Pakistan's Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has been actively involved in mediating between Saudi Arabia and Iran following the outbreak of war, ensuring the safety of Pakistani citizens in affected regions.
"The US President's statements are within the framework of efforts to reduce energy prices and gain time to implement his military plans," the ministry stated.
Araghchi remarked that US messaging currently echoes the Vietnam War-era "Five O'Clock Follies," suggesting a systematic misrepresentation of military progress.
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has affirmed that the United States and his administration have achieved nearly total dominance over Iranian airspace following a series of coordinated military strikes.
'Mojtaba Khamenei supervised the most recent repression in December 2025 and January 2026 which remains ongoing.'
In his first major national address since hostilities began, Trump said the ongoing military campaign, dubbed 'Operation Epic Fury', has delivered 'swift, decisive, overwhelming victories'.
Amid the ongoing conflict in West Asia, Israeli Ambassador to India, Reuven Azar, stated that Israel is willing to cease hostilities if Iran changes its course, emphasising that Tel Aviv has consulted diplomatic channels, including the US and regional partners.
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
For weeks, the war skirted the edge of catastrophe without tipping over. Missiles flew, there was much destruction, commanders were assassinated, cities across the Gulf and even in Israel struggled to absorb the shock. But one line held: Energy infrastructure, the arteries of the global economy, remained largely untouched. That is no longer true. Prem Panicker continues his must read daily blog on the Gulf War.
A group of Indian sailors recount their harrowing experience of being detained in Iran on suspicion of smuggling, and their subsequent escape from the country as regional tensions escalated into open conflict.
Trump claims the United States is performing exceptionally well in its ongoing conflict with Iran, citing weakened Iranian military capabilities and a strong US position.
As days turn into weeks and America loses more planes, as the destruction of trillions of dollars worth military assets piles up, and dead bodies of soldiers return in ever greater numbers in coffins, Trump will have to answer some very difficult questions to save his presidency, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The LPG squeeze on India's restaurant sector is the quotidian face of a deeper crisis.
Although extensive air attacks have been carried out to destroy most of Iran's defence capabilities, the latter's resilience and sustenance during the war clearly indicate that the US landing force would encounter severe resistance in the operation, explains Commodore Venugopal Vengalil (retd).
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) has reviewed the evolving situation in West Asia, directing departments to assist Indian nationals affected by recent developments and emphasizing the need for dialogue and diplomacy.
As the Iran-Israel conflict takes dangerous dimensions, support for Tehran comes from next door as Iraqi Shi'ite Muslims protest Jerusalem's attacks in Baghdad.
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.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that Israel and the US struck Iran because Tehran had restarted its nuclear programme and it would have gone 'immune within months'. He claimed Iran was building new underground sites to shield its missile and nuclear programmes from attacks.
Double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu was stranded at Dubai airport en route to the All England Open badminton tournament due to flight suspensions caused by escalating tensions in the Middle East.
US President Donald Trump's threats against Iran have drawn strong condemnation from Democrat leaders, who are calling for his removal from office, while some Republicans express concern.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserts that the joint US-Israel campaign against Iran is progressing successfully, highlighting Israel's strengthened position and hinting at new regional alliances.
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.
According to Hezbollah, it fired a swarm of drones at radar sites and control rooms at the base on Tuesday, describing the move as retaliation for Israeli strikes.
Qatar has halted liquefied natural gas (LNG) production after its facilities came under attack amid the ongoing West Asia conflict, disrupting supplies to India and squeezing feedstock availability for key domestic sectors.
'No civilian deserves to live in fear. No civilian deserves to be caught up in a war which is destabilising the entire region.'
The targeted eastern area is of immense strategic importance, as it is where the "majority of the country's oil resources are located."
The threat of wars hovers over the negotiations in Oman, but the good part is that Trump called the talks to be 'very good' and Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian responded that they 'constitute a step forward', points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The military command clarified in a statement published on X that the aircraft were engaged in error during active combat operations on Sunday.
Indian Navy's destroyer INS Kochi responded following the attack on the vessel, MV Andromeda Star, on April 26, officials said, adding all the crew members are safe.
The Bahrain Grand Prix and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in the Formula One 2026 calendar are likely to be cancelled due to escalating Middle East tensions, with a final decision expected soon.
Formula One has cancelled the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix scheduled for April due to escalating Middle East tensions, reducing the 2026 F1 calendar from 24 to 22 races.
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 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.
According to the report, the Pentagon is deploying the USS Tripoli ARG, along with the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), part of its own strike group.
'In India, there is this first generation migrant, say from a small village in UP. He didn't go to the Gulf to buy a big house but make the life of his family better.' 'He may have paid 1 lakh rupees to an agent to go to the Gulf. Imagine what will happen to him and his family if he has to come back. He and his family will become poor again.' 'He went to the Gulf to come out of poverty, but this war will make his family trapped in poverty once again.'
If the oil infrastructure is attacked by the United States, the whole area could be flooded with oil, spilling into the Persian Gulf.
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.
The Iranian missile attack on Israel appears to have been defeated and ineffective, United States President Joe Biden said, hours after Tehran fired nearly 200 missiles at Israel.
Israel and the United States had a plan. Iran punched back. And now the Gulf is reeling, the world is beginning to feel the pain and, as on date, no one in Washington or Tel Aviv appears willing to admit that the punch has landed, notes Prem Panicker, continuing his must-read blog on the war in the Middle East.
Trump said that Iran's leadership, along with its air defence, Air Force, and Navy are 'gone'.
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