Iran

Axios - Pakistani, Egyptian and Turkish mediators will continue talks with the U.S. and Iran in the coming days in an effort to bridge the remaining gaps and reach a deal to end the war, Axios' Barak Ravid reports. All parties still believe a deal is possible. The mediators hope that narrowing the gaps could enable another round of negotiations before the ceasefire expires on April 21.

A regional source told us: "We are not in a complete deadlock. The door is not closed yet. Both sides are bargaining. It's a bazaar."

• A U.S. official added that a deal could be reached if Iran shows more flexibility and recognizes that the Islamabad proposal is the best it will get.

President Trump is considering resuming strikes if a U.S. naval blockade doesn't make Iran change course, sources said.

• Targets could include infrastructure he threatened to attack before the ceasefire was announced.
• The blockade, like the U.S. decision to walk away from the talks in Pakistan, is part of the ongoing negotiations, a U.S. official said.

... The main gaps during the 21-hour negotiations between the U.S. and Iran in Pakistan focused on the nuclear issue.

• One was U.S. demands that Iran freeze uranium enrichment and surrender its stockpile.
• The amount of frozen money Iran wants the U.S. to release in return for its nuclear concessions, sources said.

NPR -  Iran is using the Strait of Hormuz's closure to its advantage, frustrating Trump and pushing global oil prices higher, NPR’s Greg Myre tells Up First. While some oil still flows from Iran, the country charges foreign ships up to $2 million to pass through the crucial waterway. The Trump administration's blockade doesn't improve prospects for potential peace talks. Myre says Trump appears to hope the increased pressure will force Iran to make concessions, while Iran seems to feel it is in a pretty strong negotiating position, as it has withstood weeks of heavy U.S. and Israeli bombing.

The Guardian - More than 32 million people worldwide could be plunged into poverty by the economic fallout from the Iran war, with developing countries expected to be hit hardest. In a report issued amid doubts over a fragile ceasefire, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said the world was facing a “triple shock” involving energy, food and weaker economic growth.

The Guardian - World leaders have been reacting to Donald Trump’s earlier declaration that the US Navy would start blockading the Hormuz strait and also prohibit every vessel in international waters that had paid a toll to Iran. UK prime minister Keir Starmer was adamant that the UK does not support the blockade and that “we are not getting dragged into the war”. Meanwhile, Ursula ⁠⁠von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said that restoration ⁠⁠of freedom of navigation in the strait of ⁠⁠Hormuz is of “paramount” importance....

The US military has sent a note to seafarers warning that the blockade east of the strait of Hormuz will apply to all vessel traffic, regardless of flag, Reuters reports.

....“Any vessel entering or departing the blockaded area without authorization is subject to interception, diversion, and capture,” the note said. “The blockade will not impede neutral transit passage through the strait of Hormuz to or from non-Iranian destinations.”