The head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol, told The Guardian that the global oil crisis triggered by the Iran war has permanently altered the fossil fuel industry.

Birol stated the crisis has shattered trust in fossil fuels, predicting a significant boost to renewables and nuclear power as countries revise their energy strategies.

The structural shift coincides with severe logistical paralysis; the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has stranded cargo ships, costing shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd an extra $50 million weekly.

The blockade has also devastated Iraq's economy, dropping its March oil production to just 1.62 million barrels per day and prompting warnings of a 2026 economic recession.

Meanwhile, India has compensated for the Middle East supply shortage by doubling its imports of Russian crude oil to 1.98 million barrels per day in March.

The U.S. State Department issued a stern warning to Baghdad through Kurdistan24, demanding the immediate disbandment of Iran-affiliated militias.

Spokesperson Tommy Pigott stated that the Iraqi government's failure to prevent attacks on U.S. interests, combined with elements within the government providing operational cover for the militias, adversely impacts bilateral relations.

The demand coincides with intense U.S. financial pressure, including the blocking of a $500 million cash shipment of Iraqi oil revenues to Baghdad.

Iran-aligned groups, including Kata'ib Hezbollah, have responded by threatening U.S. diplomatic facilities and warning neighboring countries like Kuwait. 

Simultaneously, the U.S. has sanctioned seven militia commanders and offered a $10 million reward for the leader of Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada.

The escalating security crisis is paralyzing Iraq's government formation, drawing direct diplomatic intervention from Iranian Quds Force Commander Esmail Qaani as factions struggle to name a prime minister.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is scheduled to return to Pakistan on Sunday to resume mediated peace talks, according to Iranian media.

The return follows a diplomatic stall on Saturday when U.S. President Donald Trump canceled his envoys' trip to Islamabad, citing an initially poor negotiating position from Tehran before noting Iran submitted a revised proposal minutes later.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Pakistan's Prime Minister that Tehran will not negotiate under the pressure of the U.S. naval blockade.

The diplomatic friction occurs alongside severe regional fallout: Iran's military warned of a strong response if the U.S. continues blockading its ports, while the U.S. Navy attempts to clear mines from the closed Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, a fragile ceasefire in Lebanon wavered as Israel launched deadly airstrikes in the south following rocket fire from Hezbollah.

 U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday Iran submitted a revised proposal shortly after he cancelled a planned trip by U.S. envoys to Pakistan, while Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reaffirmed Islamabad’s commitment to facilitating dialogue.

Explaining his decision to halt the visit by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump said the initial proposal from Tehran did not meet expectations.

“The Iranians gave us a paper that should have been better, and interestingly, the minute I cancelled it, within 10 minutes, we got a new paper that was much better…they offered a lot but not enough,” Trump said.

U.S. President Donald Trump has cancelled a planned trip by senior envoys to Pakistan for talks with Iranian officials, saying Washington will not continue in-person negotiations without tangible progress.

Speaking to Fox News on Saturday, Trump said he personally halted the travel plans of special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner as they were preparing to depart.

“I've told my people a little while ago they were getting ready to leave, and I said, ‘Nope, you're not making an 18 hour flight to go there. We have all the cards. They can call us anytime they want, but you're not going to be making any more 18 hour flights to sit around talking about nothing’,” Trump said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi departed Islamabad on Saturday after a series of high-level meetings with Pakistani officials, as diplomatic efforts to advance peace talks with the United States remain unresolved.

Araghchi had arrived in the Pakistani capital a day earlier for consultations focused on ongoing negotiations tied to the conflict involving Iran, the United States, and Israel. 

During his visit, Araghchi met with Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif. The meeting was also attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, as well as Chief of Army Staff and Chief of Defence Forces Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir, according to details released in Islamabad on Saturday.

Iranian leadership issued a coordinated series of declarations on Saturday asserting military control over the Strait of Hormuz while simultaneously reopening civilian airspace.

The head of the judiciary and defense officials dismissed U.S. ceasefire proposals as a sign of enemy desperation, warning that Iran's armed forces are prepared to inflict severe damage if the U.S. continues its maritime blockades.

The defiant rhetoric coincides with indirect peace negotiations in Islamabad involving U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner.

Despite projecting a unified wartime posture against a massive U.S. naval deployment, Tehran moved toward administrative normalization by resuming Iran Air flights to multiple foreign destinations, reopening the eastern airspace to international overflights, and inaugurating a multi-purpose underground civil defense shelter in the capital.

On Saturday, senior Hezbollah official Mahmoud Qamati rejected US-mediated direct negotiations between Lebanon and Israel, labeling them an illegal recognition of the Israeli state.

In an exclusive statement to Kurdistan24, Qamati warned of a foreign plot to incite a Lebanese civil war and asserted that Hezbollah’s weapons remain a domestic issue not subject to foreign interference.

The rejection followed US President Donald Trump’s Friday announcement extending a fragile bilateral ceasefire by three weeks.

Trump stated the Washington meetings, attended by key US, Israeli, and Lebanese officials, aimed to help Lebanon protect its sovereignty against Hezbollah.

The diplomatic friction occurs amid severe regional warfare; Hezbollah officially entered the conflict on March 2, 2026, following the assassination of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, resulting in over 850 combined missile and drone attacks against Israel throughout March alone.

U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have arrived in Islamabad for a new round of peace negotiations with Iran, though direct bilateral meetings remain unlikely. Iranian officials stated that Pakistan will serve as an intermediary to convey messages between the delegations.

The diplomatic push occurs amid a fragile ceasefire and significant economic disruptions caused by Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. In response to energy market volatility, President Trump extended a Jones Act waiver to facilitate oil shipments.

Concurrently, the U.S. military maintains a strict blockade on Iranian ports, with three aircraft carriers now deployed to the region. Despite an extended ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, violence continued with deadly Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon.

Divisions within Iran's leadership and the notable absence of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio continue to complicate the negotiation process.