peace

A fresh diplomatic push is taking shape as US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner prepare to fly to Pakistan tomorrow morning for talks involving Iran, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in an interview with Fox News this evening. "I can confirm Special Envoy Witkoff and Jared Kushner will be off to Pakistan again tomorrow morning to engage in talks ... with representatives from the Iranian delegation," Ms Leavitt said. Vice President JD Vance is not expected to…

Iran has released dramatic footage of commandos boarding a massive cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring its tightening hold on the strategic passage after peace talks broke down. Washington had pinned hopes on the negotiations to reopen what is widely regarded as the world's most vital shipping route. On Iranian state television, masked forces were shown racing up to the MSC Francesca in a speedboat, scaling a rope ladder to a hull door and leaping inside with rifles in hand. The video, set to an…

In a surprise move that underscored the volatility of the conflict, US President Donald Trump said he would extend the ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to make room for more peace talks, though it remained unclear whether Iran or Israel, Washington’s ally in the two-month war, would accept the arrangement. In a social media statement, Mr Trump said the US had accepted a request from Pakistani mediators “to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified…

Iran has not yet decided whether it will join a fresh round of peace talks with the United States, clouding efforts to prevent the Middle East war from flaring up again. US President Donald Trump said he was dispatching negotiators to Pakistan for discussions aimed at ending a conflict that has engulfed the region and shaken global markets, even as he renewed threats to strike Iran's infrastructure if no agreement is reached. An initial round of talks in Islamabad earlier this month ended without a breakthrough, and both…

Bound by grief that might once have kept them apart, an Israeli father and a Palestinian father are instead using friendship as their strongest argument for peace. Rami Elhanan and Bassam Aramin, who stood on opposite sides of the conflict as young men, now describe themselves as "family" and say they have devoted their lives to fostering respect and understanding between their peoples. The pair were in Dublin to address an event hosted by the charity Trócaire. They are no strangers to Ireland, having travelled across the…

Live updates: Truce opens what leaders call a 'historic' window for peace Middle East

HARGEISA, Somalia — North Western State of Somalia President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi "Irro" used his annual address to the joint houses of Parliament on Tuesday to press for a sweeping peace agreement and an unconditional prisoner exchange with the Las Anod-based administration. His remarks marked one of the clearest signals yet that his government wants to lower the temperature in the east, where tensions have simmered for months. Irro said North Western State of Somalia has already established contact with leaders in…

In a renewed bid to halt a grinding conflict that has ravaged eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, government representatives and delegates from the M23 rebel movement convened in Geneva, even as clashes drift into hard-to-reach highlands where danger grows and past ceasefire attempts have repeatedly unraveled. This ninth round of talks seeks to chart a path out of the fighting in the east, now focused on North Kivu and South Kivu. There, M23 has captured swaths of territory while the Congolese army, backed by its…

Monday April 13, 2026 A ship at the Strait of Hormuz Oil markets surged back above $100 a barrel on Monday as trading resumed in Asia, after US-Iran talks collapsed without a fresh agreement and President Donald Trump said he would blockade Iranian ports. Brent crude, the global benchmark, climbed 7.3% to $102.30 (£76.32), while US West Texas Intermediate rose 8.7% to $104.94. The breakdown in weekend negotiations has deepened fears that the worldwide energy crunch could worsen. Crude had fallen sharply below $100 last…

A marathon round of high-stakes diplomacy in Islamabad ended without a breakthrough, as US Vice President JD Vance said the American negotiating team was leaving Pakistan after 21 hours of talks without securing a deal with Iran. Vance blamed the impasse on what he described as gaps in the negotiations, saying Tehran had declined to accept US conditions, including a commitment not to build nuclear weapons. "The bad news is that we have not reached an agreement, and I think that's bad news for Iran much more than it's bad…