Global oil prices have surged as tensions escalate in Middle East following Israel military chief’s declaration that Tel Aviv will target Iran again, despite calls for calm.
Tuesday, April 16, 2024
1115 GMT — Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi has said that the international community should stop Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from “stealing” attention away from Gaza by escalating his confrontation with Iran.
In remarks during a press conference with his German counterpart in Berlin, Safadi said Iran had responded to the attack against its consulate and had announced that it “did not want to escalate further”.
“We are against escalating. Netanyahu wants to draw attention away from Gaza and focus on his confrontation with Iran,” Safadi added.
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1135 GMT — US to come up with spending bills, including sanctions on Iran
US House Speaker Mike Johnson has said spending legislation will be released later as the House prepares to vote on four separate measures providing aid to Israel and Ukraine.
One of the bills will also include additional sanctions on Russia and Iran, Johnson told Fox News in an interview, and lawmakers are trying to include provisions to secure the US border.
1114 GMT — Germany seeks further EU sanctions against Iran drones
Germany’s foreign minister has called for the European Union to impose fresh sanctions on Iranian drone technology after Tehran’s weekend attack on Israel.
“I campaigned in late autumn together with France and other partners within the European Union for this drone sanctions regime to be extended further.
I hope that we can now finally take this step together,” Annalena Baerbock told a press conference in Berlin, ahead of a visit to Israel.
1100 GMT — Japan urges Iran to exercise ‘restraint’ to avoid further escalation with Israel
Japan has urged Iran to “exercise restraint” to avoid further tension in the Middle East following Tehran’s retaliatory missile and drone attack on Israel, local media reported.
Speaking with her Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian over the phone, Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa said Tokyo is “seriously concerned about Iran’s attack and strongly condemns such escalation,” demanding it “ensures the safety of navigation” in regional waters, Tokyo-based Kyodo News reported citing the Foreign Ministry.
1030 GMT — Israel’s war cabinet to meet to discuss Iran: official
Israel’s war cabinet will meet soon to discuss the response to Iran’s attack over the weekend, an Israeli official said.
No time was set for the meeting, the official said.
It will be the third time that the decision-making cabinet convenes since Iran launched more than 300 missiles and drones against Israel on Saturday night.
0830 GMT — Israel urges sanctions in ‘diplomatic offensive’ against Iran
Israel has launched a “diplomatic offensive” against Iran, calling on 32 countries to impose sanctions against the Revolutionary Guards and their missile programme.
Late on Saturday, Iran carried out an unprecedented direct attack on Israel, using more than 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles, in retaliation for a deadly April 1 air strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus.
0652 GMT — Iran says any action against its interests will get a severe response
Iran will respond to any action against its interests, President Ebrahim Raisi said, according to the Iranian Student News Agency, a day after Israel warned it will respond to Tehran’s weekend drone and missile attack.
“We categorically declare that the smallest action against Iranian interests will certainly be met with a severe, widespread and painful response against any perpetrator,” Raisi told the Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al Thani.
Israel’s military Chief of Staff, Herzi Halevi, said on Monday that Iran’s attack on Israel – which was a retaliation after the April 1 bombing of the Iranian embassy compound in Damascus – warranted a response.
0642 GMT — Israel pushing for more sanctions against Iran
Israel’s foreign minister said he was urging countries to place sanctions on Iran’s missile programme and proscribe its Revolutionary Guard Corps as a “terrorist organisation” after Iran’s first-ever direct attack on Israel.
“Alongside the military response to the firing of missiles and drones, I am leading a diplomatic attack against Iran,” Foreign Minister Israel Katz said in a social media post.
Katz said he sent letters to 32 countries and spoke with numerous counterparts, calling on them to “place sanctions on Iran’s missile project and declare the Revolutionary Guard a terror organisation, as a way to stop and weaken Iran.”
“We must stop Iran now, before it will be too late.”
0540 GMT — Iran shuts nuclear facilities after Israel attack
Iran temporarily closed its nuclear facilities over “security considerations” in the wake of its massive missile and drone attack on Israel over the weekend, the head of the UN’s atomic watchdog said.
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of a UN Security Council meeting, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi was asked whether he was concerned about the possibility of an Israeli strike on an Iranian nuclear facility in retaliation for the attack.
“We are always concerned about this possibility. What I can tell you is that our inspectors in Iran were informed by the Iranian government that yesterday (Sunday), all the nuclear facilities that we are inspecting every day would remain closed on security considerations,” he said.
The facilities were to reopen on Monday, Grossi said, but inspectors would not return until the following day.
“I decided to not let the inspectors return until we see that the situation is completely calm,” he added, while calling for “extreme restraint”.
0352 GMT — Iran’s aggression against Israel triggered activation of coalition that thwarted attack: Halevi
Iran’s weekend retaliatory attack on Israel triggered the activation of a coalition that repelled the assault, Israeli army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi said.
In a video message published by Israeli media, Halevi said the incident “created new opportunities for cooperation” in countering the Iranian attack “across the skies of the Middle East.”
The Israeli army “together with the United States Central Command, the British Armed Forces, the French Armed Forces and other partners operated together in real-time in the air, on the ground and at sea,” he added.
He also threatened that Iran will “face the consequences” following its first-ever declared attack inside Israel.
0101 GMT — China says Tehran can ‘handle the situation well’
China has said it believed Iran could “handle the situation well and spare the region further turmoil” while safeguarding its sovereignty and dignity, referring to an attack on Iran’s embassy in Syria and its retaliatory strike against Israeli targets over the weekend.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian via a phone call on Monday that China appreciated Iran’s emphasis on not targeting regional and neighbouring countries, according to the official Xinhua news agency on Tuesday.
Wang also said he noted Iran had described its actions as limited and carried out in self-defence. China strongly condemns and resolutely opposed the embassy attack, and calls the incident “unacceptable”, Wang said.
2250 GMT — Saudi Arabia, China discuss Israel-Iran escalation
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan has discussed the latest escalation in the conflict between Israel and Iran and developments in Gaza in a phone call with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.
During their conversation on Monday, the two leaders also discussed the importance of joint coordination and efforts to prevent the aggravation of the situation, according to a statement by the kingdom’s Foreign Ministry.
2130 GMT — Mideast tensions spike oil prices
Oil prices have risen amid heightened tensions in the Middle East after Israel’s military chief said his country would respond to Iran’s weekend missile and drone attack in reaction to Tel Aviv’s strike on Tehran’s embassy in Syria amid calls for restraint by allies.
Brent futures for June delivery rose 46 cents, or 0.5%, to $90.56 a barrel. US crude futures for May delivery rose 43 cents, or 0.5%, to $85.84 a barrel.
Oil prices had ended Monday’s session lower after Iran’s weekend attack on Israel proved to be less damaging than anticipated, initially easing concerns of a quickly intensifying conflict that could displace crude barrels.
