This live blog covered developments on Day 55 of the US-Israeli war on Iran. For a recap of Day 54, go here, and for Day 56 updates, click here.

• Clearing Hormuz Strait mines could take six months: Report
• Iran official says Tehran receives first revenue from Strait of Hormuz tolls
• Araghchi urges clear stance in condemning 'crimes against the Iranian people'
• Iran seizes two ships in Strait of Hormuz 
• Gold falls on oil-driven inflation fears; US-Iran developments in focus

Trump says ceasefire between Israel, Lebanon extended by 3 weeks

Published: April 23, 2026 | 22:13 GMT | by Web Desk

US President Donald Trump has said that the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon will be extended by three weeks, adding that he was looking forward to meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun.

“The Meeting went very well! The United States is going to work with Lebanon in order to help it protect itself from Hezbollah,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. 

“It was a Great Honor to be a participant at this very Historic Meeting!” he added.

Press freedom group ‘appalled’ by ‘horrific’ killing of Amal Khalil

Published: April 23, 2026 | 22:01 GMT | by Web Desk

The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) has said it is “deeply saddened and appalled” by the killing of Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil in an Israeli strike on “the house where she was seeking shelter.”

“Journalists are our eyewitnesses to history; attempts to silence their voices must be met with international scrutiny and outrage,” the IWMF said in a statement.

The IWMF noted that the “horrific incident” occurred during a truce and that there is “mounting evidence that Israel is targeting reporters.”

“Journalists should never be the object of military operations,” the IWMF added, calling for accountability for Khalil’s killing.

Rubio denies US trying to exclude Iran players from World Cup

Published: April 23, 2026 | 22:01 GMT | by Web Desk

The United States will not exclude Iran from the World Cup tournament it is hosting, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Thursday, after an official mused about replacing war-battered Iran with Italy, which did not qualify.

"The problem with Iran, it would be not their athletes. It would be some of the other people that we want to bring with them," Rubio told reporters, denying Washington had asked the Iranian team not to come.

Trump eyes Lebanon-Israel meeting in weeks, deal this year

Published: April 23, 2026 | 21:53 GMT | by Web Desk

US President Donald Trump said he expected the Israeli and Lebanese leaders to meet with him over the next couple of weeks and voiced hope for a permanent peace deal this year.

"I think there's a very good chance of having peace. I think it should be an easy one," Trump told reporters as he met the Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors to announce an extension of a shaky ceasefire.

Hezbollah says fired rockets at northern Israel

Published: April 23, 2026 | 20:28 GMT | by Web Desk

Hezbollah said it fired rockets at northern Israel in response to the country's ceasefire "violations," as Lebanon and Israel's US ambassadors were set to meet in Washington.

"In defense of Lebanon and its people, and in response to the Israeli enemy's violation of the ceasefire and its targeting of the town of Yater in southern Lebanon," Hezbollah "targeted the Shtula settlement with a rocket salvo", the group said in a statement.

The Israeli military said "several launches that crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory were identified" and intercepted.

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Trump rules out striking Iran with nuclear weapon

Published: April 23, 2026 | 20:28 GMT | by Web Desk

US President Donald Trump on Thursday ruled out striking Iran with a nuclear weapon, after his previous threats to completely destroy Iranian civilization.

"A nuclear weapon should never be allowed to be used by anybody," Trump told reporters at the White House.

Trump says US in no pressure but ‘clock is ticking’ for Iran

Published: April 23, 2026 | 18:40 GMT | by Web Desk

US President Donald Trump said that he was not “anxious” to make a deal with Iran, claiming he had “all the time in the world.”

“I am possibly the least pressured person ever to be in this position. I have all the time in the World, but Iran doesn’t — The clock is ticking,” he said in a post on his Truth Social.

“Time is not on their side! A Deal will only be made when it’s appropriate and good for the United States of America, our Allies and, in fact, the rest of the World,” he further added.

USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier in Mideast region: US military

Published: April 23, 2026 | 18:33 GMT | by Web Desk

The USS George H.W. Bush aircraft carrier has arrived in the Middle East, the US military said Thursday, bringing the number of the massive American warships operating in the region to three.

The Bush was sailing "in the Indian Ocean in the US Central Command area of responsibility, April 23," the military command responsible for the Middle East said in a post on X that included an image of the carrier with its deck packed with warplanes. 

Trump to meet Lebanon, Israel envoys at White House talks: US official

Published: April 23, 2026 | 18:05 GMT | by AFP

US President Donald Trump will meet Israeli and Lebanese envoys when they hold a second round of peace talks Thursday, a US official said.

"The ambassador-level talks between Israel and Lebanon will now take place at the White House," the official said on customary condition of anonymity. "President Trump will greet both representatives upon their arrival."

Iran media report blasts over Tehran, air defence systems activated

Published: April 23, 2026 | 18:01 GMT | by AFP

Air defence systems were activated in parts of Tehran on Thursday evening amid reports of hostile aerial activity, Iranian state media said in the first such reports since a ceasefire began.

The IRNA state news agency said the "sound of air defence firing" was heard in western Tehran, while the Mehr news agency reported that the systems were activated in several parts of the capital to counter "hostile targets", without elaborating further.

Iranian leaders reject Trump remarks, stress unity behind leadership

Published: April 23, 2026 | 17:59 GMT | by Web Desk

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf rejected comments by US President Donald Trump suggesting divisions within Iran’s leadership, asserting that the country remains united.

In two separate posts on X, both Pezeshkian and Ghalibaf said there are no “radicals or moderates” in Iran, emphasising that “we are all ‘Iranian’ and ‘revolutionary’,” and stand in unity with the country’s leadership.

“We are all ‘Iranian’ and ‘revolutionary,’ and with the iron unity of the nation and government, with complete obedience to the Supreme Leader,” Ghalibaf said, adding that the country follows “one path… the path to victory for Iran.”

Israeli strike on south Lebanon kills three people: health ministry

Published: April 23, 2026 | 16:55 GMT | by AFP

An Israeli strike on southern Lebanon killed three people on Thursday, the Lebanese health ministry said, the latest attack despite a 10-day truce in the Israel-Hezbollah war.

In a statement, the ministry said that "an Israeli airstrike on the Shoukine road in the Nabatieh district", more than 30 kilometres (20 miles) north of Israel, killed three people while a strike on the village of Yater wounded two people, including a child.

The attacks come hours ahead of the second meeting between Lebanon and Israel's US ambassadors in Washington, where Beirut is expected to ask for a ceasefire extension.

Trump claims ‘total control’ of Hormuz, orders navy to ‘shoot and kill’ boats laying mines

Published: April 23, 2026 | 13:33 GMT | by Web Desk

US President Donald Trump in a series of posts on his Truth Social, claimed to have total control over the Strait of Hormuz.

“We have total control over the Strait of Hormuz. No ship can enter or leave without the approval of the United States Navy. It is “Sealed up Tight.”

He also vowed to destroy any vessels laying mines in the strait. 

"I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be... that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz," Trump said.

Trump said the blockade would remain in place until Iran is able to make a deal.

Pentagon says US forces boarded tanker carrying Iranian oil

Published: April 23, 2026 | 12:33 GMT | by AFP

The US Defense Department said Thursday its forces boarded a vessel in the Indian Ocean that was providing material support to Iran, the second time it had done so in three days.

"Overnight, U.S. forces carried out a maritime interdiction and right-of-visit boarding of the sanctioned stateless vessel M/T Majestic X transporting oil from Iran, in the Indian Ocean," it said on X.

UN 'working on' keeping presence in Lebanon after 2027 UNIFIL departure

Published: April 23, 2026 | 11:17 GMT | by AFP

The United Nations said Thursday it was "working on" maintaining a presence in Lebanon once the mandate of its UNIFIL peacekeeping force expires at the end of the year.

"In terms of the post-UNIFIL, we're currently in the process of working on these options," Jean-Pierre Lacroix, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, told a press conference in Geneva, with Beirut "very clear that they would want to keep a UN presence."

Lebanon leaders accuse Israel of war crime after journalist killed

Published: April 23, 2026 | 10:48 GMT | by AFP

Lebanon's president and prime minister accused Israel on Thursday of a war crime, after an airstrike killed a Lebanese journalist in the country's south, where Israeli forces occupy several areas.

Rescuers and the reporter's employer on Wednesday confirmed the death of Amal Khalil, a 42-year-old journalist who worked for the Lebanese daily Al-Akbar.

The civil defense agency said she was killed in a strike on a house in the village of al-Tiril.

"Israel deliberately targets journalists in order to conceal the truth about its crimes against Lebanon," said President Joseph Aoun, in a statement denouncing "war crimes."

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam wrote on X that "targeting journalists and obstructing access for rescue teams constitutes a war crime," adding that his government would take the attack to international bodies.

UK cuts annual deficit but Mideast war risks more borrowing

Published: April 23, 2026 | 10:19 GMT | by AFP

The UK government reduced the public deficit in the 12 months to the end of March, official data showed Thursday, but the Middle East war risks triggering increases to borrowing.

The Office for National Statistics said the deficit fell to 4.3% of gross domestic product in the Treasury's 2025-26 fiscal year, the lowest level since 2019-20, or eve of the Covid pandemic.

The annual deficit had been 5.2% of GDP in 2024-25, the ONS added in a statement. "Borrowing was almost £20 billion ($27 billion) lower than in the previous financial year," said ONS senior statistician Tom Davies, as higher tax receipts offset increased state spending.

"This is a bit of a cup half full moment for the government," noted AJ Bell head of financial analysis, Danni Hewson.

"The amount of cash they needed to borrow last year came in slightly below... forecast, and significantly down on the previous year."

However, "the Iran war has thrown a great big spanner in the works, hiking government borrowing costs and reigniting inflation".

Clearing Hormuz Strait mines could take six months: Report

Published: April 23, 2026 | 09:25 GMT | by AFP

A Pentagon assessment said it could take six months to completely clear the Strait of Hormuz of Iranian-laid mines, which could keep oil prices high, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

The strait -- through which one-fifth of the world's oil and gas passes in peacetime -- has remained largely closed during a shaky ceasefire, with the US imposing its own blockade.

Even if hostilities end and the blockade lifts, it could take months to clear the waterway of mines, according to a Pentagon assessment, the Washington Post reported citing officials close to the discussion.

The assessment added that it was unlikely such an operation would begin before the end of the war. The six-month estimate was shared with members of the House Armed Services Committee during a classified briefing, the Post reported.

Lawmakers were told that Iran may have placed 20 or more mines in and around the strait, some floated remotely using GPS technology which makes them harder to detect, according to the report.

"A six-month closure of the Strait of Hormuz is an impossibility and completely unacceptable to the Secretary," Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement shared with AFP denying the report.

Parnell said the Post report was based on a "classified, closed briefing" but much of the information was "false."

Iran official says Tehran receives first revenue from Strait of Hormuz tolls

Published: April 23, 2026 | 08:25 GMT | by AFP

A senior Iranian parliament official said on Thursday that Tehran has received the first revenue from tolls it imposed on the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

"The first revenue received from the Strait of Hormuz tolls was deposited into the Central Bank account," said deputy speaker of parliament Hamidreza Hajibabaei, according to Tasnim news agency.

Other Iranian media carried the same statement, without elaborating.

Araghchi urges clear stance in condemning 'crimes against Iranian people' 

Published: April 23, 2026 | 07:56 GMT | by Web Desk 

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says the US-Israeli aggression is the main cause of the current insecurity in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, urging all countries to take a clear and firm stance in condemning the brutal crimes against the Iranian people, state-run Press TV reported.

Iran seizes two ships in Strait of Hormuz 

Published: April 23, 2026 | 05:23 GMT | by Reuters

Iran seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz as it tightened its grip on the strategic waterway.

Gold falls on oil-driven inflation fears; US-Iran developments in focus

Published: April 23, 2026 | 05:11 GMT | by Reuters

Gold fell on Thursday as elevated oil prices fueled fears of ‌inflation and prolonged high interest rates, while investors looked for clarity on the stalled US-Iran peace talks.

Spot gold was down 0.7% at $4,705.37 per ounce, as of 0432 GMT. U.S. gold futures for June delivery fell 0.7% to $4,720.90.

US Navy Secretary Phelan fired, sources say

Published: April 23, 2026 | 05:09 GMT | by Reuters

Navy Secretary John Phelan has been fired, a US official and a person familiar with the matter said on Wednesday, in ‌another wartime shakeup at the Pentagon coming just weeks after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ousted the Army's top general.

The Pentagon announced his departure in a brief statement, saying he was leaving the administration "effective immediately." 

But it did not provide a reason or say whether it was his decision to go.

Energy monitor says over 10M barrels of Iranian oil left Gulf since US blockade

Published: April 23, 2026 | 05:00 GMT | by Web Desk

Vortexa, an analytics firm focusing on global energy and freight markets, says it recorded 34 movements of sanctioned and Iranian-linked tankers in and out of the Gulf in the week after the US imposed a naval blockade of Iranian ports.

The firm said it identified 19 outbound and 15 inbound movements of such vessels between April 13 and Monday, Al Jazeera reported, citing the Associated Press (AP).

Six of the outbound movements were “confirmed laden with Iranian crude, representing about 10.7 million barrels”, the firm said in an email to the AP.

It was not immediately clear whether all those barrels reached markets overseas.

US intercepts three Iranian oil tankers in Asian waters, sources say 

Published: April 23, 2026 | 04:15 GMT | by Reuters

The US military has intercepted at least three Iranian-flagged tankers in ‌Asian waters and is redirecting them away from their positions near India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, shipping and security sources said on Wednesday.

Washington has imposed a blockade on Iran's trade by sea, while Iran has fired on ships to prevent them from sailing through the Strait of Hormuz waterway at the entrance to the Middle East Gulf. 

CPJ ‘outraged’ over apparent Israeli targeting of Lebanese journalists

Published: April 23, 2026 | 02:31GMT | by Web Desk

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has shared a detailed update, expressing outrage that Israeli forces “apparently targeted Lebanese journalists Amal Khalil and Zeinab Faraj in Al Tayri, southern Lebanon, on Wednesday.”

The update included details of how Khalil was found dead hours after she was last heard from at approximately 4:10 p.m. local time (13:10 GMT), when she called her family and the Lebanese military, according to colleagues and news reports.

“The repeated strikes on the same location, the targeting of an area where journalists were sheltering, and the obstruction of medical and humanitarian access constitute a grave breach of international humanitarian law,” CPJ regional director Sara Qudah said.

“CPJ holds Israeli forces responsible for the endangerment of Amal Khalil’s life and the injuries Zeinab Faraj sustained after the targeted strike on their location,” Qudah added.

US military says most of 31 ships it turned around in Iran ports siege were oil tankers

Published: April 23, 2026 | 01:40GMT | by Web Desk

US Central Command (CENTCOM) says US forces “have directed 31 vessels to turn around or return to port as part of the US blockade against Iran”, most of which were oil tankers, Al Jazeera reported.

In an update shared on social media, the military said that “the majority of vessels have complied with US directions”.

The operation to blockade Iranian ports involves more than 10,000 US troops, 17 warships and more than 100 aircraft, CENTCOM said.