Trump says open to 20-year Iran nuclear suspension after Beijing trip

Iran faces a daily gasoline shortage of 30 million liters, said a member of Iran’s parliamentary energy committee, warning that fuel consumption must be managed because production cannot be increased in the short term.

“Daily gasoline production in Iran is 105 million liters, while consumption stands at 135 million liters,” Reza Sepahvand said on Friday.

“Part of gasoline production has declined because of bombing during the war, and imports have also decreased,” he added.

Republican Senator Tom Cotton introduced a bill to revoke visas from close relatives of terrorists and bar them from entering the United States, after reports that relatives of high-ranking Iranian officials had been living in the US legally.

“Relatives of terrorists have no business being in our country,” Cotton told Breitbart News. “My bill would revoke visas from family members of terrorists to keep Arkansans safer.”

A representative of Iran’s Supreme Leader in Alborz province said during Friday prayers in Karaj that Israel’s punishment should be its “annihilation,” while also calling for the United States to be punished.

“Punishment for the vile usurping Zionist regime is its annihilation from the face of time,” Mohammad-Mahdi Hosseini Hamedani said, adding that “punishing America means ensuring it no longer dares to attack any of the oppressed people of the world.”

The cleric said Iran must continue fighting “sedition” and prevent its enemies from rebuilding their strength, according to remarks carried by state media.

Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar said on Friday 11 Pakistani nationals and 20 Iranian citizens who had been aboard ships seized by the United States have been repatriated.

Dar said they were expected to arrive in Islamabad tonight, after which Pakistan would facilitate the return of the Iranian nationals to Iran.

France said its Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier is operating near the Middle East but not inside the Strait of Hormuz right now, stressing that its mission is defensive and aimed at protecting freedom of navigation.

Speaking to BFMTV, French Minister Delegate to the Minister of the Armed Forces Alice Rufo said the carrier had passed through the Suez Canal and Red Sea and was “on station,” giving France the ability to monitor developments and maintain diplomatic leverage in the region.

“We want to restore freedom of navigation in the Strait in a way that is entirely defensive and in line with international law,” she said.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and the Emir of Qatar in a phone call on Friday reviewed efforts to enhance security and stability in the Middle East, Al-Arabiya reported.

France 24, citing ship-tracking data, reported that a Greek-owned oil tanker has left the Persian Gulf for India after passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

The United Arab Emirates said on Friday it retains the right to defend itself against Iran after accusing Tehran of carrying out more than 3,000 missile and drone attacks since February 28.

Speaking at a BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting in India, UAE Minister of State Khalifa bin Shaheen Almarar said Emirati air defenses intercepted ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones targeting civilian infrastructure including airports, ports, oil facilities and residential areas.

He also accused Iran of disrupting international shipping routes and using the Strait of Hormuz as a tool of “economic blackmail.”