{"id":12031,"date":"2026-04-19T03:11:16","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T03:11:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/04\/19\/trump-news-at-a-glance-president-struggles-to-reopen-strait-as-iran-rejects-us-blockade-the-guardian\/"},"modified":"2026-04-19T03:11:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T03:11:16","slug":"trump-news-at-a-glance-president-struggles-to-reopen-strait-as-iran-rejects-us-blockade-the-guardian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpinitiate.com\/echo-test\/demo973e36f5\/2026\/04\/19\/trump-news-at-a-glance-president-struggles-to-reopen-strait-as-iran-rejects-us-blockade-the-guardian\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump news at a glance: president struggles to reopen strait as Iran rejects US blockade – The Guardian"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Donald Trump hopes of extricating himself from his war on Iran were dealt another blow on Saturday after Tehran closed the strait of Hormuz again after the president said the US would not end its blockade of Iranian ports.<\/p>\n

Earlier, Trump said in a social media post: \u201cThe naval blockade will remain in full force and effect as it pertains to Iran, only, until such time as our transaction with Iran is 100% complete,\u201d adding that \u201cthis process should go very quickly\u201d.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Tehran reversed course on opening the waterway vital to oil shipments<\/a>, and a UK maritime agency reported that Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ships had fired at a tanker as it attempted to pass through the strait on Saturday. Reuters reported separately that an Indian-flagged vessel carrying crude oil had also been attacked while in the waterway.<\/p>\n

Trump reportedly convened a White House Situation Room meeting on Saturday morning to discuss the renewed crisis around the strait of Hormuz and negotiations with Iran, according to reporting from Axios. A senior US official said that unless there is a breakthrough in peace talks, it appears that the war could reopen within days.<\/p>\n

It marks a swift turnaround from the previous day. In a barrage of social media posts, Donald Trump claimed on Friday that Iran had agreed never to close the strategic waterway again, hailing \u201cA GREAT AND BRILLIANT DAY FOR THE WORLD!\u201d<\/p>\n

He later said that \u201cPresident Xi is very happy that the strait of Hormuz is open and\/or rapidly opening\u201d, and suggested it augured well for their upcoming summit in China.<\/p>\n

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Two weeks that pushed Trump to the edge. Is his presidency unravelling?<\/h2>\n

Lance Johnson voted for Donald Trump three times. Now he is feeling buyer\u2019s remorse, writes David Smith. \u201cI haven\u2019t been too happy with the third time around,\u201d said the 47-year-old contractor, sitting at a bar in Crescent Springs, Kentucky. \u201cWe\u2019re supposed to not start any new wars. Prices were supposed to come down. We were promised a lot of things and we\u2019re not getting them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read the full story<\/sub><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Jon Ossoff calls out \u2018Mar-a-Lago mafia\u2019 amid presidential bid rumors<\/h2>\n

Democratic senator Jon Ossoff mocked Donald Trump<\/a>\u2019s rosy predictions on Iran and tore into what he called the unprecedented corruption of the president\u2019s family at a campaign rally in Augusta, Georgia.<\/p>\n

While Ossoff is running for re-election in November, he trained most of his fire on the president, and the vice-president, amid mounting speculation that the Democrat could launch a bid for his party\u2019s nomination for the presidency in 2028.<\/p>\n

The senator began his remarks<\/a> by making fun of the paltry turnout<\/a> for an event headlined by JD Vance on Tuesday, and then argued that Trump\u2019s decision to attack Iran would be paid for by young Americans deployed to the Middle East and cuts to services for their families back home.<\/p>\n

Read the full story<\/sub><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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FBI\u2019s Kash Patel denies excess drinking amid officials\u2019 US security concerns<\/h2>\n

The FBI director, Kash Patel, is denying allegations detailed in a new report<\/a> that he drinks to excess and has been unreachable at times during his tenure in office. Patel threatened to sue the Atlantic over the story published on Friday, which detailed his alleged heavy drinking and how members of his security detail have on multiple occasions had difficulty waking him.<\/p>\n

Read the full story<\/sub><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Trump announces reforms to accelerate access to psychedelic drug treatments<\/h2>\n

Donald Trump on Saturday announced reforms intended to speed up access to medical research and treatment based on psychedelic drugs. The president signed an executive order directing the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to expedite review of drugs such as ibogaine, which US military veteran groups have said can help treat post-traumatic stress disorder.<\/p>\n

Read the full story<\/sub><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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ICE deported 174 Daca recipients through most of last year, agency head says in letter<\/h2>\n

From January to September 2025, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE<\/a>) deported 174 people who were renewing their protections from deportation under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca) program, the head of the agency has said in a letter reviewed by the Guardian.<\/p>\n

Read the full story<\/sub><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Catching up? Here\u2019s what happened on 17 April 2026<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n