Mojtaba Khamenei released his first statement after becoming the new supreme leader of Iran after his father was killed. He didn't appear on camera and instead gave a written statement. Reports have come out suggesting that he was injured in the bombing that killed his father and large parts of his family. [1]
In the statement Khamenei described how he learned of his appointment to the position through state television and it surprised him as well. [2] He also stated that Iran would use the leverage of closing the strait of Hormuz and that Iran will keep attacking it's Gulf neighbours while also calling on the Gulf countries to shut down their U.S bases promising that US protection is just a lie. [1]
Hezbollah and Iran coordinated missile attacks with Hezbollah lobbing about 100 rockets into northern Israel while at the same time Iran sent longer range missiles into central Israel. [3] [4]
After Trump suggested to tanker operators to "show some guts" and sail through the Strait of Hormuz a US/Greek owned tanker attempted to try and was hit with explosive remote controlled boats and is now on fire within the Strait.
Karoline Leavitt the White House Press Secretary called on ABC news to retract a story they published yesterday which disseminated a bulletin by the FBI to law enforcement agencies in California after they had gotten unverified reports that Iran could be planning an attack with Drones on California. [9]
Leavitt called the story misleading because the information in the bulletin was unverified even though ABC news stated that within the article. She stated “TO BE CLEAR: No such threat from Iran to our homeland exists, and it never did.” [9]
An American KC-135 refuelling aircraft crashed in friendly airspace over western Iraq with two aircraft being involved in the incident, the other landing safely. The crash was not a result of hostile or friendly fire but was instead due to a midair collision between two planes. [10] [12] The plane had 6 crew members onboard when it went down. [12]
A gunman armed with a rifle rammed a vehicle into the doors of the Temple Israel synagogue one of the largest reform synagogue in the country. The vehicle drove through the doors and into a hallway where it caught fire leaving the gunman dead of unknown causes. A security guard was injured with minor injuries and is expect to recover. after engaging in gunfire with the attacker. [7] [8]
The gunman was a Lebanon born naturalized U.S. Citizen, he came to the U.S. in 2011 on an immediate relative visa as the spouse of a U.S. citizen and was granted U.S. citizenship in 2016. Four of his family members were killed in an Israeli airstrike on Lebanon just days prior according to a local official in Mashgharah. [11]
The U.S. eased sanctions on countries purchasing Russian oil already loaded in shippers at sea (roughly 100 million barrels) in an attempt to curb the sky rocketing gas prices from the Iran conflict. Scott Bessent the US Treasury Secretary said the temporary waiver would last until 11 April and applied only to "permit countries". [13]
The Trump administration began launching trade investigations into multiple countries in an attempt to solidify Trump's tariffs after they were struck down in the supreme court. The list of countries being investigated did not include Canada but did include both the European Union and Mexico.
The Trump administration is attempting to use Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to launch these investigations after already using Section 122 to implement a 10 percent worldwide tariff which notably did not include goods compliant with CUSMA as well as Section 232 to impose sweeping tariffs on classic manufacturing industries like steel aluminium and automobiles.
If the investigations are fruitful and find that a trading partner’s policies are unreasonable and discriminatory. it will provide the Trump administration with new powers to further impose more tariffs on the affected countries.
The head of the agency conducting the investigation is Jamieson Greer a Trump appointee who served both during the first and second Trump terms. Greer has in the past stated that trade deficits are a huge problem and that a universal tariff is something that should be studied and considered. [6]
1: Iran’s new supreme leader calls for retaliation for every death in first public statement.
2: Iran supreme leader’s first purported message leaves a major question unanswered
3: What we know about Iran and Hezbollah’s joint attacks on Israel
5: Canada not a target for Trump administration’s new tariff investigations
6: Trump's trade chief nominee Greer says universal tariff needs more study
7: Armed man rammed vehicle into Michigan synagogue and was fatally shot by security, AP source says
8: Suspected attacker dead after vehicle rams into Detroit-area synagogue
10: Loss of U.S. KC-135 Over Iraq
11: Man in Michigan synagogue attack lost family members in Israeli airstrike in Lebanon, official says
12: US military says a refueling aircraft went down in Iraq, rescue efforts are underway
13: US eases Russia oil sanctions as Iran war pushes up energy prices