Democracy Dies with Dictatorship
NY Times
Apr 17, 2026
Iran War Live Updates: Iran Declares Strait ‘Open’ After Lebanon Deal, but Trump Says U.S. Blockade Continues
The Strait of Hormuz is open during the cease-fire in Lebanon, U.S. and Iran say
The Strait of Hormuz is open for all commercial ships after the agreement of a cease-fire in Lebanon, Iran and the United States said on Friday.
Oil prices dropped soon after the announcement, though Iran said ships would have to take a “coordinated route” that shipping analysts said referred to a route that runs close to Iran’s coast.
Shortly after Iran’s announcement, President Trump responded in a social media post: “IRAN HAS JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE STRAIT OF IRAN IS FULLY OPEN AND READY FOR FULL PASSAGE. THANK YOU!”
Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, fell more than 10 percent, to below $90 a barrel, its lowest level in more than a month, though it remains more than 20 percent higher than before the war started. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, also fell over 10 percent, to below $84 per barrel.
Before the war, a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas traveled through the Strait of Hormuz. But tanker traffic slowed to a trickle after Iran began attacking ships early in a war, causing a shortage of oil and gas in world markets that drove up the costs of gasoline, diesel and cooking gas.
Iran’s foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said in a post on X that the strait would be open for the “remaining period of cease-fire.” He did not specify whether that was the cease-fire in Lebanon or the one between the United States and Iran.
Iran has said before that the strait is open to shipping. And experts on the Strait of Hormuz said Mr. Araghchi’s statement should be treated cautiously.
“That does not equate to freedom of navigation,” said Martin Navias, an author of “Tanker Wars: The Assault on Merchant Shipping During the Iran-Iraq Crisis.”
U.S. forces began a blockade east of the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, with the aim of stopping Iranian and Iran-linked ships.
U.S. Central Command posted a video on Friday of U.S. officials directing a merchant vessels to return to an Iranian port. It was one of 19 ships that have complied with direction from U.S. forces to turn around and return to Iran, Central Command said on social media. “ZERO vessels have evaded U.S. forces during the blockade,” it said.
Iran’s assurances were not likely to be sufficient for major shipping companies, which are hesitant to send ships through the strait, even ones that have been stranded there for weeks, without more certain security guarantees.
“On paper, this looks great,” said Alexis Ellender, an analyst at Kpler, a marine data tracking firm, though, he added, Mr. Ellender expected it would to take some time — weeks, not days — before there was a significant upturn in the volume of ships going through.
But some smaller companies may be willing to restart traffic if they secure affordable insurance cover. Around 900 ships have been stranded in the Persian Gulf over the course of the war, according to a New York Times analysis of Kpler data.
Stock markets, which have rapidly recovered from a war-induced sell-off in March, rose after the announcement.
The S&P 500 rose 0.5 percent as trading got underway in New York. The index had already erased its losses stemming from the conflict and posted a fresh record high this week. It is on course for its third straight week of gains, its best streak since October.
April 17, 2026, 9:22 a.m. ET1 hour ago
Chancellor Friedrich Merz of Germany and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy have arrived for a meeting of leaders in Paris to advance the planning of a multinational mission to secure the Strait of Hormuz. They are joining the co-hosts of the gathering, President Emmanuel Macron of France and Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain. Mr. Macron and Mr. Starmer are expected to issue a joint statement at 4 p.m.
April 17, 2026, 9:18 a.m. ET1 hour ago
The Strait of Hormuz is “completely open” for all commercial ships after the agreement of a cease-fire in Lebanon, Iran’s foreign minister said on Friday. But Seyed Abbas Araghchi, the minister, said ships would have to take a route that was previously announced by Iran. Shipping analysts said that was a reference to a route that runs close to Iran’s coast, which has been taken by a small number of vessels during the war.
Negotiations
April 17, 2026, 1:14 a.m. ETApril 17, 2026
Trump says he might go to Pakistan if an Iran deal is signed there
President Trump said on Thursday that he might travel to Pakistan if a deal to end the war in Iran was signed there, hours after the country said it expected to host a second round of negotiations between American and Iranian officials.
Senior Pakistani mediators were in Tehran this week in an effort to shore up a fragile U.S.-Iran cease-fire that is set to expire next week. A reporter asked Mr. Trump outside the White House on Thursday afternoon if he would visit Pakistan to “seal the deal yourself.” He said yes.
“If the deal is signed in Islamabad, I might go,” Mr. Trump said. He added that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif of Pakistan, as well as the country’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, had been “great.”
“So I might go,” he said. “They want me.”
Mr. Trump has repeatedly praised Pakistan and its leaders for their mediation work with Iran. Pakistani officials have been courting Mr. Trump since last year, including by nominating him for a Nobel Peace Prize.
On Thursday, Mr. Trump deflected questions about whether he would extend the cease-fire with Iran, telling reporters that it might not be necessary and expressing optimism about striking a deal.
“They’re willing to do things today that they weren’t willing to do two months ago,” he said, without providing any details.
Mr. Trump said the next in-person negotiations with Iran might occur over the weekend, but warned that fighting would resume if no deal emerged.
Later on Thursday in Las Vegas, where Mr. Trump traveled for an event aimed at promoting his economic policies, he said the war in Iran “is going swimmingly,” insisting again that it would end soon.
He also appeared to criticize advisers who had warned him against going to war with Iran because it would affect fuel prices. He described rising costs as “fake inflation.”
“We have consultants,” Mr. Trump said, recounting the conversation, “‘Sir, if you do this, fuel is going to go to $300 a barrel. The Depression is going to happen.’ That can’t happen because we just hit a brand new all-time high.”
That was an apparent reference to the stock market, which hit a fresh record high this week, reflecting investors’ optimism that a peace deal would be reached before the war could inflict significant damage on corporate America.
While oil prices have dropped from their most recent peak, they are still much higher than they were before the start of the war.
April 16, 2026, 6:17 a.m. ETApril 16, 2026
Reporting from Islamabad, Pakistan
Pakistan looks to play peacemaker between U.S. and Iran
Pakistani diplomacy has risen to the forefront of efforts to broker peace between the United States and Iran, as the top leaders of Pakistan tried to preserve a shaky cease-fire between the combatants and to again offer their country as the venue for potential talks.
Pakistan’s powerful army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, arrived in Tehran on Wednesday, becoming the first regional player to visit Iran since the United States and Israel began attacking it on Feb. 28. He carried with him the praise of the White House.
“Pakistanis have been incredible mediators,” Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said after the army chief’s arrival in Iran. “The president feels it’s important to continue to streamline this communication through the Pakistanis.”
Pakistan helped negotiate a two-week cease-fire last week, scoring a major diplomatic victory. That cease-fire is set to expire on April 21.
Pakistan’s military said Field Marshal Munir was visiting Iran to sustain continuing peace efforts. On Thursday, Tahir Andrabi, a spokesman for Pakistan’s foreign ministry, said that a second round of talks between the United States and Iran was expected to take place in Islamabad, though he declined to provide a date. Neither U.S. nor Iranian officials have confirmed that, though both sides have said that indirect negotiations were continuing.
A Pakistani official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the negotiations said Field Marshal Munir was still in Iran as of Thursday morning local time.
Gen. Muhammad Saeed, a former Pakistani chief of general staff and former deputy to the field marshal, said: “Pakistan is helping with an exit strategy that must be a respectable outcome for both” countries.
The diplomatic push is a pivot for Pakistan, which has spent more time as a combatant over the past year in its own conflicts than as a peace broker.
When the United States and Israel began their war in Iran, Pakistan was conducting a series of airstrikes against another neighbor, Afghanistan. They have stopped for now, but only after the deaths of hundreds of civilians in Afghanistan. And last spring, Pakistan and India were embroiled in a tense military conflict that ended after a diplomatic push by the United States.
After President Trump took credit for ending that war, Indian officials bristled, but Pakistani officials drew closer to the White House. Field Marshal Munir met with Mr. Trump twice last year, and the American president has referred to him as his “favorite field marshal.”
While Field Marshal Munir was traveling to Iran, Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia on Wednesday. Their countries are allies and have a mutual defense agreement that was a potential source of tension between Pakistan and Iran, after Iranian forces began firing missiles at the Saudis and other Persian Gulf countries last month.
Asif Durrani, a former Pakistani ambassador to Iran, said that unlike other countries involved in the war, Pakistan didn’t have major conflicts with Iran. On Saturday, Mr. Sharif greeted Iran’s Parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, in Islamabad with a warm embrace.
“Iran would not trust any other country,” Mr. Durrani said about Pakistan’s role as a mediator between the United States and Iran. “Pakistan is the only candidate.”