War in the Middle East: latest developments

Trump threatens 'hell'
US President Donald Trump threatened "hell" if Iran did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz, vowing in an expletive-laden social media post to strike its bridges and power plants.

Trump later said he believed there was a "good chance" of making a deal with Iran on Monday, ahead of his deadline for Tehran to reopen the crucial strait. If not, he told Fox News: "I'm considering blowing everything up and taking over the oil."
US rescue mission
Trump said a missing airman from a downed US F-15 fighter jet had been found in a "daring" and "miraculous" rescue, but Iran's military said the American operation had been "completely foiled".

Trump, in a social media post, said "dozens" of US aircraft took part in the rescue operation and that the crew member was "seriously wounded".

Ebrahim Zolfaghari, spokesman for the Iranian military's central command, said two C-130 military transport planes and two helicopters had been destroyed during the operation.'Deep' op
US news outlets reported that American commandos had deployed deep into Iranian territory to rescue the downed airman.

The Iranian military said the US operation had used an abandoned airport in southern Isfahan province.

Two planes meant to transport the airman and his rescuers to safety were stuck in Iran and had to be destroyed to prevent them from falling into Iranian hands, The New York Times and CBS reported.
OPEC+ hikes quotas
The OPEC+ oil cartel agreed to again increase oil production quotas, by 206,000 barrels per day from May.

It warned that repairing energy facilities damaged in recent attacks is costly and "takes a long time", potentially hitting global oil supplies well into the future.

It also stressed the "critical importance" of safeguarding maritime routes to ensure the "uninterrupted flow of energy".
Iran airport hit
A US-Israeli airstrike hit the Qasem Soleimani international airport in southwestern Iran, state media reported.
Israel targets Beirut
Israeli strikes on south Beirut and its suburbs killed at least four people and wounded 39, Lebanese officials said.

Earlier, Israel's military said it had begun striking the capital to take out "infrastructure sites" of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.
Pope urges peace
Pope Leo XIV urged "those who have the power to unleash wars" to "choose peace", in his first Easter blessing as pontiff.

"We are growing accustomed to violence, resigning ourselves to it, and becoming indifferent. Indifferent to the deaths of thousands of people," he told a crowd in St Peter's Square.
Holy Sepulchre restrictions
Israeli security forces imposed restrictions on access to the Holy Sepulchre in annexed east Jerusalem, where Christians believe Jesus Christ was crucified, buried and rose from the dead.

In the usually lively alleyways of Jerusalem's Old City, silence reigned on Easter Sunday, the holiday overshadowed by the war.
Iran hits infrastructure
Damage was reported at civilian facilities in the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait, after Iran attacked critical energy and other infrastructure across the Gulf.

Iranian drones caused "severe" damage to Kuwaiti oil and petrochemical facilities, the state petroleum company said.

Officials in Abu Dhabi said they were battling fires caused by falling debris at a petrochemical facility.
Iran, Oman talk Hormuz
Oman and Iran held talks on easing passage through the Strait of Hormuz, the Omani state news agency reported.

"The experts from both sides put forward a number of visions and proposals regarding it," it said.
Israeli strike kills family
An Israeli strike in southern Lebanon killed seven people including a family of six, a source from the Lebanese civil defence told AFP.

The family had been waiting for a relative to pick them up in Kfar Hatta, a town around 70 kilometres (45 miles) from the border that Israel had ordered to be evacuated.

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