Iran closes Strait of Hormuz again, IRGC fires on two vessels

US military officials believe Iran continues to possess a substantial portion of its attack drone capabilities, despite weeks of strikes and intensifying conflict.

According to a report by The New York Times, American assessments suggest Tehran still retains around 40 per cent of its drone arsenal.

The estimate underscores concerns within Washington that Iran remains capable of sustaining drone operations across the region, even after significant efforts to degrade its military infrastructure.

Recent intelligence evaluations indicate that while US and allied strikes have caused notable damage, Iran’s broader missile and drone capabilities have only been partially reduced, allowing it to maintain operational strength.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Saeed Khatibzadeh, has said Tehran will not send any enriched uranium to the United States, insisting the issue is “not open for discussion”.

Speaking on the sidelines of a diplomatic meeting in Turkey, Khatibzadeh confirmed that indirect communication between the two countries is ongoing.

According to Iran’s state news agency IRNA, he said: “Multiple messages have been exchanged between Iran and the United States, but [the US] insists on demands that Tehran considers excessive”.

The navy of Iran's Revolutionary Guards warned on Saturday that any ship approaching the Strait of Hormuz would be treated as a target.

"We warn that no ship, of any kind, should leave its anchorage in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. Any attempt to approach the Strait of Hormuz will be considered cooperation with the enemy, and the offending vessel will be targeted," said the statement published on the Guards' official Sepah News website.

Iran's state-run Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs said on Saturday that the war with the United States and Israel had killed more than 3,400 people in the Islamic republic.

The announcement comes in the midst of a two-week ceasefire in the conflict, which erupted in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Tehran.

Foundation head Ahmad Mousavi was quoted by the ISNA news agency as saying that 3,468 "martyrs... fell during the recent conflict".

A previous toll from the head of the Iranian Legal Medicine Organization issued on April 12 said 3,375 people in Iran had been killed in the war.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said on April 7 that at least 3,636 people had been killed, including 1,701 civilians -- among them at least 254 children -- as well as 1,221 military personnel and 714 people whose status had not been classified.

The UAE’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, met with the UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, to discuss escalating tensions in the region, according to the Emirates News Agency (WAM).

Talks focused on recent developments, including Iranian missile strikes targeting the UAE and other countries. Both sides examined the wider implications for regional and global security, as well as risks to maritime routes, energy supplies, and the international economy.

During the meeting, Cooper reaffirmed the UK’s support for the UAE, emphasising its right to take necessary measures to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity, and to ensure the safety of citizens, residents, and visitors.

Sheikh Abdullah expressed appreciation for Cooper’s visit, describing it as a reflection of the strong bilateral relationship between the two countries and the UK’s firm backing of the UAE.

Both officials stressed the need to strengthen international cooperation to promote stability and security, while advancing efforts towards a lasting peace in the region.

The Israeli military said on Saturday that a soldier was killed the day before in southern Lebanon, where a ceasefire came into effect earlier this week.

Command Sergeant Barak Kalfon, 48, died after being wounded on Friday in an incident that also injured three other soldiers, the military said.

The military did not provide other details.

Israeli news site Ynet said the incident occurred during an operation to clear structures in southern Lebanon, about 3.5 kilometres (two miles) from the border.

Kalfon was among the first to enter a booby-trapped building, which then exploded, the report said.

He received emergency medical treatment but was later declared dead.

His death brings the military's losses in the six-week war between Israel and Hezbollah to 14, according to military figures.

A ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon came into effect at midnight on Thursday.

The navy of Iran's Revolutionary Guards warned on Saturday that any ship approaching the Strait of Hormuz would be treated as a target.

"We warn that no ship, of any kind, should leave its anchorage in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman. Any attempt to approach the Strait of Hormuz will be considered cooperation with the enemy, and the offending vessel will be targeted," said the statement published on the Guards' official Sepah News website.

Iranian commander Esmail Qaani arrived in Baghdad on Saturday to meet political leaders and representatives of armed factions and to discuss the Middle East war and its impact on Iraq, a senior Iraqi official told news agency AFP.

Political deadlock over the nomination of Iraq's next prime minister would also be on the agenda, the official said of Qaani's first reported trip abroad since a US-Iran ceasefire began on April 8.

Qaani, whose visits to Iraq are rarely announced, heads the Quds Force, the foreign operations branch of Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

Iraq has long walked a tightrope between the competing influences of its allies -- neighbouring Iran and the United States -- with Iraqi leaders struggling to maintain a delicate balance between the two foes.

Iraq was drawn into the Middle East war with strikes targeting Iran-backed groups, which in turn have claimed attacks on US interests, mostly in Iraq but also across the wider region.

The Iraqi official said Qaani was holding "meetings with Iraqi political leaders and a number of commanders of armed factions", adding that the goal of the visit was to "address regional de-escalation and its impact on Iraq".

Qaani "seeks to coordinate positions among Tehran's allies in Iraq and to ensure that the security situation does not deteriorate during these sensitive times" in Iraq and the region, the official said.

A French soldier was killed and three others wounded in an attack Saturday on UN peacekeepers in Lebanon that appeared to have been carried out by Hezbollah, French President Emmanuel Macron said.

"Everything points to Hezbollah being responsible for this attack," he said on X, urging Lebanese authorities to arrest the perpetrators.

Israel and Lebanon agreed to a 10-day ceasefire on Thursday in order to negotiate an end to six weeks of war between Israel and the Iran-backed group Hezbollah.

The fighting in Lebanon -- one of the fronts in the Middle East war -- has seen the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) deployed there repeatedly targeted, by both Israeli and Hezbollah forces.

The peacekeeper killed, identified as staff sergeant Florian Montorio, was caught in an "ambush" as his unit headed to a UNIFIL outpost and he died from a "direct gunshot", France's armed forces minister Catherine Vautrin said on X.

She said the outpost they had been heading to had been "cut off for several days by combat in the area".

The ambush was carried out "by an armed group at very close range", she said.

Vautrin added that Montorio was "picked up by his comrades under fire" but they were unable to resuscitate him.

Lebanon's president and prime minister discussed on Saturday preparations for the first direct negotiations with Israel in decades, as southerners headed home after the ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war.

In a statement, the office of President Joseph Aoun said he and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam conducted "an assessment of the post-ceasefire phase and the ongoing efforts to consolidate it", and discussed "Lebanese readiness for the anticipated negotiations" with Israel.

Their meeting came a day after a strongly-worded speech to the nation from Aoun stating that the country was entering a new phase to work on "permanent agreements" with Israel and insisting that direct talks were not a "concession" -- an apparent rebuttal of Hezbollah criticism.

The 10-day ceasefire seeking to end more than six weeks of war between Hezbollah and Israel has been in place since midnight on Thursday (2100 GMT) after being announced by US President Donald Trump.

Two of the three French peacekeepers injured in an attack in Lebanon that also killed a French soldier are in serious condition, the French Foreign Ministry said.

The ambush on French troops deployed with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), in addition to claiming the life of Staff Sergeant Florian Montorio, "also left three French soldiers wounded, two of them seriously", a ministry spokesperson said in a statement.

The Israeli military said Saturday that its air force had eliminated a "terrorist cell" operating near its troops in southern Lebanon, despite the ceasefire there.

"The [Israeli military] eliminated a terrorist cell operating in proximity to [Israeli] soldiers in southern Lebanon, in the area of the forward defence line dedicated to preventing imminent threats to Israel's northern communities," it said, without specifying how many suspected militants were killed.

Iran's top national security body said Saturday that the country was reviewing "new proposals" received from the United States, even as it warned that its negotiators would cut no compromises with Washington.

"In recent days, with the presence of the commander of the Pakistani army in Tehran as an intermediary and mediator in the negotiations, new proposals have been put forward by the Americans, which the Islamic Republic of Iran is currently reviewing and has not yet responded to," the Supreme National Security Council said in a statement.

It went on to say that Iran's negotiating delegation "will not make even the slightest compromise, retreat or leniency, and will defend with all its strength the interests of the Iranian nation".

Two Indian-flagged vessels carrying crude oil were on Saturday attacked while attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz, India's Ministry of External Affairs confirmed in a statement.

Tehran's ambassador to New Delhi, Mohammad Fathali, was called in for a meeting with India's Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri during which Misri conveyed India's deep concern at the shooting incident involving two Indian-flagged ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Misri urged the ambassador to convey India's views to the authorities in Iran and resume at the earliest the process of facilitating India-bound ships across the Strait.

US President Donald Trump on Saturday warned Iran not to "blackmail" Washington with its flip-flopping on the fate of the Strait of Hormuz, after Tehran declared the strategic waterway once again closed.

"We're talking to them. They wanted to close up the strait again - you know, as they've been doing for years - and they can't blackmail us," Trump said at a White House event.

Trump said there would be "some information" about Iran later in the day, adding: "We're taking a tough stand."

Iran's military on Saturday declared the strait, through which about one-fifth of the world's crude and liquefied natural gas normally passes, was once again closed, a day after saying it was open.

Hezbollah on Saturday denied it was involved in a deadly attack on United Nations peacekeepers (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon, after France accused the group of being behind the incident.

"Hezbollah denies any connection to the incident that occurred with UNIFIL forces in the Ghandouriyeh-Bint Jbeil area, and calls for caution in making judgments and assigning responsibilities regarding the incident pending the Lebanese army's investigations to determine the full circumstances of the incident," the group said in a statement.

One peacekeeper was killed and three others wounded from the French battalion, with Paris blaming Hezbollah.

The internet blackout imposed by Iranian authorities at the start of the Middle East war has entered an "unprecedented" 50th day, according to the monitor NetBlocks.

"Iran has now been isolated from the global internet for seven weeks with the digital blackout entering its 50th day after 1176 hours," NetBlocks said on X.

"Metrics show the measure, unprecedented for a connected society, continues to the detriment of most Iranians' livelihoods and human rights."

The blackout in Iran, which was imposed soon after the US and Israel attacked the country on 28 February, was already the longest nationwide shutdown on record as of 5 April, according to NetBlocks.

The monitor noted at the time that some countries had experienced intermittent or regional-level shutdowns over longer periods, while North Korea had never been connected to the global internet at all.

Senior Hezbollah official Mahmud Qamati said on Saturday that his group was not concerned by Lebanon's planned direct talks with Israel, labelling them a failure.

In a press conference in Beirut's southern suburbs, Qamati said his group was "not concerned with the negotiations being conducted by the state", saying they were "a failure, weak, defeated... and submissive negotiations".

"The resistance is the one that imposes. We are the land... and we are the ones who draw up the decisions, not those who have an official status," he said, adding that while his group did not mind Beirut "coordinating with us... not in this way that leads to surrender".

Lebanese Parliament Speaker and Hezbollah ally Nabih Berri condemned on Saturday the deadly attack on French UN peacekeepers, which Paris accused the Iran-backed group of committing.

In a statement shared by his office, Berri "condemned the attack on a patrol belonging to the French contingent serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in southern Lebanon".

The speaker "praised the sacrifices made by UNIFIL forces over the decades, particularly the French contingent", and contacted UNIFIL Force Commander General Diodato Abagnara to offer his condolences.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) said that a container ship has been hit by a projectile 25NM north east of Oman.

UKMTO WARNING 038-26

Click here to view the full Warning⤵️https://t.co/gIek8mqH91#MaritimeSecurity #Marsec pic.twitter.com/v46gRPrOYY

— UKMTO Operations Centre (@UK_MTO) April 18, 2026

 A United Nations peacekeeper was killed and three others wounded after a UNIFIL patrol came under small-arms fire while clearing explosive ordnance along a road in the southern Lebanese village of Ghandouriyeh, the peacekeeping mission said on Saturday.

Two of the wounded peacekeepers were seriously injured, it said.

UNIFIL said initial assessments indicated the fire came from non-state actors, allegedly Hezbollah, and that an investigation had been launched into what it described as "a deliberate attack."

France's President Emmanuel Macron said earlier a French soldier serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) had been killed in the attack and blamed Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah, urging Lebanese authorities to act against those responsible.

Lebanon's army condemned the shooting and said it had opened an investigation, while President Joseph Aoun offered condolences over the killing and ordered an immediate probe. Prime Minister Nawaf Salam also condemned the attack.

The Israeli military said Saturday it had established a "Yellow Line" demarcation in southern Lebanon, similar to the one separating its forces from territory still held by Hamas in Gaza, adding that it had already carried out attacks against "terrorists" in the area.

"Over the past 24 hours, IDF forces operating south of the Yellow Line in southern Lebanon identified terrorists who violated the ceasefire understandings and approached the forces from north of the Yellow Line in a manner that posed an immediate threat," the military said, referring to such a line for the first time since a ceasefire came into effect.

"Immediately after identification and in order to eliminate the threat ... forces attacked the terrorists in several areas in southern Lebanon," it said, noting that the military was authorised to take action against threats, despite the ceasefire.

Since a ceasefire came into effect in Gaza on 10 October, the Palestinian territory has been split by a "Yellow Line", the de facto boundary dividing Gaza into two zones: one under Israeli military control and one under Hamas control.

Israeli forces have killed and injured hundreds of civilians near the Yellow Line since the "ceasefire" with Hamas came into effect in October.

Twenty-three ships have complied with US orders to turn back toward Iran since the military began enforcing a blockade on Iranian ports and coastal areas earlier this week, the US military said on Saturday.

No date has been set for the next round of negotiations between Iran and the United States, Iran's deputy foreign minister said on Saturday, adding that a framework of understanding must be agreed first.

The highest-level U.S.-Iran talks since the 1979 Islamic Revolution ended in Islamabad without agreement last weekend.

U.S. President Donald Trump has told Reuters there would probably be more direct talks this weekend, though some diplomats said that was unlikely given the logistics of convening in Islamabad, where the talks are expected to take place.

"We are now focusing on finalising the framework of understanding between two sides. We don't want to enter into any negotiation or meeting which is doomed to fail and which can be a pretext for another round of escalation," Saeed Khatibzadeh told reporters on the sidelines of a diplomacy forum in the southern Turkish province of Antalya.

"Until we agree the framework, we cannot set the date... There was significant progress made actually. But then the maximalist approach by the other side, trying to make Iran an exception from international law prevented us to reach an agreement," he said, referring to U.S. demands over Iran's nuclear programme.

The United States "cannot impose their will" and block the strategic Strait of Hormuz, Iran's deputy foreign minister said on Saturday, after Iran's military declared the waterway closed again.

"Americans cannot impose their will to do a siege over Iran while Iran, with good intention, is trying to facilitate safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz," Saeed Khatibzadeh told journalists on the sidelines of an annual Turkish diplomatic forum in the southern province of Antalya.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) has said that it received a report from a tanker that two IRGC gunboats fired on the ship 20nm northeast of Oman.

UKMTO WARNING 037-26

Click here to view the full Warning⤵️https://t.co/3Fxxl1HHUA#MaritimeSecurity #Marsec pic.twitter.com/SCG3TglveA

— UKMTO Operations Centre (@UK_MTO) April 18, 2026

The next round of talks between Iran and the US in Islamabad is reported to be set for Monday, according to CNN, citing Iranian officials.

At least eight oil and gas tankers crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday after Iran briefly declared the crucial trade route open during a ceasefire in the Middle East war, maritime tracking data showed.

One crude oil tanker, four liquified petroleum gas carriers, two oil and chemical tankers and one classified as an "oil products" vessel crossed the strait early Saturday after the Iranian announcement on Friday afternoon, data from tracking firm Kpler indicated.

Around a fifth of the world's oil and liquified natural gas pass the strait in peacetime but traffic through the route had come to a near-standstill after the war erupted on 28 February with US and Israeli strikes on Iran.

Tracking platform MarineTraffic showed several other crude oil tankers in the strait near Iran's Larak Island, a checkpoint for vessels seeking to exit the Gulf under Iranian forces' blockade of the passage in the war.

However, Iran's central military command on Saturday appeared to reverse the decision to reopen the route, saying it would resume "strict management" of the strait in protest at a US naval counter-blockade.

 Egypt is working closely with Pakistan on a framework aimed at securing a lasting peace between the US and Iran, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty said on Saturday.

He said Egypt, Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia were coordinating a broader regional effort focused on preventing renewed escalation and laying the groundwork for a post-war security arrangement, stressing the importance of protecting Gulf states and stabilising energy markets, supply chains and food security.

Iran's central military command announced on Saturday it would resume "strict management" of the Strait of Hormuz, reversing a decision to unblock the strategic channel as part of negotiations with Washington.

In a statement shared on state television, the headquarters said Washington had broken a promise by continuing its naval blockade of ships sailing to and from Iran's ports.

Until the United States restores freedom of movement for all vessels visiting Iran, "the situation in the Strait of Hormuz will remain strictly controlled," the statement said.

Iran partially reopened its airspace on Saturday to international flights crossing the eastern part of its territory, the country's Civil Aviation Authority said.

"Air routes in the eastern section of the country's airspace are open for international flights transiting through Iran," it said, adding that some airports had also reopened at 7:00 am (0330 GMT).

More than three hours later, however, flight tracker websites still showed no international flights crossing Iran, and several avoiding its airspace by making long detours.

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said on Saturday the Strait of Hormuz had yet to return to normal operations despite a ceasefire in the Iran war, and urged Tehran to allow global shipping to resume fully.

"We are at a critical diplomatic moment with a ceasefire now in place ... but we don't yet have normal passage through the strait", Cooper told Reuters on the sidelines of a diplomacy forum in Antalya.

She said the truce needed to develop into a lasting peace, adding that restoring shipping through the waterway was urgent for the global economy.

Turkey's foreign minister on Saturday accused Israel of using security as a pretext to acquire "more land".

"Israel is not after its own security. Israel is after more land. Security is being used by the Netanyahu government as an excuse to occupy more land," Hakan Fidan told the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"Israel has created an illusion internationally, claiming that Israel is in favour of its own security but it has become very clear, especially in the recent years ... it is more than that," Fidan said.

He said from the Palestinian lands, Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and now towards Lebanon and Syria, it was "an onward occupation and expansionism in the region."

"I think this has to stop".

"Israel has to know that the only way to live peacefully in the region ... is to let the other countries enjoy their own security, and territorial integrity, and freedom, not to use power on those countries," he added.