India has expressed strong concern over the targeting of commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz during the West Asia conflict, urging for the restoration of unimpeded navigation and global commerce.
The Iranian Embassy in South Africa has launched a biting social media attack on US President Donald Trump, using a viral maritime audio clip to label him an "idiot".
Dozens of Indian-flagged ships and over a thousand seafarers are stranded in the Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, and surrounding areas due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz amidst ongoing military actions involving the US, Israel, and Iran.
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.
India has refuted claims of payment issues hindering crude oil imports from Iran, clarifying that refiners have the flexibility to source oil from various global suppliers. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas addressed reports of a tanker rerouting to China, emphasising standard industry practices and secured oil requirements.
India is in communication with Iranian officials to ensure the safety and secure passage of its ships through the Strait of Hormuz, following recent firing incidents involving Indian vessels.
Despite Iran allowing 'non-hostile vessels' through the Strait of Hormuz, marine insurance premiums are expected to remain elevated due to persistent high-risk classifications and ongoing geopolitical tensions, with experts cautioning that the threat of attacks and collateral damage still exists.
If the oil infrastructure is attacked by the United States, the whole area could be flooded with oil, spilling into the Persian Gulf.
Two Indian ships carrying liquified petroleum gas (LPG) from the Gulf countries crossed the Strait of Hormuz early on Saturday morning, raising the number of Indian vessels safely passing through the war-hit, narrow shipping lane to three.
Iran has not closed the Strait. It remains open; however, due to current conditions and circumstances, ships are unable to pass through the Hormuz. Otherwise, Iran never wanted the Strait to be closed or blocked, the supreme leader's representative said.
US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that the American Navy will henceforth block all maritime traffic entering the Strait of Hormuz.
The USS Abraham Lincoln has been operating in the Arabian Sea since the end of January.
US President Donald Trump has announced plans to clear the Strait of Hormuz to secure the vital oil corridor, citing risks to global energy supplies and criticising other nations' inaction.
The ongoing conflict in West Asia is severely disrupting Bikaner's food exports, causing delays, rising costs, and impacting the supply of popular snacks like bhujia and papad to Gulf and European markets.
The United States has clarified that its naval blockade in West Asia targets Iranian ports and coastline, not the Strait of Hormuz, applying to all ships regardless of nationality. US officials warned Iran against threatening commercial ships and hinted at ceasefire negotiations as an alternative.
The clock on the ceasefire is running out. But everyone's already whispering about round two, possibly as soon as this weekend.
The Indian government has refuted reports suggesting a deal with Iran involving the release of seized oil tankers in exchange for safe passage of Indian vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran's ambassador to India, Mohammad Fathali, has described India as a "reliable and compassionate" partner while asserting Tehran's territorial authority over the Strait of Hormuz amidst ongoing regional tensions.
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
Trump has made it clear: the US will not lift its blockade of Iranian ports until a deal is signed.
Iran has announced the Strait of Hormuz is open to commercial vessels, coinciding with a ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel.
Will rising tensions between US-Israel and Iran threaten crude oil supply through the Strait of Hormuz, putting India's fuel prices, imports, and economic stability at risk?
The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defence has announced that the air force and air defence forces have successfully intercepted a significant number of aerial threats following a large-scale Iranian attack that commenced on February 28.
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.
'We are getting used to the constant alerts to take shelter, listening to sonic booms from jets flying above us, hearing news of neighbouring ports being targeted, and being the only ship in the terminal.'
We cannot simply have a 60-65 per cent import dependency in LPG, the bulk of which comes from just one volatile region -- West Asia, points out R Jagannathan.
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 senior government official confirms that Indian vessels do not require permission to navigate the Strait of Hormuz, despite regional tensions. Several Indian ships, including LPG tankers, have safely crossed the strait, ensuring continued supply of essential commodities to India.
Indian refiners are negotiating for additional crude cargoes from the US, Russia, and West Africa to ensure adequate supplies amid Middle East tensions. Refineries are maintaining normal processing rates and deferring maintenance to build reserves. The move comes as conflict impacts tanker movements through the Strait of Hormuz, a key energy transit route.
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.
'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.'
24 Indian-flagged vessels with 677 Indian seafarers were currently located west of the Strait of Hormuz, and four vessels with 101 Indian seafarers were stationed east of the strategic waterway.
Iran is fighting a different war: Older, slower, and in some ways more dangerous. Iran doesn't need to shoot down an F/A-18. It only needs to make the Strait of Hormuz feel dangerous long enough for insurance markets, shipping companies, and oil futures traders to do the rest. Prem Panicker continues his must-read daily blog on the war in the Middle East.
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.
'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.'
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) reports that ash clouds from volcanic activity in Ethiopia, which impacted flight operations in India, are drifting towards China and will move away from India by 7.30 pm on Tuesday.
An Indian crew member of a Comoros-flagged oil tanker that capsized off the Oman coast has died, officials said on Thursday.
Thirteen Indians are among the 16-member crew of a Comoros-flagged oil tanker that went missing after it capsized off the coast of Oman, the country's maritime authority said.
The Iran-Israel conflict has further increased global economic uncertainties, impacting world trade, including India's exports, as it is expected to drive up both air and sea freight rates, exporters say. They said that India's exports to Europe and counters like Russia may get impacted due to this war.
This would be the second cyclonic storm in the Arabian Sea this year.
