U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said Iran has moved in the direction of the U.S. during the peace talks in Islamabad to end the war and it was for Tehran to make the next move on taking the discussions forward.

The U.S. and Iran failed to reach an agreement in the 21-hour marathon peace talks in Islamabad over the weekend, with Washington insisting that Tehran refused to give up its right over enrichment of nuclear fuel.

 After a sleepless and at times tense night in Islamabad, Iranian and U.S. officials ended their highest-level talks in decades without a breakthrough, but 11 sources familiar with the negotiations ​said dialogue was still alive.

The weekend meeting to resolve the conflict between the U.S. and Iran, held four days after last Tuesday’s (April 7, 2026) ceasefire announcement, was the first direct encounter between U.S. and Iranian officials in more than a decade and the ‌most senior engagement since Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.

U.S. Ambassador to New Delhi, Sergio Gor, has said that he has discussed with President Donald Trump ways to build a “strong future” for India and the U.S.

Mr. Gor met Mr. Trump over dinner on Tuesday (April 7, 206). His meeting with President Trump coincided with the U.S. and Iran agreeing to a two-week ceasefire following nearly six weeks of military hostilities.

The Israeli military ​on Tuesday ‌(April 7, 2026) told people in Iran ​not to ⁠use trains or go near railway ‌lines.

“For the sake ‌of your ‌security, ⁠we kindly ⁠request that from this moment until 21:00 ​Iran time, ‌you refrain from using and travelling by train ‌throughout Iran,” the ​military posted on its Persian-language ⁠account on X.

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“Your presence on trains and near railway tracks puts your life in danger.”

Israel together with the ‌U.S. has been ​at war with Iran since their ⁠initial attacks on ⁠the country ‌on February 28. 

Trains cancelled in Iran’s Masshad

Train travel to and from Iran’s second city of Mashhad was cancelled until further notice on Tuesday (April 7, 2026) after Israel warned Iranians not to use railways until 1730 GMT, local media reported, citing the governor.

“Due to the immoral warning of the Zionist regime regarding the attack on the country’s railways and in order to exercise caution, all train movements from the Mashhad Railway have been cancelled until further notice,” Governor Hassan Hosseini said, according to several local media.

With Reuters, AFP inputs

President Donald Trump warned that “a whole civilization will die” in Iran on Tuesday (April 7, 2026) if the country does not heed his ultimatum to accept U.S. war demands.

“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will,” Mr. Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. “WHO KNOWS?”

Mr. Trump did not give details but has already said the U.S. military could bomb Iran’s bridges, power plants and other civilian infrastructure into the “stone age.”

Russia launched a ​drone attack on Ukraine’s Black ‌Sea port of ​Odesa overnight ⁠on Monday (April 6, 2026), killing three people, including a child, and ‌damaging infrastructure, residential and administrative buildings, ‌the Regional Governor ‌said.

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“Overnight, ⁠Odesa came under ⁠another heavy attack by the enemy,” Oleh Kiper, Odesa ​Regional Governor, ‌said on the Telegram app. As well as the three ‌dead, 10 people ​were injured, he said.

“Residential buildings, critical infrastructure ⁠and administrative facilities were hit. There is ‌significant damage,” Mr. Kiper said. With the war now in its fifth year, Moscow has escalated its attacks ‌on Odesa, a key ​logistics hub in southern Ukraine and the ⁠country’s largest port, handling ⁠the majority of the Ukrainian grain ‌and other maritime exports.

Iran warned the UN Security Council against any “provocative action”, ahead of a scheduled vote on a draft resolution on the Strait of Hormuz that ended up being postponed.

“Any provocative action by the aggressors and their supporters, including in the UN Security Council regarding the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, will only complicate the situation,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said.

Iran-Israel war updates on April 3, 2026

Mr. Araghchi was speaking ahead of a scheduled Security Council vote on a draft resolution mandating a force to protect shipping through the Strait of Hormuz Friday (April 3, 2026).

It was later announced that the vote was postponed, with no new date scheduled.

The Strait of Hormuz, a shipping lane vital to global energy flows, has been all but shut since the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28.

The 15-member body was set to vote on a draft resolution brought by Bahrain on authorising the use of “defensive” force to protect shipping in Hormuz from Iranian attacks, according to the official programme.

The draft resolution was backed by the U.S. and the Gulf countries hardest hit by the virtual blockade, but member states including Russia, China and France had objected to earlier drafts.

The UN has lauded efforts by Indian peacekeepers deployed in South Sudan to re-open a critical supply route impacted by floods last year, emphasising the “vital role” played by peacekeeping missions in assisting local communities.

Stéphane Dujarric, spokesman for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said amid these difficult times, there are some hopeful developments to in South Sudan. “Our Peacekeeping Mission there (UNMISS) reports that in Upper Nile State, Indian peacekeepers from the Engineering Unit have successfully reopened a key section of the Malakal–Renk main supply route, which had been closed since last year’s floods,” he said at the daily press briefing here on Thursday (April 2, 2026).

He said the new road alignment, which entailed reclaiming land from floodwaters to restore the road, will provide safer access, significantly improving mobility in the area and facilitating the delivery of humanitarian assistance to people in need in local communities.

“These efforts also underscore the vital role that the Peacekeeping Mission plays in supporting stability and enabling critical assistance to reach vulnerable civilians in some of the most challenging environments.” Dujarric said.

In a post on X, UNMISS said the Indian peacekeepers reopened the key Malakal-Renk main supply route via New Paloich, which had been closed since last year’s floods. A new road alignment through Akoka-Kilo 20-Paloich-Renk now provides safe access, enhancing mobility and humanitarian efforts in the region, the UNMISS noted.

According to estimates by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, flooding in South Sudan last year had affected 1.35 million people across eight states, displacing nearly 375,600 people.

As of January 2026, India was the top troop contributing country to UNMISS with 1,779 personnel deployed with the peacekeeping mission.

U.S. President Donald Trump, on Thursday (April 2, 2026), addressed the nation on the Iran-Israel war, the U.S. strikes on Tehran, and the fluctuating global oil prices.

The address included references to Iran’s plans to build a nuclear bomb and came amid a global turmoil in oil prices and supply chains. 

Here are some of the key quotes from Mr. Trump’s speech: 

On military operations against Iran: “We are going to hit them extremely hard over the next two or three weeks. We will bring them back to the Stone Age.”

On increasing oil prices and Strait of Hormuz: “This short-term increase has been entirely the result of the deranged Iranian regime” 

“We are the number one producer of oil and gas on the planet. We produce more than Saudi Arabia and Russia combined.”

“U.S. imports almost no oil through the Hormuz Strait. We haven’t needed it, and we don’t need it.” 

“Buy oil from the United States of America. We have so much.” 

“The countries of the world that do receive oil through the pass, they must protect the strait.”

“Build up some delayed courage. Go to the Strait and just take it. Use it for yourself.” 

On the US economy: “We built the strongest economy in history. In one year, we have taken a dead and crippled country and made it the hottest country in the world.”

Also Read | Leaders killed, U.S. strikes and Iranian response: a month of Iran-U.S. war

On regime change in Iran: “Regime change has occurred because of all of their leaders’ death. Yet if there is no deal, we are going to hit each of their electric generating plants. We are unstoppable as a military force.” 

“We have all the cards, they have none.” 

Iran-Israel and U.S. conflict: Context

President Trump had said on March 31, 2026, that the U.S. forces would end operations in Iran “very soon,” evoking a timeline of two or three weeks as his administration pursues talks with Iranian authorities while continuing its aerial campaign. 

Asked during a White House event about the impact of high fuel prices since the start of the war on February 28, Mr. Trump said that “All I have to do is leave Iran, and we’ll be doing that very soon, and they’ll tumble down.”

On February 28, 2026, in a joint operation, Israel and the U.S. attacked Iran’s Tehran, calling it a ‘pre-emptive action’. Code-named Operation Roaring Lion or Operation Epic Fury, several key Iranian cities, including Tehran, Qom, and Isfahan, were attacked.

The strikes killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as over 200 civilians.

Iran has practically closed the Strait of Hormuz in response, leading to soaring oil prices that affect global supply chains. 

Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar has been diagnosed with a “hairline fracture” in the shoulder after slipping and falling during the reception ceremony for his Egyptian counterpart, his son has said.

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The incident occurred on Sunday (March 29, 2026), during the quadrilateral summit meeting between the Foreign Ministers of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Egypt as they discussed the West Asia conflict.

Mr. Dar fell down while calling Badr Abdelatty to the stage after he arrived at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He was captured on camera falling down but getting up and joining his guest for the ceremonial photo session.

Mr. Dar did not show any signs of injury, but his son revealed that he was on pain killers to manage discomfort and only agreed for a medical checkup late at night.

“Ishaq Dar Sahib, despite sustaining an injury during the reception of the Egyptian Foreign Minister today, completed all highly important meetings throughout the day on painkillers, Alhamdulillah, in the best possible manner,” Ali Dar said on X.

He added that around 9 pm, after recording the official statement, a medical examination was conducted at the insistence of the family.

“His X-rays are Alhamdulillah overall fine. There is a hairline fracture in the shoulder. In the coming few days, his pain will be managed through medications and other precautionary measures,” he said.

Mr. Dar is the leading member of the government of Shehbaz Sharif who is active both on domestic and international fronts.

He is also a confidante of former three-time premier Nawaz Sharif, with whom he is related due to the marriage of his son with Mr. Sharif’s daughter.

The elder Sharif is president of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

A chartered accountant by education and training, Mr. Dar served as Finance Minister more than once in the previous governments of the PML-N.