SEOUL, April 6 (Reuters) - North Korea appears to be distancing itself from longtime partner Iran and carefully managing its public messaging to preserve the possibility of a new relationship with the U.S. after the Iran war, South Korean lawmakers said on Monday, citing the spy agency.
(This story contains strong language in paragraph 7)
WASHINGTON/CAIRO, April 6 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump threatened to rain "hell" on Tehran if it did not make a deal and reopen the Strait of Hormuz by his Tuesday deadline, as he praised U.S. special forces who rescued an airman in a high-risk mission from deep inside Iran.
SEOUL, April 6 (Reuters) - South Korea must accept a degree of risk in importing crude oil from the Middle East amid blockages of the Strait of Hormuz, President Lee Jae Myung said on Monday.
"There are not many alternative routes, and if shipments are cut off altogether because of heightened risk, it could have a serious impact on South Korea's crude supply and pose a major risk to the public, so we need to strike a balance and accept a certain degree of risk," Lee said in a cabinet meeting.
For generations, a Saudi oasis town has been a favoured spot for stressed visitors from the nearby capital Riyadh to come and decompress.
But the serenity in Saudi Arabia's Al-Kharj has been rattled after it found itself in the line of fire from Iranian attacks.
Renowned for its dates and palm-lined streets, the town also lies on the edge of the sprawling Prince Sultan Air Base.
At a roadside cafe in downtown Cairo, Abu Ali was mid domino throw when the lights snapped off under new early-closing orders enacted to curb Egypt's soaring energy bill due to the US-Israel war on Iran.
"I used to stay here until 2:00 am," the 63-year-old told AFP, tapping his tiles as the street went dark.
"Now I'm home by 11 at most, just watching the news. This is not the Cairo we know."
April 5 (Reuters) - The U.S., Iran and a group of regional mediators are discussing the terms for a potential 45-day ceasefire that could lead to a permanent end to the war, Axios reported on Sunday, citing four U.S., Israeli and regional sources with knowledge of the talks.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report. The White House and the U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.
NEW YORK, April 5 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump and other U.S. officials cast the rescue of a U.S. airman in Iran as an “Easter miracle” on Sunday, framing the operation in religious terms that portrayed the war as a just cause and divinely blessed.
In the past, administrations typically issued postcard-style Easter greetings, and critics said officials' messages this time had blurred the line between faith and policy by invoking religion to justify the war and shape the military’s conduct.
By Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali and Humeyra Pamuk
WASHINGTON, April 5 (Reuters) - The rescue had unfolded with near‑perfect precision. Under cover of darkness, U.S. commandos slipped deep into Iran, undetected, scaled a 7,000‑foot ridge and pulled a stranded American weapons specialist to safety, moving him toward a secret rendezvous point before dawn on Sunday.
Then everything stopped.
Lebanese Christians marked Easter Sunday by turning their prayers to the south, where villages remain trapped by fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
This year's celebrations were dedicated to "people in the south," said Jenny Yazbek al‑Jamal, as she left mass at a church in Beirut's northern suburb of Jdeideh.
With family living in the region, the 55-year-old said she feels like "one of them".
It is not only Christian villages suffering in this war added al-Jamal, who leads the parish choir.
By Phil Stewart and Menna AlaaElDin
WASHINGTON/CAIRO, April 5 (Reuters) - U.S. special forces rescued an airman in a high-risk mission deep inside Iran while President Donald Trump threatened to rain "hell" on Tehran if it did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday for oil flows vital to the world economy.
Trump announced the rescue in the early hours of Sunday in a social media post that described the operation in a mountainous area as "one of the most daring" such missions in U.S. history.
