Main Points
- Iran has threatened to target global tourist destinations as the war between it and the US and Israel nears the end of its third week
- The country’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei said its enemies were being defeated and had been dealt “a dizzying blow” through Iranian unity and resolve
- The British government has approved the use of its bases for the US to launch strikes on Iranian sites targeting the Strait of Hormuz
- Tánaiste and Minister for Finance Simon Harris said the Government will bring forward proposals to cabinet next Tuesday to alleviate the rising cost of energy
Iraq halts oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz
Iraq has declared force majeure on all oilfields developed by foreign oil companies after military operations in the region disrupted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, halting most of the country’s crude exports, energy officials have told Reuters.
Navigation through the Strait of Hormuz — a chokepoint for around 20 per cent of global oil and liquefied natural gas supplies — has been severely affected by unprecedented military activity, the Iraqi oil ministry has admitted.
Most Iraqi crude exports transit the Strait, and the disruptions have caused storage capacity to reach its limits, the letter said.
International oil prices settled at their highest level in nearly four years on Friday, as the three-week-old US-Israeli war with Iran escalated.
“The international partners were unable to nominate tankers to lift crude, preventing exports despite the state oil company SOMO being ready to load shipments,” the letter said.
“Based on the situation, the ministry ordered a full shutdown of production at affected concession areas, with no compensation arising from the measure under contract terms.”
The ministry said the scale-back would be reviewed periodically depending on regional developments and invited companies to urgent talks to agree on essential operations, costs and staffing under the force majeure conditions.
Trump gives lukewarm welcome to British offer of help
President Donald Trump has taken a parting shot at Nato allies as he travels to Mar a Lago for the weekend.
He also suggested Japan and China should get involved as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz affects them most.
In brief comments on the UK, Trump also suggested that he has not changed his views on its role in the war following its earlier decision to allow US forces to use its bases against Iranian military assets targeting the Strait of Hormuz.
“They should have acted a lot faster,” Trump said.
Fuels for Ireland chief executive Kevin McPartlan has said his members will pass on any cut in excise “as soon as it is possible”.
He warned, however, that fuel prices may keep rising as the wholesale price of diesel rose 15c per litre in the last 48 hours that’s before even including taxes and charges.
The Government said it will take action next week to ease the burden on motorists and hauliers.
Most believe that it will be way of a cut in excise on fuel. Currently the government takes 42 cents on every litre of diesel and 54 cents in excise duty on every litre of petrol.
Speaking on RTÉ News McPartlan said fuel that has already been delivered to forecourts under the old excise regime will still be sold at the old price.
New deliveries, which could come under a reduced excise rate, may take a few days to come through.
He denied his members, which represent the vast majority of petrol and diesel retailers in the State, were profiting from the rise in fuel prices.
Instead, he suggested that many were absorbing part of the increases themselves in recent days.
Sinn Féin TD, Glasgow-born Pearse Doherty has proposed the Mineral Oil Tax (Emergency Cost of Living Reduction) Bill 2026, which would introduce temporary reductions in fuel taxes for a six-month emergency period.
Under the bill, excise duty on home heating oil would be removed entirely, excise on petrol and diesel would be reduced by 25c per litre and excise on green diesel used by farmers would also be cut.
UK approves the use of US bases to free up Strait of Hormuz
The British government has approved the use of its bases for the US to launch strikes on Iranian sites targeting the Strait of Hormuz.
Downing Street had previously allowed American forces to use British bases for operations to prevent Iran firing missiles that put British interests or lives at risk.
Now, the British will allow the use of its bases for self-defence to target Iranian military assets being used to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed.
In a statement, a British government spokesman said: “They confirmed that the agreement for the US to use UK bases in the collective self-defence of the region includes US. defensive operations to degrade the missile sites and capabilities being used to attack ships in the Strait of Hormuz.”
They added that “ministers underlined the need for urgent de-escalation and a swift resolution to the war”.ls reluctant to discuss opening the Strait of Hormuz
Iranian officials have become reluctant to even discuss reopening the Strait of Hormuz as they focus on surviving the US-Israeli onslaught.
Energy infrastructure attacks and strikes on high-profile Iranian officials, including the killing of security chief Ali Larijani, mark an escalation that is slowing attempts to get commercial ships moving again, an anonymous source told Bloomberg.
In practical terms, that means the UK, France and others have lost momentum for their push to escort vessels through the strait once the war stops, with no end in sight to the violence.
The sentiment is shared across Europe and the Middle East, according to people familiar with the talks. Officials are losing confidence that the US and Israel have an exit plan and see deeper economic disruptions ahead.
The assessment is a troubling development for Europe, which is trying to simultaneously cut energy costs, rebuild its militaries and increase pressure on Russia to end its war in Ukraine. None of that works well if the Strait of Hormuz is crippling the economy.
“The real issue now is to assert Europe’s position in this increasingly challenging world and to ensure that we can keep pace, both in terms of our defence capabilities and our energy supply,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said Thursday. “All of this is only possible with a strong economy.”
An Iranian foreign ministry spokesman and Tehran’s embassy in London didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.