It remains unclear whether United States President Donald Trump or Iranian authorities will pursue the offer.
United States President Donald Trump said he will file a $15 billion defamation and libel lawsuit against The New York Times, accusing the newspaper of running what he called a decades-long 'method of lying' against him, his family and the America First movement.
Trump may strike. He may announce productive talks and extend again. He may do both at the same time. Iran will not open the Strait on someone else's terms, so no matter what happens, that problem will remain unsolved. And the IRGC will still be collecting its $2 million toll from every ship bold enough to ask permission to pass.
The ceasefire is still technically holding, to the extent that no overt hostilities have been reported yet, but the rhetoric has hardened dangerously. The week ahead will also clarify whether the Islamabad failure was a negotiating tactic or whether Washington has genuinely locked itself into a position from which the only exits are climb-down, escalation, or the slow bleed of a new status quo that nobody chose and nobody controls. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
The intriguing bit is that Trump is likely to attend the talks in Islamabad this weekend -- if he does, it will be the clearest signal yet that the US is ready to exit the war with some sort of win to show, since he cannot afford to go for the talks and return empty-handed, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War
Crude oil prices experienced a sharp decline after US President Donald Trump announced a temporary halt to military strikes on Iran's energy infrastructure, easing geopolitical tensions and supply disruption fears.
Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey met in Islamabad in what analysts say is the formal opening of a new diplomatic formation that could reshape the post-war regional order. Their immediate goal is a ceasefire; their larger ambition is to ensure that neither Iran nor Israel emerges from this war in a dominant position. Pakistan's foreign minister then flew directly to Beijing and mooted a Chinese role as guarantor of any eventual agreement. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
According to court documents, Shivam directed smuggling operations from January through June 2025, coordinating the illegal transport of individuals across the US-Canada border into Clinton County, New York.
Vikram Doraiswami, a seasoned diplomat, has been appointed as India's new ambassador to China, succeeding Pradeep Kumar Rawat. This decision comes as both countries attempt to improve bilateral relations following a period of strain.
The delegations from the US and Iran head to Islamabad on Friday, carrying a ceasefire that is already fraying, a Strait that is technically open and practically closed, and a negotiating agenda that would challenge even parties actually negotiating in good faith, which these groups are not. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Trump has approved sharing targeting data with Ukrainians as the administration weighs sending powerful weapons, the news outlet reported on Wednesday (local time).
Government officials are reportedly apprehensive that the 30,000 to 40,000 US troops currently deployed within the region could serve as the primary target of the Islamic Republic in the event of an all-out war.
The 'rescue' operation occurred within kilometres of Iran's underground tunnel complex at Isfahan, assessed by the IAEA and US intelligence as holding a substantial portion of the country's 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpile. Retired senior US military officers have highlighted that the mission's footprint -- hundreds of special operators, multiple heavy-lift aircraft deep inside Iran -- appears outsized for recovering a single airman. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
Reports indicate Pakistan targeted Bagram airbase in Afghanistan as part of Operation Ghazab lil Haq, following alleged Afghan Taliban attacks. The operation aims to address the failure to stop terrorist attacks originating from Afghan soil.
United States President Donald Trump on Friday signalled the US intention of going all out in its campaign against Iran's Islamic regime, warning Iran to watch out for what would happen today and saying that the US was winning the conflict despite what reports claimed.
Parents of Kashmiri students studying in Iran have appealed to the Indian government to evacuate their children due to ongoing tensions and protests in the country. They cite difficulties in communication and travel arrangements.
The United States, which entered this war in expectation of a short, sharp win along the Venezuela model, is now preparing for deeper involvement in a conflict it does not fully control, without the allies it typically relies on, against an adversary that is not behaving as expected, in a global environment that is already absorbing economic shock. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
The storm has prompted widespread travel disruption, including mass flight cancellations and warnings to motorists to stay off icy roads, while at least 20 states and Washington, DC, declared states of emergency.
'The next two to three weeks will not be decided in Washington.' 'They will be decided in Tehran, in whatever calculation Iran makes about the costs of continued resistance against the costs of appearing to have yielded.'
The call came before Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei vowed vengeance and urged citizens to continue their fight against the attacks by US and Israel.
Palm Springs Fire Chief Paul Alvarado confirmed that the explosion was intentional, with the blast damaging multiple buildings across several blocks.
Senior Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan defends New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani's note for jailed activist Umar Khalid, emphasizing the importance of human rights.
The purge in Washington does not pause the war. Strikes continue, Hormuz remains closed, and Brent crude is still dancing around $109 a barrel. For India, the command chaos in the Pentagon is another layer of uncertainty piled on five weeks of conflict that was already straining every buffer Delhi has.
Israel has for more than two decades and several US presidencies worked to draw the United States into a full-scale war with Iran. Having finally achieved that, the last thing it wants is Trump declaring victory and going home, as he is prone to do. Ali Larijani was the figure most capable of handing Trump a negotiated exit with something to show for it. Without Larijani, the road to an exit gets considerably narrower. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Every UN secretary-general has flagged the financial situation, but Antonio Guterres has issued the direst warning yet, calling it a 'race to bankruptcy and of imminent financial collapse, points out Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
What we are watching is something different: A fog manufactured and maintained by the people who started the war, so that the question of why it was started never has to be answered, observes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the war in the Middle East.
The question is no longer whether the war will expand. It has. The next few days will tell us whether the war stabilises around Hormuz or whether the Strait itself becomes the trigger for a far larger rupture. What to watch for over the next 48 hours is simple: Any move by the US toward direct naval control of the Strait; any credible Iranian attempt to disrupt or mine shipping lanes and, critically, whether energy infrastructure in the Gulf continues to be targeted.If those lines are crossed in tandem, the war will no longer be containable within the region.
'Was the five-day pause ever meant to hold, or was it simply another instrument of signaling, of positioning, of buying time in a war where even the pauses are tactical?' asks Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Ranjini Iyengar of Pink Whistle Man explains how she accomodated Kritika Kamra and Gaurav Kapur's brief to design the black and white illustrated wedding card and invitation video.
In a first, the New York State Senate has formally adopted a resolution honouring the Indian Constitution on the occasion of its 75th anniversary, recognising it as a guiding framework for India's ongoing progress as a nation and celebrating the country's democratic values.
Tensions escalate at the UN Security Council as the US and Israel defend their military actions against Iran, while Iran condemns the strikes as war crimes, raising fears of a wider Middle East conflict.
A 21-year-old Indian-American student, Savitha Shan, was among four people killed in a shooting in Austin, Texas. The incident is being investigated as a possible act of terrorism due to evidence found at the scene and the suspect's residence.
When everyone has footage and no one can verify it, the loudest voice wins, notes Prem Panicker who begins a daily blog on the War in the Middle East.
The pause gives the US time to breathe, to regroup, to move its expeditionary force into position without risk of interception along the way. It gives Iran nothing -- on the ground, attacks against its infrastructure continue apace. Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held talks with Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodriguez, focusing on strengthening bilateral relations. This marks the first conversation between the leaders since Nicolas Maduro's capture.
'I suspect that Bangladesh being given permission stuck in India's official craw, and this story was an attempt to balance the scales by giving the impression that a similar waiver had been given to India as well.'
The Venezuelan President and his wife Cilia Flores were earlier captured from Caracas after US President Donald Trump unilaterally sanctioned a military operation on Venezuelan soil.
Fight on toward goals that keep receding, or exit with most objectives unmet. Trump is agitated, his poll numbers falling below the Plimsoll line, his base fractured between those who back the war and those who remember that he campaigned on ending them.
When missiles fly in this region, they are never just aimed at military targets.
The chairman of maritime company Safesea Group has described the attack on the US-owned crude oil tanker Safesea Vishnu, which resulted in the death of an Indian crew member, as "deliberate and calculated". He emphasised the need for governments to ensure the safety of commercial shipping lanes and seafarers.
