Jaishankar speaks to Iranian minister Araghchi
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday held a phone conversation with his Iranian counterpart Seyed Abbas Araghchi amid increasing concerns over the fallout of the West Asia crisis, especially on the energy supplies.
It was the third time that Jaishankar spoke to Araghchi since the US and Israel launched the joint military strikes on Iran.
"A detailed conversation this evening with Foreign Minister @araghchi of Iran on the latest developments regarding the ongoing conflict. We agreed to remain in touch," Jaishankar said on social media.
The phone conversation between the two foreign ministers came amid increasing global concerns over disruptions in oil supplies in view of the crisis in West Asia.
Global oil and gas prices have surged after Iran has virtually blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow shipping lane between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas).
Jaishankar conveyed to Araghchi India's deep concern over the developments in Iran and the region.
Trump administration 'spent $5.6 billion' during first two days of Iran war
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration said it used $5.6 billion in munitions during the first two days of strikes against Iran in a report provided to U.S. congressional committees, a Reuters source familiar with the information said on Tuesday.
Members of Congress, who may soon have to approve additional funding for the war, have expressed concern that the conflict will deplete U.S. military stocks at a time when the defense industry was already struggling to keep up with demand. Trump met executives from seven defense contractors on Friday as the Pentagon worked to replenish supplies.
The administration has not provided a public assessment of the cost of the conflict it launched on Feb. 28 along with ally Israel.
Members of Congress have clamored for more information, including public testimony from officials about issues including how the conflict might affect the U.S. military's readiness to defend the country.
Several congressional aides have said they expect the White House to soon submit a request to Congress for additional funding for the war. Some officials have said the request could be for $50 billion, but others have said that estimate seems low.
Canadian police probe reports of gunfire at US consulate in Toronto
Canadian police are investigating reports that the United States consulate in downtown Toronto was hit by gunfire early on Tuesday morning.
No injuries have been reported.
Toronto police said Tuesday they responded to reports at around 5:30 am that someone shot a gun at the US consulate.
In a post on social media, police said they were at the scene near University Avenue and Queen Street West.
"Evidence of a firearm discharge has been located," police said in the post.
No suspect information has been released.
"The shooting that took place at the US consulate early this morning is an absolutely unacceptable act of violence and intimidation aimed at our American friends and neighbours," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said in a statement.
"Everyone at all levels of government and across Canada needs to make clear that there is zero tolerance for this sort of intimidating and dangerous behaviour."
The reported shooting comes after two Toronto-area synagogues were struck by gunfire last weekend.
"The US consulate was shot at. This comes after shootings at synagogues," Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow said. "This cannot stand. Toronto's Jewish community has the right to practice their faith and culture and to live their day-to-day lives without fear, intimidation or violence. As we have seen too many times, antisemitic incidents spike when international incidents rise. It is never acceptable to target the Jewish community."
Chow said there is heavy police presence on Tuesday at both the US and Israeli consulates in Toronto.
The war in Iran has prompted large demonstrations outside the US consulate, both in support and in protest.
Israeli airstrikes pound Beirut, envoy says Lebanon should disarm Hezbollah to end war
Israel's military pounded the Lebanese capital's southern suburbs with air strikes on Tuesday and its troops pushed deeper into the country's south, as an Israeli envoy said the key to ending the war was disarming Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Lebanon was pulled deep into the war in the Middle East last week, when Iran-backed Hezbollah opened fire on Israel to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader.
Israel has since launched air strikes across Lebanon's south, east and Beirut's suburbs, killing nearly 500 people including more than 80 children, according to Lebanon's health ministry.
Strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs on Tuesday afternoon sent thick columns of smoke over the city. Two hours before they began, an Israeli military spokesperson ordered residents to leave immediately, specifying three new districts that should be evacuated. A member of the municipal council for the area told Reuters families there were fleeing, adding to the nearly 700,000 that Lebanese authorities say have already been displaced by the war.
Lebanon's Minister of Social Affairs Haneen Sayed said on Tuesday that the state was bracing itself for higher displacement figures than in 2024, when the last war between Israel and Hezbollah pushed more than a million people out of their homes.
"So we expect that the needs, the numbers of displacement, will be higher than in 2024. Now on the other side in terms of resources, there's far less resources this year given the global situation, the regional war that's happening," she said.
Sayed spoke to Reuters at Beirut's airport, where the European Union was delivering 45 tons of emergency supplies including medical kits and blankets.
"Our traditional partners and friends in the Gulf are of course under stress themselves. So we're appealing to the international community to be with us at this moment to help stabilize the situation in terms of humanitarian needs," Sayed said.
Israeli troops made advances on Tuesday in additional towns in southeastern Lebanon, including with armoured columns, Lebanese security sources told Reuters.
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Monday had signaled his openness to enter direct negotiations with Israel to end the war.
But Israel's ambassador to France Joshua Zarka said on Tuesday that words were not enough.
"At this stage, I’m not aware of any decision to enter negotiations to end this war," Zarka said. "What would end it is the disarmament of Hezbollah — and that is a choice for the Lebanese government," he said.
Zarka said Lebanon's government was "making very good statements, but to these comments they need to add actions." Lebanon's government last year vowed to establish a state monopoly on arms and confiscated part of Hezbollah's arsenal in the country's south, without objections from the group.
But Hezbollah has refused to disarm in full, and Lebanese authorities were fearful that taking its arms by force could ignite a civil conflict.
30 spies, internal mercenaries of US and Israel arrested till now: Tehran
Iran's intelligence ministry has arrested a foreign national it said was conducting espionage on behalf of the United States and Israel, and acting as a proxy for two Gulf countries, state media cited the ministry as saying on Tuesday.
The ministry also said it had arrested 30 spies, internal mercenaries, and operational agents of Israel and the U.S. over the past few days.
Denmark shuts Tehran embassy temporarily
Denmark has temporarily closed its Tehran embassy due to safety concerns over the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said on Tuesday.
"The security situation is too tense for us to keep the embassy open," Rasmussen told reporters.
He added that Denmark's move was in line with that of several other European countries.
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza must not be forgotten amid Iran war: German foreign minister
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said in Jerusalem on Tuesday that the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran should not push the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza out of sight.
"We must not lose sight of the plight of the more than 2 million people there. The humanitarian situation remains dire. Furthermore, there is still insufficient access for humanitarian aid workers," said Wadephul at a press conference with his Israeli counterpart, Gideon Saar
Wadephul said he also addressed the extremely tense situation in the West Bank during his discussion with Saar, during which he strongly condemned the deadly violence caused by radical settlers.
US military weighing options to escort ships in Strait of Hormuz, top general says
The top US general said on Tuesday that the U.S. military would look at a range of options if it was tasked with escorting ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
"If tasked to escort, you know, we'll look at the range of options to set the military conditions to be able to do that," General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters.
Indian refiners lock in 30 million barrels of Russian oil after US waiver: Bloomberg
Indian refiners have ramped up their purchase of Russian oil, buying 30 million barrels since the Trump administration provided a waiver for New Delhi to secure its energy needs as the Iran war continues to disrupt global crude supplies, a Bloomberg report said.
Refiners including Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Reliance Industries have bought the oil at premiums ranging from $2 to $8 dollars a barrel to the London Dated Brent benchmark.
Both Reliance and IOC have purchased around 10 million barrels.
As US targets Iran's mine-laying vessels, Hegseth says Tuesday could be most intense day yet
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday would be the most intense day of strikes against Iran in the campaign so far.
Speaking with reporters, Hegseth said Tuesday would bring the most fighter jets and bombers against Iran.
Hegseth's comments come at the same time as the top US general said the United States was carrying out strikes against Iranian mine-laying vessels.
The war has effectively shut the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint for global oil and liquefied natural gas transport, leaving tankers unable to sail for more than a week and forcing producers to halt pumping as storage fills.
"(US Central Command) continues today to hunt and strike mine-laying vessels and mine storage facilities," General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters.
Caine added that in the first 10 days of the campaign against Iran, the US had sunk or destroyed more than 50 naval ships.
Qatar-US security ties not in question: Qatari foreign ministry
Qatar's security partnership with the United States is not in question, the Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said in a media briefing.
Fire breaks out in UAE's Ruwais industrial complex after drone attack
The Ruwais industrial complex in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi is dealing with a fire due to a drone attack. No injuries have been reported yet.
Be careful not to get eliminated yourself: Iranian security official responds to Trump's threats
A top Iranian security official has threatened US President Donald Trump in an online message.
Ali Larijani wrote the message on X Tuesday after Trump threatened to attack Iran "TWENTY TIMES HARDER" if Tehran stopped oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Larijani wrote: "The sacrificial nation of Iran doesn't fear your empty threats. Even those bigger than you couldn't eliminate Iran. Be careful not to get eliminated yourself."
Iran has been accused of plotting attempts to kill Trump in the past.
Trump tells Fox News it's possible he would talk with Iran
U.S. President Donald Trump told Fox News in an interview on Monday that it's possible he would be willing to talk with Iran, the cable news network said on Tuesday.
Netanyahu says Israel will continue Iran strikes
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Tuesday that Israel will continue striking Iran.
"Our aim is to bring the Iranian people to cast off the yoke of tyranny; ultimately, it depends on them," Netanyahu said during a meeting with Israel's hospital and health system leaders.
"But there is no doubt that with the actions taken so far, we are breaking their bones," he said.
Qatari-US security partnership not in question, Qatari official says
Qatar's foreign ministry spokesperson says communications are ongoing with all parties to ensure there is a way out of this conflict.
Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson: For Qatar, all conflicts can be solved at the negotiating table, but Qatar cannot mediate when it is being attacked by Iran.
Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson: Communication channels between Qatar and Iran are not cut.
Asked whether any naval escort will resolve issue of transit in Hormuz, Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson says a viable solution would be to stop attacks on our energy facilities.
Gulf energy official says stopping the war is only way to reopen Hormuz
A senior Gulf energy industry official said on Tuesday stopping the Iran war was the only option when asked if there were ways of getting oil and gas moving again through the Strait of Hormuz.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity, given the sensitivity of the matter.
Lives being upended on massive scale in Lebanon, says UN refugee agency
Lives have been upended on a massive scale in Lebanon amid a wider conflict in the Middle East, with more than 667,000 people now registered as displaced within the country - an increase of 100,000 in just one day - the UN refugee agency said on Tuesday.
Lebanon was dragged into the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran this month when militant group Hezbollah launched rockets and drones into Israel, which has responded with heavy bombardment across the country.
Some 120,000 people are staying in government designated shelters, while others are still looking for somewhere to stay, the UNHCR said, citing government figures.
"Many others are staying with relatives or friends or still searching for accommodation, and we see cars lined along the street with people sleeping in them and also on the sidewalks," said Karolina Lindholm Billing, UNHCR representative in Lebanon.
Turkey tells Iran violation of its airspace unacceptable
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan told Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi in a call on Tuesday that violation of Turkey's airspace by Iranian ballistic missiles was unacceptable, a Turkish Foreign Ministry source said.
The source said Araqchi told Fidan that Tehran had conducted a wide investigation into the missiles, adding Fidan reiterated Turkey's demand for all sides to refrain from steps that could put civilians at risk and told Araqchi that Ankara would take measures against missiles targeting it.
Vessel reports splash, loud bang near bulk carrier north of Abu Dhabi, UKMTO says
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Tuesday it had received a report of an incident 36 nautical miles north of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, with the master of a vessel reporting a splash and a loud bang in close proximity to a bulk carrier.
