Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday night said talks with the United States were making progress with Pakistan’s “gracious effort,” while cautioning Washington against being drawn into further escalation amid a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz.

The statement comes after US and Iran launched new attacks in the Gulf on Monday as they wrestled for control over the Strait of Hormuz with duelling maritime blockades, shaking a fragile truce.

US President Donald Trump launched a new effort to get stranded tankers and other ships through the strait, the vital energy-trade chokepoint that has been virtually closed since the US and Israel began attacks on Iran in February, a war that has killed thousands of people across the region.

Trump gave scant details about his new effort, which he called “Project Freedom,” to help stuck ships travel through the strait when he announced it on social media, two days after a legal deadline under US law had passed for him to get authorisation from Congress for the war. Trump told Congress the war was “terminated” and the deadline was moot, a claim disputed by some lawmakers.

It was the first apparent attempt to use military force since last month’s ceasefire announcement to unblock the world’s most important energy shipping route, which Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has said can only happen with its permission.

The cost of shipping insurance has also rocketed. For weeks, the US Navy has blockaded Iran’s trade by sea, which Iran says is itself an act of war.

But Trump’s latest move, at least initially, appeared to have backfired, bringing no surge of merchant ship traffic while provoking a promised show of force from Iran, which has threatened to respond to any escalation with new attacks on its neighbours hosting US soldiers. Major shipping companies said they were likely to wait for an agreed end to hostilities before trying to cross the strait.

Meanwhile, Iranian FM Araghchi said Monday’s events showed there was no military solution to the crisis. He said peace talks were progressing with Pakistan’s mediation while warning the US and the UAE against being drawn into a “quagmire by ill-wishers.”

Criticising the US initiative aimed at escorting vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, Araghchi said: “Project Freedom is Project Deadlock.”

Nonetheless, the US military said two US merchant ships made it through the strait, without saying when, with the support of Navy guided-missile destroyers. While Iran denied any crossings had taken place in recent hours, Maersk said the Alliance Fairfax, a US-flagged ship, exited the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz accompanied by the US military on Monday.

The commander of U.S. forces in the region said his fleet had destroyed six small Iranian boats, which Iran also denied. Admiral Brad Cooper said he “strongly advised” Iranian forces to keep clear of U.S. military assets carrying out the mission.

Iranian authorities released a map of what they said was an expanded sea area now under their control, extending far beyond the strait to include long stretches of the UAE’s coastline.

‘Dialogue and diplomacy’

A day earlier, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held a telephonic conversation with his Iranian counterpart, during which both sides discussed the evolving regional situation and Pakistan’s ongoing diplomatic efforts.

According to the Foreign Office, Araghchi appreciated Pakistan’s constructive role and mediation efforts, while Dar reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to promoting dialogue and engagement.

He stressed that diplomacy remained the only viable path to achieving lasting peace and stability.

Negotiations between Washington and Tehran have remained stalled since a ceasefire took effect on April 8, with tensions centred on Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz following US-Israeli strikes. The move has disrupted global flows of oil, gas and fertiliser, while the United States has responded by imposing a counter-blockade on Iranian ports.

Pakistan has emerged as a key intermediary in efforts to revive dialogue, hosting high-level engagements between the two sides in Islamabad last month, though a second round of talks has yet to materialise.

School bullies in Singapore face caning under new guidelines, but the education minister said on Tuesday it would be meted out only as a last resort with strict safeguards.

Human rights groups regularly criticise Singapore for the use of corporal punishment, which remains part of both the school system and criminal justice, but authorities have defended it as a deterrent to crime and serious misconduct.

Caning was discussed in parliament on Tuesday after legislators asked how it would be used in relation to bullying in schools.

The debate followed stricter guidelines against serious student misconduct, including bullying, unveiled by the education ministry last month.

Under the guidelines, offenders could face between one and three strokes of the cane.

“Our schools use caning as a disciplinary measure if all the other measures are inadequate, given the gravity of the misconduct,” Education Minister Desmond Lee said Tuesday.

“They follow strict protocols to ensure safety for the student. For instance, caning must be approved by the principal and administered only by authorised teachers,” he said.

“Schools will consider factors such as the maturity of the student and if caning will help the student learn from his mistake and understand the gravity of what he has done.”

The punishment is given only to boys, per “the Criminal Procedure Code, which states that women shall not be punished with caning”, Lee said.

Caning in Singapore is a legacy from British colonial rule, but Britain has long abolished corporal punishment.

After the caning is meted out, the school will “monitor the student’s wellbeing and progress”, including providing counselling, Lee said.

According to a World Health Organisation (WHO) report last year “there is now overwhelming scientific evidence that corporal punishment of children carries multiple risks of harm and has no benefits”.

• Iran dismisses US escort plan as counterproductive initiative.
• Dar reiterates diplomacy as only path forward.
• Tehran reviews US response via Pakistani mediators.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday night said talks with the United States were making progress with Pakistan’s “gracious effort,” while cautioning Washington against being drawn into further escalation amid a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz.

The statement comes after US and Iran launched new attacks in the Gulf on Monday as they wrestled for control over the Strait of Hormuz with duelling maritime blockades, shaking a fragile truce.

US President Donald Trump launched a new effort to get stranded tankers and other ships through the strait, the vital energy-trade chokepoint that has been virtually closed since the US and Israel began attacks on Iran in February, a war that has killed thousands of people across the region.

Trump gave scant details about his new effort, which he called “Project Freedom,” to help stuck ships travel through the strait when he announced it on social media, two days after a legal deadline under US law had passed for him to get authorisation from Congress for the war. Trump told Congress the war was “terminated” and the deadline was moot, a claim disputed by some lawmakers.

It was the first apparent attempt to use military force since last month’s ceasefire announcement to unblock the world’s most important energy shipping route, which Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has said can only happen with its permission.

The cost of shipping insurance has also rocketed. For weeks, the US Navy has blockaded Iran’s trade by sea, which Iran says is itself an act of war.

But Trump’s latest move, at least initially, appeared to have backfired, bringing no surge of merchant ship traffic while provoking a promised show of force from Iran, which has threatened to respond to any escalation with new attacks on its neighbours hosting US soldiers. Major shipping companies said they were likely to wait for an agreed end to hostilities before trying to cross the strait.

Meanwhile, Iranian FM Araghchi said Monday’s events showed there was no military solution to the crisis. He said peace talks were progressing with Pakistan’s mediation while warning the US and the UAE against being drawn into a “quagmire by ill-wishers.”

Criticising the US initiative aimed at escorting vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, Araghchi said: “Project Freedom is Project Deadlock.”

Nonetheless, the US military said two US merchant ships made it through the strait, without saying when, with the support of Navy guided-missile destroyers. While Iran denied any crossings had taken place in recent hours, Maersk said the Alliance Fairfax, a US-flagged ship, exited the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz accompanied by the US military on Monday.

The commander of U.S. forces in the region said his fleet had destroyed six small Iranian boats, which Iran also denied. Admiral Brad Cooper said he “strongly advised” Iranian forces to keep clear of U.S. military assets carrying out the mission.

Iranian authorities released a map of what they said was an expanded sea area now under their control, extending far beyond the strait to include long stretches of the UAE’s coastline.

‘Dialogue and diplomacy’

A day earlier, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held a telephonic conversation with his Iranian counterpart, during which both sides discussed the evolving regional situation and Pakistan’s ongoing diplomatic efforts.

According to the Foreign Office, Araghchi appreciated Pakistan’s constructive role and mediation efforts, while Dar reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to promoting dialogue and engagement.

He stressed that diplomacy remained the only viable path to achieving lasting peace and stability.

Negotiations between Washington and Tehran have remained stalled since a ceasefire took effect on April 8, with tensions centred on Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz following US-Israeli strikes. The move has disrupted global flows of oil, gas and fertiliser, while the United States has responded by imposing a counter-blockade on Iranian ports.

Pakistan has emerged as a key intermediary in efforts to revive dialogue, hosting high-level engagements between the two sides in Islamabad last month, though a second round of talks has yet to materialise.

— With additional input from Reuters