US lifts sanctions on Russian diesel after Trump-Putin call Trump rules out Iran strikes before midterms as Iran attacks tankers beyond Hormuz Saudi Arabia reports three dead at Riyadh airport as UN envoy says Yemen is back at full-scale war Panama counts damage after 7.7 earthquake, canal unaffected Ukraine-US talks open in Florida as Kyiv's grid fails Congo Ebola cases pass 8,700 as Kenya tightens border controls after first death US sanctions the International Criminal Court as a whole EU says China accepts deep cuts to hybrid car exports after Beijing talks Ethiopia and Eritrea trade accusations of aggression as fighting spreads in Tigray Drone strike kills about 30 at Sudan displacement camp Bond selloff persists as Pimco warns of 6% Treasury yields Hurricane Isaias reaches Gulf coast as offshore oil and gas output is shut in Ukraine hits second Yandex data centre and disrupts Moscow air traffic Navi Pillay wins Nobel Peace Prize, Israel denounces choice UAE says flydubai co-pilot planned suicide attack on Tel Aviv terminal OpenAI revenue about $20bn below reported figure, unsettling AI stocks Iran war fuel shock hits airlines and freight as UN cuts growth outlook Pentagon plans to livestream firing-squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Trump opens White House inquiry into Fed governor Lisa Cook ICE agent shoots man in car with child in New York India shuts down parts of Delhi to block youth protest over voter-roll purge Anthropic says rogue AI agents tried to access government sites Gaza ceasefire 'exists in name only', more than 100 NGOs say Arrest warrant issued for Eduardo Bolsonaro as runoff polls show tight race SpaceX spectrum deal hits telecom stocks Montenegro detains Rybar administrator Zvinchuk and moves to expel him UN raises concern over police as French student protests go on Indonesian haze closes Malaysian schools as super El Niño identified US suspends Microsoft, Adobe and others from green card programme SoftBank seeks up to $100bn from Gulf investors for AI China adds provincial stimulus as yuan reaches four-year high Palestinian Authority to postpone legislative elections Nvidia-backed Firmus pulls $5bn IPO in Sydney South Africa withdraws asylum directive after anti-migrant violence Settler attacks hit West Bank olive harvest Labour holds Starmer's former seat against Greens Europe weighs response to Russian shadow war Oversight committee orders special audit of BND Apple cuts iPhone 18 Pro orders on soft demand Airtel Money slips below IPO price in London debut US moves to disrupt hacking infrastructure run by China's Integrity Tech Group Japan declares cyber space emergency as attacks soar Italy passes Meloni's electoral reform Merz outraged after Schröder attends Putin's birthday Erik Prince's forces suffer losses in Congo Sponsors withdraw from Vilnius disinformation conference amid reported US pressure US lifts sanctions on Russian diesel after Trump-Putin call Trump rules out Iran strikes before midterms as Iran attacks tankers beyond Hormuz Saudi Arabia reports three dead at Riyadh airport as UN envoy says Yemen is back at full-scale war Panama counts damage after 7.7 earthquake, canal unaffected Ukraine-US talks open in Florida as Kyiv's grid fails Congo Ebola cases pass 8,700 as Kenya tightens border controls after first death US sanctions the International Criminal Court as a whole EU says China accepts deep cuts to hybrid car exports after Beijing talks Ethiopia and Eritrea trade accusations of aggression as fighting spreads in Tigray Drone strike kills about 30 at Sudan displacement camp Bond selloff persists as Pimco warns of 6% Treasury yields Hurricane Isaias reaches Gulf coast as offshore oil and gas output is shut in Ukraine hits second Yandex data centre and disrupts Moscow air traffic Navi Pillay wins Nobel Peace Prize, Israel denounces choice UAE says flydubai co-pilot planned suicide attack on Tel Aviv terminal OpenAI revenue about $20bn below reported figure, unsettling AI stocks Iran war fuel shock hits airlines and freight as UN cuts growth outlook Pentagon plans to livestream firing-squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Trump opens White House inquiry into Fed governor Lisa Cook ICE agent shoots man in car with child in New York India shuts down parts of Delhi to block youth protest over voter-roll purge Anthropic says rogue AI agents tried to access government sites Gaza ceasefire 'exists in name only', more than 100 NGOs say Arrest warrant issued for Eduardo Bolsonaro as runoff polls show tight race SpaceX spectrum deal hits telecom stocks Montenegro detains Rybar administrator Zvinchuk and moves to expel him UN raises concern over police as French student protests go on Indonesian haze closes Malaysian schools as super El Niño identified US suspends Microsoft, Adobe and others from green card programme SoftBank seeks up to $100bn from Gulf investors for AI China adds provincial stimulus as yuan reaches four-year high Palestinian Authority to postpone legislative elections Nvidia-backed Firmus pulls $5bn IPO in Sydney South Africa withdraws asylum directive after anti-migrant violence Settler attacks hit West Bank olive harvest Labour holds Starmer's former seat against Greens Europe weighs response to Russian shadow war Oversight committee orders special audit of BND Apple cuts iPhone 18 Pro orders on soft demand Airtel Money slips below IPO price in London debut US moves to disrupt hacking infrastructure run by China's Integrity Tech Group Japan declares cyber space emergency as attacks soar Italy passes Meloni's electoral reform Merz outraged after Schröder attends Putin's birthday Erik Prince's forces suffer losses in Congo Sponsors withdraw from Vilnius disinformation conference amid reported US pressure

Symbolic image: Trump rules out Iran strikes before midterms as Iran attacks tankers beyond Hormuz

Symbolic image

Trump rules out Iran strikes before midterms as Iran attacks tankers beyond Hormuz

11 sources

Trump said on Thursday the US will not attack Iran before the 3 November midterms, citing talks with Tehran. Iran's Revolutionary Guards meanwhile hit tankers beyond Hormuz.

Trump wrote on Truth Social on Thursday, 8 October, that the US will not attack Iran before the midterms, rejecting reports on Pentagon strike plans, and cited "productive discussions" with Tehran without giving details. Oil prices fell on Friday. Al Jazeera notes he made the same claim on 28 February, the day the US and Israel first struck Iran; Le Monde says the blockade of Iranian ports continues.

Tanker attacks widen

The Revolutionary Guards said on Friday they fired on the LPG tanker NV Sunshine and warned that any ship on an unauthorised route will be pursued across the region. The FT reports that the Turkish-owned Acers was hit off Qatar on Wednesday and, according to two security sources, the Chinese-owned Gem No. 2 off the UAE on Friday; the Sunshine claim is unverified.

Tehran sets terms for talks

President Masoud Pezeshkian said in Turkmenistan on Friday that talks can succeed only without pressure and threats. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran will answer the US reply to its seven-day Hormuz plan within days.

Other opinions

TASS quotes an Iranian source saying Tehran would hold nothing back if attacked, and relays an Al Hadath report of US plans for strikes up to 80 km inland.