Key moments
- European stock markets point to declines due to renewed tensions in Iran
The Iranian army accused Washington on Tuesday of being responsible for the death of five civilians in an attack on two cargo ships off the coast of Oman, after Washington claimed to have destroyed Iranian fast boats. These new accusations come a day after US warships in the Strait of Hormuz were attacked with cruise missiles and President Donald Trump reacted by threatening to “wipe the Islamic Republic off the face of the Earth” if it continues its offensive in the corridor, through which 20% of the world’s crude oil passes.
Read more Moreno finds the campaign long
EL PAÍS offers free live updates on the US and Israel attack against Iran. If you want to support our journalism, subscribe.
Iran accuses the US of endangering navigation in the Strait of Hormuz
Iran accused the United States on Tuesday of endangering navigation security in the Strait of Hormuz by “violating the ceasefire” and stated that the continuation of the situation “is unbearable” for Washington.
“The security of navigation and energy transit has been endangered by the United States and its allies by violating the ceasefire and imposing a blockade, although their evil will be contained,” denounces the president of the Iranian Parliament, Mohamad Baqer Qalibaf, on X.
He also states that “a new equation” in the Strait of Hormuz “is consolidating” and maintains that the continuation of the current situation “is unbearable for the United States.”
Qalibaf also issues a warning against the US, which yesterday launched Operation Freedom Project with the mobilization, announced by US President Donald Trump, of hundreds of aircraft, destroyers, and drones to facilitate the passage through the Strait of Hormuz of vessels trapped due to the Iranian blockade. “We know well that the continuation of the current situation is unbearable for the United States, while we have not even started yet,” he indicates.
Early this morning, Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araqchi, also criticized US military operations in the strait on social media X and denounced that the events “make it clear that there are no military solutions to a political crisis.” Araqchi also warned the US and the United Arab Emirates to “distrust” those who want to “drag them back into the quagmire.” (Efe)
War in the Middle East
The National Court asks the UN if it is already investigating Netanyahu for the detention of a Spanish blue helmet
The National Court has asked the United Nations if it has already launched any investigation into what happened on April 7, when the Israeli Army illegally detained a Spanish blue helmet who was part of the UN mission in Lebanon. According to legal sources, Judge Antonio Piña has addressed the UN, at the request of the Prosecutor’s Office, before deciding whether to open a case in Spain against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Herzi Halevi, as requested in a complaint by the political party Iustitia Europa.
You can read the full information here
Albares denies any link with Hamas of the detained Spaniard and challenges Israel to “put the evidence on the table”
Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said on Tuesday that the reports he has disprove the alleged links with terrorism and collaboration with Hamas that Israel accuses the Spanish of Palestinian origin Saif Abu Keshek of, who was detained while participating in the Global Sumud Flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza. In statements to La Hora de la 1 on TVE, Albares challenged Israeli authorities to “put the evidence [of that alleged involvement] on the table,” something they have not yet done. In any case, he insisted that the detention of Keshek and his Brazilian companion Thiago Ávila was “illegal, there is no doubt about that,” since it occurred in international waters near Greece over which Israel has no jurisdiction. The minister said the Spanish citizen is being visited daily by the consul and is well, “under these terrible circumstances.” An Israeli court must decide this morning whether to extend the detention of the two activists or expel them from the country. The minister again demanded the immediate release of Keshek and, although he did not want to anticipate what Spain will do if this does not happen, he said he is coordinating with his Brazilian counterpart and warned: “Certainly, we will not leave our citizens unprotected.”
South Korea considers joining Trump’s Freedom Project
The Blue House (executive office and residence of the president) of South Korea has stated that the presidential office is evaluating whether the country can participate in the new initiative of US President Donald Trump, called Freedom Project — mobilizing 15,000 soldiers and several military ships — aimed at helping stranded ships transit through the Strait of Hormuz. (Reuters)
Albares says the “double blockade situation in Hormuz is unsustainable” and rules out Spain’s participation in a military operation
Spain’s Foreign Minister, José Manuel Albares, said on Tuesday that the “double blockade situation” in the Strait of Hormuz is “unsustainable” and ruled out the country’s participation in a military operation in the corridor.
“We are in a double blockade situation by Iran and the US that is unsustainable,” he said in an interview on RTVE. The minister insisted that “there is no military solution for this situation. There is no solution beyond the diplomatic one.”
Albares ruled out “any participation in a forceful action” in the corridor, through which 20% of the world’s crude oil trade passes. “At this time, there are no conditions whatsoever for an operation under the United Nations flag,” he said.
Israel orders evacuations again in southern Lebanon
Israel has again ordered the evacuation of several towns in southern Lebanon, according to the military spokesperson in Arabic, Avichay Adraee. The spokesperson claims that the evacuation order is sent due to “ceasefire violations” by Hezbollah to which Israeli forces must respond.
The Israeli army maintains a strong military presence in southern Lebanese territory, where they are advancing with the demolition of entire villages to pursue Hezbollah and create a buffer zone between its northern border and southern Lebanon.
Since the start of Israeli hostilities against Lebanon on March 2, more than 2,600 Lebanese have died.
WAR AGAINST IRAN
The war in Iran plunges Africa into an energy crisis
The war in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have caused an energy crisis with unpredictable consequences on the African continent. The shortage of available fuel and the rise in oil prices, around 50%, are causing an inflationary wave that already affects citizens and adds to the difficulties in the supply of fertilizers and food products. While some governments have opted to reduce import taxes on fuel, others even turn off the lights in their cities. Despite being an important crude oil producer, 8% worldwide, its low refining capacity means Africa imports 70% of the oil it consumes. Three out of four barrels come from the Middle East.
You can read the full information here
European stock markets point to declines due to renewed tensions in Iran
Renewed tensions in the Middle East affect risk appetite and threaten to inject volatility into the markets. The United States and Iran launched new attacks in the Persian Gulf, while fighting for control of the Strait of Hormuz with reciprocal maritime blockades, after President Donald Trump announced the launch of an operation to “escort” merchant ships from neutral countries. The situation threatens the fragile ceasefire, although separate statements from Iranian officials indicated that talks between both parties were still progressing.
S&P 500 futures remain stable, while the EuroStoxx 50 anticipates a moderate opening decline in Europe, after yesterday’s notable losses, especially in the Ibex 35, which fell 2.39%. In Asia, markets in Japan, mainland China, and South Korea remain closed for a holiday, keeping regional trading volumes low. Meanwhile, Hong Kong stocks fall. Tech stocks are pressured by some profit-taking, after optimism about artificial intelligence drove a strong rally in the sector in recent weeks.
Iran reports fires on several ships in the port of Dayyer
Several merchant ships at the dock of the Iranian port of Dayyer, in the south of the country, have suffered a fire, according to the semi-official news agency Mehr on Tuesday. The origin of the flames is not yet known. Firefighters are working to control the flames, Mehr adds. (Reuters)
WAR AGAINST IRAN
Iran opens fire at US attempt to remove ships from the Strait of Hormuz
US President Donald Trump’s announcement of the launch of Project Freedom, an operation to “escort” merchant ships from neutral countries trapped in the Strait of Hormuz due to the Iranian blockade, plunged this Monday that crucial Gulf passage into chaos, with attacks from Tehran, ships and oil facilities on fire, and mixed messages as part of the propaganda war they have maintained for just over two months. Since its start on April 8, the ceasefire between Washington and Tehran had never been so close to collapsing as now, and Trump has resumed his most dangerous rhetoric, threatening to wipe Iran “off the face of the Earth.”
You can read all the information here
WAR AGAINST Iran
Asim Munir, the Pakistani field marshal negotiating peace between the US and Iran
The US president announced on April 21 on social media a new extension, shortly before the ceasefire between the US and Iran expired. In the message, he named the key people who had worked to save the game on the edge of the abyss: “At the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan, we have been asked to suspend our attack on Iran until its leaders and representatives can present a unified proposal.”
You can read the full information here
Iran accuses the US of the death of five civilians in an attack on two cargo ships in Hormuz
The Iranian army accused the United States on Tuesday of being responsible for the death of five civilians in an attack on two cargo ships off the coast of Oman, after Washington claimed to have destroyed Iranian fast boats.
An Iranian military source, cited by the state agency Tasnim, explained that “after the false claim by the US Army” about the destruction of Iranian fast boats, investigations were carried out with local sources and it was concluded that no combat ship of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was hit. The same source assured that two small cargo ships with civilians on board sailing from Khasab, on the coast of Oman, towards the Iranian coast, were attacked by the US, resulting in five deaths, which the media states are civilians and not military.
On Monday, the United States Central Command (Centcom) claimed to have facilitated the transit of two merchant ships through the Strait of Hormuz – as part of the announced operation to escort ships through this route – and to have destroyed six Iranian fast boats that, according to them, tried to prevent their passage.
After three weeks since the start of the ceasefire between the US and Iran, the parties continue to maintain a selective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic route for global oil and gas trade through which, in peacetime, about 20% of the world’s fossil energies circulate.
In this context, on Monday, the US army reported that vessels from 87 different countries are currently affected by the Iranian blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, awaiting Washington’s escort as part of an operation to allow their safe transit. Additionally, the White House denied that one of its military ships had been attacked while trying to cross this strategic route, as Iranian press had claimed. (Efe)
Energy crisis
Loaded tankers without buyers: the blind spot that puts the closure of Hormuz on the map
The energy world has changed in the last two months. The crude oil market has gone from a substantial surplus, which forced the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) cartel to keep its own pumping in check to prevent prices from falling, to a very critical situation: overnight, with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, almost a fifth of global production has disappeared. Practically half of that amount has been compensated both by increased shipments through the few pipelines connecting the Persian Gulf countries with the outside and by the still incipient production increases in fossil giants outside that region. But the shortfall remains enormous.
You can read the full information here
Good morning. We resume the narration of the situation in the Middle East. Trump has again threatened to wipe Iran “off the face of the Earth” if it attacks the US ships involved in Project Freedom to remove ships from the Strait of Hormuz. “We have more weapons and ammunition, and of a much higher quality than we had before,” Trump said. Hours later, Iran claimed on Monday to have prevented the passage of a US Navy ship through the strait.
Read more Living in the carpentry
