(archive entries)
Daily Archives: 21. April 2026
STATEMENT OF PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP:
Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal. I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other. President DONALD J. TRUMP
Trump says he will extend ceasefire with Iran until negotiations conclude
President Donald Trump says he will extend a ceasefire with Iran until Iran submits a proposal to end the conflict permanently.
“Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
He said he had directed the American military to “continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able.”
He said the truce, which had been due to expire in the coming hours, would “therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other.”
When Mandelson could bring down Starmer
(March 14, 2026)
As my big piece on Starmer last month revealed, even after Mandelson was appointed, Starmer never quizzed him about how to deal with Trump. All this exposes a Prime Minister with Olympic levels of detachment. It has been known for a while that he has little interest in politics but those who have worked with him have been genuinely surprised at his lack of interest in the detail of governing.
(…)
The book also reveals that the decision to sack Mandelson was taken by McSweeney, not Starmer. On the day the PM defended Mandelson in the Commons, McSweeney was in a secure basement conference room without his phone when two of Starmer’s closest aides – Paul Ovenden and Stuart Ingham – came to find him. Ingham told him: ‘We just can’t answer these questions.’
McSweeney’s response – ‘It’s unsustainable’ – was the moment the decision was effectively made.
Oiling the machine – inside the Number 10 policy unit
(November 20, 2024)
Though it has grown over the past fifty years, the Policy Unit today still comprises fewer than thirty special advisers and junior Whitehall officials. This little platoon tends to be most effective when it acts as both the prime minister’s “eyes and ears”, to borrow Wilson’s phrase, and what Sarah Hogg, John Major’s policy chief, termed “the grit and oil in the government machine.” In other words, the Policy Unit works best by offering the prime minister unvarnished intelligence and advice about the direction of departmental policy, while giving Whitehall strategic clarity about what the prime minister wants or doesn’t want.
No 10 bid for SECOND paedo-linked Labour ally to get ambassador role
He was later pushed on who had ordered him to look into getting Doyle a position, and who had ordered him not to tell the foreign secretary (which at the time was David Lammy).
Robbins said: “I don‘t know what the origin of the suggestion was, and I don‘t know who exactly was behind it or how serious it was.
“It was serious enough for the No 10 private office to ring up the head of the diplomatic service and ask for a forward look of available head of mission jobs, and that‘s the point at which I thought that I needed to lay down some markers.”
Olly Robbins: I was asked to find job for Starmer aide and not tell David Lammy
Testifying to MPs at parliament’s foreign affairs select committee on Tuesday, Olly Robbins said he had several conversations with No 10 about finding a role for Matthew Doyle, who was later suspended as a Labour peer after it emerged he had campaigned for a friend charged with possessing indecent images of children.
Robbins said he had been asked not to mention the idea to David Lammy, who was foreign secretary at the time.
Robbins described the conversations as part of more general pressure from people at the top of the government to place senior political figures in senior diplomatic posts.
Hadash Announces Primary Elections and Push for Joint List Consolidation
During the session, political leaders, including the Communist Party of Israel Secretary-General Adel Amer and Hadash Secretary Amjad Shbita, addressed the regional political situation. Discussions centered on the fragile ceasefire, the risk of renewed war on Iran and Lebanon, and the concerning rise of internal fascism and ongoing occupation of Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian territories.
“The establishment of the Joint List is not merely a tactical maneuver,” Hadash stated in an official communique. “It is a fundamental mission to shift the political balance of power and intensify the struggle against the occupation.” In addition to election preparations, Hadash leadership issued a formal call for public mobilization. Activists and supporters are urged to participate in International Workers’ Day events on Friday, May 1, in Tel Aviv, on Saturday, May 2 in Nazareth and other localities.
Outrage After Israeli Soldier Smashing Jesus Statue in Lebanon
Commenting on social media, Hadash-Ta’al chair MK Ayman Odeh wrote pointedly: “We’ll wait to hear the police spokesperson claim that ‘the soldier felt threatened by Jesus’.”
What Israelis can learn from the nightmares of an Iranian hangman
(April 9, 2026)
Still, compared to their Iranian counterparts, Israel’s far-right lawmakers have a long way to go. The list of offenses warranting a death sentence in Iran is dizzying in its scope, including burglary, prostitution, drug trafficking, homosexuality, political dissidence, adultery, and “waging war against God.”
Under Israel’s new law, executions are to be carried out by hanging at a facility managed by the Israel Prison Service. How dull. Here, too, Ben Gvir can take inspiration from the Islamic Republic. What about a public hanging in the town square? Entertainment for the masses is not something to scoff at in these difficult times, and it’s free of charge.
And why restrict himself to only one method? The Islamic Republic has also carried out executions by firing squad, stoning, and pushing people off a cliff. Would stoning not serve as a fitting tribute to Ben Gvir’s professed commitment to Jewish tradition?
Trump asks Iran to release 8 women ahead of negotiations
“To the Iranian leaders, who will soon be in negotiations with my representatives: I would greatly appreciate the release of these women. I am sure that they will respect the fact that you did so. Please do them no harm! Would be a great start to our negotiations!!!” he said on Truth Social with a screenshot of photos of eight women.
One of the pictured women has previously been identified by Fox News and others as Bita Hemmati, a female protester tied to the January 2026 uprising in Tehran. It’s unclear who the other women are, but Trump has criticized the Iranian regime for the imprisonment and execution of protestors.
Nine US Aircraft arrive in Pakistan ahead of JD Vance visit to Islamabad
Source said nine US government aircraft of US Air Mobility Command, operating under “RCH” (Reach) callsigns, have landed at PAF Base Nur Khan, carrying high-level logistics support equipment.
The aircraft convoy is reported to be transporting a range of mission-critical assets, including White House communications systems, Presidential motorcade vehicles and transport units, and Additional operational and support equipment.
Most of flights originated from Joint Base Andrews in the US, a key base used for executive and government transport operations. Several aircraft were also routed through Ramstein Air Base in Germany, where some cargo transfers and aircraft swaps reportedly took place before continuing toward Pakistan.
Vidhya Alakeson and Jill Cuthbertson: Who are Starmer’s new joint chiefs of staff?
(February 8, 2026)
With Morgan McSweeney’s enforced departure over the Mandelson scandal, his former deputies Vidhya Alakeson and Jill Cuthbertson have both been promoted to replace him as joints chiefs of staff
Olly Robbins says he faced ‘constant pressure’ to get Mandelson in post
Asked who in No 10 had applied pressure, he said it was mainly the prime minister’s private office, which is staffed by civil servants. But he added: “I think that the private office would only have been [putting on] this pressure themselves if they were under pressure.”
Fired U.K. Official Describes ‘Pressure’ From Starmer’s Office for Envoy’s Appointment
The former top civil servant in Britain’s foreign office, who was fired by Prime Minister Keir Starmer last week, said on Tuesday that Mr. Starmer’s office had a “dismissive attitude” about the security vetting of Peter Mandelson, an associate of Jeffrey Epstein who became ambassador to the United States despite concerns raised during the vetting process.
The former civil servant, Olly Robbins, testified in Parliament that he and other officials in charge of deciding whether to grant Mr. Mandelson a high-level security clearance were working in “an atmosphere of pressure” to ensure that nothing got in the way of Mr. Mandelson’s appointment.
Spain, Slovenia, Ireland seek EU talks on Israel treaty suspension
The three countries sent a joint letter to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas last Friday, urging her to “urgently review the EU‘s response” and calling for action in light of the situation in Lebanon, as well as a recently approved Israeli law that would impose the death penalty by hanging on Palestinians convicted in Israeli military courts.
Spain, Slovenia, Ireland call to suspend EU-Israel treaty
Spain, Slovenia, and Ireland have urged the European Union to consider suspending its association treaty with Israel, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told reporters on Tuesday before a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.
„Spain, along with Slovenia and Ireland, has requested that the suspension of the Association Agreement between the European Union and Israel be discussed and debated today,“ Albares said.
Trump buys time on Iran Ceasefire as Pakistan set to host Islamabad Talks 2.0
Tensions between United States and Iran reached a critical flashpoint as US President Donald Trump confirmed a last-minute extension of the fragile ceasefire, pushing it two more days until Wednesday evening, and is now pushing Iran to seal a deal or face serious consequences.
The truce, set to expire on April 21 at 8pm ET, has now been temporarily prolonged in a desperate bid to keep diplomacy alive. Trump struck hard warning tone, making it clear that this extension is likely the final one.
Global Market Today: Asian stocks gain, oil dips on hopes of Iran talks
(Apr 21, 2026, 06:28:31 AM IST)
Asian stocks edged higher as signs Iran may join talks with the US fostered cautious optimism about progress in the Middle East ahead of a looming ceasefire deadline. Oil dropped.
UK stocks slip as uncertainty over US-Iran ceasefire lifts oil prices
The UK‘s main stock indexes dipped on Monday in broad-based losses as fears that the U.S.-Iran ceasefire could collapse weighed on sentiment.
The U.S. seized an Iranian cargo ship and traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained largely halted, sending crude oil prices more than 5% higher.
Ex-US general explains why reopening Strait of Hormuz is harder than blocking Iran’s ports
Clark also said that Iran is aware of the strategic value of the Strait of Hormuz in negotiations: “More useful than a nuclear weapon. And they’ve used it,” he said. “And they don’t believe we have an answer for it.”
He added, “They know we don’t want to commit ground troops. They know we don’t want to take losses. We don’t want to get our ships close enough to be hit by their missiles … so this is a real tough military problem. That’s unfortunate because that’s driving their stance in the negotiations.”
See shipping traffic come to a near-standstill through the Strait of Hormuz this weekend
A combination of Iran’s restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz and the US blockade of Iranian ports has caused shipping through the strait to remain virtually nonexistent.
The above tracking data from MarineTraffic shows vessels in and around the strait between Friday and Sunday. The ships represented by red shapes are tankers, while green shapes represent cargo ships and light blue ones are tugs, service or military vessels.
A deal to end the Iran war seemed close. Then Trump started posting on social media
One recent proposal from the Iranian side would involve a 10-year pause on enrichment, followed by another decade where Iran would agree to only enrich to levels well below weapons grade, according to a person familiar with the discussions. Meanwhile, Trump has told reporters that he wants no enrichment indefinitely and is against even the 20-year pause.
The Trump administration is also considering unfreezing $20 billion in Iranian assets as part of ongoing negotiations with Tehran, CNN previously reported. The step would come in exchange for Iran turning over its stockpile of highly enriched uranium.
How flexible each side is on their terms will ultimately dictate whether a deal can be reached.
US seeks Iran’s surrender; Iranians don’t submit to force: Pezeshkian
“Deep historical mistrust in Iran toward U.S. gov conduct remains, while unconstructive & contradictory signals from American officials carry a bitter message; they seek Iran’s surrender. Iranians do not submit to force,” the president wrote.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the United States is not serious about negotiations with Iran, and that Tehran had no plans to take part in a second round of talks with Washington.