Welcome to our live coverage of US politics and the Middle East conflict.
Oil prices have naturally surged today after the latest round of US-Iran strikes. After weeks of tentatively inching towards a peace deal, the world is now grappling with what is being described as an episodic re-escalation.
Brent crude surged as much as 4.7 per cent during trading before settling around US$79 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate also posted strong gains.
The price spike effectively reverses the optimism that followed last month’s US-Iran memorandum of understanding, which had briefly eased concerns over Hormuz and sent oil prices lower.
At the centre of investors’ concerns is the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterway that carries roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas. We have written at length on the importance of this corridor, and it is once again dominating the headlines.
Shipping through the narrow strait has slowed dramatically in recent days as commercial operators reassess the security situation.
Meanwhile, a list of people to be targeted as revenge for the killing of supreme leader Ali Khamenei has been published by a newspaper in Iran, according to reports.
The Hamshahri newspaper, which is published by authorities in the Iranian capital, released an infographic online late Saturday featuring photos of 13 foreign leaders alongside Mojtaba Khamenei’s declaration of revenge for his father’s death.
Read on for more updates