Author: Publisher
Red Bull Racing’s Dutch driver Max Verstappen reacts after taking the pole position at the end of the qualifying session ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand…
Chinese President Xi Jinping called for normal passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz to be maintained, in a phone call yesterday with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held as Beijing steps up efforts to help end the Iran war. China is concerned over renewed instability around the strategic waterway, as a US-Iran ceasefire came under fresh strain after the US seized an Iranian cargo ship and Tehran signalled it would not join new peace talks for now. China is the main buyer of Iranian crude. Iran has largely closed the strait to ships other than its own since the US and Israel launched the war in February, while Washington has imposed a blockade of Iranian ships since last week. China advocates an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire, and insists on resolving conflicts in the Middle East through political and diplomatic channels, state news agency Xinhua cited Xi as saying. “The Strait of Hormuz should remain open to normal passage, as this serves the common interests of regional countries and the international community,” he told the Saudi leader. Worries have mounted over the survival of the ceasefire between Washington and Tehran after the US seizure of the Iranian vessel. Trump had credited Beijing with helping to get Iran to the previous negotiations with the US in Pakistan. The Chinese foreign ministry yesterday expressed concerns over the “forced interception” by the US of the Iranian ship, while urging relevant sides to abide by the ceasefire agreement.Xi’s call with the Saudi crown prince followed a meeting in Beijing last week with the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, when Xi urged adherence to international law. Xi also told the Saudi crown prince that China supports countries in the Middle East in “taking their future and destiny into their own hands, and promoting long-term regional stability and peace”. Source link
Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA) Fatih Birol warned on Tuesday that the ongoing conflict between Iran, the United States, and Israel is leading to one of the most severe energy crises the world has ever witnessed.”This is indeed the biggest crisis in history,” Dr Fatih Birol said an interview. “The crisis is already huge, if you combine the effects of the petrol crisis and the gas crisis with Russia.”He added that the war in the Middle East has disrupted shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies pass, further increasing pressure on energy markets.He pointed out that this crisis also come on top of the effects of Russia’s war with Ukraine, which had already severed Russian gas supplies to Europe.Earlier this month, Birol stated that he believes the current situation in global energy markets is worse than the crises of 1973, 1979, and 2022 combined.In March, the IEA agreed to release a record 400 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves to counter rising oil prices caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran. Source link
Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi, affirmed that gulf economic integration is a fundamental pillar for safeguarding developmental gains and addressing challenges amidst exceptional regional circumstances.This came during the eighth extraordinary meeting of the Permanent Preparatory Committee at the ministerial level of the Economic and Development Affairs Authority of the GCC, held on Monday via video conference.At the beginning of the meeting, the Secretary General stated that this extraordinary meeting was being held at a critical juncture due to the treacherous Iranian attacks targeting the GCC states. He noted that these attacks necessitate a shift from traditional coordination to a higher level of practical integration and effective response, especially given that the escalating challenges facing the region are no longer a passing circumstance, but rather a true test of its ability to protect its achievements and ensure the continued efficient and stable operation of its vital sectors.He added that the geopolitical developments in the region have cast a shadow over the regional and international economic landscape, increasingly highlighting the importance of strengthening economic coordination and integration among the GCC countries and elevating it to higher levels of integration.”This integration is the cornerstone for consolidating stability, preserving developmental gains, enhancing the ability of our economies to adapt to all changes and challenges, and mitigating the repercussions of crises,” said the Secretary General. Source link
Meta-owned instant messaging application WhatsApp announced the launch of a new paid subscription package called WhatsApp Plus, in the latest beta version of the WhatsApp application on the Android system in version number 2.26.15.11.According to WABetaInfo, a website specializing in WhatsApp updates, the new test focuses primarily on aesthetic aspects and the ability to customize the user interface rather than providing revolutionary software functions, as this version allows subscribers to have features including changing theme colors within the application and choosing custom icons from a variety of designs for the phone's home screen, in addition to providing exclusive ringtones and distinctive sticker packs, with organizational improvements that allow an increase in the number of pinned conversations in the list for easier access, while emphasizing that these additions will remain entirely optional and will not affect the basic free features that millions of users around the world rely on.WhatsApp introduces an optional plan called WhatsApp Plus that offers new features for users who want a more personalized messaging experience, Meta spokesperson said.Features include expanding the scope of pinned chats, custom lists, new conversation themes and more, the spokesperson added.The test is available to some users, to gather feedback and make sure that we are building something that people see as having real value, and it will be rolled out to more accounts over the coming weeks, the spokesperson continued. Source link
Medical sources in the Gaza Strip said that the hospitals in the Strip received seven Palestinian martyrs and 21 injured Palestinians over the past 24 hours, as a result the Israeli occupation’s ongoing aggression.The sources pointed out that many victims remain under the rubble and scattered on the streets, as ambulance and civil defense crews are still unable to reach them.Since the “ceasefire” agreement went into effect in October 2025, the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) murdered at least 784 Palestinians, and injured at least 2,214 others, while 761 bodies were pulled out from under the rubble.Data showed that the IOF murdered at least 72,560 Palestinian civilians and injured at least 172,317 others since the beginning of the genocide that the Israeli occupation has been committing against the Gaza Strip in October 2023. Source link
Two Palestinians were wounded today as a result of an attack by Israeli occupation forces during a raid on the town of Beita, south of Nablus in the West Bank.The Palestinian news agency (WAFA) reported that occupation forces raided a house in the town and severely beat a father and his son, wounding them. They were then taken to the hospital for treatment.The occupation forces also stormed the town of Huwara, south of the West Bank, raided dozens of homes, searched them, tampered with their contents, and conducted field investigations with their residents.Meanwhile, a woman from Jenin camp died today from wounds sustained from shrapnel in the brain from two and a half years ago.She was wounded in 2023 during an Israeli occupation forces raid on Jenin camp when occupation soldiers blew up the door of her house.The cities, towns, and camps of the occupied West Bank and Jerusalem witness daily raids and incursions into villages and towns by the occupation forces and settlers, accompanied by confrontations, arrests, and the firing of live and rubber bullets and toxic tear gas canisters at Palestinians. Source link
US President Donald Trump said that the United States will not lift the blockade it has imposed on Iranian ports unless an agreement is reached with Iran.In remarks, Trump said the US blockade on Iranian ports will not be lifted until a deal is reached.He added that Iran is losing $500 million a day as a result of the maritime blockade, calling it “a figure that cannot be sustained even in the short term.”The US maritime blockade on Iranian ports came into effect on the evening of April 13. Source link
The 2026 conflict in the Middle East is adding further pressure on fragile agrifood systems and global supply chains, threatening the availability, accessibility, and affordability of food, the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) QU Dongyu told the 38th Session of the FAO Regional Conference for the Near East (NERC38).The conference took place on Monday at the Organization’s headquarters in Rome during a “critical moment” for the region, underscoring the need to recognize “the immense importance of maintaining trade flows, and of ensuring access to adequate food for all, particularly in import-dependent countries,” Qu said in his opening statement.The Director-General warned that the significant disruptions to food production, trade, and distribution systems currently being experienced across the region were further compounded by global implications, “including rising energy prices and disruptions in fertilizer markets, which are increasing production costs and affecting agricultural productivity both within the region and beyond.”FAO Director-General said he had informed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres that the impact of the crisis would have “long-term consequences for agriculture.” Source link
Three Palestinians were killed, and others were wounded overnight in an Israeli strike targeting the southern Gaza Strip, according to medical sources.The sources said the casualties occurred in an Israeli strike near the Al Zaqzouq junction in the Al Amal neighborhood, northwest of Khan Younis.The death toll from the Israeli offensive in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, has risen to 72,553 killed and 172,296 wounded, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza. Source link