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US and Iran agree 2-week ceasefire that will open Strait of Hormuz
The US and Iran have agreed to a two-week ceasefire that would open the Strait of Hormuz, in the first diplomatic breakthrough to end a conflict that has triggered a global energy crisis. The ceasefire was announced late on Tuesday shortly before the latest deadline Donald Trump had set Tehran to reopen the strait, a vital waterway for oil and gas supplies, or face strikes that the US president had warned would destroy “a whole civilization”. In a Truth Social post announcing the agreement, Trump said that a 10-point plan from Iran was a “workable basis” for negotiations. Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed that Tehran would allow two weeks of “safe passage” through the waterway while negotiations on a permanent deal began. The agreement sparked a relief rally in global markets on Wednesday, with European stocks up almost 4 per cent. Oil prices fell sharply, with Brent crude down 13 per cent at under $95 a barrel. Financial Times, April 8

‘Iran to charge fees for strait passage’
The two-week ceasefire plan allows both Iran and Oman to charge fees for ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a regional official involved in negotiations said. The strait is in the territorial waters of both countries. Before the war the passage was considered an international waterway and there were no tolls. An official told the Associated Press that Iran would use the money for reconstruction after American and Israeli strikes inflicted widespread damage. Tehran charging money for access to the strait will likely be a controversial condition during negotiations for a permanent end to the war. The Times, April 8

Israeli army renews strikes on southern Lebanon after US-Iran truce agreement
The Israeli military renewed its strikes on southern Lebanon on Wednesday, state media reported, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted the US-Iran ceasefire agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz did not include Lebanon. French President Emmanuel Macron has called for Lebanon’s inclusion in the truce deal. France 24, April 8

Keir Starmer heads to Gulf after US and Iran agree two-week ceasefire
Keir Starmer is travelling to the Gulf to meet leaders in the region to discuss diplomatic efforts to support the ceasefire agreed between the US and Iran. The UK prime minister’s visit on Wednesday comes hours after a two-week ceasefire was agreed on Tuesday evening, cancelling a self-imposed deadline by the US president, Donald Trump, for Iran to surrender or face widespread destruction. Starmer said on Wednesday: “I welcome the ceasefire agreement reached overnight, which will bring a moment of relief to the region and the world. Together with our partners we must do all we can to support and sustain this ceasefire, turn it into a lasting agreement and reopen the strait of Hormuz.” Downing Street said the prime minister would discuss diplomatic efforts to support and uphold the ceasefire to bring a “lasting resolution” to the conflict, and protect the UK and global economy, which has squeezed consumers and countries around the world. The Guardian, April 8

JD Vance backs Orbán's re-election bid in Budapest visit and hits out at EU
Five days before Hungarians vote in elections that could bring down Viktor Orbán after 16 years in office, US Vice-President JD Vance has intervened in the campaign to give the Hungarian prime minister a ringing endorsement, while delivering another blistering attack on the EU. Standing beside Orbán, Vance said he was in Budapest "to help him in this campaign cycle" although he conceded the US would "work with whoever wins this election". Orbán's main rival Péter Magyar is well ahead in most opinion polls. The veteran prime minister is a key European ally of the Trump administration, as well as being Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest partner in the EU. After winning four elections in a row since 2010, Orbán faces the toughest challenge in a political career going back almost 40 years … Following talks with Orbán, Vance launched a bitter attack on the European Union and Ukraine. He accused the EU of "one of the worst examples of foreign election interference that I have ever seen or ever even read about … because they hate this guy". Vance added that "part of the reason" for his visit was because "interference that's come from the bureaucracy in Brussels has been truly disgraceful". BBC news, April 7

Russian military hackers reroute British internet users’ traffic
An elite unit of Russian military cyber hackers has been observed breaking into routers that are commonly used in the UK, allowing them to covertly reroute users’ internet traffic through malicious servers under their control, the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre has warned. The NCSC said on Tuesday that Russian state cyber group APT28, a unit of Russian military intelligence, has exploited vulnerable internet routers to enable domain name system hijacking operations, giving the attackers the ability to intercept traffic and steal passwords, and access tokens from personal web and email services. The security group named two providers of networking devices, TP-Link and MikroTik, as being vulnerable to this method. Paul Chichester, NCSC director of operations, said the findings “demonstrate how exploited vulnerabilities in widely used network devices” can be used by sophisticated cyber hackers, and urged companies and individuals to make sure they protect themselves. Financial Times, April 7

Israel warns Iranians their lives will be at risk if they use trains as Trump deadline looms
Israel has warned Iranians their lives will be at risk if they use the country’s railways on Tuesday before the end of a negotiations deadline imposed by Donald Trump with a threat to destroy Iran’s bridges and power plants. Israel’s military, writing in Farsi, said in a social media post that “from this moment” - 8.50am Iran time - until 9pm, Iranians should refrain from “travelling by train throughout Iran” for the sake of their own security. “Your presence on trains and near railway lines endangers your life,” the statement continued in a clear warning that stations and tracks normally used by civilians could be bombed on Tuesday. The threat came hours before an ultimatum set by the US president expires at 8pm ET on Tuesday - 4.30am on Wednesday in Iran (1am UK time) - in an attempt to force major concessions from Iran with the threat of escalation. At a White House press conference on Monday, Trump said Iran “can be taken out in one night and that night might be tomorrow”, reiterating threats to bomb its power plants and bridges in a concentrated attack. The Guardian, April 7

US counts cost of equipment destroyed in Iran war
Donald Trump’s war against Iran is costing the US hundreds of millions of dollars a day - and about a tenth of that is the price of military equipment destroyed in the fighting, according to recent analysis. US losses of soldiers and materiel are light by the standards of wars in which the two sides are more evenly matched, defence experts say, but Iran’s destruction of costly US radar systems has left Washington more vulnerable in the event of future conflicts in other theatres such as China. There have been 13 American deaths in strikes on US bases since February 28. More than 300 American soldiers have been wounded. Elaine McCusker, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a former senior Pentagon budget official, estimates the cost of the campaign against Iran at $22.3bn to $31bn over the five weeks since Trump ordered US forces to attack in late February. Financial Times, April 7

Donald Trump says US could destroy Iran ‘in one night’ as he demands opening of Strait of Hormuz
Donald Trump warned Iran that it could be “taken out in one night”, escalating his threats against Tehran as he demanded it reopen the Strait of Hormuz as part of any last-minute deal to halt the war. The US president made the comments at the White House on Monday, ahead of his own deadline of 8pm Eastern time on Tuesday for Iran to agree a deal with Washington or face new attacks on civilian infrastructure including bridges and power plants. “The entire country can be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night,” Trump told reporters in the White House. The president warned that the US had a plan “where every bridge in Iran will be decimated” and “every power plant in Iran will be out of business, burning, exploding and never to be used again” within hours of his deadline passing. He also said that passage through the Strait of Hormuz - which has been restricted since the US and Israel launched the war - was a “very big priority” and should be part of any ceasefire deal. Financial Times, April 7

JD Vance visits Viktor Orban ahead of Hungary's high-stakes parliamentary elections
US Vice President JD Vance flew to Hungary on Monday night to deliver Donald Trump's support to his ally, nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, ahead of tightly contested parliamentary elections. "We'll talk about any number of things related to the US-Hungary relationship," Vance told the press as he departed from Andrews Air Force Base outside of Washington. "Obviously, I'm sure Europe and Ukraine and all the other stuff will figure in pretty prominently." Vance is scheduled to meet with Orban and also deliver a speech on "the rich partnership between the United States and Hungary", according to a statement from his office … Orban, 62, has been in power for 16 years and is close to Moscow. According to analysts, he has benefited from covert Russian assistance to boost his chances of reelection. Polls by independent institutes predict a sweeping victory for the Tisza party led by pro-European conservative Peter Magyar. France 24, April 7

UK: interest on student loans to be capped at 6%
Interest on student loans will be capped at 6 per cent, ministers have announced, as they brace for the economic fallout from the Iran war. The Department for Education said “graduates will not pay the price for a war which the UK has no direct involvement in” amid rising bills and price spikes. Ministers said the cap would ensure no Plan 2 or Plan 3 borrower faced an interest rate above 6 per cent during the 2026-27 academic year. Graduates with Plan 2 loans currently pay interest of between Retail Price Index and RPI plus 3 per cent depending on their earnings. Current students on Plan 2 and Plan 3 attract a rate of RPI plus 3 per cent while studying. RPI currently stands at 3.2 per cent, putting the uncapped maximum at 6.2 per cent. Baroness Jacqui Smith, the skills minister, said: “We know that the conflict in the Middle East is causing anxiety at home, and while the risk of global shocks is beyond our control, protecting people here is not.” The Times, April 7

Artemis II crew head for home after travelling further from Earth than anyone before
Four astronauts on Nasa's Artemis II mission are on their way back home after a dramatic lunar fly-by that saw them travel further from Earth than any other humans. The crew lost contact with the Earth, as expected, for 40 minutes as they travelled behind the Moon. With communications re-established, astronaut Christina Koch said: "It's so great to hear the Earth again." Soon afterwards the spacecraft dipped to within a few thousand miles of the lunar surface and the crew witnessed a total eclipse of the Sun as the Moon blocked out its light. BBC news, April 7