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Trump Extends Iran Ceasefire But Maintains Blockade as Iran Seizes Ships in Strait of Hormuz

HeadlineApr 22, 2026

President Trump announced Tuesday he is extending the ceasefire with Iran indefinitely at the request of Pakistan. An Iranian official tells BBC that Iran has still not decided whether it will attend a new round of peace talks with the U.S. later this week. Vice President JD Vance has canceled a planned trip to Islamabad, Pakistan. Despite the ceasefire, the U.S. continues to blockade Iranian ports. But earlier today, Iran attacked three cargo ships in the Strait of Hormuz, seizing two of them. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called the blockade “an act of war and thus a violation of the ceasefire,” warning that Tehran knows “how to resist bullying,” and threatening to completely close the Strait of Hormuz and strike energy and desalination infrastructure across the region. Meanwhile, the head of the International Energy Agency declared Tuesday that the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran has created the worst energy crisis the world has ever faced. It comes as satellite images reveal multiple large oil spills spreading across the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz as a direct result of U.S., Israeli and Iranian strikes on oil facilities and vessels, with environmental experts warning of an impending ecological disaster. The Pentagon confirms 13 U.S. service members have been killed and 415 wounded in the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Meanwhile, according to the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, 3,636 people have been killed in Iran by U.S.-Israeli strikes, among them 254 children.

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