi and about 1.5 million per day flowing across the UAE have – have cut the flow of shipborne oil out of the Hormuz by half.

We know the Strait matters massively to more than just oil.  I’ve been very clear on concerns about shortages of fertilizer, jet fuel, other refined products and even helium for semiconductor manufacturing.  Even if the Strait returns to pre-war shipping levels soon – by the way, something absolutely no one is counting on – it could take months to get back to any state of normal for energy and related supply chains.

What Trump Can Learn From Reagan About The Strait Of Hormuz– thefederalist.com

pgnewser April 15, 2026 0

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As the United States Navy enforces a full blockade of Iranian ports and conducts minesweeping operations in the Strait of Hormuz, the lessons of 1987 and 1988 are once again proving their worth. I know, because I participated in the Pentagon basement war games that shaped Operation Praying Mantis in 1988, which became America’s largest Navy surface engagement since World War II.

In March 1987, as Iran attacked shipping in the Persian Gulf during the Tanker War, Kuwait sought U.S. protection for its oil tankers. President Ronald Reagan ordered them reflagged under Operation Earnest Will.

Before the first convoy sailed, two-week-long war games tested responses to Iranian provocations. I served on the Green team as a young Reagan appointee, modeling a robust, military-centric reaction. The Blue team pursued a restrained, “proportional response” approach favored by the foreign policy “Blob.”

The outcomes were clear: The Green team’s decisive posture resulted in roughly 50 American dead, wounded, or captured. The Blue team’s tentative path allowed Iran to control escalation, producing some 1,500 American casualties.

Diplomats try to arrange second round of US-Iran talks during first day of American blockade– www.euronews.com

pgnewser April 15, 2026 0

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Diplomats worked through back channels on Tuesday to arrange a new round of peace talks between the United States and Iran after Washington enacted its blockade of Iranian ports, while Tehran threatened to strike targets across the war-weary region.

US President Donald Trump said a second round of talks could happen “over the next two days,” telling the New York Post the negotiations could be held again in Pakistan’s capital.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres concurred, saying it’s “highly probable” that talks will restart. He cited a meeting he had with Pakistan’s deputy prime minister, Ishaq Dar.

“There is no military solution to this crisis. Peace agreements require persistent engagement and political will. Serious negotiations must resume,” he said.