Netanyahu says ceasefire could end any moment, backs US blockade

The US military said on Monday that its blockade of Iran would not impede neutral transit through the Strait of Hormuz to or from non-Iranian destinations, Reuters reported, citing a notice sent to seafarers.

The blockade would be enforced in the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea east of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the report.

It said the measure would apply to all vessel traffic regardless of flag, adding that humanitarian shipments, including food, medical supplies and other essential goods, would be allowed subject to inspection.

Restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz was of paramount importance, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Monday.

“The ongoing closure of the Strait of Hormuz is greatly damaging,” von der Leyen said.

She added that there could be no stability in the Middle East while Lebanon was still being bombarded.

Russia is ready to take in Iran’s enriched uranium as part of a future peace deal with the United States, the Kremlin said on Monday.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the proposal had been put forward by President Vladimir Putin.

“This proposal was voiced by President Putin in contacts with both the United States and regional states. The offer still stands, but has not been acted upon,” he said.

Iran’s exiled Prince Reza Pahlavi told Sweden’s parliament on Monday that Iran’s future would ultimately be decided by its people, not by foreign forces.

“The battle in my country today is not between reformists and hardliners; It is between occupation and liberation; It is a battle for the soul of a nation. What we are witnessing is not a fleeting protest movement; It is a generational revolt, the most profound uprising in Iran since 1979,” he said.

Pahlavi said the war that mattered was the Islamic Republic’s war against the Iranian people, adding that it had intensified every day and that no ceasefire had taken hold in that conflict.

He said the Islamic Republic had never acted like a normal government since its founding and had projected influence through forces from Beirut to Baghdad and Sanaa.

Referring to internet shutdowns in Iran, he said the authorities had silenced dissenting voices, cut internet access and opened fire on unarmed people, adding that the cost of the crackdown had been catastrophic.

France will soon organize a conference with Britain to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday.

Macron said the meeting would include countries willing to join a peaceful multinational mission aimed at securing the waterway.

“This strictly defensive mission, which will be separate from the warring parties, is intended to be deployed as soon as the situation allows,” he said in a post on X.