Here's the latest
• US timing: US President Donald Trump said there is “no time frame” for the conflict with Iran and rejected suggestions that political considerations are influencing his approach. Earlier, his spokesperson said the president doesn’t view Iran’s assertion that it seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz as a violation of the ceasefire.
• Pressure on Iran: Trump is also satisfied with the economic pressure campaign and has not set a “firm deadline” for Tehran to respond, the spokesperson said. On Tuesday, Trump extended the ceasefire and vowed to continue the US blockade on Iranian ports.
• Journalist killed: Meanwhile, a Lebanese journalist was killed Wednesday in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon, and another was seriously wounded, according to Lebanese authorities. The strike happened on the eve of a fresh round of Lebanon-Israel talks set for Washington, DC.
Former secretary of state talks about what it would take to get US and Iran back talking
Former Secretary of State John Kerry, who negotiated a nuclear agreement with Iran under President Barack Obama, tells CNN’s Kaitlan Collins what it will take to get both sides to return to peace talks.
Watch here:
Central Command says US forces have redirected 31 vessels in ongoing blockade against Iran
US Central Command announced tonight that US forces have redirected 31 vessels to return to port or turn around as part of the ongoing US blockade against Iran.
Most of the redirected vessels have been oil tankers, Central Command said in a post on X.
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire between the US and Iran, though he said the US blockade would continue.
Timeline on the war’s end is still unclear. Here’s what else you should know
With US President Donald Trump asserting Wednesday that there is “no time frame” for the conflict with Iran, here are other headlines you should know in the meantime:
- US Navy shakeup: US Navy Secretary John Phelan was ousted from his position, six sources familiar with the matter told CNN, as Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced that Phelan would be departing “effective immediately.” The shakeup comes as the US Navy continues its blockade of Iranian ports during the ceasefire.
- Strait of Hormuz reopening: Pentagon officials briefed lawmakers this week on an intelligence assessment that found it could take up to six months to fully clear the Strait of Hormuz of mines after the war with Iran ends, a source familiar told CNN.
- Rejected again: For the fifth time this year, the Senate rejected a measure aimed at restricting Trump’s war powers by requiring congressional approval for any future military action in Iran. The measure failed to advance, 46 to 51.
- Documenting attacks: Tehran has begun documenting US-Israeli attacks on its scientific centers and is compiling a legal case to pursue in international forums, according to Iran’s semi-official Mehr News.
- Killed journalist: Meanwhile, on the eve of the next round of talks between Israel and Lebanon to extend a fragile truce, a Lebanese journalist, Amal Khalil, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese authorities.
CNN’s Zachary Cohen has more on the ouster of the Navy secretary.
Secretary of the Navy John Phelan is leaving his position “effective immediately,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced. CNN's Zachary Cohen reports.
CNN’s Annie Grayer, Natasha Bertrand, Morgan Rimmer, Mohammed Tawfeeq, Charbel Mallo, Dana Karni, Alejandra Jaramillo and Sana Noor Haq contributed reporting.
Journalist killed in Israeli strike in southern Lebanon, authorities say
A Lebanese journalist was killed Wednesday in an Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon, and another was seriously wounded, according to Lebanese authorities.
Amal Khalil from Lebanon’s Al Akhbar newspaper was killed while carrying out her journalistic work, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency (NNA). She is the fourth media worker slain by Israel in Lebanon since March.
Lebanese state media and the Health Ministry said earlier that Israeli military attacks wounded another journalist, Zainab Faraj, while rescuers were trying to reach Khalil under the rubble. Lebanese authorities said Israel struck the town of Tayri in southern Lebanon and temporarily prevented emergency workers from rescuing people. Khalil’s employer, Al Akhbar, is a left-leaning, pro-Hezbollah newspaper.
The airstrike, one of a series in the same area, injured several people in the Nabatieh district, NNA said Wednesday. Lebanese Red Cross staffers had managed to retrieve Faraj and take her to a hospital in Tebnine under “hostile gunfire,” NNA said.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said the journalists were seeking shelter from the first strike in a nearby house. It added that two other people were killed in the attacks.
The Israeli military acknowledged reports that two journalists were injured as a result of the strikes and insisted it is not preventing rescue teams from accessing the area. The military added that details surrounding the incident are under review.
Israel’s military said its forces in southern Lebanon saw two vehicles coming from a “military structure” it says was used by Hezbollah. It said the “terrorists” in the vehicles approached the forces in a threatening manner. The military then attacked one of the vehicles and a building from which the individuals had fled. CNN cannot independently verify who those individuals were.
The attacks occurred during a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that has been in place since last Friday to pause fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Israel’s attacks have prompted an international outcry from groups such as the United Nations and the Committee to Protect Journalists.
Tehran starts compiling legal case over US-Israeli strikes on scientific centers
Tehran has begun documenting US-Israeli attacks on its scientific centers and is compiling a legal case to pursue in international forums, according to Iran’s semi-official Mehr News.
Speaking during a visit to Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, Hossein Afshin – Iran’s vice president for science, technology and the knowledge-based economy – said the effort is being carried out “through the Legal Affairs Department of the Presidency,” Mehr reported.
More than 20 universities in Iran have been damaged in strikes since the war began, according to the Iranian government, and academics have been also been targeted in what Tehran claims is an attempt to weaken the country’s scientific and cultural foundations.
Afshin said “attacks on scientific and university infrastructure are not only an assault on property and equipment, but also an attack on the foundations of knowledge production, the training of skilled human resources, and the country’s development future.”
He added that Iranian authorities were collecting “all technical documentation, expert reports, and field evidence” so it could be submitted “through available legal channels to relevant international bodies,” according to Mehr.
Senate rejects measure aimed at limiting Trump’s war powers in Iran for fifth time
For the fifth time this year, the Senate rejected a measure aimed at restricting President Donald Trump’s war powers by requiring congressional approval for any future military action in Iran.
The measure failed to advance, 46 to 51. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman joined Republicans in rejecting it, while GOP Sen. Rand Paul voted with Democrats.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced last week that Democrats are going to force one war powers vote every week for the foreseeable future.
Some Republicans, like Sen. Thom Tillis and Sen. Lisa Murkowski, have indicated they are open to backing a vote on authorizing military force once the conflict hits the 60-day mark, and Senate GOP leadership has not ruled out taking that step after 90 days, if the conflict hasn’t wound down by then.
However, when asked about an authorizing vote on Monday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters, “I don’t see that happening just yet.”
Pentagon briefed lawmakers on assessment that Strait could be closed for six months
Pentagon officials briefed lawmakers this week on an intelligence assessment that found it could take up to six months to fully clear the Strait of Hormuz of mines after the war with Iran ends, a source familiar told CNN.
The House Armed Services was told about this timeline during a classified briefing on Tuesday, the source said.
Other context of the briefing, which was first reported by the Washington Post, was not immediately clear, but it serves as a reminder of the massive economic and political ramifications from the war. CNN had reported last month that an internal assessment from the Defense Intelligence Agency determined that Iran could potentially keep the passage shut for anywhere from one to six months, according four sources familiar with the document. At the time, White House and Pentagon officials insisted that the assessment — particularly the longer end timeframe, which some consider a worst-case scenario — was not being seriously considered.
A Pentagon spokesman repeated Wednesday that a six-month closure would be “unacceptable.”
“The media cherry picking leaked information, much of which is false, from a classified, closed briefing is dishonest journalism,” said the spokesman, Sean Parnell. “As we said in March, one assessment does not mean the assessment is plausible, and a six month closure of the Strait of Hormuz is an impossibility and completely unacceptable to the Secretary.”
Trump awaits Iran's peace proposal without setting a deadline. Here's what we know
A firm deadline for when the Iranians need to send a peace proposal to the US is still up in the air, with President Donald Trump saying today there is “no time frame.” The US president extended the ceasefire yesterday after diplomatic efforts appeared to struggle to restart.
Trump said the extension was because of Iran’s fractured leadership, but White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said today the administration “certainly has a good understanding” of who is the ultimate decision-maker in Iran.
Governance in Iran has become far more complicated since the US and Israel eliminated most of the regime’s top military and political leaders. Still, because of pressure both domestically and externally, some analysts say the different factions are more aligned now than before the war.
Here’s what we know:
- Tehran wants to continue peace talks but the US “breach of commitments, blockade and threats are (the) main obstacles to genuine negotiations,” Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said. That sentiment was echoed by parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who said the US blockade of Iranian ports undermines the ceasefire.
- Meantime, Trump does not view Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps’ assertion that it seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz as a violation of the ceasefire, Leavitt said. “These were two international vessels,” Leavitt told Fox News.
- Trump “has not set a deadline himself” on when Iran will need to respond with a peace proposal for the US, Leavitt said. Trump, however, is happy with the naval blockade and economic pressure against Iran, she said. The president wants to “see a unified response and a unified proposal,” she said.
- In his own words, Trump said in an interview with Fox News’ Martha MacCallum there was “no time pressure” on the ceasefire or for new peace talks. He also rejected suggestions that political considerations are influencing his approach.
- Trump earlier said Iran agreed to stop the execution of eight women protesters, though Tehran has pushed back on his assertions that the women were going to be executed.
- In parts of southern Lebanon, Israeli forces killed at least four people on Wednesday, Lebanese state media reported, in separate strikes ahead of talks to extend a fragile truce agreement. The US Embassy in Beirut is urging Americans to leave.
- The UN’s maritime agency has condemned attacks and seizures involving commercial ships after Iran said it had seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz. On Sunday, Trump said US forces had fired on and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship.
- The International Transport Workers’ Federation has received 1,900 requests for assistance from seafarers stranded in the Persian Gulf and their families since the war in Iran began, the union said.
CNN’s Issy Ronald, Charbel Mallo, Dana Karni, Sana Noor Haq, Mohammed Tawfeeq, Alejandra Jaramillo, Hira Humayun, James Frater, Kit Maher and Mostafa Salem contributed reporting to this post.
Trump says there is "no time frame” on Iran war, denies midterms driving decisions
President Donald Trump said Wednesday there is “no time frame” for the conflict with Iran and rejected suggestions that political considerations are influencing his approach.
He also said, in an interview with Fox News’ Martha MacCallum, that there was “no time pressure” on the ceasefire that he extended Tuesday afternoon or for new peace talks to occur.
Asked when the war might come to an end, Trump said there was “no time frame” and there was no rush. He had previously said the war would last four to six weeks, but it’s now in its seventh week.
“People say I want to get it over because of the midterms, not true,” Trump said, adding that the administration wanted to “get a good deal for the American people.”
Trump vowed to continue a US blockade on Iranian ports even as he extended the ceasefire and did not specify an end date, pressing Tehran to submit a unified proposal to revive negotiations. CNN has reported that the administration had been getting virtual silence from Iranian officials as of Tuesday evening.
US Embassy in Beirut urges Americans to leave Lebanon
The US Embassy in Beirut issued a security alert Wednesday urging US citizens to leave Lebanon “while commercial flight options remain available.”
“We recommend that US citizens in Lebanon who choose not to leave prepare contingency plans for emergency situations,” the US Embassy said.
“The security environment remains complex and can change quickly,” the embassy added.
The embassy also urged people not to visit areas where there had been military activity, as these might contain “unexploded ordnance.”
The alert cited “ongoing risks of terrorism and kidnapping throughout Lebanon” and cautioned that places frequented by US citizens and tourists “may become a target for these attacks.”
Last week, US President Donald Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon that took effect at 5 p.m. ET on April 16, following a deadly exchange of fire between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah that had intensified since early March.
White House says Trump has not set "firm deadline" for Iranian response
President Donald Trump is satisfied with the economic pressure campaign against Iran and has not set a “firm deadline” for Tehran to respond, the White House said Wednesday.
“They can’t even pay their own people as a result of this economic leverage that President Trump has inflicted over them,” press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at the White House. “So he’s satisfied with that, as we await their response, and we will see.”
She added that Trump has not given Iran a hard timeline. “The president has not set a firm deadline to receive an Iranian proposal, unlike some of the reporting I’ve seen today. Ultimately the timeline will be dictated by the commander in chief.”
CNN reported earlier Wednesday that Trump was planning to give the Iranians a limited timeframe to come up with a unified proposal to get diplomatic negotiations back on track.
Pressed on how long Americans should expect the conflict to continue, Leavitt again declined to provide a timeline.
“I’m not going to set a timetable for the president,” she said. “The president has not set a deadline himself. Ultimately, he will dictate the timetable. And again, he is satisfied with the naval blockade, and he understands that Iran is in a very weak position, and the cards are in President Trump’s hands right now.”
White House says it knows who in Iran will sign off on deal, despite divisions in Tehran
Press secretary Karoline Leavitt says the administration believes it knows who inside Iran would sign off on a final deal to end the war, even as US officials detect internal divisions within the regime.
When CNN asked about the administration’s understanding of the ultimate decision-maker, Leavitt replied the White House and intelligence community “certainly has a good understanding.”
“However,” she went on, “we want to see a unified response and a unified proposal.”
She declined to say who the individual was, saying she would leave it to the intelligence community and President Donald Trump to offer more specifics.
CNN has reported that a hang-up in the negotiations is uncertainty surrounding the new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and the directives he’s provided the negotiating team. It’s not clear to US officials whether he’s given clear directions — or if they’re simply having to guess what he wants without specific instruction.
Trump doesn't view Iran's seizing of non-US ships as a ceasefire violation, spokeswoman says
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that President Donald Trump does not view Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps’ assertion that it seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz as a violation of the ceasefire.
“These were not US ships. These were not Israeli ships. These were two international vessels,” Leavitt told Fox News Wednesday.
“These two ships were taken by speedy gunboats. Iran has gone from having the most lethal navy in the Middle East to now acting like a bunch of pirates. They don’t have control over the strait. This is piracy that we are seeing on display, and the naval blockade that the United States has imposed continues to be incredibly effective,” she continued.
Earlier today, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed that it had seized two vessels that were “were allegedly operating without proper authorization, repeatedly violating regulations, and manipulating navigation systems.”
Leavitt downplayed the seizure of the two ships: “These are two, two boats in grave comparison to the more than 160 naval vessels that the United States has sunk.”
Iranian media also said that a third vessel, a Greek-owned ship, was targeted by the IRGC and is “now disabled off Iran’s coast.”
Trump claims Iran halted executions of eight women after his request
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that Iran agreed to stop the execution of eight women protesters, crediting his direct appeal to Iranian leaders, though Tehran has pushed back on his assertions that the women were going to be executed.
“Very good news! I have just been informed that the eight women protestors who were going to be executed tonight in Iran will no longer be killed. Four will be released immediately, and four will be sentenced to one month in prison. I very much appreciate that Iran, and its leaders, respected my request, as President of the United States, and terminated the planned execution,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt echoed the president’s announcement later on Wednesday, saying on Fox News that he “has received direct word from the Iranian regime, or what’s left of it, that their lives are going to be spared.”
Iranian officials have denied they were ready to execute any women. The competing accounts add to ongoing questions about the accuracy of information surrounding individual cases inside Iran’s judicial system.
Trump’s announcement follows previous instances in which he has falsely claimed alleged death sentences in Iran that were later disputed or unverified.
Meanwhile, the president has extended a ceasefire with Iran and vowed to continue a US blockade on Iranian ports, pressing Tehran to submit a unified proposal to revive negotiations. CNN has reported that the administration had been getting virtual silence from Iranian officials as of Tuesday evening.
War in Iran is starting to "weaken Europe," Turkish president says
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan told his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier in a phone call on Wednesday that the war in the Middle East is “beginning to weaken Europe.”
“If this trajectory is not addressed through a peace-focused approach, the damage from the conflict process will be much greater,” Erdogan said, according to a Turkish readout of the call.
Commenting on both the wars in Iran and in Ukraine, Erdogan said Turkey was “making efforts to end the conflicts through negotiations and to achieve lasting peace.”
Iranian president says US “blockade and threats” are obstacles to negotiation
Tehran wants to continue peace talks but the US’ “breach of commitments, blockade and threats are (the) main obstacles to genuine negotiations,” Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said in a post on X on Wednesday.
The Iranian president also accused the US of inconsistency, saying, the “world sees your endless hypocritical rhetoric and contradiction between claims and actions.”
The tweet comes a day after US President Donald Trump said he would extend the ceasefire with Iran until Tehran submits a proposal to end the conflict permanently. In the meantime, Trump said, the American military would continue the blockade.
UN maritime agency condemns ship attacks and seizures
The UN’s maritime agency has condemned attacks and seizures involving commercial ships.
The International Maritime Organization’s head, Arsenio Dominguez, called for such “reckless actions” to end and for ships and seafarers to be released immediately.
His remarks come after seizures by both Iran and the US. Earlier today, Iran said it had seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz and targeted another which it said was “now disabled off Iran’s coast.” On Sunday, US President Donald Trump said US forces had fired on and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship attempting to go past the US blockade in the Gulf of Oman.
The IMO chief said that as a result of the dangers nearly 20,000 seafarers were stranded in the Persian Gulf, unable to return home.
He recounted a conversation with one seafarer who was ultimately able to leave.
“He described the constant stress of missiles overhead, the danger of falling debris striking the ship, the need to ration supplies, and the difficulty of keeping his family informed about his situation,” Dominguez said.
The International Transport Workers’ Federation said that since the war began it has received almost 2,000 requests for assistance from seafarers stranded in the Persian Gulf and their families.
Israel-Iran strikes on energy sites "may amount to war crimes," Human Rights Watch says
Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Wednesday that Israeli and Iranian attacks on critical energy infrastructure last month were “unlawfully indiscriminate” and “may amount to war crimes.”
The US-based organization described Israel’s attack on Iran’s South Pars Gas Field on March 18 and Iran’s subsequent attacks on Qatar’s Ras Laffan liquefied natural gas facility as part of “a series of unlawful attacks on energy infrastructure” by the two countries.
Ras Laffan and South Pars are among the world’s largest natural gas sites.
“Unlawful attacks on key oil and energy infrastructure have foreseeable knock-on economic impacts that could prove harmful to millions of people,” said Joey Shea, senior Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates researcher at Human Rights Watch.
HRW said it analyzed “official government and company statements, satellite imagery, and videos of the aftermath,” and wrote to both governments seeking clarification. It said Israeli authorities responded on March 30, stating that their “targeting processes are governed by a structured and binding framework designed to ensure the accurate identification of lawful military targets.”
HRW said Iranian authorities had not responded.
CNN has reached out to both the Israeli military and Iran’s Foreign Ministry for comment.
In a separate development, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused the US of committing an “unprecedented war crime” in its attack on the Iranian warship Dena.
A US submarine sank the ship in international waters last month, killing more than 80 crew according to authorities in Sri Lanka who launched a rescue mission.
In a phone call with Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Vijitha Herat on Wednesday, Araghchi said Iran would “never forget” the incident, which he said was a violation of international humanitarian law. Tehran would pursue “all legal and political capacities” to hold accountable those responsible, he added.
In a separate call with Afghanistan’s acting foreign minister, Araghchi called on Muslim majority countries to “remain vigilant against what he claimed Israel’s “hegemony and divisiveness”
Iran's top negotiator says US naval blockade violates ceasefire, prevents reopening Strait of Hormuz
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, said a “complete ceasefire” would be meaningful only if it is not undermined by a naval blockade and if Israel’s actions across multiple fronts are halted.
“A complete ceasefire only makes sense if it is not violated by a naval blockade and holding the world economy hostage, and if the Zionists’ warmongering on all fronts is stopped,” Ghalibaf wrote Wednesday in a post on X. He added that “reopening the Strait of Hormuz is not possible with a blatant violation of the ceasefire.”
Ghalibaf, who led the Iranian side in the latest negotiations with the United States, also rejected the idea that pressure would force Iranian concessions. “They did not achieve their goals through military aggression, nor will they through bullying,” he wrote. “The only way is to accept the rights of the Iranian nation.”
President Donald Trump plans to give the Iranians a limited timeframe to come up with a unified proposal to get diplomatic negotiations back on track, two sources familiar with the internal discussions told CNN. It was not immediately clear if Trump’s message had made it to the Iranians.
Israeli attacks kill four people in southern Lebanon, state media says
Israeli forces killed at least four people in parts of southern Lebanon on Wednesday, Lebanese state media reported, in separate strikes ahead of talks to extend a fragile truce agreement.
An Israeli drone attack on the town of Yahmar al-Shaqif, in the southern Nabatieh district, killed two people and injured others, according to the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA). Farther south, two people were killed in the village of Tiri, NNA said.
Social media photos showed thick clouds of gray smoke tumbling over green fields in the town of Qantara, following what NNA said was an Israeli bombing.
CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for comment.
Over the past week, the Israeli military and the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah have launched attacks ahead of a second round of Israeli-Lebanese ambassador-level talks to extend the fragile deal. Earlier Wednesday, Israel intercepted a Hezbollah drone flying toward soldiers in the south. Israeli forces have bulldozed homes, demolished residential neighborhoods and destroyed key infrastructure elsewhere, NNA said.
US President Donald Trump ordered a “10-day ceasefire” between Israel and Lebanon to take effect at 5 p.m. ET on April 16 — midnight in Lebanon.
The six-point US-led plan stated that Israel would “preserve its right to take all necessary measures in self-defense” and called on the Lebanese government to prevent Hezbollah “from carrying out attacks, operations or hostile activities against Israeli targets.”
Since then, the Israeli military has killed at least six people in Lebanon, according to a CNN tally of figures reported by NNA. Israeli forces have also fired on people who they say approached a “forward defense line” in southern Lebanon. Lebanese authorities have not reported on the total number of people killed there.
In that time, two Israeli soldiers have also been killed in southern Lebanon, according to the Israeli military.
