“There’s some good signs,” Mr Rubio told reporters. “I don’t want to be overly optimistic… So, let’s see what happens over the next few days.” <\/p>\n
A senior Iranian source said no deal has been reached but the gaps in positions between the two sides has narrowed.<\/p>\n
Iran’s uranium enrichment and Tehran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz<\/a> remain among the sticking points, the source told Reuters news agency.<\/p>\n Mr Rubio warned that Iran\u2019s desire to impose a toll on ships passing through the strait was acting as a blockade to a potential peace agreement. <\/p>\n “No one in the world is in favour of the tolling system. It can’t happen. It would be unacceptable,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cIt would make a diplomatic deal unfeasible if they were to continue to pursue that. So it’s a threat to the world if they were trying to do that, and it’s completely illegal.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, fresh US intelligence has found that Iran<\/a> is rebuilding its military industrial base much faster than expected, US<\/a> sources told CNN.<\/p>\n <\/a>US military says forces remain at \u2018peak readiness\u2019 in Middle East<\/p>\n The US Central Command has shared visuals of fighter jets launching from the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea.<\/p>\n It said the carrier strike group remains at \u201cpeak readiness\u201d as Washington enforces its blockade against Iranian ports amid escalating tensions with Tehran. <\/p>\n Shweta Sharma22 May 2026 05:45<\/p>\n <\/a>Israel’s military says it killed two people in Lebanon<\/p>\n The Israeli military said it killed two people in southern Lebanon in an air strike after detecting what it described as \u201csuspicious movement\u201d near the border with Israel.<\/p>\n In a post on X, the army said the individuals were identified several hundred metres from the border and claimed they were armed.<\/p>\n The strike comes amid continued Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon, where at least 20 people were reported killed on Thursday. <\/p>\n Shweta Sharma22 May 2026 05:26<\/p>\n <\/a>Oil prices rise over Iran deal deadlock<\/p>\n Oil prices rose amid growing scepticism over a breakthrough in US-Iran talks, with the two sides remaining deadlocked over Tehran\u2019s uranium stockpile and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.<\/p>\n Brent crude climbed $2.38, or 2.3 per cent, to $104.96 a barrel by 00.34 GMT on Friday, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $1.73, or 1.8 per cent, to $98.08 a barrel.<\/p>\n The gains came after both benchmarks fell about 2 per cent on Thursday, hitting their lowest levels in nearly two weeks.<\/p>\n Shweta Sharma22 May 2026 04:55<\/p>\n <\/a>Top US navy official confirms $14bn arms sale to Taiwan paused due to Iran war<\/p>\n Acting US navy secretary Hung Cao has said that the US is pausing the $14bn arms sale to Taiwan due to the war in Iran.<\/p>\n Speaking during a Senate Appropriations Defence Subcommittee hearing, Cao said that the US had \u201cplenty\u201d of missiles and interceptors, but the sales are being paused.<\/p>\n \u201cRight now we\u2019re doing a pause in order to make sure we have the munitions we need for Epic Fury \u2014 which we have plenty,\u201d Cao said in response to a question by senator Mitch McConnell.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re just making sure we have everything, but then the foreign military sales will continue when the administration deems necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked if he expects the sale to be approved at some point, Cao said the decision would depend on defence secretary Pete Hegseth and the secretary of state Marco Rubio.<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, that\u2019s what\u2019s really distressing,\u201d McConnell replied.<\/p>\n Cao\u2019s remarks were in contradiction to president Trump\u2019s reason for a possible pause after he said that he may hold off the sales of arms to Taiwan as a \u201cnegotiating chip\u201d with China.<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t approved it yet. We\u2019re going to see what happens,\u201d Trump told Fox News. \u201cI may do it; I may not do it.\u201d <\/p>\n Shweta Sharma22 May 2026 04:45<\/p>\n <\/a>Republicans scrap vote on Iran war resolution<\/p>\n Republicans on Thursday struggled to secure enough votes to block legislation that would force president Donald Trump to withdraw from the war with Iran, prompting House leaders to delay a planned vote until June.<\/p>\n The Democratic-led war powers resolution aimed to curb Trump\u2019s military campaign, which began more than two months ago without congressional approval. <\/p>\n But Republican leaders pulled the vote after concerns emerged that they lacked the numbers to defeat the measure.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had the votes without question and they knew it, and as a result they’re playing a political game,\u201d Democratic representative Gregory Meeks, who sponsored the bill, said.<\/p>\n The delay underscored growing unease within Congress over Trump\u2019s handling of the conflict, with some rank-and-file Republicans increasingly willing to break with the president.<\/p>\n Senate Republicans are also scrambling to shore up support ahead of a separate war powers vote after four GOP senators backed the measure earlier this week. <\/p>\n Shweta Sharma22 May 2026 04:26<\/p>\n![\"US](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/2026-05-19T164956Z_123118745_RC2FCLA3WEVW_RTRMADP_3_USA-NAVY-CONGRESS.JPG\")
US acting secretary of the navy Hung Cao speaks during a US Senate Armed Services Committee hearing regarding the Defense Authorization Request for Fiscal Year 2027 and the Future Years Defense Program, on Capitol Hill in Washington (Reuters)<\/p>\n