Open, Then Closed: Few Ships Sail Amid Hormuz Uncertainty
- By RFE/RL
Hopes that shipping would resume through the Strait of Hormuz proved short-lived on April 18, with Iran's announcement that it was reopening the vital waterway being reversed just hours later and only a handful of vessels daring to attempt a passage.
Oil prices had plunged following the initial reopening announcement the previous day, and shipping tracking data showed several vessels passing through the strait.
Some of these were shadow fleet tankers on the US sanctions list, including two liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tankers: the Gardian and the Rain.
These were seen heading through the strait and onwards towards open seas -- where the US naval blockade could potentially interdict them.
Other ships seeking to take advantage of the reopening of the strait were not sanctioned vessels. These included liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers.
"What began as a cautious trickle yesterday is building into a steadier flow today," noted maritime intelligence company Windward in a social media post.
But the optimism dissolved as Iranian state media announced that the decision to open the strait had now been reversed, in response to US President Donald Trump's decision to keep his country's naval blockade of Iran in place.
“As long as the passage of vessels from Iranian origin [or] to Iranian destination remains under threat, the status of the Strait of Hormuz will remain in its previous state,” said a statement by the command of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).
Soon afterwards, some vessels that had set sail through the strait turned around and headed back.
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Why Is Iran Parading Pink Weapons? To Coerce Women Into Militancy, Says Rights Expert
Speaking with RFE/RL's Radio Farda, Mansoureh Shojaee, an Iranian women's rights activist based in the Netherlands, says the regime is coercing women into "revenge-driven" militancy amid war with the United States and Israel.
In videos shown by pro-government media outlets, crowds of Iranian women were filmed holding guns, flags, and children at the recent rally titled Self-Sacrificing Daughters Of Iran, where pink weapons were on display.
Trump Says Deal US Is Seeking With Iran 'Far Better' Than JCPOA
US President Donald Trump is asserting that a deal the United States is negotiating with Iran will be much better than the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the 2015 international agreement on Iran's nuclear program from which he withdrew the United States during his first term.
In a series of Truth Social posts on April 20 in which he vehemently criticized the US Democratic Party, former presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, and prominent US media outlets, Trump said he does not feel pressure to make a deal with Iran but predicted one will be reached fairly soon.
"The DEAL that we are making with Iran will be FAR BETTER than the JCPOA," which he claimed, without providing details, "was a guaranteed Road to a Nuclear Weapon [for Iran]." Trump pulled the United States out of the JCPOA, which restricted Iran's nuclear activity in return for an easing of economic sanctions, in 2018.
"If a Deal happens under 'TRUMP,' it will guarantee Peace, Security, and Safety, not only for Israel and the Middle East, but for Europe, America, and everywhere else," he added.
Trump wrote, "I am under no pressure whatsoever [to reach a new deal with Iran], although, it will all happen, relatively quickly!”
Trump also repeated earlier arguments that the United States is prevailing in the war with Iran, which began with US and Israeli air strikes on February 28. A cease-fire is in place until April 22 amid efforts to hold a second round of face-to-face US-Iran talks in Islamabad after an April 11-12 meeting ended without an agreement.
He repeated what he has said in recent days: that a US naval blockade on Iranians ports will remain in place until "until there is a 'DEAL.'" Tehran has said it will not participate in talks if the US blockade of Iranian ports is in effect.
China's Xi Urges Reopening Of Hormuz
In the most high-profile statement from Beijing on the US blockade of Iranian ports so far, Chinese leader Xi Jinping told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on April 20 that "the Strait of Hormuz should remain open to traffic."
Speaking by phone with the Saudi leader as China continues to increase its diplomatic efforts during the US-Israeli war with Iran, Xi said reopening the crucial waterway would be in the "common interest of countries in the region and the international community."
Xi's comments come as the US Navy intercepted and seized the Touska, an Iranian cargo ship traveling from China on April 20. According to the nonprofit group Global Fishing Watch, the ship had remained in Chinese waters until the end of March before returning to Iran via an extended stay in Port Klang in Malaysia.
Asked to comment on the ship's seizure at a press conference on April 20, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun expressed "concern about the forced interception of the relevant vessel" and reiterated Beijing's official position of promoting de-escalation.
Xi's phone call with the Saudi crown prince follows a series of international engagements between Beijing and its allies in the conflict. On April 15, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, to discuss the wars in Iran and Ukraine, as well as Beijing and Moscow’s closer cooperation.
Since the United States announced its blockade on Iranian ports on April 12, Wang has also spoken with his counterparts from Iran and Pakistan, as well as the United Arab Emirates' special envoy to China.
Internet Shutdown Adds To The Costs Of War For Iranians
- By Kian Sharifi
Iran's Internet shutdown has now surpassed 1,248 hours or 52 days, making it the longest national-level blackout since Libya's outage of nearly six months during the Arab Spring in 2011.
But the comparison understates the scale: Iran's population over 90 million is roughly 15 times larger than Libya's was at the time, making this arguably the largest government-directed communications outage in recorded history, with Internet monitoring watchdog NetBlocks describing it as "unsurpassed in scale and severity in a connected society."
The shutdown began on February 28 in the immediate aftermath of US and Israeli air strikes against Iran. Since then, publicly available network data shows that cross-border Internet traffic has remained below 1 percent of the country's pre-shutdown average for nearly the entire period.
In other words, for the overwhelming majority of Iranians, access to any website or application outside the country has been effectively impossible.
To read the full report, click here.
Trump Says Vance, US Delegation To Arrive In Pakistan 'Tonight' For Iran Talks
US President Donald Trump told the New York Post that a delegation led by Vice President JD Vance was due to arrive in Pakistan "tonight," but there was no immediate confirmation that Vance had left the United States and Tehran has not said it will take part in a new round of peace talks.
"We're supposed to have the talks…. So I would assume at this point nobody's playing games," the Post quoted Trump as saying in a brief interview it said was held shortly after 9 a.m. Eastern time on April 20.
"They're heading over now," Trump was quoted as saying. While he did not specify whether that meant the delegation was already in the air, he said, "They'll be there tonight, [Islamabad] time."
However, sources told RFE/RL on condition of anonymity that the plane Vance normally uses, Air Force Two, remained on the ground at Joint Base Andrews outside Washington. Reuters, citing two unnamed sources, reported that Vance had not yet departed, and several media reports cited sources as saying he would do so soon.
Trump had said a day earlier that US negotiators would travel to Islamabad for talks and would arrive on April 20.
But neither Iran nor mediator Pakistan confirmed it at the time, and Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei said earlier on April 20 that "We have no plans for the next round of negotiation, and no decision has been made in this regard."
Around the time the Post published its story, Reuters cited an unnamed senior Iranian official as saying Tehran was positively reviewing its participation in potential peace talks with the United States but that no final decision had been made.
Iran Didn't Act On Seized Ship Due To 'Presence' Of Crew's Families
The Khatam al-Anbiya headquarters, the Iranian military's joint operational command, has said its forces did not react to the US seizure of an Iranian-flagged ship in the Sea of Oman "due to the presence of some families of its crew."
The US Navy took control of the cargo vessel, the Touska, in the Sea of Oman on April 19.
Referring to what he called preparations for a "decisive confrontation" with the US Navy, a spokesman for the joint command claimed that Iran's armed forces "faced restrictions due to the presence of some families of the Iranian ship's crew...who were in danger at every moment."
It wasn't clear if the spokesman meant that the families of the crew were on board the ship. The claim has not been confirmed by the United States.
"Necessary action will be taken after ensuring the safety of the families and crew of the ship," the spokesman said without giving details.
Earlier, Iran's joint command said the seizure of the vessel was "piracy and armed aggression by the US military."
US President Donald Trump and the Pentagon said that the Touska attempted to evade the blockade and ignored warnings to stop, prompting the US Navy to target the ship’s engine room and halt its progress.
Iran Says No Plans To Take Part In Second Round Of Talks
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaei said on April 20 that the Iranian side has no plans to participate in a second round of peace talks with the United States.
There has been continued uncertainty over a potential second round of Pakistani-hosted face-to-face talks between US and Iranian delegations in Islamabad. While the White House has said a delegation is on the way to Pakistan for April 20 talks, Iranian state media has been reporting that Tehran had said it would not be sending a team.
At his weekly meeting with reporters, Baqaei said that "Iran will make the appropriate decision on continuing the path of negotiations by prioritizing national interests and concerns."
He also called the US seizure of an Iranian ship "aggression" and said that Iranian authorities were investigating the incident.
At the same time, a senior Iranian official told Reuters: "The differences over the nuclear program remain unresolved and the gaps have not narrowed."
The unnamed official said that “the continued US naval blockade undermines Iran-US peace talks” and that “Iran’s defense capabilities, including its missile program, are non-negotiable.”
Iran’s Treasury Authorizes Sale Of War-Damaged Government Buildings
Iran’s Treasury Department has issued a circular authorizing all ministries, government institutions, and state-owned companies to sell or exchange government buildings damaged during the war.
According to the directive, executive agencies are authorized to determine the fate of government buildings that have suffered extensive damage in the war and are deemed non-restorable.
According to reports in Iranian media, Rahmatollah Akrami, the country's Treasury secretary, issued the communique in order to "provide rapid financial resources for the reconstruction of war zones as well as reduce the costs of uneconomic repairs."
Since the war began on February 28, Iranian officials have reported widespread damage to civilian infrastructure, historical sites, and government buildings from US and Israeli strikes. Most of these claims, however, can not be independently verified.
Two More People Executed In Iran For Spying
Iran's judiciary announced the execution of two more people on April 20 on charges of "connections with Israel" and "espionage."
Mizan, the judiciary's news agency, named them as Mohammad Masoomshahi and Hamed Walidi, claiming that they "had communicated with Israeli intelligence officers and received training from them through cyberspace and travel to the Iraqi Kurdistan region."
The judiciary said that the executed individuals were planning to attack "two public service and military centers" in Tehran.
According to Mizan, the men were charged with "collaboration with hostile groups and Israel," "gathering and colluding against national security," "membership in a criminal terrorist group with the aim of disrupting national security," and "propaganda activity against the regime."
Independent verification of the trial details is not available. Human rights organizations have long raised concerns about due process, torture, and coerced confessions in Iranian espionage trials.
Since the war began on February 28, dozens of people have been arrested or executed in Iran on charges of collaborating with Israel.
Human rights organizations have expressed concern over the significant increase in the number of executions in Iran over the past year.