Iran threatens ‘painful’ response if U.S. renews attacks

Iran has threatened “long and painful strikes” on American positions if Washington resumes attacks and presses its claim over the Strait of Hormuz, injecting fresh uncertainty into US efforts to assemble a coalition to reopen the crucial waterway.

Now two months into the US-Israeli war with Iran, the narrow sea passage remains shut, cutting off 20% of global oil and gas supplies.

The disruption has driven energy prices sharply higher and intensified fears that the world economy could slide toward a downturn.

Attempts to break the deadlock have stalled. Although a ceasefire has held since 8 April, Iran is still blocking the Strait of Hormuz in retaliation for a US naval blockade targeting Iranian oil exports.

Those scenarios have long featured in US contingency planning, but reports of the proposed briefing, first published by Axios late on Wednesday, initially sent oil prices soaring, with benchmark Brent crude briefly topping $126 (€107) a barrel.

It later eased to about $114 (€97).

Donald Trump said gasoline prices would “drop like a rock” once the war was over

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said yesterday evening that swift progress in talks with the US should not be expected, according to the official IRNA news agency.

“Expecting to reach a result in a short time, regardless of who the mediator is, in my opinion, is not very realistic,” he was quoted as saying.

Air defence activity was heard in parts of Tehran late last night, Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency reported.

Tasnim news ‌agency said the air defences were confronting small drones and unmanned surveillance aircraft.

The United Arab Emirates said it had barred its citizens from travelling to Iran, Lebanon and Iraq, and urged those already in those countries to leave at once and return home, citing regional developments.

Mr Trump repeated to reporters yesterday that Iran would not be permitted to obtain a nuclear weapon and said gasoline prices — a central issue for his Republican Party ahead of the November midterm elections — would “drop like a rock” as soon as the war ended.

While again accusing Iran of serious rights abuses, Mr Trump said he was “OK” with the country taking part in the upcoming soccer World Cup in the US after FIFA President Gianni Infantino insisted it would compete.

A senior Revolutionary Guards official said any new US strike on Iran, even a limited one, would trigger “long and painful strikes” on American positions across the region.

Aerospace Force Commander Majid Mousavi was quoted by Iranian media as saying: “We’ve seen what happened to your regional bases, we will see the same thing happen to your warships.”

António Guterres warned inflation would climb if the strait stays closed

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei said in a written message to Iranians that Tehran would end “the enemies’ abuses of the waterway” under new management of the Strait of Hormuz, signalling that Iran intended to keep its grip on it.

“Foreigners who ⁠come from thousands of kilometres away … have no place there except at the bottom of its waters,” he said.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres warned that if the disruption caused by the closure lasts into mid-year, global growth will weaken, inflation will accelerate and ‌tens of millions more people will be pushed into poverty and extreme hunger.

“The longer this vital artery is choked, the harder it will be to reverse the damage,” he told reporters ⁠in New York.

Alongside blocking nearly all shipping except its own through the Strait of Hormuz during the war, Iran launched drones and missiles at Israel ⁠and at US bases, infrastructure and US-linked companies in Gulf states.

Axios said another option to be presented to Mr Trump during the briefing involved deploying ground forces to seize part of the strait and reopen it to commercial traffic.

Mr Trump is also weighing whether to extend the US blockade or declare a unilateral victory, officials have said.

In a sign Washington was also preparing for a scenario in which fighting stops, a State Department cable due to be delivered orally to partner nations by today invited them to join a new coalition, called the Maritime Freedom Construct, to allow ships to pass through the strait.

France, Britain and other countries have discussed contributing to such a coalition, but said they would only help reopen the strait once the conflict has ended.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said after talks with Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri that stopping Israeli attacks on Lebanon, where a fragile ceasefire is in place, was part of the Iran-US ceasefire understanding and would remain central to any future process.

Mediator Pakistan ‌was trying to prevent escalation while the US and Iran exchange messages on a possible deal, a Pakistani source said on Wednesday.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told ⁠a Senate hearing ‌the 60-day clock paused during the truce

A US-Iran ceasefire that began in early April has “terminated” hostilities between the two sides for the purposes of an approaching congressional war ⁠powers deadline, a senior official in President Donald Trump’s administration has said.

Mr Trump faced a deadline today to end the Iran war or argue before Congress for extending it, but the date appeared likely to pass without changing the direction of the conflict.

“For War Powers Resolution purposes, the hostilities that began on Saturday 28 February have terminated,” the official said, outlining the administration’s view.

There has been no exchange of fire between US forces and Iran since a fragile ceasefire began ‌more than three weeks ago, the ⁠official added.

Earlier, analysts and congressional aides had said they expected Mr Trump either to tell Congress he intended to seek a 30-day extension or to ignore the deadline, with the administration arguing that the ceasefire amounted to the end of the conflict.

The 1973 law gives the president 60 days to conduct military action before ending it, seeking authorisation from Congress or requesting ‌a 30-day extension on grounds of “unavoidable military necessity” to protect the armed forces.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told ⁠a Senate hearing ‌that, in his understanding, the 60-day clock stopped during the truce.

Opposition Democrats rejected that interpretation, saying the law contains no such provision.

The US Constitution says only Congress, not the president, can declare war, but that restriction does not apply ⁠to operations the administration characterises as short-term or as a response to an immediate threat.