Foreign

David Lynch, legendary filmmaker, dies at 78

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1 year ago

January 17, 2025

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David Lynch, the filmmaker celebrated for his uniquely dark and dreamlike vision in such movies as “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive” and the TV series “Twin Peaks,” has died just days before his 79th birthday.

His family announced the death in a Facebook post on Thursday.

“There’s a big hole in the world now that he’s no longer with us. But, as he would say, ‘Keep your eye on the donut and not on the hole,’” the family’s post read. “It’s a beautiful day with golden sunshine and blue skies all the way.”

The cause of death and location was not immediately available. Last summer, Lynch had revealed to Sight and Sound that he was diagnosed with emphysema and would not be leaving his home because of fears of contracting the coronavirus or “even a cold.”

“I’ve gotten emphysema from smoking for so long and so I’m homebound whether I like it or not,” Lynch said, adding he didn’t expect to make another film.

“I would try to do it remotely, if it comes to it,” Lynch said. “I wouldn’t like that so much.”

Lynch was a onetime painter who broke through in the 1970s with the surreal “Eraserhead” and rarely failed to startle and inspire audiences, peers and critics in the following decades. His notable releases ranged from the neo-noir “Mulholland Drive” to the skewed gothic of “Blue Velvet” to the eclectic and eccentric “Twin Peaks,” which won three Golden Globes, two Emmys and even a Grammy for its theme music. Pauline Kael, the film critic, called Lynch “the first populist surrealist — a Frank Capra of dream logic.”

“‘Blue Velvet,’ ‘Mulholland Drive’ and ‘Elephant Man’ defined him as a singular, visionary dreamer who directed films that felt handmade,” director Steven Spielberg said in a statement. Spielberg noted that he had cast Lynch as director John Ford, one of his early influences, in his 2022 film “The Fabelmans.”

“It was surreal and seemed like a scene out of one of David’s own movies,” Spielberg said. “The world is going to miss such an original and unique voice.”

“Lynchian” became a style of its own, yet one that ultimately belonged only to him. Lynch’s films pulled disturbing surrealistic mysteries and unsettling noir nightmares out of ordinary life. In the opening scenes of “Blue Velvet,” among suburban homes and picket fences, an investigator finds a severed ear lying in a manicured lawn.

Steven Soderbergh, who told The Associated Press on Thursday that he was a proud owner of two end tables crafted by Lynch (his numerous hobbies included furniture design), called “Elephant Man” a perfect film.

“He’s one of those filmmakers who was influential but impossible to imitate. People would try but he had one kind of algorithm that worked for him and you attempted to recreate it at your peril,” Soderbergh told the AP. “As non-linear and illogical as they often seemed, they were clearly highly organized in his mind.”

Lynch never won a competitive Academy Award. He received nominations for directing “The Elephant Man,” “Blue Velvet” and “Mulholland Drive” and, in 2019, was presented an honorary Oscar for lifetime achievement.

“To the Academy and everyone who helped me along the way, thanks,” he said at the time, in characteristically off-beat remarks. “You have a very nice face. Good night.”

His other credits included the crime story “Wild at Heart,” winner of the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival; the biographical drama “The Elephant Man” and the G-rated, aptly straightforward “The Straight Story.” Actors regularly appearing in his movies included Kyle McLachlan, Laura Dern, Naomi Watts and Richard Farnsworth.

Lynch was a Missoula, Montana, native who moved around often with his family as a child and would long feel most at home away from the classroom, free to explore his fascination with the world. Lynch’s mother was a English teacher and his father a research scientist with the U.S. Agriculture Department. He was raised in the Pacific Northwest before the family settled in Virginia. Lynch’s childhood was by all accounts free of trauma. He praised his parents as “loving” and “fair” in his memoir, though he also recalled formative memories that shaped his sensibility.

One day near his family’s Pacific Northwest home, Lynch recalled seeing a beautiful, naked woman emerge from the woods bloodied and weeping.

“I saw a lot of strange things happen in the woods,” Lynch told Rolling Stone. “And it just seemed to me that people only told you 10% of what they knew and it was up to you to discover the other 90%.”

He had an early gift for visual arts and a passion for travel and discovery. He dropped out of several colleges before enrolling in the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, beginning of a decade-long apprenticeship as a maker of short movies. He was working as a printmaker in 1966 when he made his first film, a four-minute short named “Six Men Getting Sick (Six Times).” That and other worked landed Lynch a place at the then-nascent American Film Institute.

There he began working on what would become his 1977 feature debut, “Eraserhead.”

“David’s always had a cheerful disposition and sunny personality, but he’s always been attracted to dark things,” a childhood friend is quoted as saying in “Room to Dream,” a 2018 book by Lynch and Kristine McKenna. That’s one of the mysteries of David.”

Aside from furniture making and painting, Lynch was a coffee maker, composer, sculptor and cartoonist. He exuded a Zen peacefulness that he attributed to Transcendental Meditation, which his David Lynch Foundation promoted. In the 2017 short film “What Did Jack Do?” he played a detective interrogating a monkey.

Lynch was himself a singular presence, almost as beguiling and deadpan as his own films. For years, he posted videos of daily weather reports from Southern California. When asked for analysis of his films, Lynch typically demurred.

“I like things that leave some room to dream,” he told the New York Times in 1995. “A lot of mysteries are sewn up at the end, and that kills the dream.”

Foreign

US says ships exiting Hormuz, ‘expectation’ of no Iran tolls

Published

5 hours ago

June 16, 2026

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US President Donald Trump said on Monday that oil tankers are again exiting the Strait of Hormuz, following a peace deal, but uncertainty persisted over whether Iran will keep imposing tolls on ships in the vital waterway.

Mediator Pakistan announced on Sunday that the United States and Iran had agreed to an “immediate and permanent termination” of military operations, but the text of their peace deal has yet to be released.

The deal is expected to be signed on Friday in Switzerland and be followed by further “technical” talks on a long-term agreement.

Trump said that with the signing, the Strait of Hormuz — a vital waterway for Gulf energy exports — would be reopened and a US naval blockade of Iran would be lifted.

On Monday, while flying to a G7 summit in France, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that “ships are starting to move, many loaded up with Oil, out of the Strait of Hormuz.”

“They are going along the Southern ‘Highway,’ which is totally safe, secure, and pristine,” he wrote, apparently referring to a shipping route nearer to Oman in the narrow waterway.

Trump said last week that the US military had secretly helped more than 200 commercial ships carrying over 100 million barrels of oil pass through the Strait of Hormuz since May.

“There are other areas of travel, also!!!” he posted Monday, without further details.

Iran, in response to the US-Israeli strikes that began on February 28, effectively halted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

Closure of the strait, which normally carries around a fifth of global oil and gas exports, caused energy prices to spike around the world.

Iran later moved to set up a payment system for transiting ships.

– Toll-free? –

US Vice President JD Vance was asked on CNBC Monday morning if there was an understanding with Iran that the strait would reopen toll-free for just an initial period of 60 days or indefinitely under the deal.

“Our expectation is that the strait is going to be opened in a toll-free way for the long term, and that’s the sort of thing that we’re going to figure out in these technical negotiations,” he said.

Iran’s foreign ministry meanwhile said on Monday that the deal would allow it to charge maritime service fees on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, rather than imposing “tolls.”

Uncertainty also surrounds other key aspects of the deal, including Iran’s access to its frozen funds and relief from international and US sanctions.

Vance did not give specifics on the terms of the relief Monday, but emphasized that it would be dependent on a “verification process.”

“We say to the Iranians, you are welcome to have access to an unsanctioned economy, you’re welcome to be reinvited into the world economy, but only if you honor the commitments that you make in this agreement.”

“You don’t have access to the money to rebuild that nuclear program,” Vance said, “but if you’re willing to give up that program long term, if you’re willing to accept the inspections and verification regime that’s necessary to give us the confidence you’re never going to have a nuclear weapon, then we want you to be a prosperous country, and we will reinvite you into the community of nations.”

Asked who would be representing the United States at the signing ceremony, Vance said there will be a “full spectrum of representatives.”

Foreign

Iran Agrees US Peace Deal, To Reopen Strait Of Hormuz

Published

1 day ago

June 15, 2026

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Iran has indicated its willingness to forgo the pursuit of nuclear weapons and reopen the strategically important Strait of Hormuz as part of a proposed peace framework reportedly being negotiated with the United States.

The development emerged on Sunday amid growing optimism that months of heightened tensions and conflict between the two countries could move toward a diplomatic resolution, although officials on both sides have cautioned that negotiations are still ongoing and a final agreement has not yet been concluded.

According to reports, the draft framework under discussion would see Iran commit to refraining from producing or acquiring nuclear weapons while reopening the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping. In return, the United States would release approximately $25 billion in frozen Iranian assets, ease certain sanctions, and suspend the imposition of new sanctions during a negotiation period aimed at reaching a broader agreement.

The proposed arrangement has attracted global attention because of the significance of the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes. The waterway serves as a critical passage for global energy supplies, with disruptions in the area often triggering concerns in international oil markets. Shipping activity through the strait has reportedly been affected by recent hostilities, contributing to uncertainty in global energy and financial markets.

Sources familiar with the negotiations said the draft agreement would establish a 60-day framework for further talks between Washington and Tehran. During that period, both countries would work toward a more comprehensive settlement covering Iran’s nuclear programme, sanctions relief, and broader regional security issues.

Under the reported terms, Iran would maintain the current status of its nuclear activities pending a final agreement, while discussions continue on the future of uranium enrichment and other aspects of its nuclear programme. The United States, on the other hand, would temporarily ease some economic restrictions and facilitate the release of frozen Iranian funds.

Diplomatic efforts to finalize the framework have reportedly involved mediators from Qatar and Pakistan, both of whom have played active roles in encouraging dialogue between the two sides. Discussions are said to be focused on creating conditions that could reduce tensions and prevent a return to military confrontation.

Despite the optimism surrounding the negotiations, uncertainty remains. Iranian officials have stated that no final decision has been reached regarding a formal signing ceremony, while previous statements from U.S. officials suggesting an imminent agreement have sometimes been met with caution from Tehran.

The diplomatic developments come against the backdrop of continued instability in the Middle East. Fresh military actions involving regional actors have underscored the fragile nature of the situation and highlighted the challenges facing negotiators as they seek to transform a tentative framework into a lasting agreement.

If finalized, the proposed deal would mark one of the most significant diplomatic breakthroughs between Washington and Tehran in years, potentially easing tensions in the Gulf region, restoring confidence in international energy markets, and opening the door to broader negotiations on long-standing disputes between the two countries.

Foreign

Hormuz to reopen on Sunday after US-Iran sign deal-Trump

Published

2 days ago

June 14, 2026

Austin Ojomah

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US President Donald Trump said that a deal with Iran to end the war in the Middle East could be signed on Sunday, and that the strategic Strait of Hormuz would be “open to all” immediately after.

Iran had offered a different timeline earlier in the day, but nonetheless signalled an agreement was in the offing, as both the warring parties and their mediators expressed increasing optimism that weeks of halting negotiations were drawing to a close.

The leader of key mediator Pakistan said a deal was closer “than ever before”.

The “finalisation” of this agreement is expected “within the next 24 hours”, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said Saturday on X, adding that it will be signed electronically, without going into further detail or specifying what this would involve.

He said “technical level talks” are expected to follow next week.

The momentum came in spite of fresh skirmishes in the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran has blockaded since early in the war, throwing global markets into turmoil.

“The Deal is scheduled to get signed tomorrow, and immediately after it is signed, the Hormuz Strait is OPEN TO ALL,” a post on Trump’s official Truth Social platform read on Saturday.

Since an April 8 truce paused the worst of the fighting, Trump has repeatedly insisted a deal was imminent, only for the wrangling to drag on.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei had said earlier on Saturday that the date of the signing was yet to be determined, but “it will not be tomorrow”.

However, he added: “The possibility of this happening in the coming days cannot be ruled out.”

The warring parties have nonetheless released conflicting information about the contents of the deal, as each seeks to show it emerged from the war with the upper hand.

Tehran has insisted it will maintain control over the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime trade route for oil and gas shipments from the Gulf.

Since imposing its blockade, Iran has demanded that vessels obtain permission from its armed forces before transiting the waterway, and has established a new body to oversee it and collect tolls.

The US has responded with its own blockade of Iranian ports.

The US military’s Central Command said earlier Saturday Iran had “launched multiple one-way attack drones in an attempt to strike commercial ships transiting the Strait”.

It added that “US forces have downed all of them in recent hours”.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, in an interview with state television on Friday, had said the deal on the table called for the lifting of the US naval blockade.

“The administration of Strait of Hormuz will no longer be the same as before,” he added, calling the waterway one of Iran’s “main instruments of deterrence”.

The US has repeatedly said Iran remaining in control of the strait would be unacceptable, and Trump’s post made no mention of tolls or other arrangements.

– ‘Nuclear dust’ –

Another key sticking point in the talks has been the fate of Iran’s nuclear programme, particularly its stockpile of highly enriched uranium — believed to have been buried by US strikes last year during a previous short-lived war.

Iran has long insisted its nuclear programme is peaceful and that it has a right to enrichment, but the United States, Israel and other Western governments suspect it of seeking a bomb.

Araghchi on Friday said the only way to deal with Iran’s enriched uranium “is to dilute it inside Iran”.

Trump, who has justified the war as necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, previously said the US would remove and destroy the uranium.

In Saturday’s post, he said: “When all is calm, we will go in and get the Nuclear Dust… and downblend and destroy it, whether in Iran, or the United States.”

“Hopefully, this process will all work out quickly, easily, and smoothly,” he added. “If it doesn’t, we have the ultimate alternative, hopefully never to be used again!”

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel — which launched the war in tandem with the US in February — said Trump had promised him any agreement would include the removal of the enriched nuclear material.

In the streets of Tehran, there was scepticism that the latest agreement would cross the finish line.

“I don’t think there is any deal soon,” said Saeed Sadeghi, 49. “I don’t trust their word.”

Fars news agency shared a video from Iran’s northeastern city of Mashhad showing dozens protesting the deal outside a foreign ministry building on Saturday.

It showed women in black chadors chanting “death to dishonourable Araghchi, the infiltrator”, while waving red and black flags.