Mourners as a flatbed truck arrives carrying 12 coffins during a mass funeral in the southern Lebanese village of Aytit, on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. Families gathered for the funeral of twelve people who were killed in recent weeks but could not be brought to their home village during the fighting. (David Guttenfelder/The New York Times)
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Oil was trading above $100 a barrel again Thursday after Iranian forces claimed to have seized two cargo ships near the Strait of Hormuz, injecting fresh fear into energy markets with no public indications of a breakthrough in efforts to restart U.S.-Iran peace talks.
President Donald Trump told Fox News on Wednesday that there was “no time pressure” on holding a new round of talks or on the ceasefire, and “no timeline” for ending the war. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox separately that Trump did not view Iran’s reported ship seizures as a violation of the ceasefire.
The reported seizures happened after the U.S. Navy prevented dozens of ships from leaving or accessing Iranian ports as part of a blockade ordered by Trump.
Iran has in effect blocked shipping through the Strait of Hormuz — normally a vital conduit for global oil and gas supplies. Energy prices have risen sharply since the United States and Israel began the war on Iran in late February.
A summit aimed at reopening the strait was scheduled to reconvene in London on Thursday, with military planners from over 30 countries. Shipping companies are mostly keeping vessels away from the strait because of the risk of attacks.
On Wednesday, Iranian state media reported that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard had targeted two cargo vessels — the MSC Francesca and the Epaminondas, a Greek-owned ship — because they were not following Iran’s rules for passing through the strait. Iranian news outlets reported that the Guard had fired on a third cargo ship.
Here’s What Else We Are Covering:
— Israel-Lebanon ceasefire: A second round of ambassador-level talks between the two countries was scheduled for Thursday in Washington. A 10-day truce between Israel and Hezbollah, the Iran-backed Lebanese militia, is set to expire Sunday.
— Journalists in Lebanon: Israeli strikes killed one journalist and wounded another in the country’s south Wednesday, Lebanese authorities said.
— War powers vote: For a fifth time since the war began, Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked a resolution to enforce Congress’ war powers.
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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
By Dan Watson and Aurelien Breeden/David Guttenfelder
c. 2026 The New York Times Company
