Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claims control of the Strait of Hormuz and reports striking a US destroyer, escalating tensions in the Middle East following retaliatory strikes between Iran, the US, and Israel.
Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has offered to mediate between the US and Iran to de-escalate the ongoing conflict in West Asia, following a joint US-Israel attack on Iran. Sharif has been in contact with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and other nations to promote dialogue and diplomacy.
...reopen for up to six months. Until then, the Strait stays nearly closed. The world pays. And no one, including the man who started this, can say when it ends, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
Global nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has said there was no radiation leak or release from any nuclear facility in Pakistan during the country's recent military conflict with India.
The operation reportedly extended to American assets, with the IRGC claiming that "US military bases in the region, namely Ali al-Salem in Kuwait, as well as al-Minhad and al-Dhafra in the United Arab Emirates, were also targeted."
Far from it; the country's resistance to the US, its nuclear ambitions, and its pursuit of influence and proxies across the Middle East are driven by a constant search for independence and security. Thus, Iran will never capitulate. Trump will learn this home truth ultimately, and it is going to be a humbling personal experience that may even destroy his presidency, predicts Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
As Iran heads into crucial peace talks with the United States of America, here are the six men who decide the Islamic Republic's course.
Amidst the stalling of high-level peace talks between Tehran and Washington, Iran continues to endure severe digital isolation as the nationwide internet blackout reached its 44th day on Sunday.
Zolqadr's appointment comes through a presidential decree, endorsed by Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has warned that recent missile attacks demonstrate Iran's capacity to strike globally, posing a threat to Europe and the rest of the world. He highlighted the need for international action to counter Iran's nuclear and missile programmes.
Pakistan is set to host face-to-face talks between the United States and Iran, aiming to solidify a fragile ceasefire and prevent further conflict in West Asia. The discussions will focus on a long-term peace arrangement, including sanctions relief, regional security, and Iran's nuclear program.
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.
Former US President Donald Trump claimed he stopped a war between India and Pakistan and expressed his desire to be remembered as a great peacemaker.
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.
Donald Trump claims his use of tariffs prevented a nuclear war between India and Pakistan, a claim India has repeatedly refuted.
The clock on the ceasefire is running out. But everyone's already whispering about round two, possibly as soon as this weekend.
The fragile ceasefire in West Asia between the US and Iran to halt the hostilities in the region for two weeks faces renewed uncertainty as Tehran reportedly moved to block the strategic Strait of Hormuz once again due to Israel's intensified offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon, according to Iranian state media Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), which US President Trump says was "not included" as part of the ceasefire deal.
India's peak power demand is projected to hit 270 GW this summer, surpassing last year's record of 250 GW.
Iran's Ambassador to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, has said there are no ongoing talks between Tehran and Washington, DC, countering United States President Donald Trump's claims of peace overtures.
Trump seems to have estimated that Ghalibaf is a pragmatic politician who is receptive to close relations with the US and is enthusiastic about fostering business and economic ties in particular, points out Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi on Saturday criticised the United States over its stance on Russian oil, claiming Washington was now "begging" countries across the globe, including India, to purchase Russian crude.
US President Donald Trump will travel to China in May for a rescheduled summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, following a postponement due to the war in Iran. The White House has announced the new dates and indicated a reciprocal visit to Washington DC is planned.
Hours after ceasefire, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday warned against any country supplying military weapons to the Islamic Republic, stating that he would impose a 50 percent tariff on all goods exported to the United States.
...is a way out, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War. What the indefinite extension produces is a prolonged condition of not-war-not-peace, in which oil markets cannot stabilise, Asian refineries cannot plan, European governments cannot stop subsidising consumption they cannot afford, and the next flashpoint -- a seized tanker, a miscalculated drone strike, a Truth Social post that claims too much -- is one news cycle away.
The Iranian embassy also posted a video purportedly showing the aftermath of the strike, with plumes of smoke visible.
Odisha-based BonV Aero has partnered with ParaZero Technologies to introduce advanced counter-drone systems to India's defence and security agencies, offering a kinetic solution to neutralise hostile drones.
India's handling of the Iran crisis reflects a growing strain between strategic autonomy and geopolitical alignment, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Pope Leo XIV on Monday underscored his commitment to spiritual advocacy over political friction, stating that he has no desire to engage in a confrontation with the US administration.
'Our diplomacy should have been focused on preventing war and avoiding the inevitable disruptions it would cause, posing a real risk to India's growth story,' asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
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.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asserted that Iran is no longer capable of enriching uranium or producing ballistic missiles, following a joint military campaign with the US.
Trump has made similar claims many times since May 10 last year, stating that it was his pressure that led to peace between the two nuclear-armed neighbours as he makes his pitch for the Nobel Peace Prize.
As the negotiations continued, the Iranian government said on social media that "talks between Iran and the US in Islamabad entered the expert-level stage as economic, military, legal, and nuclear committees joined in".
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.
A fall in the Nifty 50 to around 19,000 is not impossible, but that would likely require nuclear options to be exercised.
Equipped with advanced weaponry, the HMS Anson is fitted with "Tomahawk Block IV land-attack missiles" with a range of 1,600 km and "Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes," providing formidable offensive capabilities.
The British government has called for a negotiated solution to prevent further escalation of conflict in the Middle East following joint strikes by the US and Israel on Iran, emphasizing the safety of UK nationals and the need to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
'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.'
This weekend, Donald Trump has begun to say the quiet part out loud -- that he wants to take control of Iran's oil, a formulation more in line with his robber-baron style of international relations.
'What we have yet to see on either the US or the Iranian side is willingness to compromise on their ultimate demands and the flexibility to reach an agreement to end the war.
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