Independent analysts say they have seen no change in traffic through Strait of Hormuz
Independent analysts say they have seen no change in traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, despite claims from the White House on Wednesday that there had been an uptick in the number of ships transiting the strategic waterway since a U.S.-announced ceasefire with Iran.
Windward, a maritime intelligence firm that tracks international shipping, said only 11 vessels transited the strait on Wednesday — roughly the same number from prior days.
Windward said all ships transiting the strait must still coordinate safe passage with Iranian authorities, who are requiring shippers to pay hefty tolls amounting of up to $1 a barrel for outbound oil, paid in cryptocurrency. For context, the largest supertankers carry up to 3 million barrels of crude.
Windward said radio broadcasts from Iran to tankers in the Persian Gulf on Wednesday warned that those transiting without approval would be attacked.
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 23:15
Vance uses bizarre skydiving wife analogy as he discusses Iranian ceasefire demands
Vance makes bizarre skydiving wife analogy as he discusses Iranian ceasefire demands
JD Vance used an analogy about his wife wanting to skydive while discussing Iranian demands following a shaky truce between Tehran and the US. It comes after Donald Trump said that he had received a 10-point proposal from Iran, judging it “a workable basis on which to negotiate”. Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said that Washington had agreed to accept Iran’s proposals, and that “the United States has, in principle, committed to” conditions such as “acceptance of enrichment.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said: “There will be no enrichment of uranium.” Speaking to reporters as he departed Budapest, Vance said: “[Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf] said we refuse to give up the right to enrichment. “My wife has the right to skydive, but she doesn’t jump out of an airplane because she and I have an agreement that she’s not gonna do that.”
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 23:00
Trump’s meeting with Rutte has ended
US President Donald Trump’s meeting with Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte has ended
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 22:48
White House claims US war against Iran went ‘exactly as planned’
The White House has claimed that the US’s war against Iran went “exactly as planned from day one”.
In a post on X, it said: “Iran’s ability to threaten the region has been systematically dismantled.”
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 22:47
Greek PM says tolls for ships to cross Hormuz would be unacceptable
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday it would be unacceptable for ships to have to pay a fee to cross the Strait of Hormuz as Iran has suggested, and such a move would set a dangerous precedent for freedom of navigation.
The Iran war has threatened Gulf ports and disrupted global trade through the strait, a waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes.
Greece controls one of the largest merchant fleets globally in terms of cargo-carrying capacity. Amid ceasefire talks with the U.S. and Israel, Tehran, which controls the chokepoint, has proposed fees or tolls on vessels to safely pass through the strait. U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested the U.S. and Iran could collect tolls in a joint venture, while the White House said the priority was reopening the strait without limitations.
Mitsotakis said the strait always had freedom of navigation and that needs to continue.
“I don’t think that the international community would be ready to accept Iran setting up a toll booth for every ship that crosses the strait,” Mitsotakis told CNN. “That seems to me to be completely unacceptable.”
The centre-right leader added that a separate international agreement regarding the strait may be necessary.
“But this agreement cannot, I repeat, cannot include a sort of a fee that ships will have to pay every time they cross the strait. This was not the case before the war started and it cannot be the case after the war finishes,” he said.
“We would be setting a very, very dangerous precedent, if that were to happen, for the freedom of navigation.”
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 22:34
‘Unhinged’ Trump has ‘unchecked power’ and world ‘holds its breath’ with each tweet, says Schumer in call for war powers vote
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that Democrats will force a vote on a War Powers Act resolution to rein in President Donald Trump on Iran.
New York’s senior senator said the Democrats would force the vote when the Senate returns next week. The announcement comes after Trump announced a two-week ceasefire that has already proven fragile.
“All of this happens when one man, especially a man acting as unhinged as Donald Trump, has unchecked power to wage war,” Schumer told reporters. “He backs himself into a corner with dangerous, escalating rhetoric.”
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 22:15
Macron tells Iranian and US presidents accepting ceasefire is ‘best possible decision’
French president Emmanuel Macron said he has told the Iranian and US presidents that their decision to accept a ceasefire was the best possible one.
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 22:03
Starmer has met Saudi leader in efforts to cement fragile ceasefire
Sir Keir Starmer has met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah.
The Prime Minister met the Saudi leader as he visits Gulf allies to discuss efforts to cement a fragile ceasefire between the US and Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz permanently.
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 21:54
Child killed after Israeli drone shot down in Iran, local media reports
A child has been killed after an Israeli drone was shot down by air defences in Iran’s Khuzestan province on Wednesday evening, Iranian media has reported.
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 21:42
UAE to seek clarification on US-Iran ceasefire to ensure Tehran’s commitment to cessation of attacks in region
The UAE will seek clarification on the terms of the U.S.-Iran two-week ceasefire agreement to ensure Tehran’s full commitment to a cessation of attacks on the region and “unconditional reopening” of the Strait of Hormuz, a foreign ministry spokesperson said in a post on X.
The spokesperson stressed the need for a comprehensive approach that addresses Iranian threats, including Tehran’s nuclear and military capabilities and its proxies in the region.
Tara Cobham8 April 2026 21:30
