Iran threatens response without full implementation' of US deal
thehill.com

... Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf has warned of an Iranian response if the U.S. and Israel breach the interim peace deal, as Tehran prepares to bury its former supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"We strongly demand full implementation of the agreements, and if the U.S. and the Zionist regime fail to fulfill their commitments, Iran will resume proportionate actions," Qalibaf said Friday, according to the semiofficial Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), during a meeting with Belarusian lawmaker Igor Sergeyenko.

Qalibaf and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi have been the lead Iranian negotiators in high-level talks with the U.S. to finalize an agreement that would permanently end hostilities in the region, fully reopen the critical Strait of Hormuz and resolve outstanding issues on Tehran's nuclear program, among other objectives.

The renewed tension comes after the U.S. and Iran exchanged fire in the Persian Gulf last week in the first flare-up of fighting since the 60-day memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed.

President Trump threatened late last weekend to "militarily complete the job" following suspected Iranian drone attacks on vessels attempting to transit the oil corridor. The U.S. military responded with retaliatory strikes on Iranian missile and drone storage sites and coastal radar locations. ...

The Race to Rescue 8,000 Sailors Still Stranded Behind Hormuz
www.insurancejournal.com

... At anchor in the Persian Gulf, Abhijit Chopra found out about the US-Iran peace deal when his phone lit up with messages from family and friends. The captain of a crude oil tanker, he had to temper his excitement. There were no signs of celebration from nearby vessels, and no ships making haste towards the Strait of Hormuz.

Chopra and his 21-strong crew have been trapped since the war began in late February. At the beginning, they struggled with fear and uncertainty, which ebbed into boredom and a constant battle not to let negative thoughts set in. For more than 120 days they have waited, dining together and bonding by singing old Hindi songs at karaoke. In early March, Chopra and his crew -- all of whom were Indian, aside from one Ukrainian -- celebrated Holi, a major Hindu festival, onboard the tanker. They painted each other's foreheads with turmeric powder taken from their kitchen.

Signs that the strait might reopen came and went. That's why this time, Chopra didn't overreact. "When they said the Strait of Hormuz was open, we were a bit optimistic that the vessel might transit," he said.

But when there was fresh news of attacks on tankers, they realized they were going to be stuck a bit longer. "There was a little bit of disappointment," he said. ...