Iran-US war highlights: Progress in talks but far from deal, says Iran's Ghalibaf; ships return after Hormuz closure

Iran US war news LIVE: Iran’s Parliament speaker has accused US President Donald Trump of making “seven false claims” in a single hour regarding the war with Iran. This comes as the two-week US-Iran ceasefire enters its final days. While Trump has flooded social media with celebratory claims of a sweeping “transaction,” Tehran refuses to accept US terms on nuclear material and the naval blockade. “The President of the United States made seven claims in one hour, all seven of which were false,” speaker of Iran’s parliament Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf wrote on X.

“They did not win the war with these lies, and they will certainly not get anywhere in negotiations either. With the continuation of the blockade, the Strait of Hormuz will not remain open,” he added.

Iran US war news LIVE: Schools have been closed across Iran since the United States and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28, with no word on when in-person instruction will resume. The fear of airstrikes has lifted since a fragile ceasefire went into effect, but life has not returned to normal.

As with the COVID closures six years ago, it's especially difficult for working parents with small children. Many parents fled Tehran with their children after the airstrikes began. But the relative safety came at the cost of disrupted routines, crowded living arrangements and financial stress. Now they are struggling to resume normal life with no idea what comes next.

via AP

Iran US war news LIVE: Iran has said that only commercial ships will be allowed to pass through the Strait of Hormuz after permission from the Iranian armed forces headquarters and paying a fee. “The time has come to obey the new maritime system of the Strait of Hormuz; This system is determined by the Islamic Republic of Iran, not virtual posts,” Ibrahim Azizi, the head of the National Security Commission, was quoted as saying by Tasnim News.

“In this system, only commercial ships are allowed to travel with permission from the headquarters of the armed forces, especially the navy, through certain routes and after paying the fees of the Iranian people,” he said and added a warning for the US saying, If the Americans want to cause the slightest disturbance to Iranian ships, this decision can be easily changed!"

Iran US war news LIVE: US President Donald Trump once again went of a self-praise mode as he reiterated his claims of having ended eight wars. This time, he was quick to add that it will be 10 if Iran and Lebanon wars are resolved.

Iran US war news LIVE: The United Kingdom will make a 'wide-ranging military contribution' to a multinational mission aimed at securing the Strait of Hormuz, according to the UK's envoy to Washington, Christian Turner, as reported by Al Jazeera.

Speaking at an event in Washington, Turner said the UK would play a significant role in the France-UK-led mission, which is designed to reassure vessels using the critical waterway once the ongoing Iran-related tensions subside, according to Al Jazeera, citing the UK's Press Association reports.

Turner noted that the initiative is intended to ensure safe passage through one of the world's critical energy chokepoints and to prevent the imposition of tolls or restrictions on maritime traffic.

Iran US war news LIVE: Trump said Friday that the US and Iran would jointly remove uranium from Tehran's nuclear sites with excavators under any peace deal, before the material is transferred to US territory. "Somebody said, how are we going to get the nuclear dust? We're going to get it by going in with Iran, with lots of excavators," Trump told a gathering of the conservative Turning Point USA movement in Phoenix, Arizona. "We need the biggest excavators you can imagine," he added. "But we're going to go in together with Iran. We're going to get it. We're going to take it back home to the USA very soon."

Iran US war news LIVE: The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said 21 ships have been turned back towards Iran since the United States began enforcing a naval blockade restricting access to Iranian ports.

In a statement on X, CENTCOM said the USS Michael Murphy is patrolling the Arabian Sea as part of the operation and that ships attempting to enter or exit Iranian ports are being stopped and directed to return.

It added that the blockade is part of ongoing US efforts amid tensions in West Asia.

Iran US war news LIVE: U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday there had been some "pretty good news" regarding Iran but he declined to elaborate.

"We had some pretty good news 20 minutes ago, but it seems to be going very well in the Middle East with Iran," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.

"You'll hear about. I just think it's something that should happen. It's something that only makes sense to happen. And I think it will. We'll see what happens, but I think it will," Trump said when asked what the good news was.

Iran US war news LIVE: US President Donald Trump has said that he may end the ceasefire with Iran unless a long-term deal to end the war is agreed by Wednesday.

"Maybe I won't extend it, but the blockade (on Iranian ports) is going to remain," Trump told reporters on Air Force One on his way back to Washington from Phoenix, Arizona. "So you have a blockade, and unfortunately we have to start dropping bombs again."

via Reuters

Iran US war news LIVE: US President Donald Trump on Saturday said that China's President Xi Xinping is ‘very happy’ on Hormuz reopening. “President Xi is very happy that the Strait of Hormuz is open and/or rapidly opening. Our meeting in China will be a special one and, potentially, Historic. I look forward to being with President Xi — Much will be accomplished! President DONALD J. TRUMP (sic)," he wrote on his Truth Social handle.

Iran US war news LIVE: Iran’s foreign ministry late on Friday said the country will not transfer its stockpile of enriched uranium “anywhere,” rejecting an earlier assertion by Donald Trump that Tehran had agreed to hand it over. Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei told state television that Iran’s enriched uranium remains under its control and will not be moved abroad.

“Iran's enriched uranium is not going to be transferred anywhere,” Baqaei told state TV.

Iran US war news LIVE: Iran will close the strategic Strait of Hormuz again if the United States continues its blockade of Iranian ports, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Saturday.

"With the continuation of the blockade, the Strait of Hormuz will not remain open," Ghalibaf wrote on X, adding that passage through the waterway would depend on authorisation from Iran.

Iran US war news LIVE: US President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) criticised NATO allies while commenting on developments in the Strait of Hormuz, saying the alliance was ineffective during earlier tensions and arguing that "they needed us" instead.

Speaking on the situation at the Turning Point USA event here, Trump said he had been contacted by NATO after Iran's announcement to restore commercial access through the strategic waterway.

"Now that the Strait of Hormuz situation is almost over, I received a call from NATO asking if we would like some help...I told them I would have liked your help two months ago, but now I really don't want your help anymore, because they were absolutely useless when we needed them. But actually, we never needed them. They needed us..."

Iran US war news LIVE: The Trump administration on Friday renewed a waiver allowing countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil and petroleum products at sea for about a month, two days after saying it had no plans to do so.

The Treasury Department posted the license to its website late on Friday, allowing countries to purchase Russian oil loaded on vessels as of Friday through May 16.

The license, part of the administration's effort to control global energy prices that have shot higher during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, replaces a 30-day waiver that expired on April 11. It excludes transactions involving Iran, Cuba and North Korea.

Iran US war news LIVE: S President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) reiterated that the United States will take enriched uranium from Iran as part of ongoing negotiations, even as Tehran strongly denied any agreement to transfer nuclear material.

While speaking at the Turning Point USA event here, Trump said the operation would be carried out jointly with lots of excavators.

"We're going to get it by going in with Iran, with lots of excavators. We need the biggest excavators you can imagine. But we're going in together with Iran, we're going to get it, and we're going to take it back home to the USA."

Earlier, Trump also referred to nuclear-related developments, saying, "The USA will get all nuclear dust...That white powdery substance created by our B-2 bombers, those great B-2 bombers, late one evening, seven months ago. No money will exchange hands in any way or form...Iran, with the help of the USA, has removed or is removing all of the sea mines...They will never have a nuclear weapon"

The remarks came shortly after Iran rejected US claims that it had agreed to transfer its enriched uranium to the United States.

via ANI

Iran US war news LIVE: In big reprieve for countries across the world threatened with fuel crisis, Iran on Friday said it fully reopened the Strait of Hormuz to commercial vessels. However, US President Donald Trump said the American blockade on Iranian ships and ports “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the US, including on its nuclear program.

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X that the crucial waterway, through which about 20% of the world's oil is shipped, was now fully open to commercial vessels, as a 10-day truce between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon appeared to hold.

Iran US war news LIVE: Almost a week after the Islamabad talks between the United States and Iran collapsed without a deal, the two sides will for negotiations in Pakistan's capital city once again on Monday, CNN reported, citing Iranian sources. There is no update from the American side on next round of talks, though US President Donald Trump on Thursday had said that the US and Iran were ‘close to a deal’ and that the Iran was should end ‘pretty soon’.