UNSC to vote on Gulf-led resolution to open Hormuz

The UN Security Council will vote on a Bahraini proposal on the use of "defensive means" to open the Strait of Hormuz.

Donald Trump has warned the US will target more Iranian bridges and "then electric power plants."
Here are the main developments in the US-Israeli war with Iran on April 3:
Strait of Hormuz: More ships passing through
The number of ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz reportedly increased for three consecutive days this week, according to a report by the data firm Windward.

Windward said 16 cargo ships transited the largely blocked strait on Wednesday, compared with 11 on Tuesday and fewer still on Monday — but the traffic is still a fraction of what was traversing the key sea-route before Israel and the United States began launching attacks on Iran at the end of February.

Windward said most of the ships sailed close to the Iranian coast past the island of Larak, allowing Iran to maintain a "permission-based, selective blockade." However, three ships also reportedly passed closer to the coast of Oman avoiding the corridor controlled by Iran.

One of the ships, the liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker Sohar, is thought to be the first LNG tanker to have passed through the strait since the outbreak of the war, while a French container ship has reportedly also passed through and left the Persian Gulf (see post below).

US President Donald Trump has threatened to take control of the Strait of Hormuz by force.

Thousands of US troops have been deployed to the region.

On Friday, Trump wrote on social media: "With a little more time, we can easily OPEN THE HORMUZ STRAIT, TAKE THE OIL, & MAKE A FORTUNE.

IT WOULD BE A 'GUSHER' FOR THE WORLD???"
He didn't elaborate on exactly how the US would achieve this or what oil he was referring to.

Jerusalem's Old City quiet as war casts shadow over Good Friday celebrations
The narrow streets of East Jerusalem's Old City should be bustling with crowds of pilgrims during Catholic Easter celebrations.

But Israeli restrictions due to the US-Israeli war with Iran have kept shops and most holy sites closed.

After Ramadan , the war is now casting its shadow over Easter and Passover.

As night fell on Wednesday evening, the Passover festival began for Jews worldwide.

On Holy Thursday, Christians began Easter celebrations.

Normally, on Good Friday, tens of thousands of Palestinian and Christians from abroad would be making their way through the narrow streets of the Old City in Israel-annexed East Jerusalem to follow the Via Dolorosa.

This year, however, only a small group of Franciscan monks was permitted to hold a symbolic procession along the route, which is believed to be the path Jesus took on the way to his crucifixion in Roman Jerusalem.

The procession ends at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of the most significant Christian churches, where Jesus is believed to have been buried and resurrected.

Journalists were only allowed to film the small congregation for a few meters; Israeli police cited the lack of shelters in the area as the reason for the restrictions, in case an Iranian missile alert sounded.

“It's very sad, to see this.

Obviously, Good Friday is a sad day, as Jesus was suffering carrying the cross, but with all that is happening, it is important to carry on with our traditions.

But it’s sad to see there are no pilgrims here," Issa Kassasieh, a local Christian from the Old City, told DW.

"I can just pray that this war will stop soon."
Palestinian Old City inhabitants questioned the Israeli authority’s security concerns and called them a double standard.

While the Old City is completely closed off, a few meters away in West Jerusalem, cafes and shops are open.

"We were given orders just to open for takeaway things as we don’t have shelters in the Old City," a coffeeshop owner told DW, who requested to stay anonymous.

"But even that doesn’t make sense, there are almost no people here."
The procession only stopped briefly at each of the 14 stations of the Via Dolorosa, with the participants praying for a short while before quickly moving on.

Catholic Easter will be followed by Greek-Orthodox Easter next week, another major holy holiday in Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem.

While some church leaders here in Jerusalem have decried the sadness of the current situation, they pointed out that many Christians in the region are struggling much more, particularly those in neighboring Lebanon, where civilians are facing heavy bombardments and hundreds of thousands have been displaced.

Middle East war: Few solutions to fuel shortages in Africa
Africa is running low on fuel.

The US-Israel war against Iran has sent fuel prices skyrocketing.

Are African countries doing enough to calm the fuel market?

Find out how African governments are tackling the fuel shorages in this report .

French container ship passes Strait of Hormuz
A container ship operated by French shipping and logistics firm CMA CGM has passed through the Strait of Hormuz despite Iran’s closure of the waterway, according to a media report.

The Maltese-flagged Kribi crossed the strait on Thursday to exit the Gulf.

By Friday it was off the coast of Muscat, Oman, still broadcasting the message "owner France."
Broadcaster BFM TV, itself a subsidiary of CMA CGM, reported it was initially unclear how the vessel managed the transit.

The company and the French Foreign Ministry declined to initially comment.

The strait, a key global shipping route, has faced heightened tensions, with recent reports suggesting potential attackers had demanded payments to allow safe passage for cargo vessels.

The transit is seen as the first known passage by a major European shipping group through the strategic waterway since it was largely paralyzed by the Middle East conflict after US and Israeli strikes on Iran began on February 28.

Gas plant shutdown reported after air defense action
A gas facility in Abu Dhabi has halted operations following an air defense response, according to official reports.

The emirate's media office said debris had fallen onto the Habshan gas plant site, and authorities were battling a fire while suspending operations.

"Abu Dhabi authorities are responding to an incident of falling debris at the Habshan gas facilities, following successful interception by air defence systems.

Operations have been suspended while authorities respond to a fire.

No injuries have been reported," the Abu Dhabi Media Office posted on social media.

Officials said the shutdown was precautionary as emergency teams worked to contain the situation.

Germany's Wadephul: 'Of course' Trump's NATO comments 'concern me'
"Of course such statements concern me," Wadephul told the Funke media group of newspapers.

However, he also said he did not consider a US exit from the alliance to be the likely scenario, despite the Trump administration's expressions of dissatisfaction in recent days.

"I think that our clear commitment and our determined support for the alliance will convinced the United States to continue this success story together," he said.

Wadephul said NATO was of "enormous importance" to German security and that of all other allies, and also argued that the alliance was stronger than ever before.

He pointed to Sweden and Finland, neutral throughout the Cold War, joining since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and to European commitments to continue increasing defense spending after pressure from Trump.

Wadephul also said that Trump would need "at least the approval of the Senate" in order to withdraw from NATO.

Still, Trump and senior members of his administration have criticized NATO allies for their reticence to get invovled in the war with Iran this week.

Asked by conservative British newspaper The Telegraph whether he would reconsider membership, Trump said: "Oh yes, I would say [it's] beyond reconsideration."
Trump 'disappointed' with NATO over refusal to join Iran war
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Attack damages key energy and water sites in Kuwait
An attack has damaged parts of a desalination plant and a power station in Kuwait, according to official statements.

Authorities said emergency crews were deployed and had been working to keep operations running, adding that only material damage had been reported so far.

Kuwait relies heavily on desalination to produce drinking water due to its arid conditions .

The process is energy-intensive, and damage to such facilities can also carry environmental risks.

Earlier, the state-run Kuwait Petroleum Company reported an attack that caused fires across several units at the Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery, a key energy site in the country.

Global food prices rise in March on energy costs
World food prices rose in March, driven largely by higher energy costs tied to the escalating conflict in the Middle East .

The latest Food and Agriculture Organization's Food Price Index averages 128.5 points, up 2.4% from a revised February level.

The index tracks changes in a basket of globally traded food commodities and has been supported by ample cereal supplies despite rising costs.

"Price rises ‌since ​the conflict began have been modest, driven mainly by higher oil prices and ​cushioned by ample global cereal supplies," FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero ⁠said.

He warned that if the conflict lasts more than 40 days and input costs remain elevated, farmers may plant less, or switch crops — potentially reducing future yields and affecting supply and prices through this year and next.

Iran war: Energy crisis slams US farmers
As Iran war rages, Europe gears up for energy crisis
The EU is waking up to an energy crisis and asking people to reduce energy consumption, as fears of a supply crunch set in.

Energy analysts are calling for concrete measures and a boost in investments for renewables.

Read more in this report by DW's Brussels correspondent Anchal Vohra .

France, South Korea to work together on reopening Hormuz
The leaders of France and South Korea have agreed to work together to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and allay the burden from the global economic uncertainties triggered by the Iran war.

French President Emmanuel Macron and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung met in Seoul as US President Donald Trump has railed against allies for not backing the US-Israel war with Iran.

The meeting began with Macron telling Lee that their nations can play a role in helping stabilize the situation in the Middle East.

Later, in a joint briefing that was televised, the French President emphasized cooperation with South Korea to help reopen the paralyzed waterway.

South Korea's Lee said the two affirmed "their resolve to cooperate to secure the safe shipping route in the Strait of Hormuz."
The two leaders did not give any further details on how they would help reopen the strait.

"We need to clearly define, at the international level, the conditions for a process to ease the crisis and conflict in the Middle East," Macron said.

"We need to ensure that the Strait of Hormuz is reopened."
Macron has dismissed suggestions of reopening the waterway through military action as unrealistic.

On Wednesday, Trump urged South Korea, Japan — both US allies in Asia — and China to get involved in reopening the key strait.

Iran claims taking down second F-35 fighter jet
Iran said on Friday that it had shot down a US F-35 stealth fighter jet.

A statement from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said the jet was shot down over Iranian airspace by a new, advanced defense system.

The IRGC added that it was unlikely that the pilot had survived.

There was no immediate comment from the US.

The IRGC claimed that it was the second F-35 to have been shot down since the start of the war.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) has previously dismissed Iranian reports of successful takedowns of US fighter jets.

Iran warns against 'provocative action' before UNSC vote
Iran has cautioned the United Nations Security Council against taking any "provocative action."
"Any provocative action by the aggressors and their supporters, including in the UN Security Council regarding the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, will only complicate the situation," news agency AFP quoted Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi as saying.

The proposed resolution is supported by six Gulf nations and Jordan, and according to an Associated Press report has been watered down significantly.

The final draft takes out any reference to allowing offensive military action, the report says, after opposition from three veto-wielding countries: Russia, China and France.

Oil prices continued to soar on Friday amid worries of a prolonged Iran war.

Benchmark US crude leapt 11.4% to $111.54 (€96.67) a barrel while Brent crude, the international standard, increased 7.8% to $109.03 a barrel.

Asian markets, the only ones open on Good Friday, showed a moderate rise in cautious trading.

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 0.9% in morning trade to 52,938.62.

South Korea's Kospi jumped 2.1% to 5,344.41.

The Shanghai Composite fell 0.5% to 3,899.57.

Iran fires on targets across Middle East, explosions heard in Tehran
Iran fired missiles at Israel and some Gulf nations on Friday, while explosions were reported around Tehran and the central Iranian city of Isfahan.

The war is into its sixth week and shows no signs of slowing down .

Israel, Bahrain and Kuwait issued alerts of incoming missile fire from Iran.

In a statement, the Israeli military said it had "identified missiles launched from Iran" towards Israel, adding that its air defenses were operating to down the missiles.

No casualties have been reported yet.

The Israeli military radio said that a train station in Tel Aviv was damaged by shrapnel, without elaborating from where it had been fired, AFP reported.

Iranian broadcaster IRIB ran a statement from Iran's Revolutionary Guards saying that areas of Tel Aviv and the port city of Eilat were targeted with long-range missiles, according to AFP.

In Kuwait , the state media said that fires were started at a refinery owned by the country's national oil company after a drone attack.

"Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) told KUNA that the Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery was targeted in a drone attack early this morning, resulting in fires in several operational units," KUNA reported, adding that an emergency operation was underway to contain the blazes.

Meanwhile, news agency AP cited activists who reported strikes around the Iranian capital, Tehran, and Isfahan.

There was no immediate information on what was hit in the strikes.

Trump say US will hit bridges, electric power plants 'next'
US President Donald Trump has said that the US military "hasn't even started destroying what's left in Iran."
"Bridges next, then ​Electric Power Plants," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

His warning comes a day after US strikes hit the B1 bridge connecting Tehran and the city of Karaj , with Iranian officials saying that at least eight people were killed in the attack.

Law experts in America warned this week that hitting civilian infrastructure such as power plants would be a violation of international law
Trump's post also said that ​Iran's leadership "knows ‌what has to ​be done, ⁠and has to be ⁠done, ​FAST!"
Trump has repeatedly threatened to escalate strikes on Iran if it doesn't give in to his demands to end the war.

Tehran has vowed to keep up its retaliatory campaign against the US and Israel.

Trump: Core objectives in Iran almost completed