- Trump deadline passes -

The deadline set by US President Donald Trump for a naval blockade of Iranian ports has passed.

The US military announced Sunday it will begin blockading all Iranian Gulf ports on Monday at 1400 GMT, but will allow ships not coming or going to Iran to pass through the strait.

- Pakistan: truce 'holding' -

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said a ceasefire between the United States and Iran was "holding" and that efforts were underway to reach an agreement after weekend talks failed to do so.

"The ceasefire is still holding and, as I speak, full efforts are underway to resolve the outstanding issues," Sharif told a cabinet meeting in brief televised remarks.

- Qatar urges US, Iran mediation -

Qatar's foreign minister told his Iranian counterpart that Iran and the United States should engage positively with mediation efforts.

In a call with Abbas Araghchi, Qatari Foreign Minister and Premier Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani "emphasised the need to open maritime routes, guarantee freedom of navigation, and refrain from using them as a tool for pressure or bargaining".

- Hormuz blockade questioned -

The head of the UN maritime agency said no country had a legal right to block shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, a trade passage paralysed by the US-Iran war.

"In accordance to international law, no countries have the right to prohibit the right of innocent passage or the freedom of navigation through international straits that are used for international transit," the International Maritime Organization's Secretary General Arsenio Dominguez told a news conference.

- Russia pulls atomic staff -

Russia has withdrawn almost all its staff from Iran's sole nuclear power plant, built and operated with help from Moscow, the head of Russia's atomic energy agency said.

"We began the final rotation at the Bushehr station," Rosatom's Alexei Likhachev said, adding that 108 people were evacuated while just 20 -- top managers and those responsible for equipment safety -- remained at the station.

- French-UK conference -

France and Britain will co-host a conference this week involving more than 40 nations to discuss a multinational mission to restore shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, the leaders of both countries said on X.

- Israel backs blockade -

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu voiced his support for US President Donald Trump's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, which is focused on Iranian ports.

Netanyahu added that his government was in full coordination with Washington on the matter.

- Iran slams blockade -

Iran's military said the mooted US naval blockade was illegal and amounts to "piracy", warning that no Gulf ports would be safe if its own were threatened.

Since the war against it began at the end of February, Iran has imposed control over the Strait of Hormuz and said ships from non-hostile countries wanting to use it need to pay Tehran a toll.

- China urges 'unimpeded' navigation -

China, which is reliant on energy supplies coming through the strait, called for "unimpeded" navigation through the waterway.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun also dismissed US accusations that Beijing intended to supply weapons to Iran as "baseless smears", after Trump threatened 50 percent tariffs on Chinese goods over the issue.

- Oil prices up -

Oil prices surged and stock markets broadly fell as investors digested the failure of weekend US-Iran peace talks and Trump's blockade order.

Both Brent North Sea Crude -- the international benchmark -- and West Texas Intermediate contracts jumped to more than $100 a barrel.

- Russia's uranium offer -

Russia said it would be ready to take in Iran's enriched uranium as part of any US-Iranian peace deal.

"This proposal was voiced by President (Vladimir) Putin in contacts with both the United States and regional states. The offer still stands, but has not been acted upon," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

- Pope won't 'debate' Trump -

Pope Leo XIV said he had "no intention to debate" with Trump, after the US president criticised him over his comments on the war.

After the pope made a plea for peace, Trump said he was "not a big fan" of the pontiff, calling him "very liberal".

- Lebanon town surrounded -

The Israeli military said its troops had surrounded the key town of Bint Jbeil in southern Lebanon and begun an assault on it, after killing more than 100 fighters from the Iran-backed Hezbollah group over the past week.

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