Trump says US Navy attacked and seized Iranian-flagged cargo ship
"U.S. Marines have custody of the vessel," Trump said.
President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting military and government sites.
After initial U.S.-Iran talks in Pakistan failed to reach a peace deal, Trump announced Sunday, April 19, that U.S. negotiators would head back to Islamabad Monday for a new round.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Vice President JD Vance would accompany special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law, to Islamabad for the talks.
Iran's continuing blockage of the Strait of Hormuz and their alleged refusal to abandon their nuclear program remain key sticking points in negotiations, according to Trump.
Key Headlines
- Trump says US Navy attacked and seized Iranian-flagged cargo ship
- Trump says 'the concept of' a peace deal with Iran is done
- Trump again threatens to strike Iranian infrastructure; announces new round of talks in Islamabad
- US-Iran talks have made progress, but 'gaps' remain, Tehran's chief negotiator says
- Iranian navy to bring 'new defeats' for US and Israel, supreme leader says
Blockade of Iranian ports 'fully implemented,' head of CENTCOM says
The blockade of Iranian ports "has been fully implemented," the commander of U.S. Central Command Adm. Brad Cooper said in a social media post late Tuesday.
"In less than 36 hours since the blockade was implemented, U.S. forces have completely halted economic trade going into and out of Iran by sea," the post stated.
Cooper said an estimated 90% of Iran's economy is fueled by international trade by sea.
The U.S. military began the blockade of Iranian ports on Monday after President Donald Trump announced the move over the weekend, following the failure of peace negotiations between the U.S. and Iran.
Trump says in interview he views war with Iran as 'very close to over'
President Donald Trump said that he viewed the war with Iran as "very close to over" in an interview with Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo on Tuesday afternoon.
"I think it's close to over. Yeah. I mean, I view it as very close to over," Trump told Fox News's Maria Bartiromo when asked whether or not the war was over.
The president also claimed that it would take Iran two decades to rebuild if the U.S. pulled out right now.
"If I pulled up stakes right now, it would take them 20 years to rebuild that country. And we're not finished, but we'll see what happens. I think they want to make a deal very badly," Trump said.
-ABC News' Nicholas Kerr
Vance says 'mistrust' between Iran and US cannot be solved overnight
After being unable to secure a deal with Iran, Vice President JD Vance said Tuesday that there is a lot of mistrust between the U.S. and Tehran that cannot be solved "overnight," but that he does feel good about where things currently stand.
"We had never had a meeting like that, where you have, you know, the person who's effectively running the country in Iran sitting across from the vice president of the United States, that had never happened," Vance said during a Turning Point USA college event in Athens, Georgia.
"After 49 years, there's a lot of, of course, mistrust between Iran and the United States of America. You're not going to solve that problem overnight. But yeah, I think the people we're sitting across from wanted to make a deal, and I know the president of the United States told us to go out there and negotiate in good faith. That's what we did. That's what we're going to keep on doing," Vance continued.
Vance says he feels "very good about where we are."
-ABC News' Hannah Demissie
Over 2,100 killed in Lebanon: Health ministry
At least 35 people were killed and another 159 wounded in Lebanon on Tuesday, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health.
The death toll in Lebanon now stands at 2,124, and 6,921 people have been injured since March 2, according to the ministry.