G7 foreign ministers called for Iran on Friday to immediately restore freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. A joint statement, released in the name of all G7 members including the United States, urged "the absolute necessity to permanently restore safe and toll-free freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz”. Follow our blog to see how the day's events unfolded.
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Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis say they are ready to intervene in US-Israeli war on Iran
Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said they were ready to intervene militarily under certain conditions, including if new allies join the United States and Israel in their war against Iran or if the Red Sea is used to launch attacks on Iran.
Military spokesperson Yahya Saree made the remarks in a televised speech as the US-Israeli war on Tehran approached the end of its fourth week.
Israel military reports missiles fired from Iran
Israel's military warned late Friday that Iran had fired missiles toward it, as AFP correspondents reported air raid sirens in Jerusalem and explosions were heard from the city of Jericho in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
A man, thought to be around 60, was in a critical condition following the latest attack, the Magen David Adom emergency service reported, while police said three injuries of "varying severity" were recorded.
A witness shared video footage with AFP apparently showing an inbound missile barrage over Jerusalem as the military said it was scrambling search and rescue teams to impact sites in central Israel.
"A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel. Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat," the military said on its official Telegram channel.
"Search and rescue forces, both reserve and regular forces, are currently operating at the sites in central Israel where reports of impact have been received," it added in a subsequent post.
US hopes for Iran meetings 'this week', envoy Witkoff
US President Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff said he believes Iran will hold talks with Washington "this week" to end the month-long war in the Middle East.
"We think there will be meetings this week, we're certainly hopeful for it," Witkoff told a business forum in Miami when asked about the Iran negotiations.
The businessman-turned-roving envoy added that the United States expected a response from Tehran to its peace plan.
"We have a 15-point plan on the table. We expect the Iranians to respond. It could solve it all," Witkoff said.
Trump was due to speak at the same forum later Friday.
Iran says it will 'facilitate and expedite' humanitarian aid through the Strait of Hormuz
Tehran has agreed to “facilitate and expedite” humanitarian aid through the Strait of Hormuz, the Iranian ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva said, even as it endures strikes on its nuclear facilities.
Ali Bahreini said Tehran has accepted a request from the UN to let humanitarian aid and agricultural shipments move through the vital waterway, which usually handles a fifth of the world’s oil shipments and nearly a third of the world's fertilizer trade.
The aid plan would be the first breakthrough at the shipping chokepoint after a month of war. While markets and governments have largely focused on blocked supplies of oil and natural gas, the restriction of fertilizer ingredients and trade threatens farming and food security around the world.
Bahrain investigates death of jailed activist
Bahrain said it was investigating the circumstances of the death of a Shia activist in custody, adding he had been arrested for "espionage" on behalf of Iran.
A London-based NGO, the Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy (BIRD), had earlier called for an investigation into the death of 32-year-old Mohamed Almosawi, who was arrested at a checkpoint on March 19.
It said his family had been contacted on Friday morning to collect his body from a military hospital in the Gulf kingdom.
BIRD had published photos showing bruises and injuries on his face, body and feet, "raising serious concerns that he was subjected to torture prior to his death".
Almosawi was held "in connection with a case of espionage, communication, and transmission of information" to Iran's Revolutionary Guards about the country's strategic sites "with the aim of targeting them", the interior ministry said.
Special envoy Witkoff says US hopeful of meetings with Iran soon
President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff said that the United States was hopeful that there would be meetings with Iran this week.
Musk joined Trump and Modi call on Iran, says New York Times
Elon Musk joined a phone call between US President Donald Trump and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the war in Iran, the New York Times reported on Friday, citing two US officials.
It was unclear why Musk was on the call or whether he spoke, the newspaper said.
Rubio sees G7 building 'coalition' against Iran strait control
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he saw European readiness to help form a coalition against Iranian control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz after US-Israeli attacks unleashed a regional war.
Rubio joined top diplomats from the Group of Seven powers for talks as he assured them that the war launched a month ago would only continue for a matter of weeks.
The top US diplomat voiced alarm that Iran would seek to establish a permanent "tolling system" for vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway through which one fifth of global oil normally transits.
Russia is sending upgraded drones used in the Ukraine war to Iran, officials say
Russia is sending a shipment of drones to Iran including upgraded versions of the drone technology that Tehran originally supplied to Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine, US and European officials said.
Iran has been firing drone barrages at Israel, its Gulf neighbors and US bases across the Middle East for more than a month following the US and Israeli attack on the country. While Iran has its own stocks of Shahed drones, Russia has made improvements to the design during the war in Ukraine, including adding better navigation capabilities.
Russian and Iranian officials have had “very active” discussions this month regarding transferring drones from Russia to Iran, the European intelligence official told AP.
Israel army confirms struck heavy water plant in central Iran's Arak
The Israeli military confirmed it had struck a heavy water plant in Arak, central Iran, after Iranian media said US-Israeli strikes hit the Khondab complex.
"A short while ago, the Israeli Air Force ... struck the heavy water plant in Arak, central Iran," the military said in a statement, describing the site as a "key plutonium production site for nuclear weapons".
US, Israel unlikely to achieve 'regime change' in Iran
The US-Israeli war against Iran is unlikely to lead to "regime change", German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Friday, as the month-long conflict showed no signs of abating.
"Is regime change really the goal?" he said at a forum in Frankfurt organised by the FAZ newspaper. "If that's the goal, I don't think you'll achieve it. It's mostly gone wrong" in past conflicts, he said, pointing to the Afghanistan war.
UN to create new mechanism for Strait of Hormuz trade, spokesperson says
The United Nations has created a task force to create a new mechanism for the Strait of Hormuz to facilitate fertiliser trade and movement of related raw materials, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
Rubio tells G7 ministers Iran war should end in weeks, sources say
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told G7 counterparts that the US-Israeli military war against Iran should end in a matter of weeks, three people familiar with the talks told Reuters.
At a meeting of G7 foreign ministers in France, Rubio did not ask his counterparts to contribute ships to clear the Strait of Hormuz now but asked them to prepare for a postwar role, said the sources, speaking on condition of anonymity.
France shares US objective of reopening Hormuz Strait, foreign minister says
France's Foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggested that Washington's objective was to destroy Iran's ballistic capabilities and that Paris shared the same objectives on restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
"I am not going to speak on behalf of Marco Rubio and I will gladly refer to the public statements he has recently made, which correspond to the conversations we had today regarding the stated U.S. military objectives, being the neutralization of Iran's ballistic capabilities," Barrot said on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in France.
G7 ministers say 'absolute necessity' to reopen Strait of Hormuz
G7 ministers said in a joint statement that it was 'absolute necessity' to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
No disagreement with US on Iran, German minister says
There is no disagreement with the United States over Iran, Germany's Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told reporters at a G7 meeting in France, adding that Iran must not acquire nuclear weapons or pose a regional threat.
"We are already feeling the economic repercussions everywhere, especially in Europe, quite significantly," Wadephul said. "That's why we discussed these issues very thoroughly, and there is absolutely no disagreement. There was and is no request from the United States, especially to us, to make a military contribution before the end of hostilities."
G7 allies press Rubio on US Iran plans, discuss Strait of Hormuz
G7 allies pressed US Secretary of State Marco Rubio for clarity on American plans for Iran almost one month into the war in the Middle East, with concern also intensifying over the extent of cooperation between Russia and the Islamic republic. Before leaving for France, Rubio said Thursday that it was in the "interest" of all G7 nations to push for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. FRANCE 24's Antonia Kerrigan reports.
Iran-linked hackers breach FBI director's personal email, publish excerpts online
Iran-linked hackers have publicly claimed the breach of FBI Director Kash Patel's personal inbox, publishing photographs of the director and other documents to the internet.
On their website, the hacker group Handala Hack Team said Patel "will now find his name among the list of successfully hacked victims." A Justice Department official confirmed that Patel's email had been breached and said the material published online appeared authentic.
The FBI did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The hackers did not immediately respond to messages.
G7 foreign ministers demand an end to attacks on civilians in Iran war
The foreign ministers of the G7 group of nations called for an immediate stop to attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure in the Iran war.
In a joint statement agreed on the second day of a G7 meeting in France – this year's host country – the ministers said they had underscored the importance of minimising the impact of the conflict on regional partners, civilian populations and critical infrastructure.
"We focused on the value of diverse partnerships, coordination, and supporting initiatives, including to mitigate global economic shocks such as disruptions to economic, energy, fertilizer and commercial supply chains, which have direct impacts on our citizens," they said in the statement seen by Reuters.
Israeli strike on south Beirut without warning, say state media and AFPTV
A strike hit Beirut's southern suburbs without warning from the Israeli military, Lebanese state media said, as AFPTV footage showed smoke rising from the area.
The state-run National News Agency said Israeli warplanes "carried out a very heavy strike... on the Tahouitet al-Ghadir area", the same district where Lebanese authorities said another raid earlier Friday killed two people.
Iran claimed to have not requested the 10-day pause on strikes on its energy plants, and has yet to deliver a final response to the US's 15-point plan to end the war.
Israel took Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf off its hit-list after Pakistan asked Washington not to target them.
