Hormuz Ship Traffic Rebounds To Highest Level Since Start Of War, Iran Renews Restrictions

Two Chinese Container Ships That Were Previously Turned Back By Iran, Now Allowed To Transit Hormuz Strait On Friday we reported that there was a moment of surprise among vessel trackers, when Iran unexpectedly blocked two container ships owned by China's Cosco from transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Two days later, this misunderstanding appears to have been resolved, and on Monday Bloomberg reported that the same two container ships linked to China’s state-owned Cosco Shipping exited the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz, the first such vessels operated by a...

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Hamas must be dismantled before any reconstruction can begin in Gaza. He added that Palestinians can just leave.  “There will be no reconstruction in Gaza without dismantling and demilitarizing the Strip,” Netanyahu said on Sunday. “Gazans should have freedom of choice: Whoever wants to leave should be able to […]

Iraq’s Coordination Framework is still putting forward Nouri al-Maliki as its candidate for prime minister, despite President Trump loudly and repeatedly demand he be withdrawn. The US is now reportedly setting a deadline of Friday, February 27, to end the candidacy or face unspecified repercussions. If that sounds familiar, it’s because the US had similarly […]