Latest News
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Shipping data shows that a tanker loaded with Iraqi crude oil passes through Hormuz.
Data from LSEG/Kpler showed that an oil 'tanker' loaded with Iraqi crude was seen transiting the Strait of Hormuz near the Iranian coast a few days after Iran announced Iraq was exempted from any restrictions on transiting this vital -sea route. Kpler data shows that the Ocean Thunder loaded approximately 1 million barrels of Basrah heavy crude on March 2. It is expected to "discharge" its cargo in Pengerang, Malaysia by mid-April. Iran closed the Strait after U.S. airstrikes and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February escalated a conflict. Later, it said that vessels without U.S. and Israeli connections would be allowed to pass through the strait. In recent days, three Omani tankers, as well as a French-owned container vessel?and a Japanese owned?gas carrier?have crossed.
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Leaders say that explosives were found near a gas pipeline in Serbia that supplies Hungary.
Leaders from Serbia and Hungary said that explosives of "devastating power" were discovered near the Turkstream pipeline in Serbia, which carries Russian gas to Hungary. Hungarian Prime Minster Viktor Orban claimed that Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic had told him explosives were found near the pipeline transporting Russian gas from the Balkans into Central and Eastern Europe. Vucic, an ally close to Orban, wrote on Instagram that "our units found explosives of devastating power." "I told Orban, the?PM that we would keep you updated on this investigation." Orban, after a phone call with Vucic on Sunday, announced in a post on Facebook that he called an "extraordinary defence council meeting". The incident occurs a week ahead of the pivotal election on April 12, where Orban, a nationalist, is fighting to maintain his 16-year hold on power. His party trails in polls the opposition Tisza Party. Orban had increased security around the energy infrastructure of?the nation in February. He raised the stakes for?the elections by saying that it was a matter of choosing between war and peace. Budapest is also embroiled in a dispute with Ukraine due to a halt in oil deliveries via the Druzhba Pipeline. Orban's Fidesz has tried to link?opposition leader Peter Magyar with Brussels and Ukraine by suggesting that voting for his Tisza Party means voting for war and tanks. (Reporting and writing by Krisztina than; editing by Hugh Lawson, Helen Popper, and Edward McAllister)
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After drone attacks, a fuel reservoir was hit in Primorsk. The NORSI refinery is on fire.
Russian authorities reported that a drone attack caused fuel to leak at the port of Primorsk in Russia's Baltic Sea, and an oil refinery called?NORSI? caught fire after a drone strike. Ukraine intensified its attacks against Russian energy infrastructure over the last month to damage Russia's main source of revenue, and undermine its military power. Alexander Drozdenko, the governor of Leningrad's north-western?region, initially claimed that a pipeline had been damaged in Primorsk. Primorsk is one of Russia’s major oil exporting ports. Later, he said on Telegram that the pipeline wasn't damaged but the fuel reservoir near the port was leaking when it was struck by shrapnel. U.S. commercial images of satellites taken by on Thursday showed that the drone attack in Ukraine last month destroyed at least 40% of Primorsk's storage facilities, which are capable of handling 1 million barrels of oil per day. Around 40% of Russia's ability to export oil was shut down last month due to the attacks and the closing of the Druzhba Pipeline in Ukraine. Also, tankers with a Russian connection were seized. OIL REFINERY ON FIRE Gleb Nikitin (the Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Region) said on Telegram on Sunday that a fire broke out at Russia's NORSI Oil Refinery, the fourth largest in the country, after a drone strike. He added that two facilities were also?hit. According to initial information, a "power station" and "several houses" were damaged in the attack. However, no one was injured. NORSI can process up to 16 million metric tons of oil a year or 320,000 barrels a day. Andrey Kravchenko is the mayor of Novorossiysk, Russia's biggest?port along the Black Sea. He said that an air alert had been triggered due to the drone attack threat. During such alerts, oil loadings are typically suspended, including at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal that handles Kazakhstan's oil exports. Kevin Buckland, Hugh Lawson and Kevin Buckland edited the report.
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Sheriff's Office: Vehicle crashes into Louisiana crowd injuring 15 at least
Law enforcement officials reported that a car slammed into crowd in New Iberia (Louisiana) on Saturday. Some of the injuries were critical. Rebecca Melancon, spokesperson for the Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office, said that a suspect was arrested and an investigation is?ongoing' following the incident. The incident occurred near a celebration of 'Lao New Year'. She said it was not clear whether the incident in the car was intentional. Acadian Ambulance announced on social media that it transported 13 people to hospital. The ambulance service posted on X that two of the 13 people were airlifted. The Louisiana Lao New Year Festival organizers announced on Facebook that they were canceling Saturday night's concerts as well as the alcohol sales. The organizers posted on Facebook: "We're?deeply saddened" by the news about the?incident that occurred near the festival grounds. "We are pleading for the?victims and their families in this difficult time." This three-day festival, held every Easter weekend, includes live music and a parade as well as other activities celebrating the Lao new year. Noel Randewich reported from San Francisco, Sergio Non edited by Matthew Lewis and Matthew Lewis.
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Chelsea tries to turn the corner after Port Vale's 7-0 FA Cup defeat
Chelsea is hoping Saturday's 7-1 thrashing over Port Vale, in the FA Cup quarterfinals, will?draw a line under the dismal.run of form and the internal turmoil that threatened to?ruin their season. Chelsea's coach Liam Rosenior announced on Friday that Enzo Fernandez, the club's vice captain and record-breaking signing, would be suspended from playing for two matches after suggesting he may leave. Chelsea has been in a state of crisis ever since they were beaten 8-2 on aggregate by European champions Paris St Germain in the Champions League and suffered domestic league losses to?Newcastle United & Everton in a fraught 10-day period in March. The goal-fest on Saturday, despite being against Port Vale who are likely to be relegated into the fourth division of English football in the near future, at least brought smiles to Chelsea's fans and players. Rosenior said to reporters that "when you 'go through a difficult time, like we did during that 10-day period... you come out stronger, and you know what you want to fix," he explained. Rosenior said that the recent international break, and the big win on Saturday could help lift his mood after he had been thrown into a busy?schedule in January when Enzo Maresca unexpectedly left Stamford Bridge. Rosenior stated, "I have a group who believe as I do that we can still have an outstanding year in terms winning the FA Cup and qualifying for Champions League." Rosenior, when asked about Fernandez’s reaction to the suspension of his player, said that it was "brilliant", to see him in attendance at Saturday’s match. Next Sunday, in the Premier League, Chelsea will face a tougher test. They will host Manchester City in second place. Both teams will be chasing the table-toppers Arsenal. Fernandez is still absent. Chelsea hadn't scored a goal in more than 300 minutes in any competition before Saturday, but the Dutch defender Jorrel hato put them in front after Port Vale failed to clear a set-piece. Brazil striker Joao Peter misled his marker with an ingenious dummy, before making it to 2-0. The Blues went 3-0 ahead before the half when Port Vale’s Jordan Lawrence Gabriel deflected Cole Palmer's shot into his own goal. Tosin Adarabioyo, Andrey Santos and Tosin Adarabioyo scored goals with their heads in the eighth minute. Brazil's Estevao then reacted quickly to an Alejandro Garnacho effort that had hit the post. The rout was halted by a late Garnacho penalty. Port Vale's fans, despite the fact that they failed to score a single goal in the game, took over Stamford Bridge's Shed End. (Writing and editing by Andrew Cawthorne; William Schomberg)
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Kenya fuel executives resign as state probes supply chain irregularities
The office of President William Ruto announced on Saturday that senior executives in Kenya's Energy Sector resigned after being accused of manipulating fuel stock data and procuring a 'emergency cargo' at inflated prices. Ruto accepted Mohamed Liban's resignation as principal secretary for Petroleum. The Kenya Pipeline Company also confirmed that Joe Sang had resigned from his position as managing director. According to the?statement, Daniel Kiptoo Bargoria has also resigned as director general of the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority. It said that a formal investigation was launched into alleged irregularities within?Kenya’s petroleum supply chain. The government claimed that the manipulated data had been used to 'justify' the importation of fuel despite existing contracts with Saudi Aramco Trading Fujairah Ltd., Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC Global Trading Ltd. and Emirates National Oil Company Singapore Ltd. All of these companies are fulfilling their contractual obligations. The emergency shipment, it claimed, was overpriced and of poor quality. It also claimed that the rates were significantly higher than what had been agreed in existing agreements. The statement stated that "this appears to have been done in order to exploit rising global prices and public anxieties, thus creating a false impression of an impending shortage." Fuel?supply issues linked to the Iran conflict have affected the global energy market. The statement stated that administrative action was taken against other officials, and?arrests were made by investigative agencies'. The arrestees were not identified. No charges have been filed. Reporting by Humphrey Malolo; Writing by Isaac Anyaogu; Editing by Bate and Ali Williams.
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Australians are advised to stick to Easter travel despite the fact that hundreds of petrol stations are dry
The fuel shortage in Australia was exacerbated by the Iran war, which left hundreds of petrol stations, mostly rural, without power on Saturday. Chris Bowen, Energy Minister, said on tv that Easter is a time of family and faith. "We encourage everyone to stick to their plans, visit your family and take a vacation, but don't buy more fuel than they need." Australia, which imports about 90% of its fuels, is experiencing localised shortages due to the Middle East conflict, which began its sixth week this Saturday. Some have cancelled their travel plans due to the escalating Middle East conflict. The long holiday weekend is one of Australia's most popular travel times. Bowen said that the nation is able to supply 39 days worth of petrol and 29 days worth of diesel, as well as 30 days worth of jet fuel. Bowen stated that the majority of affected stations were located in rural areas because it was more difficult to replenish the fuel stocks. In a rare speech to the nation this week, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese warned that the economic'shocks' of the Middle East war would last for many months. He also encouraged people to use public transportation. (Reporting from Sydney by Sam McKeith; Editing by William Mallard).
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Official: Ukraine's attack on Zaporizhzhia cuts off power in parts of the region held by Russia
A Ukrainian military attack on Friday cut off power to Russian-held areas of the Zaporizhzhia region. Emergency crews are working to restore it. There are power outages at some locations in the southern part Zaporizhzhia Region. Yevgeny Belitsky, Russia's appointed governor of Russian controlled areas in?the region said on Telegram that repair work was underway to restore the power. The outages are due to an enemy attack on the energy infrastructure of the?region. Ukrainian media outlets posted video clips showing what they claimed was an attack on an underground substation in Melitopol. The footage showed a large fireball rising over an industrial area. Zaporizhzhia was one of the four Ukrainian'regions' that Moscow annexed by 2022. This happened seven months after its full-scale invasion against its smaller neighbor. Russian forces control just a little more than 70% of the two southern regions Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson. Ukrainian officials claim that Kyiv has retaken some of the regions in recent weeks. Reporting by Ron Popeski, Oleksandr Kozoukhar and Mark Porter
Australians cancel Easter Travel as fuel crisis worries grow
Elsa Ulcak, a Sydney retiree, is among the millions of Australians who travel over the long Easter weekend.
She cancelled the trip she had planned with her husband this year because she couldn't justify how much fuel it would use.
Ulcak, aged 67, said: "We usually travel to the countryside but, because of the current petrol price, we have decided to stay home this year."
She said that a long trip is expensive and uses fuel which could be used for people in greater need.
It's expensive to drive six or seven hours to the country. We also need to consider that working people require petrol and we are retired.
"We normally go with a bunch of friends. Everyone cancelled."
In Australia, the Easter long weekend tends to be one of the busiest times for travel. According to Roy Morgan, in 2025 more than 4.5 millions people were expected to travel during the Easter long weekend, spending A$11.1billion ($7.67billion) on their trip.
The blockade of Strait of Hormuz and the Iran War, which began on February 28, have disrupted many plans for this year.
Diesel and petrol were both over A$2.50 per litre last week, before the government reduced fuel taxes in an effort to bring down prices.
Rachel Abbott, 27, a art director has also put her plans to travel this Easter on hold.
She would normally go back to her home in north-east Victoria but the costs of flying and driving made her decide to stay in Sydney.
She said, "Work has been very busy, flights are expensive and driving would be even more expensive."
Stav Zottilis, 59 years old, is an aid worker who said that her plans for Easter were not affected by the Middle East conflict. However, this year, "it feels very different" because of the conflict.
"I'm not sure that we should celebrate. It's like the world has a shaky feel, it is unpredictable. "I feel like we have no idea where the world is going.
She said that while she has felt the pressure of rising prices at the supermarket and petrol stations, she is more concerned for those living in conflict zones.
"I have been an overseas aid worker since 25 years and lived in Asia for fourteen years. I know that people who live nearer the conflict must forgo food. She said that it was not just a matter of going interstate or along the coast like many Australians. Reporting by Christine Chen in Sydney and Cordelia Husu; editing by Kim Coghill.
(source: Reuters)