Live updates: Israel says it killed Iran navy chief; Trump warns Tehran to 'get serious' in talks 'before it is too late'

The Environmental Protection Agency said it was issuing a temporary emergency fuel waiver to allow nationwide sales of E15, gasoline blended with 15 percent ethanol, in an effort to ease a surge in gas prices stemming from the war with Iran.

The agency is also removing all federal restrictions on the sale of E10, gasoline blended with 10 percent ethanol, with both waivers taking effect May 1.

“This emergency action will provide American families with relief by increasing fuel supply and consumer choice,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said yesterday.

Sales of the E15 biofuel, which is available at more than 3,000 gas stations nationwide, are restricted in many states during the summer because of concerns it can make worsen air pollution.

President Donald Trump has once again criticized his NATO allies, claiming they “HAVE DONE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO HELP WITH THE LUNATIC NATION" of Iran.

The president has grown increasingly frustrated with his alliance partners, who have been reluctant to join the American-Israeli assault and questioned its legal basis.

“THE U.S.A. NEEDS NOTHING FROM NATO,” Trump said in an all-caps post on Truth Social. “BUT ‘NEVER FORGET’ THIS VERY IMPORTANT POINT IN TIME!”

The post comes ahead of a speech in Brussels this afternoon by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. The NATO leader, who is presenting the alliance’s annual report, will face increased scrutiny over the criticism from Trump, who Rutte has in the past attempted to flatter and placate.

Oil prices are continuing their weekslong rise this morning, with international Brent crude oil jumping another 4% to more than $106 per barrel.

U.S. crude oil prices are also up about 3.5% to around $94 per barrel.

Today's jumps came after a down day, fueled by optimism around possible peace talks between the U.S. and Iran. But with clear progress failing to materialize by the end of the day, energy prices resumed rising.

Since the start of the year, Brent is now up more than 75% and U.S. crude oil is up more than 60%.

Meanwhile, stocks in Europe are currently trading down due to oil's renewed rise. The Stoxx 600 is down more than 1%, and benchmark indexes in Germany, the U.K., and France are down around 1% as well.

U.S. stock futures also indicate that indexes stateside will fall at the opening bell. The S&P 500 is set to drop about 0.8% and the Russell 2000 is set tumble 1.1%.

Iran and Israel exchanged a new wave of strikes today as President Donald insisted Iran is desperate for a deal, saying, “They want to make a deal so badly, but they’re afraid to say it.”

It comes as thousands more U.S. troops speed toward the region.

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A U.S. Navy sailor was injured aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln while the aircraft carrier was conducting flight operations in the Arabian Sea yesterday, according to a statement from the U.S. 5th fleet.

The sailor was taken ashore and remains in stable condition, the statement said, adding that the injuries were not combat-related or life-threatening.

The circumstances of the incident are under investigation, it said.

“The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group continues to conduct strike missions in support of Operation Epic Fury,” the statement added. 

Pakistan’s foreign minister has said that indirect peace talks are taking place, as he pushed back on what he described as “unnecessary speculation.”

“There has been unnecessary speculation in the media regarding peace talks to end ongoing conflict in the Middle East,” Ishaq Dar wrote on X. "In reality, US-Iran indirect talks are taking place through messages being relayed by Pakistan. In this context, the United States has shared 15 points, being deliberated upon by Iran."

He said that Turkey and Egypt "among others, are also extending their support to this initiative." Dar added: "Pakistan remains fully committed to promoting peace and continues to make every effort to ensure stability in the region and beyond. Dialogue and Diplomacy is the only way forward!"

Iranian state media reported, citing an unnamed senior official, that Tehran had responded negatively to a proposal from Trump aimed at ending the conflict.

President Trump is renewing claims that Iran wants a deal to end the war, while simultaneously making escalatory threats if Tehran does not “get serious soon.”

Tehran has flatly denied that talks with American officials have taken place, accusing the president of using them as cover to prepare for a possible ground invasion.

In one of a flurry of Truth Social posts early this morning, Trump rejected this.

“The Iranian negotiators are very different and ‘strange.’ They are ‘begging’ us to make a deal, which they should be doing since they have been militarily obliterated, with zero chance of a comeback,” he wrote. “And yet they publicly state that they are only “looking at our proposal.” WRONG!!! They better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t be pretty!” he added.

Pakistan has said publicly it is passing messages between Tehran and Washington.

Israel says it has killed the Iranian naval commander who was responsible for mining and blockading the Strait of Hormuz.

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz told a briefing that last night the military had “eliminated” Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, “in a precise and lethal operation.”

 Sepahnews / Zuma Press via Reuters

Tangsiri was killed “along with senior naval command officials,” Katz said. “The individual who was directly responsible for the terrorist operation involving the mining and blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has been taken out.”

Iran did not immediately confirm or deny his death.

The IRGC Navy is separate and parallel to the regular Iranian Navy, and is a branch of the IRGC, a paramilitary, political and economic powerhouse within the Iranian state. If confirmed, Tangsiri’s assassination would be the latest Israel has carried out against senior figures in the regime.

China declined to confirm the dates of Trump’s upcoming visit to the country, which he said had been rescheduled for mid-May after being delayed so he could focus on the Iran war.

President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2025. Andrew Caballero-Reynolds / AFP - Getty Images file

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he would visit Beijing from May 14 to 15, about six weeks after the trip was originally planned. He added that he plans to host Chinese President Xi Jinping and Xi’s wife, Peng Liyuan, in Washington at a later date.

“China and the United States are maintaining communication regarding President Trump’s visit to China,” foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters in Beijing today.

China does not typically confirm the dates of such visits until shortly before they take place and had not confirmed the original dates of Trump’s trip, which the White House had said would last from March 31 to April 2.

An Iranian brigadier general warned that any ground war would be “more dangerous and costly for the enemy,” according to remarks carried by state media.

"Every inch of Iran’s geography is protected with the vigilance and readiness of the fighters. All enemy movements along the borders are being monitored and we are prepared for any scenario," Brig. Gen. Amir Ali Jahanshahi said, according to the IRIB news agency.

“The sons of the nation in the army, relying on God, are standing firm and steadfast on the front lines of defense and will pin the enemy down,” he added.

Japan has begun releasing oil from its national reserves, its top government spokesperson said today, to stabilize supplies as the war in Iran sends global energy prices soaring.

Japan, which imports almost all of its oil and gas, is releasing almost 80 million barrels of mostly crude oil as part of a record 400-million-barrel release from global oil stockpiles coordinated by the International Energy Agency.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said Tuesday that Japan had begun releasing privately held reserves on March 16 and would begin releasing national stockpiles today. Releases from stockpiles jointly held with oil-producing countries are also set to begin later this month, she said.

“We will respond with our utmost effort to minimize the impact on economic activities through these measures,” Takaichi said.

Masses of pro-government supporters gathered in Tehran last night, holding flags and portraits of Iran’s supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.

AFP via Getty Images

Vahid Salemi / AP

Vahid Salemi / AP

Two people were killed and three others injured in Abu Dhabi after debris fell from a ballistic missile that was intercepted by the emirate’s air defense systems, officials said. 

They said the missile was successfully intercepted, but falling debris caused casualties and damage on the ground.

“The incident resulted in the deaths of two unidentified individuals, three injuries, and damage to a number of cars,” the statement added.

The statement did not say where the missile originated, but the United Arab Emirates has been the target of frequent strikes by Iran.

Six Arab nations have condemned attacks by Iran and its allies, according to a joint statement.

The statement, issued yesterday by Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, said it strongly opposed Iranian attacks “whether carried out directly or through their proxies and armed factions they support in the region.”

The statement singled out attacks on Gulf nations by “armed factions loyal to Iran” that are based in neighboring Iraq.

It described the attacks as a “breach of international laws and conventions” and urged the Iraqi government to take “necessary measures to immediately halt” them.

Less than 20 miles off Iran’s shallow coastline sits a rare island made of hard coral — a natural, geological platform rising from the Persian Gulf that’s perfect for one thing: exporting oil.

 Gallo Images / Getty Images

This is Kharg Island, a crucial outcrop 5 miles long that might be about to become central to the Iran war.

Read the full story here.

Tensions flared behind closed doors Wednesday as defense and intelligence officials briefed some lawmakers about the war in Iran, with Republicans and Democrats expressing frustration about a lack of clarity and information about President Donald Trump’s strategy, according to four congressional officials who attended the briefing and a lawmaker who was briefed on it later.

Much of the frustration during the briefing for the House Armed Services Committee centered on the prospect of the United States’ sending ground troops into Iran, the officials and lawmaker said, including what the troops could be used for and whether the U.S. can adequately protect them once they were deployed.

Read the full story here.