War in Middle East: latest developments
Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:
- US extends sanctions waiver -
The US Treasury secretary on Monday said Washington was extending by 30 days its sanctions waiver for Russian oil cargoes already at sea, as global energy prices continue to surge due to the Iran war.
The latest "temporary 30-day general license" will "provide the most vulnerable nations with the ability to temporarily access Russian oil currently stranded at sea," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a social media post.
- Hormuz traffic -
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz was slightly higher last week, returning to levels in line with the average recorded since the start of the Middle East conflict after hitting a wartime low.
A total of 55 commodity vessels crossed the strategic waterway between May 11 and 17, according to data from Kpler, marking a sharp increase from the previous week, when just 19 vessels crossed.
- New Lebanon toll -
Israeli strikes have killed more than 3,000 people in Lebanon since the start of the war between Hezbollah and Israel on March 2, the health ministry said, after an April 17 ceasefire failed to stop the fighting.
"The total cumulative toll of the aggression from March 2 to May 18 is now as follows: 3,020 martyrs and 9,273 wounded," the ministry said, with 211 people aged 18 and under and 116 healthcare workers among the dead.
Israeli attacks since the start of the war have killed more than 2,900 people in Lebanon, including more than 400 since the truce began on April 17, according to Lebanese authorities.
- Hormuz internet cable permits -
Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said internet fibre optic cables passing through the Strait of Hormuz could be brought under a system of permits as Tehran tightens control over the waterway.
"Following the imposition of control over the Strait of Hormuz, Iran, citing its absolute sovereignty over the bed and subsoil of its territorial sea... could declare that all fibre-optic cables passing through the waterway are subject to permits," the IRGC said, in a social media post.
- Iran Guards target Kurdish area -
Iran's Revolutionary Guards said their forces had struck groups linked to the United States and Israel in the western Iranian province of Kurdistan, near the border with Iraq.
In a statement carried by the ISNA news agency, the Guards said groups from "northern Iraq and acting on behalf of the US and the Zionist regime were attempting to smuggle a large shipment of American weapons and ammunition" into Iran.
They said the groups were hit in the Iranian city of Baneh in the Kurdistan region.
- 'Do the impossible' -
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said he would do the "impossible" in order to stop the war with Israel, after a ceasefire and direct talks between the countries failed to end the fighting.
"My duty, based on my position and my responsibility, is to do the impossible, and to choose what is least costly, in order to stop the war against Lebanon and its people," he said.
- Hezbollah targets Israel -
Hezbollah said it fired a drone at a military target in northern Israel, as Israel continued launching strikes on south Lebanon despite an extension of the truce between the countries.
In a statement, Hezbollah said it launched the drone at "an Iron Dome platform belonging to the Israeli enemy army" in a military encampment in northern Israel, in response to an Israeli "violation" of the ceasefire.
- New Hormuz body -
Iran's top security body announced the formation of a new body to manage the Strait of Hormuz, which Tehran has effectively closed and wants to charge ships to traverse.
On its official X account, the Supreme National Security Council shared a post for the Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) saying it would provide "real‑time updates on the #Hormuz_Strait operations and latest developments."
burs-rh/ach
