said the U.S. Navy would swiftly begin a blockade of ships entering or leaving the , after in Pakistan ended without an agreement.
U.S. Central Command announced that it will blockade all Iranian ports beginning Monday at 10 a.m. EDT, or 5:30 p.m. in Iran.
CENTCOM said the blockade will be 鈥渆nforced impartially against vessels of all nations.鈥� It said it would still allow ships traveling between non-Iranian ports to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
Earlier in the day, the United States and Iran ended 21 hours of face-to-face talks in Islamabad , leaving the fate of the fragile, two-week ceasefire still unclear.
that has killed thousands of people and shaken global markets has .
Here is the latest:
Trump says he doesn鈥檛 care when Iran returns to the negotiating table
Speaking to reporters outside Washington after flying back from Florida, Trump was asked how long it might be before Iranian officials returned to the negotiating table amid a fragile ceasefire.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 care if they come back or not,鈥� he replied. 鈥淚f they don鈥檛 come back, I鈥檓 fine.鈥�
Trump said that during weekend negotiations led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Iran said they were pushing for a nuclear weapon.
鈥淭hey still want it, and they made that clear the other night. Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,鈥� he said.
Trump lambasts Pope Leo XIV, extending feud over Iran war
on social media Sunday, saying the first American pope should 鈥渟top catering to the Radical Left.鈥�
It was an extraordinary broadside against the global leader of the Catholic Church, exacerbating a feud that began over the war in Iran.
A short time later, speaking to reporters after Air Force One landed outside Washington from Florida, Trump said, 鈥淲e don鈥檛 like a pope who says it鈥檚 OK to have a nuclear weapon.鈥�
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think he鈥檚 doing a very good job,鈥� Trump said, adding that 鈥淚鈥檓 not a fan of Pope Leo.鈥�
Trump鈥檚 comments followed Leo having denounced over the weekend the 鈥渄elusion of omnipotence鈥� that is fueling the and demanded political leaders stop and negotiate peace.
The U.S.-born pope didn鈥檛 mention the United States or Trump by name in his prayer.
But Leo鈥檚 tone and message appeared directed at Trump and U.S. officials, who have boasted of U.S. military superiority and justified the war in religious terms.
Ships have stopped moving through the Strait of Hormuz, says intelligence firm
Lloyd鈥檚 List Intelligence wrote Sunday that 鈥渁ll traffic鈥� through the Strait of Hormuz stopped after President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. would blockade the waterway. It said two vessels that were leaving the strait turned around after the post.
A trickle of traffic had returned to the strait in the days since the U.S. and Iran agreed to pause the conflict.
Australia calls for Strait of Hormuz to be open to all
Australia鈥檚 Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has called for the Strait of Hormuz to be open and said the United States had not requested Australian help to blockade it.
President Donald Trump said the U.S. Navy would swiftly begin a blockade of ships entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz, after U.S.-Iran ceasefire talks in Pakistan ended without an agreement.
Albanese told Nine Network television on Monday: 鈥淲e鈥檝e received no requests, and they鈥檝e made this announcement overnight and they鈥檝e done that in a unilateral way. And we haven鈥檛 been asked to participate.鈥�
鈥淲hat we want to see is negotiations continue and resume. We want to see an end to this conflict. We want to see the Strait of Hormuz opened for all. We want to see freedom of navigation as required by international law as well,鈥� Albanese added.
Planned US blockade isn鈥檛 as sweeping as Trump vowed
The U.S. military鈥檚 logistical plans for blockading the Strait of Hormuz appeared to have been scaled down from the sweeping measures President Donald Trump had earlier threatened.
Trump originally wrote on Truth Social that the U.S. would blockade 鈥渁ny and all鈥� ships exiting or entering the Strait of Hormuz. The military, however, says it will still permit passage of ships headed between non-Iranian ports.
Iran keeping 21 million barrels of oil in floating storage
Samir Madani, the co-founder of , told AP that the monitoring group used imagery from the European Space Agency鈥檚 Copernicus-2 satellite to identify the types of Iranian oil tankers present in the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend.
They identified 10 鈥淰ery Large Crude Carrier鈥� supertankers – which can hold 2 million barrels of oil each – and 1 Suezmax tanker – which holds 1 million barrels – in the Gulf of Oman as of Sunday, adding up to 21 million barrels.
Iran could be keeping the oil in floating storage to 鈥渂etter regulate exports amid turbulence鈥� or in case of disturbances at Kharg Island, the group said on X.
Kharg Island, which the U.S. struck during the war, is home to a terminal through which Iran exports most of its oil.
Iran鈥檚 foreign minister claims US tanked productive talks
Writing on X, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran had negotiated with the U.S. in 鈥済ood faith鈥� for an end to the war.
鈥淏ut when just inches away from 鈥淚slamabad MoU鈥�, we encountered maximalism, shifting goalposts, and blockade,鈥� he wrote, using an acronym for 鈥渕emorandum of understanding.鈥�
He then echoed earlier threats from Iranian officials.
鈥淕ood will begets good will. Enmity begets enmity.鈥�
US Central Command to blockade Iranian ports
U.S. Central Command has announced that it will begin a blockade of Iranian ports on Monday at 10 a.m. ET.
CENTCOM said the blockade would be 鈥渆nforced impartially against vessels of all nations鈥� entering or departing Iranian ports and coastal areas.
It said it would still allow ships traveling between non-Iranian ports to transit the Strait of Hormuz.
In its statement, CENTCOM said the blockade would include all Iranian ports. It said it would give more information to commercial vessels before the start of the blockade.
Lebanese Red Cross says Israeli drone strike hit their unit, killing a paramedic
The Lebanese Red Cross said Sunday another paramedic was lightly wounded in the attack in the southern Lebanese town of Beit Yahoun.
At least 87 medical workers in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli strikes since the beginning of the war between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group, according to the country鈥檚 health ministry.
Middle East security expert says Trump has little leverage in the Strait of Hormuz
Andreas Krieg, a senior lecturer in security studies at Kings College London, said Sunday that Trump鈥檚 plan to use the U.S. Navy to block the Strait of Hormuz is unrealistic.
鈥淲e should bear in mind that the Americans have a much lower threshold of pain than the Iranians,鈥� Krieg said. 鈥淭he Iranians, whatever happens, can sustain this for far longer than the world economy, far longer the Gulf states, far longer then the Americans.鈥�
Krieg said Trump doesn鈥檛 have 鈥渁ny good options鈥� and that he will have to concede on some issues.
鈥淭here isn鈥檛 any tool in the toolbox in terms of the military lever that he could use to get his way,鈥� he said.
Energy expert says oil price could jump by $10 on Trump鈥檚 threatened blockade of the Strait of Hormuz
Brent crude oil, the international standard, has gone from roughly $70 per barrel before the war in late February to more than $119 at times. Brent for June delivery .
Michael Lynch, distinguished fellow at Energy Policy Research Foundation, estimates Trump鈥檚 threatened blockade could boost oil prices $5 to $10 when the market opens on Monday.
The blockade would take an estimated 2 million barrels of oil per day off the market, and the Iran war has already taken roughly 10 million barrels per day out of supply, Lynch said.
鈥淭his is a pretty big insult to a pretty big injury, I guess, is the way to put it,鈥� he said.
But Lynch said the blockade might be short-lived as Trump will be pressured to walk it back.
鈥淚 wouldn鈥檛 be surprised to see him to give it up by midweek, especially if oil prices keep going up,鈥� he said.
Iran鈥檚 chief negotiator says Trump鈥檚 threats 鈥榟ave no effect on Iranian people鈥�
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf told reporters Sunday that Iran has shown it doesn鈥檛 surrender to threats, hours after Trump said the U.S. would impose a blockade to stop ships from entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz.
鈥淚f you fight, we will fight.鈥� Qalibaf said in a social media post addressing Trump.
Qalibaf said the talks in Pakistan were 鈥渋ntensive, serious and challenging,鈥� and that Iran鈥檚 negotiators 鈥渄esigned strong initiatives to demonstrate Iran鈥檚 goodwill, which led to progress.鈥�
He did not describe the progress made during the talks nor Iran鈥檚 strong initiatives.
Lebanon鈥檚 prime minister says his government is committed to ending the war through negotiations
Nawaf Salam made his remarks on the eve of the 51st anniversary of the start of Lebanon鈥檚 15-year civil war.
Lebanon and Israel will hold direct talks in Washington starting Tuesday in a bid to end Israel鈥檚 conflict with Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militant group in Lebanon.
Hezbollah supporters and critics of the decision to negotiate have protested in Beirut, saying the government is too weak to end the war.
The government has set a truce as a prerequisite for talks, and plans to demand an Israeli withdrawal, the release of Lebanese prisoners, and the return of over one million displaced Lebanese.
Lebanese authorities have criticized Israel鈥檚 airstrikes and ground invasion, but have also decried Hezbollah for launching rockets on March 2 in solidarity with Iran, sparking the latest escalation.
The Lebanese government came to power just over a year ago promising to disarm all non-state groups.
鈥淚 feel the pain of the mother who lost her son combating on the front lines as I feel the pain of the mother who lost her child who did not choose this war and only wanted to live,鈥� said Salam.
Experts say blockade could lead to higher oil prices but more details are needed on implementation
Kevin Book, the managing director of research at research firm ClearView Energy Partners, said Sunday that leaner volumes generally mean tighter markets and higher prices, but 鈥渕uch depends on the scope and implementation of the blockade.鈥�
鈥淗ow Tehran responds matters, too. Iranian and/or Houthi reprisals against Gulf producers鈥� alternative routes could drive prices still higher,鈥� Book said.
Jonathan Elkind, senior research scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University said Trump鈥檚 statement on Fox 草莓传媒 that implementing the blockade will take some time also adds uncertainty.
鈥淚s this a climb down because of concerns about how sharply oil markets were set to rise in tomorrow鈥檚 trading? No one knows,鈥� he said.
US official says Iran could not agree to America鈥檚 red lines for ending the war
U.S. Vice President JD Vance鈥檚 goal in the talks with Iran was to outline America鈥檚 red lines and where there was room to negotiate. But Iran鈥檚 delegates could not agree to all of the stated red lines.
That鈥檚 according to a U.S. official who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to describe negotiating positions on the record.
The core objective for U.S. negotiators was that Iran never obtain a nuclear weapon. But there were additional red lines set by the U.S. that Iran objected to, the official said.
The red lines include Iran ending uranium enrichment, dismantling its major enrichment facilities, allowing retrieval of its highly enriched uranium, ending funding for Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, creating a broader framework for peace and security in the region, and opening the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. believes that blockading the strait will show Iran the limits of its leverage as it considers the offer, the official said.
__ By Josh Boak
Netanyahu visits parts of southern Lebanon under Israeli military control
Israel鈥檚 prime minister was making his first visit since the start of the current round of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
鈥淥ne of the things we see here is that we have essentially changed the face of the Middle East,鈥� Netanyahu said Sunday. 鈥淥ur enemies 鈥� Iran and the Axis of Evil 鈥� they came to destroy us, and now they are simply fighting for their own survival.鈥�
Netanyahu said Saturday that Israel was working to control an 8 to 10 km (5 to 6 mile) buffer zone inside Lebanon to ensure Hezbollah does not fire close-range rockets and anti-tank missiles over the border.
Iran says it has 鈥榝ull control鈥� of the Strait of Hormuz and that the waterway remains open for non-military vessels
Iran鈥檚 Revolutionary Guard Navy said Sunday that military vessels approaching the Strait of Hormuz 鈥渨ill be met with a firm and forceful response,鈥� according to two semiofficial Iranian news agencies.
Earlier Sunday, Trump said the U.S. Navy would begin a blockade on the critical waterway to stop ships from entering or leaving.
The talks in Pakistan between Iran and the U.S. ended Sunday without an agreement to end the fighting.
UN peacekeeping mission in southern Lebanon says Israeli tanks rammed into their vehicles
The mission, known as UNIFIL, said Israeli ground troops twice rammed their vehicles with a Merkava tank on Sunday.
The soldiers were blocking a road in Bayada that peacekeepers have been using to access their positions, UNIFIL said in a statement.
UNIFIL has decried attacks on its personnel and damage to its facilities since
the latest war between Israel and Hezbollah militants started on March 2. Three peacekeepers have been killed in the past month.
鈥淚sraeli soldiers have continually blocked peacekeepers鈥� movements on this road in recent days, in addition to denials of freedom of movement recorded in other areas,鈥� UNIFIL said. 鈥淭hey hinder peacekeepers鈥� ability to report violations by both sides on the ground.鈥�
Trump says the UK is sending minesweepers to the Strait of Hormuz
Britain鈥檚 Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment about Trump鈥檚 assertion Sunday on Fox 草莓传媒.
In an April 2 meeting of top diplomats from 40 nations, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper discussed mustering their collective powers to remove mines from strait once the conflict diminished.
Cooper convened a meeting with about 30 of those nations last week to discuss restoring free movement in the shipping channel and a follow-up is scheduled this week.
In March, James Cartlidge, the opposition Conservative Party鈥檚 defense secretary, said the British Navy removed its last minesweeper from the Persian Gulf a week before the war began.
Saudi Arabia summons Iraqi ambassador over drone attacks
Saudi Arabia鈥檚 Foreign Ministry submitted a 鈥減rotest note鈥� Sunday to the Iraqi ambassador following what it called ongoing drone attacks launched from Iraqi territories against Saudi Arabia and neighboring Gulf States.
It was not immediately clear if the Iraqi drone attacks are still taking place.
The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-backed Iraqi militias, said last week that it would halt its operations in Iraq and the region for two weeks, hours after the U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire.
Iran-backed militias in Iraq have claimed responsibility for dozens of attacks on U.S. bases and other facilities in the country in solidarity with Tehran since the war began.
Iran鈥檚 president says his country is prepared to reach 鈥榖alanced and fair鈥� agreement
President Masoud Pezeshkian told Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday that his country is prepared to reach a deal that would ensure 鈥渓asting regional peace.鈥�
Pezeshkian added that Iran鈥檚 national interests are a red line, according to a readout of the call carried by Iran鈥檚 state media.
He criticized the U.S. use of bases in Gulf countries to carry out strikes against Iran, while maintaining that Gulf countries are 鈥渂rothers鈥� and that Tehran is willing to cooperate with them to achieve regional security 鈥渨ithout outside powers鈥�
Iran has said it has repeatedly struck U.S. facilities in neighboring Gulf countries since the war started in late February. Gulf countries say Iran has also targeted civilian infrastructure and facilities.
Egypt鈥檚 foreign minister speaks with a senior Pakistani diplomat and a US envoy
In the call with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty affirmed 鈥渢he importance of adhering to the diplomatic path and prioritizing dialogue and peaceful solutions鈥� to settle all disputes.
Abdelatty and his Pakistani counterpart, Mohammad Ishaq Dar, affirmed that they will continue their efforts to de-escalate and bridge the gaps between the U.S. and Iran.
Pakistan, Egypt and Turkey have been mediating between the U.S. and Iran since the start of the war.
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
