Initial deal to end US-Iran war moves toward formal signing despite lingering questions
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — An initial agreement between the United States and Iran to extend their shaky ceasefire inched toward a formal signing despite questions Monday over the fate of Tehran's nuclear program and an offensive by Israel in Lebanon that could prolong the fighting and scuttle the deal.
The agreement signed electronically Sunday is meant to provide a meaningful truce in a monthslong war that has killed thousands across the Middle East, including the top leaders of Iran's theocracy, and raised the prices of fuel, food and other basic goods far beyond the region. But logistical and military challenges underscored the fragile nature of the deal, which was set for a ceremonial signing Friday in Geneva.
At the core of the pact is a planned reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway whose blockage has choked the supply of the world's oil and natural gas. Yet even a full reopening would not immediately alleviate the global energy crisis its closure created.
Another potential obstacle concerns Israel, which joined the U.S. in launching the war on Feb. 28, but it is not party to the deal. The Israeli military launched airstrikes Sunday in southern Lebanon, where it is fighting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, and the Israeli defense minister said Monday that the country would not withdraw from land seized in Lebanon, where Israel is fighting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said the agreement between the U.S. and Iran was Trump's decision. Netanyahu said Israel has its own interests, primarily protecting against a potential nuclear threat from Iran. He said Iran wanted Israel to withdraw from Lebanon, but he stood firm, saying Israel would remain in the buffer zone “as long as necessary.”
Even with a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, it could take weeks or months for oil to fully flow
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The tentative agreement to end the war in Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz would be good news for the global economy. But even as the price of oil dropped Monday, many questions remained about when and how it would start flowing again through the world’s most vital artery for energy shipments.
Before the war, the strait carried a fifth of the world’s crude oil. Now, it will take time for hundreds of ships trapped in the Persian Gulf to exit through the narrow strait. And Gulf oil producers that throttled back production will need time to get the oil moving again. Analysts also say ship captains may take their time to decide if passage is safe and that the threat of attack from Iran has truly receded.
All told, oil prices, inflation and energy flows simply won’t see an immediate return to what they were before the war — not for weeks or even months. And that's assuming the deal, set to be signed Friday, proves durable. Details hadn't been released.
Even if the Strait is completely open, it will take time for tankers to enter, load, and make the journey to Asian countries — the chief customers for Gulf oil from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Oman. A trip to Japan and back can take 45 to 50 days.
Captains, insurers and owners may take their time in attempting passage, given the volatile situation.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom says Trump's Justice Department is investigating him and his wife
SACRAMENTO, Calif (AP) — Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Monday accused the Justice Department of launching a politically motivated investigation into him and his wife, saying the Trump administration was targeting him as he weighs a presidential bid.
Newsom, a longtime political rival of the Republican president, said in a video posted on X that federal agents have knocked on the doors of his friends and former employees, and have asked for records. Newsom didn't provide specifics on the nature of the probe, but his office said the inquiry appears to have recently expanded into “increasingly personal matters involving the Governor's family and professional network.”
“Donald Trump isn’t just coming after me because of my mean tweets,” Newsom said, referencing his use of social media to mock Trump. “He’s coming after me because I’m considering running for president, because he hates that I’ve consistently called him out over and over again for his lies and deceit.”
The full details of any Justice Department inquires related to Newsom were not immediately clear. But the revelations were likely to escalate accusations from critics that the Trump administration is using the law enforcement agency as a weapon to go after the president's political opponents.
A person familiar with the matter denied the existence of an investigation specifically targeting the governor, but said there are multiple federal probes into people around him, including one related to his wife’s taxes. That probe began last year, and political leadership in Washington was not involved in the decision to open it, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss ongoing investigations.
8 people died in B-52 bomber crash at US Air Force base in Southern California, officials say
LOS ANGELES (AP) — A B-52 bomber crashed shortly after takeoff at a U.S. Air Force base in Southern California’s Mojave Desert and burst into flames Monday, killing all eight people aboard, military officials said.
Aerial footage showed virtually nothing left of the aircraft that went down around 11:20 a.m. during a routine test mission at Edwards Air Force Base, which is north of Los Angeles. Black smoke rose from a large swath of charred desert near the runway on the base, with emergency vehicles nearby.
Those on board included government contractors and uniformed military.
After reviewing footage of the crash, it was determined that no one could have survived, Col. James Hayes, the deputy commander for the 412 test wing at Edwards, said at a news conference.
“We lost eight great Americans,” Hayes said, adding that officials were working to notify their families.
Trump arrives at G7 summit looking for momentum after announcing a deal to end the Iran war
EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France (AP) — President Donald Trump started his visit to the G7 summit of leading industrialized nations on Monday by declaring his agreement aimed at ending the U.S. war with Iran is a potential breakthrough for global security and a chance for the U.S. to finally turn the page in its relationship with longtime adversary Iran.
The Republican U.S. president sought to make clear that he arrived in Evian-les-Bains with the wind at his back for talks with G7 leaders, including some who have been sharply critical of his managing of the 15-week-old conflict, which has led to a surge in global energy prices — though he did not immediately seem willing to lay out the details of what was in the emerging deal.
Some of those details are still to be negotiated in talks over the next 60 days, though Trump said the memorandum of understanding would likely be released after it’s signed on Friday.
“I think a lot of great things are going to happen in the Middle East right now, and very importantly the oil (price) is plummeting down and the stock market is shooting up like a rocket today,” Trump said at a meeting with the summit’s host, French President Emmanuel Macron, before they joined a working dinner with other leaders.
“The Iran deal that we made is going to bring a lot of success to the world,” he said.
Recommended for you
Some of the 11 skydivers killed in Missouri plane crash were experienced jumpers
Several of the skydivers killed when their plane crashed moments after taking off from a Missouri airfield were experienced jumpers, including a leader at one of the sport's biggest organizations.
Federal investigators were at the crash site, about an hour south of Kansas City, on Monday, a day after the plane carrying a pilot and 11 skydivers slammed into a field and burst into flames, killing all on board, authorities said.
Some family members of those who died were at the airport to watch the jump and witnessed the crash, said Bates County Sheriff Chad Anderson.
Authorities have not released the victims’ names, but friends and colleagues began paying tribute.
The United States Parachute Association, skydiving's governing body, said its technology director, Jen Sharp, was among those killed.
Teen accused of killing stepsister on Carnival Cruise taken into custody following adult charges
MIAMI (AP) — A teenager charged with sexually assaulting and killing his 18-year-old stepsister on a Carnival Cruise ship surrendered Monday after a federal judge reversed his decision on pretrial release now that the teen is charged as an adult.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami confirmed that Timothy Hudson is in custody. U.S. Magistrate Judge Edwin Torres filed the order to revoke Hudson’s pretrial release last Wednesday, but the order was sealed until Monday afternoon. The order stated that Hudson should surrender to U.S. Marshals at the federal courthouse in Tampa Monday morning.
The judge had ruled in February that the 16-year-old could live with an uncle and be electronically monitored. But after the case was transferred to adult court in April, prosecutors wanted Hudson in custody.
The judge ultimately agreed that the issue of Hudson's pretrial detention should be treated as if he was an adult, though Hudson will be held in an approved juvenile facility.
“The Government has established, by clear and convincing evidence, that no condition or combination of conditions of release will reasonably assure the safety of the community going forward,” Torres wrote in his order.
Republican divides and strange alliances emerge ahead of Georgia runoff
ALPHARETTA, Ga. (AP) — The final days of Georgia’s Republican primary campaigns have exposed internal party fault lines, produced unusual alliances and will test the party’s ability to consolidate quickly to match Democrats’ head start on the general election campaign.
The melee, including last-minute endorsements from President Donald Trump and outgoing Gov. Brian Kemp, was on full display Monday ahead of Tuesday’s runoff. Rep. Mike Collins and former football coach Derek Dooley are competing for the party's nomination for U.S. Senate, while Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and billionaire businessman Rick Jackson are running for governor.
Trump and Kemp are aligned behind Jones but split in the Senate race. Top grassroots organizers are divided too. Even Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, a former rival to Trump, stepped into the mix on Jackson’s behalf, putting him at odds with the president and governor.
“There’s a lot of division in the MAGA world and across the Republican Party,” said Debbie Dooley, an original national tea party organizer who is backing Jones for governor but Dooley for Senate. (She's not related to the candidate.) “We better get it together after Tuesday.”
Kemp insisted there is a common denominator.
Stocks leap worldwide, and oil prices drop after the US and Iran reach a tentative deal on their war
NEW YORK (AP) — Stock markets rallied worldwide Monday, and oil prices eased after the United States and Iran reached a tentative deal to extend their ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz to get the global flow of crude going again.
The S&P 500 rose 1.7% on hopes that this time, the announcement of an Iran-U.S. agreement will mean a long-term fix to a conflict that has worsened inflation around the world. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 468 points, or 0.9%, to a record, and the Nasdaq composite jumped 3.1%.
Stocks got a lift after the price for a barrel of Brent crude oil fell 4.8% to $83.17, back to where it was in early March. While that’s still above its price of roughly $70 from before the war, it’s lower than the $100 plus it cost just a few weeks ago. The hope is that lower oil prices will take pressure off households and businesses, which have had to pay higher prices for everything from food to fuel to fertilizer because of the war with Iran.
Iran confirmed the deal, but it does not include a final agreement on issues like Iran’s nuclear program. Negotiations on that are expected to continue over the next 60 days, which leaves opportunity for hiccups that could derail the agreement. And even if the Strait of Hormuz does fully reopen on Friday as expected, it will likely take months for the energy industry to get back to full speed.
For now, though, relief swept through financial markets worldwide.
Cape Verde holds Spain to a surprising 0-0 draw in the country's World Cup debut
ATLANTA (AP) — So much for a supersized World Cup diluting the quality of soccer’s biggest tournament.
Tiny Cape Verde, making its debut at the World Cup, pulled off a stunner, holding heavily favored Spain scoreless in a 0-0 draw on Monday.
“This means everything for our country," Cape Verde coach Pedro Leitão Brito said. “We have always said that we wanted everybody to see our country, our team and we have shown organization and braveness and this is proof of what our country is about — resilience and to try to overcome hardships.”
European champion Spain is one of the favorites to win the tournament and was -1200 to beat Cape Verde. But it could not find a way past a 40-year-old goalkeeper and a stubborn defense that had an answer to everything Spain’s superstars threw at them.
Not even sensational teenager Lamine Yamal, who came in off the bench in the second half, could turn a game that ended with wild and emotional celebrations inside the stadium.

(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.