That is his bottom line.
So it seems unlikely he will sign up to any sort of deal that would allow Iran to postpone those nuclear talks for the time being.
He’s also very much aware the blockade is doing significant economic damage to Iran. He thinks it’s putting the Iranians under extreme pressure and, as he said on social media, he’s waiting for Iran to effectively sort out its leadership so they can work out who to speak to.
Two months of near-total internet blackout in Iran
Iran’s near-total internet blackout has now lasted exactly two months, according to global watchdog Netblocks.
Five sentenced to life in Bahrain for plotting with Iran
Five people have been sentenced to life in Bahrain for plotting “terrorist and hostile acts” with Iran.
- As Gulf leaders meet in Saudi Arabia, Qatar says the Strait of Hormuz should not be used as a pressure card and warns against the possibility of a “frozen conflict”.
- US President Donald Trump’s national security team is reviewing an Iranian plan to halt the war and open the Strait of Hormuz, while postponing talks on its nuclear programme.
- Israel and Hezbollah continue to trade fire as the death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon since an April 17 “ceasefire” rises to at least 40 people.
- Dozens of nations have called for the “urgent and unimpeded reopening” of the Strait of Hormuz, with UN chief Antonio Guterres warning that the US-Iran standoff in the waterway risks triggering a global food emergency.
- Visit our live tracker for the latest casualty figures from across the region.
The Arab Voice
Strait of Hormuz should have ‘never been closed’
Qatar’s FM spokesperson al-Ansari says they are engaging with all their interlocutors over reopening the Strait.
“We believe it should have never been closed and it should be opened immediately, regardless of other considerations going on in the region,” he said.
Qatar in favour of ‘comprehensive deal’ to end conflict
The spokesperson said that Doha would be in favour of a “comprehensive deal” to end the conflict, following a question about reports that Iran wants to decouple Hormuz talks from nuclear discussions.
Lebanon:
Lebanon began discussing the group’s full disarmament, while debates raged within the country over Hezbollah’s future as a military and political power.
However, Hezbollah is now back on the battlefield, fighting Israel in southern Lebanon and appears not to be as degraded a fighting force as many had believed.
Read more here.
Iran accuses Washington (of everything)
Read more here.