A third US aircraft carrier reached waters near Iran on day 56 of the war. The Pentagon is drafting fresh strike plans for the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude closed at $105.80.
Third Carrier
The new carrier joins two strike groups already operating off Iran since the war opened on February 28. Three US flattops now sit within striking range of Iranian coastlines.
CNN reported that US military planners are preparing fresh options to hit Iranian defensive positions around the Strait of Hormuz if the ceasefire collapses. Multiple sources familiar with the planning spoke to the network.
Pentagon vs NATO Allies
Spain and the United Kingdom face possible retaliation from Washington for refusing to back the Iran campaign. Kurir.rs reported that measures on the table include suspension from NATO and a shift in the American stance on the Falkland Islands.
In a phone interview with the BBC, Trump said the two allies “clearly were not needed” but should have taken part anyway. He called their refusal a test of commitment.
Trump softened on King Charles III’s upcoming state visit. He called the monarch a “wonderful man” and “a great man” he has known for years, and said the trip could repair ties with London.
Oil Hits $105.80
Brent crude climbed 0.7 percent to $105.80 per barrel in Asian trading. US benchmark crude rose 0.6 percent to $96.50.
Prices gained even after Israel and Lebanon extended their ceasefire by three weeks. Traders fear the Israel-Lebanon fighting could still rupture the US-Iran truce. Tehran has called those clashes a violation of ceasefire terms.
Shipments through the Strait of Hormuz stay largely halted, choking global energy flows.
Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Extended
Israeli and Lebanese delegates agreed at a White House meeting to extend their truce by three weeks, Trump announced. The extension is meant to ease pressure on the wider regional ceasefire, which Iran says Israeli operations in Lebanon have breached.
Pope Leo XIV Speaks
On his return flight from Africa, Pope Leo XIV urged Tehran and Washington back to the negotiating table. He voiced regret that talks had collapsed with no date set for a new round.
The Pope condemned reports that Iranian security forces killed thousands during antigovernment protests. “When a regime, a country, makes decisions that unjustly take the lives of other people, that is obviously something to condemn,” he told reporters.
Last week Trump attacked the first American pope over his anti-war remarks, complaining that the pontiff had not addressed the killings of Iranian protesters.
Journalist Freed
American journalist Shelley Kitlson, 49, broke her silence after release from captivity in Iraq. Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed militia, seized her from a Baghdad street on March 31.
“I am immensely grateful, and always will be, to those who worked on my release while I was held hostage earlier this month in Iraq by an armed faction,” Kitlson wrote on social media.
The militia said it freed her in gratitude for the “patriotic positions” of outgoing Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed the release.