01/05/2026

FRIDAY | MAY 1, 2026

9

US seeks new coalition to open Strait of Hormuz

Teen shot dead in Israeli West Bank raid RAMALLAH: A Palestinian teen was shot dead during an Israeli military raid in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, official Palestinian news agency Wafa reported. The Palestinian Health Ministry said the victim was a 16-year-old boy. The Israeli military said it was looking into the report. Wafa said the boy was killed by gunfire during a raid in the Palestinian city of Hebron. Earlier, the Israeli military said two Palestinians attacked and wounded two soldiers in the area of Silwad, near Ramallah. The soldiers opened fire, killing one of the assailants and apprehended the second man alive, the military said. Reuters was not immediately able to verify the details of either incident. In northern Gaza, Palestinian health officials said a medic was killed in an Israeli strike. The Israeli military did not immediately comment. It said its forces had shot dead a militant in southern Gaza in a separate incident later on Wednesday. In other news, a vessel carrying grain that Ukraine says was stolen by Russia will not unload in Israel, Israeli media reported yesterday, after Kyiv requested Israel to seize the cargo. The Jerusalem Post and other outlets cited a statement from Israel’s Grain Importers Association saying the company importing the grain had been forced to turn away the vessel. Zenziper, the company reportedly importing the grain, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kyiv considers all grain produced in the five regions that Russia is occupying, including Crimea, to be stolen and has protested over its export by Russian firms to other countries. Moscow claims the five regions as part of its territory. They are internationally recognised as Ukrainian. Israel’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oren Marmorstein on Wednesday said Kyiv had yet to provide any evidence the grain was stolen. – Reuters Iran responded with waves of missile and drone strikes targeting Israel and US assets in West Asia. A ceasefire was achieved between the warring parties on April 8. – Bernama-Xinhua Mass rallies to support Iranian supreme leader TEHRAN: Tens of thousands of Iranians took to the streets on Wednesday in mass rallies across the country to pledge allegiance to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and demonstrate national unity, reported Xinhua. The rallies, held concurrently in different cities on the birthday anniversary of the eighth Imam of Shiite Muslims Imam Reza, ran from 4pm local time (1230 GMT) to 9pm (0530 GMT). In the capital Tehran, people marched from Imam Hossein Square to Azadi Square, waving Iranian flags and holding pictures of the new leader and the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a US and Israeli attack in late February. Several officials, including Tehran Mayor Alireza Zakani and Iran’s Constitutional Council spokesperson Hadi Tahan Naizf, joined the crowd. The participants chanted slogans against the United States and Israel, and in support of Iran’s Islamic establishment, and highlighted the necessity to maintain national unity. A pavilion was set up along the route to commemorate those killed in a US and Israeli attack on a school in the southern Iranian city of Minab on the first day of the 40-day conflict against Iran. Iran’s homegrown “Kheibarshekan” missile and “Shahed 136” drone were displayed during the rally in Tehran. On Feb 28, Israel and the US launched joint attacks on Tehran and other Iranian cities, killing Iran’s Ali Khamenei, senior commanders and civilians.

o Move constitutes first step in establishing post-conflict maritime security architecture for Middle East: State Dept

blockade of Iran’s ports. Trump has rejected a proposal from Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, opting instead to maintain the naval blockade to pressure Tehran on its nuclear programme, Anadolu Ajansi reported, citing Axios on Wednesday. “The blockade is somewhat more effective than the bombing. They are choking. It is going to be worse for Iran.” He dismissed the Iranian offer to unblock the vital waterway and postpone nuclear discussions, insisting that his primary goal remains preventing Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Trump claimed that the inability to export oil has left Iranian infrastructure “close to exploding”. While he views the blockade as a powerful lever, sources told Axios that the US Central Command has developed plans for a “short and powerful” wave of aerial strikes to break the diplomatic stalemate if Iran does not yield. However, he has yet to authorise kinetic action, sources said. The United States also said on Wednesday the 42nd commercial vessel attempting to enter or exit Iranian ports has been redirected, adding that 41 oil tankers carrying a combined 69 million barrels remain unable to access Iranian ports due to the US blockade. – Reuters

WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking the participation of other countries to form an international coalition to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a State Department cable seen by Reuters. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio approved the creation of the Maritime Freedom Construct (MFC), the cable dated April 28 said, which it described as a joint initiative by the State Department and the Pentagon. “The MFC constitutes a critical first step in the establishment of a post-conflict maritime security architecture for the Middle East. This framework is essential to ensuring long-term energy security, protecting critical maritime infrastructure, and maintaining navigational rights and freedoms in vital sea lanes,” it said. The component of the initiative led by the State Department would serve as a diplomatic hub between partner countries and the shipping industry, while the Pentagon component operating out of the US Central Command headquarters in Florida would coordinate real-time maritime traffic

and communicate directly with vessels transiting the Strait, the cable said. US embassies should deliver the demarche orally to partner nations by today, but not to Russia, China, Belarus, Cuba and “other US adversaries”, said the cable. Participation could be in the form of diplomacy, information sharing, sanctions enforcement, naval presence or other forms of support, it said. “We welcome all levels of engagement and do not expect your country to shift naval assets and resources away from existing regional maritime constructs and organisations. “The MFC is distinct from Trump’s Maximum Pressure campaign and from ongoing negotiations.” Traffic through the strait, which used to carry one-fifth of the world’s oil and gas, has slowed to a trickle since the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb 28 and Tehran blockaded the waterway. The proposal from the United States follows a deadlock in efforts to resolve the conflict, which has also led the United States to try to squeeze Iran’s oil exports with a naval

Putin and Trump discuss Iran, Ukraine MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin has spoken on the phone with his US counterpart Donald Trump, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said on Wednesday, adding that they discussed the Middle East war and Ukraine. The call lasted more than 90 minutes and was “frank and businesslike”, said Ushakov. They “paid particular attention to the situation regarding Iran and in the Persian Gulf”, he said.

“Putin considers Trump’s decision to extend the ceasefire with Iran to be the right one as this should give negotiations a chance and overall help to stabilise the situation.” But Putin also “highlighted the inevitable and extremely damaging consequences not only for Iran and its neighbours, but also for the entire international community, should the United States and Israel resort to military action once again”, he said. He added that Russia is “firmly committed to providing every possible assistance to diplomatic efforts” on the Middle East war, and said the call was held at Moscow’s initiative. In Washington, Trump said he had a “very good conversation” with Putin, although he said it focused more on the Ukraine war than on Iran. Trump added that Putin wants to “help” end the US-Israeli war on Iran but he had told the Russian leader to end the Ukraine invasion first. Ushakov briefed journalists on the leaders’ discussion of the war in Ukraine, now in its fourth year following Russia’s full-scale invasion of its neighbour in February 2022. “At Trump’s request, Putin described the current situation along the line of contact, where our troops are holding the strategic initiative and pushing back the enemy’s positions,“ said Ushakov. “Both Putin and Trump expressed essentially similar assessments of the behaviour of the Kyiv regime led by (Volodymyr) Zelensky, which, incited and with the support of the Europeans, is pursuing a policy of prolonging the conflict.” Russia’s assault on Ukraine has devastated

Residents taking part in shooting training for civilians in Kharkiv region, Ukraine on Wednesday. – REUTERSPIC

Russia marks Victory Day on May 9 to commemorate the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany in World War II, celebrated each year with a military parade in central Moscow. This year’s event will be scaled down as a precautionary measure given the threat of Ukrainian retaliatory strikes, the Kremlin said on Wednesday. – AFP

swathes of Ukrainian territory, killed thousands of civilians and forced millions to flee their homes. Putin said he was ready to declare a ceasefire for the duration of Victory Day celebrations. Trump actively supported this initiative, adding that “the holiday marks our shared victory“, said Ushakov.