{"id":123743,"date":"2026-04-06T11:53:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T06:53:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nationaltimes.pk\/eng\/?p=123743"},"modified":"2026-04-06T11:53:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T06:53:17","slug":"strait-of-hormuz-stays-sticking-point-as-ceasefire-remains-elusive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nationaltimes.pk\/eng\/2026\/123743\/","title":{"rendered":"Strait of Hormuz stays sticking point as ceasefire remains elusive"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON(National Times)- The US-Israel war with Iran raged on Sunday amid no signs of a ceasefire despite threats by US President Donald Trump, who warned that the US would target power plants and bridges in the besieged country if the Strait of Hormuz was not opened up by Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran said the statement, which was also denounced in the US, made by the US president was a \u201cclear evidence of intent to commit war crime\u201d and asked the inte\u00adrnational community to prevent this atrocious act from happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For almost six weeks, the US and Israeli jets have bombed<\/a> the length and breadth of Iran, targeting civilian and military infrastructure, even though reported negotiations to end the conflict were also taking place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After his expletives-laden tweet in which he told Iranians to open up the maritime route else they would be \u201cliving in hell\u201d, the US president claimed that talks with Tehran were underway and he believed there was \u201ca good cha\u00adnce\u201d of making a deal with Iran on Monday. \u201cI think there is a good chance tomorrow, they are negotiating now,\u201d the president told a Fox News<\/em> journalist. \u201cIf they don\u2019t make a deal and fast, I\u2019m considering blowing everything up and taking over the oil,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

![ .]((https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1988867\/this-is-all-embarrassing-and-juvenile-trump-draws-criticism-for-fiery-expletive-laden-message-on-iran<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s war crime, Tehran tells UN<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tehran took strong exception to these threats. The Iranian mission to the UN said the US president was threatening \u201cto destroy infrastructure essential to civilian survival\u201d in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf the conscience of the United Nations were alive, it would not remain silent in the face of the overt and shameless threat by the war-mongering President of the United States to target civilian infrastructure. Trump seeks to drag the region into an endless war,\u201d the mission said on X.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is direct and public incitement to terrorise civilians and clear evidence of intent to commit [a] war crime,\u201d it said. \u201cThe international community and all states have legal obligations to prevent such atrocious acts of war crimes. They must act now. Tomorrow is too late.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strait of Hormuz<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Seyyed Mehdi Tabatabaei, deputy for communications at the Iranian president\u2019s office, said Iran would open the Strait of Hormuz only after receiving compensation for war damages, paid via a \u201cnew legal regime\u201d based on transit fees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Separately, Oman and Iran held talks on easing passage through the Strait of Hormuz, the Omani state news agency reported Sunday. \u201cOman and the Islamic Republic of Iran held a meeting at the deputy ministers\u2019 level in the foreign ministries of the two countries, with the attendance of specialists from both sides, during which the possible options were discussed regarding ensuring the smooth passage through the Strait of Hormuz,\u201d the news agency posted on X.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe experts from both sides put forward a number of visions and proposals regarding it,\u201d it added. On Thursday, Tehran said it was drafting a peacetime protocol that would supervise maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz with Oman, state media reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Navigation linked to ceasefire\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As both sides stick to their guns, world leaders continue to make efforts to end the stalemate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

China\u2019s top diplomat Wang Yi told Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a phone call that \u201cChina and Russia should uphold fairness on major issues of principle\u201d, state news agency Xinhua said, noting that the call came at Mr Lavrov\u2019s request.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Wang said, \u201cThe situation in the Middle East is still deteriorating and fighting is escalating\u201d. Calling for an \u201cimmediate ceasefire\u201d, he said China was willing to continue cooperating with Russia in the UN Security Council, communicating promptly on major issues and making efforts to de-escalate the situation and maintain regional peace and stability and global security.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said, \u201cThe fundamental way to resolve navigation issues\u201d in the Strait of Hormuz was to reach a ceasefire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Russia against language of threats<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Lavrov said Washington should abandon \u201cthe language of ultimatums\u201d and return to negotiations. \u201cThe Russian side expressed hope that the efforts undertaken by a number of states to de-escalate tensions around Iran will be successful,\u201d said a Moscow read-out of his conversation with Iran\u2019s Araghchi, reported AFP.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It may be noted that mediation efforts facilitated by Pakistan reportedly hit a stonewall after no response to a peace proposal, either from the US or Iran.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pope tells warmongers to choose peace<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pope Leo XIV also urged \u201cthose who have the power to unleash wars\u201d to \u201cchoose peace\u201d, in his first Easter blessing. \u201cWe are growing accustomed to violence, resigning ourselves to it, and becoming indifferent. Indifferent to the deaths of thousands of people,\u201d he told a crowd in St Peter\u2019s Square.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zelensky, Fidan meet in Syria<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Damascus alongside Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, with a senior official saying the former was scheduled to meet Syrian leader Ahmed al-Sharaa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr Zelensky announced in a Facebook post that he had arrived in the Syrian capital, saying \u201cimportant meetings lie ahead\u201d. \u201cEvery nation and every region deserves a peaceful life,\u201d he added. The senior official with knowledge of the visit said \u201ccooperation between countries\u201d and the \u201csecurity situation in the region\u201d were on the agenda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran\u2019s responds to attacks<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the US reportedly rescued i<\/a>ts crew a day after the F-15 jet was downed, Iran claimed that it destroyed two C-130 aircraft and two US Black Hawk helicopters in southern Isfahan province, as they were taking part in the rescue operation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Furthermore, Iran\u2019s Tasnim<\/em> news agency reported that the forces targeted petrochemical industries near Dimona in southern Israel, reported Al Jazeera<\/em>. Dimona was also home to Israel\u2019s main nuclear facility. An Iranian strike in Haifa injured four people, including one critical. The Times of Israel<\/em> report, quoted by Al Jazeera<\/em>, said a residential building had been heavily damaged in the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An Iranian drone attack sparked a fire at a storage tank belonging to Bahrain\u2019s state energy firm, the company said in a statement, as per AFP<\/em>. The blaze had been \u201cfully extinguished\u201d and no injuries were reported, Bapco Energies said, adding that the damage was still being assessed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Authorities in Abu Dhabi said they were battling fires at a petrochemical facility caused by falling debris. The emirate\u2019s media office said work at the plant had been suspended to allow the damage to be assessed, but there were no reports of injuries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The UAE\u2019s defence ministry said its air defences were responding to missile and drone attacks after Iran said it was targeting \u201caluminium industries\u201d. Two Kuwaiti power and water desalination plants were damaged by a drone attack from Iran, the electricity and water ministry said. The attack caused \u201cthe shutdown of two electricity generating units\u201d but there were no reports of casualties, the ministry said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Five IRGC men killed<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, five members of Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guards were killed as well as a brigadier general in separate attacks. US-Israeli strikes killed five fighters with Iran\u2019s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the northwestern Ardabil province, the official IRNA<\/em> news agency quoted the Guards as saying, while Mehr<\/em> news agency reported that Brigadier General Masoud Zare, commander of the Iranian Army\u2019s Air Defence College, was killed in a US-Israeli attack on Iranian territory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iran\u2019s semi-official Tasnim<\/em> news agency also reported that the international airport in the southwestern city of Ahvaz was attacked by the US and Israel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An ambulance of the Iranian Red Crescent Society was hit early Sunday morning when it was dispatched on a rescue operation in the Komher area. There were no casualties, it said, as the crew abandoned the ambulance as soon as it noticed an approaching fighter jet, reported Al Jazeera.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON(National Times)- The US-Israel war with Iran raged on Sunday amid no signs of a ceasefire despite threats by US President Donald Trump, who warned that the US would target power plants and bridges in the besieged country if the Strait of Hormuz was not opened up by Monday. Iran said the statement, which was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":123744,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-123743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest_news","entry"],"yoast_head":"\nStrait of Hormuz stays sticking point as ceasefire remains elusive - Nation<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nationaltimes.pk\/eng\/2026\/123743\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Strait of Hormuz stays sticking point as ceasefire remains elusive - Nation\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"WASHINGTON(National Times)- The US-Israel war with Iran raged on Sunday amid no signs of a ceasefire despite threats by US President Donald Trump, who warned that the US would target power plants and bridges in the besieged country if the Strait of Hormuz was not opened up by Monday. 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