What's corroborated

Lufthansa is canceling 20,000 flights.

The main issues at the meeting are expected to be competitiveness and the consequences for the EU of the situation in the Middle East, especially related to energy prices.

In connection with the meeting, the Prime Minister will also participate in a working lunch with heads of state and government from Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, and Syria.

EU heads of state and government will meet informally in the European Council on April 23-24 in Nicosia, Cyprus.

Norway, alongside Spain and Ireland, recognised the State of Palestine in 2024.

Trump raised the issue again during a White House meeting earlier this month with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Norway has pushed back against criticism from US President Donald Trump over what he described as 'zero' European support in the conflict with Iran.

Donald Trump wrote about the attack on Truth Social.

ISW emphasizes that this does not necessarily imply a formal takeover of power.

The think tank concludes that the politicians the U.S. has negotiated with may have lacked real influence, and that the actual power instead lay with the Revolutionary Guard's military leadership.

According to ISW, this contributed to the talks being broken off and the delegation being called home, indicating that Iran's negotiators lacked full mandate to make decisive decisions.

During recent talks in Islamabad, the military leadership is reported to have tried to place a security representative in the Iranian delegation to monitor the negotiations.

ISW points out that Ahmad Vahidi and people close to him have also had direct influence over Iran's negotiations with the U.S., a responsibility that normally lies with civilian politicians.

According to a new analysis from the U.S.-based think tank Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the explanation may be that power has temporarily concentrated in the leadership of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The next day, the Revolutionary Guard's navy issued a contrary decision and announced that no ships, regardless of nationality, are allowed to pass.

According to ISW, they have gained decisive influence over both Iran's military actions and the country's negotiation line towards the U.S. within about 48 hours.

The think tank specifically points out IRGC chief General Ahmad Vahidi and his inner circle.

Statements from Iran's foreign ministry have been quickly contradicted by military actions, including regarding shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's actions in recent days have raised questions about who actually makes decisions in the country.

Munir was not always an obvious international statesman, say experts.

US presidents have long preferred dealing with Pakistan’s military leaders rather than their democratically elected ones.

Analysts have emphasised that it is not unusual for Pakistan’s army chief – an unelected, yet overwhelmingly powerful position – to shape the country’s foreign policy and to be the face of foreign engagements, even when civilian governments are supposedly in charge.

When the US and Iranian delegations met in Islamabad on Saturday, Munir was the third party in the room.

Trump is said to have directly leaned on Munir to use his influence and knowledge of the Iranians to help reach the off-ramp.

Munir’s phone calls led the frantic international efforts last week, which resulted in a last-minute ceasefire agreement after Trump’s threat that Iran’s civilisation would 'die' if they did not agree to a deal.

It is widely acknowledged that the negotiations have been coordinated from Rawalpindi, the seat of the army, rather than Islamabad, the seat of the parliament.

Pakistan’s army chief was one of the few able to get the US and Iranian leadership on the phone, passing along messages as a trusted intermediary to both sides.

Pakistan has emerged as an unlikely diplomatic broker between Iran and the US.

On Wednesday night, the army chief arrived in Tehran with a new proposal from Washington of a framework for a fresh round of talks in Islamabad next week.

Munir rushed to Tehran in what many saw as a last-ditch attempt to revive Pakistan’s efforts to mediate an end to the war between the US and Iran.

Munir was dressed in full army fatigues.

Field Marshal Asim Munir walked straight into the warm embrace of Iran’s foreign minister and chief negotiator, Abbas Araghchi, upon stepping off a plane on Wednesday evening.

ICRC said 200 generators and 100 motor pumps purchased locally had been donated to the Iranian Red Crescent Society (IRCS) to support relief and rescue operations.

A total of 14 trucks had been dispatched from its warehouse in Jordan, carrying vital household items sufficient to meet the needs of nearly 25,090 people, including blankets, mattresses, jerrycans, kitchen sets, tarpaulins and solar lamps.

A shipment of life-saving medical supplies and other aid has crossed the border into Iran, its first delivery since the start of the war.

The IFRC had sent trauma kits designed to provide immediate, life-saving care.

The operation is critical as humanitarian supply chains into Iran have been severely disrupted in recent weeks due to the conflict, making it increasingly difficult and more costly for essential medical and relief items to reach those in need.

The truck convoy set off from the Turkish capital Ankara on Friday.

The shipment of medical supplies and other aid entered the country on Sunday.

The war has caused lasting damage to infrastructure in half a dozen Middle Eastern countries.

Six weeks ago, Liat Zvi's central neighborhood in Tel Aviv was among locations where Tehran delivered its response to US-Israeli attacks.

Liat Zvi's apartment in Tel Aviv has blown-out windows and cracked walls.

Netanyahu's opponents say he has failed to realize any of his war goals.

Netanyahu has since spoken of 'huge achievements' and insisted Israel continues to change the face of the Middle East.

A survey published mid-March by the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI) showed 93% of Jews supporting the war on Iran compared to 26% of Arabs.

In a poll published at the start of the conflict by the Institute of National Security Studies (INSS), a majority of the Arab public (61%) said they wanted a ceasefire as soon as possible.

New polling by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem points to war-weariness among Israelis.

Pollsters spoke to 1,312 Israelis (1,084 Jews, 228 Arabs) on 9 and 10 April who are representative of the public.

'Despair' was the word a third of respondents chose to describe their current emotion, followed by 'confusion' and 'anger', with 'hope' fourth.

The vast majority surveyed believed neither Iran nor Hezbollah in Lebanon had been severely weakened by recent US and Israeli bombardment.