Category Archives: US-Israel war on Iran

‘You have to be serious’: Macron criticises Trump’s mixed messages about Nato and Iran

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Speaking in South Korea, the French president defended the transatlantic alliance and called for return to peace

Emmanuel Macron has sharply criticised Donald Trump’s inconsistent and often contradictory pronouncements on the Iran war and Nato, saying if “you want to be serious” it was better not to come out with something different every day.

“There is too much talk … and it’s all over the place,” the French president said on Thursday during a state visit to South Korea. “We all need stability, calm, a return to peace – this isn’t a show!”

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Oil price jumps and markets slide after Trump warning to Iran

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Brent crude rises 8% as US president vows to hit Iran ‘extremely hard’ over coming weeks

Oil prices have soared after Donald Trump vowed in a televised speech to hit Iran “extremely hard” over the coming weeks, knocking hopes of a near-term end to the conflict in the Middle East.

Brent crude prices jumped by as much as 8% on Thursday to $109.74 a barrel, reversing Wednesday’s drop when hopes of a de-escalation in the Iran war pushed the international benchmark below the $100-a-barrel mark at one point.

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UK firms expect to raise prices more quickly as Iran war pushes up costs

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Bank of England survey in March shows chief financial officers foresee 3.7% increase over coming year

Companies in the UK expect to raise their prices more rapidly over the coming months as the war in the Middle East drives up costs, Bank of England research shows.

The Bank’s regular survey of more than 2,000 chief financial officers conducted last month, after the Iran conflict began, shows they now expect to raise their prices by 3.7% over the coming year.

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Trump claims Iran war ‘nearing completion’ and seeks to justify conflict in prime time address

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Markets sink after president offers little detail on how he intends to wind down conflict over next two to three weeks

Donald Trump used a prime time address to the nation on Wednesday evening to declare the month-long war in Iran a success “nearing completion”, despite a spiraling conflict that has caused economic turmoil across the globe, fractured transatlantic alliances and eroded the president’s approval ratings.

In remarks from the White House, Trump argued that the US’s “little journey” to Iran had nearly accomplished “all of America’s military objectives”, but offered little clarity on how he planned to wind down the conflict over the next “two to three weeks”.

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Reeves criticises Trump for starting Iran war with no ‘clear plan’ to get out of it – as it happened

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This blog is now closed

Starmer says he understands why people are concerned about the cost of living.

He says he has already set out a five-point plan to deal with the crisis.

Just look at what’s happening today. Today your energy bills will be cut because of the action that we took at the budget. And whatever happens in Iran, that price is now fixed until July.

The most effective way we can support the cost of living in Britain is to push for de-escalation in the Middle East, and a reopening of the strait of Hormuz, which is such a vital route for energy.

To that end, we’re exploring each and every diplomatic avenue that is available to us.

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Families condemn UK ‘impotence’ over UAE ‘social media misuse’ detentions

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Ministers accused of being too fearful of offending Emirates to help Britons detained for sharing images of war

The families of UK citizens held in the United Arab Emirates over allegations that they shared images of the conflict with Iran have voiced frustration at the British government’s failure to help.

Several British citizens are among more than 100 foreign nationals who have been detained under draconian Emirate rules that outlaw publishing or sharing material that could “disturb public security”.

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Britain to host 35 countries for strait of Hormuz talks, says Starmer

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US understood not to be invited directly to talks that will explore ways of reopening critical waterway

The UK will convene 35 countries – excluding the US – to explore ways to reopen the strait of Hormuz, the vital shipping route for oil and gas that has been blocked by Iran.

Keir Starmer, the prime minister, said the next phase of discussions in the joint British and French efforts to secure the waterway would be held on Thursday, with Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, alongside international leaders.

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In Europe, lobbyists are using soaring fuel prices to make the case for more dirty energy

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The argument for transitioning to renewables seems stronger than ever – and yet, attacks mount on the carbon price scheme that underpins the EU’s success at cutting pollution

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On the one hand, experts say, Europe is better prepared for this energy crisis than the last. On the other, it is still waging a culture war against the most obvious path out.

Fuel prices have soared to ruinous levels since the Iran war left ships of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) stranded in the Gulf. The pain is most acute in Asia, but high energy prices are already causing panic in Europe. Shortages could hit the continent this month, oil company Shell warned last week. Donald Trump’s “go get your own oil” comments on Tuesday sent prices to their highest level since the start of the US-Israel attack on Iran. They briefly dipped below $100-a-barrel on Wednesday amid hopes that the war may soon end.

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Asia ramps up use of dirty fuels to cover energy shortfall triggered by Iran war

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South Korea will delay the shutdown of coal-fired plants, while the Philippines also plans to boost the output of its coal-burning plants

Governments across Asia are ramping up their use of coal, the dirtiest fossil fuel, as they try to cover huge energy shortfalls triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran.

The move has triggered warnings from climate experts who point to coal’s devastating environmental impact, and say the energy crisis should be a wake up call for governments to invest in renewables, which can offer a more stable supply that is not exposed to price shocks.

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UK sends more troops to Gulf amid Trump jibes over British military role

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John Healey says extra deployment is defensive response to ‘expanding threat’ from Iran

The UK is sending more military support to the Gulf, taking the total deployment to 1,000 troops, amid more jibes from Donald Trump about Britain’s refusal to get involved in offensive operations against Iran.

Speaking from Qatar where he met UK troops, the defence secretary, John Healey, said the extra deployment was in response to an “expanding threat” from Iran.

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Israel vows to occupy swathes of southern Lebanon to expand buffer zone

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Defence minister outlines plans to destroy all homes and villages in area ‘in accordance with the model in Gaza’

Israel says it will occupy swathes of south Lebanon and destroy the homes along the border to prevent the return of about 600,000 residents, prompting concerns of long-term forced displacement.

The defence minister, Israel Katz, said that when fighting with Hezbollah ended, Israel would occupy the area under the Litani River, about 19 miles from the Israel-Lebanon border, as part of its so-called buffer zone inside southern Lebanon.

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‘God squad’ waives endangered species law to allow US drilling in Gulf of Mexico

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Critics say exemption for fossil fuels exploits White House’s ‘self-made gas crisis’, and could doom the rare Rice’s whale

A US government panel on Tuesday exempted oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico from the Endangered Species Act (ESA), a move which critics say could doom a rare whale species and harm other marine life.

The Endangered Species Committee – which had not convened in more than three decades – voted to approve the request for the ESA exemption at the request of the defense secretary, Pete Hegseth.

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Middle East crisis live: oil spill warning after tanker attacked in Dubai; explosions in Tehran and Jerusalem amid wave of attacks

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Kuwait says fire broke out after Iranian attack on giant tanker and warns of possible oil spill in surrounding waters

Japan and Indonesia have agreed to step up coordination on energy security, Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi said on Tuesday.

“In light of the Iran situation, the strategic importance of resources and energy security is once again being recognized globally. Indonesia is a major resource-rich nation,” Takaichi said alongside Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto after they met for talks in Tokyo.

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Kuwaiti tanker hit by Iranian attack in Dubai port, raising oil spill fears

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Dubai officials said a fire on the Al Salmi tanker had been extinguished and all crew members were safe after drone strike

Iran attacked and set ablaze a fully loaded crude oil tanker at Dubai port’s anchorage, with the strike damaging the vessel’s hull and raising concerns about a possible oil spill.

Dubai authorities said the drone attack caused a fire on board that was extinguished early on Tuesday, hours after the attack was first reported. The attack came hours after Donald Trump warned that the US would obliterate Iran’s energy plants and oil wells if it does not open the strait of Hormuz.

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Zack Polanski tells NEU teachers’ union that Greens would abolish ‘toxic’ Ofsted – UK politics live

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The Green party leader said Ofsted is a ‘failed institution’ and that teaching should move ‘toward a genuinely collaborative model’

Starmer complained about other parties whipping up division, and he specifically criticised Nick Timothy, the shadow justice secretary, for “complaining about Muslims praying in public”.

Labour, by contrast, values bringing people together, he said.

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Islamabad talks signal emergence of new four-nation bloc in Middle East

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Unlikely grouping of Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey steps up efforts to broker ceasefire and curb dominance of Iran and Israel

The meeting on Sunday of the foreign ministers of Egypt, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey in Islamabad not only represented the best hope for a ceasefire in Iran but was also the embryo for a new order designed to curb Israeli and Iranian dominance after the war.

Although the four nations have met as a quartet before, the one-day meeting of foreign ministers in Islamabad on Sunday was, in a way, the official opening ceremony of an initiative that is intriguing diplomats.

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Spain closes airspace to US military over Iran war, widening rift with US

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Spain’s defence minister confirms move and describes US-Israel war on Iran as ‘profoundly illegal and unjust’

Spain has ramped up its opposition to the US-Israel war on Iran by closing its airspace to US aircraft involved in attacks, underlining its position as Europe’s leading critic of the conflict.

The move, first reported by El País newspaper and confirmed by the defence minister on Monday, comes after Madrid said the US could not use jointly operated military bases in the country for operations related to the war.

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Trump appears to relax oil blockade on Cuba as Russian tanker arrives

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US president says he has ‘no problem’ with countries sending oil to Cuba, in potential lifeline to island nation

Donald Trump appears to have relaxed his blockade on fuel-starved Cuba after a Russian tanker reached the Caribbean island carrying 100,000 tonnes of crude.

Russia’s transport ministry said the Anatoly Kolodkin tanker arrived at the port of Matanzas on Cuba’s northern coast on Monday to deliver the crisis-hit country’s first such cargo in more than three months.

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Pope seems to rebuke Trump in remarks about leaders with ‘hands full of blood’

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Pontiff’s unusually pointed comments come after Pete Hegseth’s prayer for violence against enemies ‘who deserve no mercy’

Pope Leo has said God ignores the prayers of leaders who wage war and have “hands full of blood”, in an apparent rebuke to the Trump administration.

The pontiff made the comments on Sunday as thousands of US troops arrived in the Middle East and days after the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, prayed for violence against enemies who deserved “no mercy”.

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What the Houthis’ entry into the Iran war means for the conflict and the wider region

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Fresh attacks on Red Sea shipping would be devastating – but the Iranian proxy has reasons to be cautious

The true significance of the long-awaited entry of Yemen’s Houthis into the Iran war depends on whether the Tehran-backed proxy group is intending to send a few missiles and drones from a distance towards Israel or will instead capitalise on its proximity to the narrow Bab al-Mandab strait to effectively close off the Red Sea to shipping, just as Iran has in effect shut the strait of Hormuz.

The combined effect of both waterways being shut to commercial traffic from countries that neither the Iranians nor Houthis favour would be devastating. Napoleon Bonaparte’s remark that “the policy of a state lies in its geography” has never seemed more apt.

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