Foreign
Trump urges UK and other nations to send warships to Strait of Hormuz
Donald Trump has urged the UK and other nations to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz to help secure the key shipping route out of the Middle East.
The US president said he hoped China, France, Japan and South Korea would also send ships to the passage, where a number of tankers are said to have been attacked since the US and Israel mounted their war against Iran a fortnight ago.
Responding to Trump’s comments, the UK Ministry of Defence said it was discussing “a range of options to ensure the security of shipping in the region” with allies.
Tehran has said it will keep blocking the strait – the world’s busiest oil shipping channel through which about 20% of world oil supplies usually pass.
Its effective closure, as well as strikes on shipping and energy infrastructure since the war started, has led to a huge rise in global oil prices.
Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Saturday that “many countries” would be sending warships in conjunction with the US to help keep the strait “open and safe”.
He claimed “100% of Iran’s military capability” had already been destroyed, but that Tehran could still “send a drone or two, drop a mine, or deliver a close-range missile somewhere along, or in, this waterway”.
“Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others, that are affected by this artificial constraint will send ships to the area so that the Hormuz Strait will no longer be a threat by a nation that has been totally decapitated.”
He added: “In the meantime, the United States will be bombing the hell out of the shoreline, and continually shooting Iranian Boats and Ships out of the water. One way or the other, we will soon get the Hormuz Strait OPEN, SAFE, and FREE!”
Trump repeated his appeal in a post later on Saturday – extending it to all “the Countries of the World that receive Oil through the Hormuz Strait” – and said the US would provide “a lot” of support to those who participated.
The president has separately threatened to target Iran’s vital oil infrastructure on Kharg Island if its leadership were to “interfere” with ships seeking to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
He said the US had “obliterated” military targets on the small island off Iran’s coast on Friday, calling it “one of the most powerful bombing raids in the history of the Middle East”.
Iran’s military said oil and energy infrastructure belonging to firms working with the US would “immediately be destroyed” should the island’s oil infrastructure be attacked.
Tehran has been stepping up such attacks on energy targets in the Gulf, which have become a key element of its response to US and Israeli strikes. It warned on Thursday that any tanker bound for the US, Israel or its partners was a legitimate target.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said in its latest update on 12 March that 16 ships were reported to have been attacked in and around the strait since the war began on 28 February.
Currently, not even the US Navy is escorting tankers through the narrow shipping lane.
Trump’s message came a week after he said the US did not need the UK to send aircraft carriers to the region and accused Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer of seeking to “join wars after we’ve already won”.
He also told the BBC’s US partner CBS that he “couldn’t care less” whether allies could do more to assist with the war, adding: “It’s a little bit late to be sending ships, right? A little bit late.”
He had already criticised Sir Keir for not joining the initial strikes on Iran and refusing at first to allow the US to use UK bases for its joint offensive with Israel – calling him “no Winston Churchill”.
The prime minister later approved “defensive” US action on Iranian missile sites from RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, saying Iran’s response had become a threat to Britain.
The UK’s first and only warship set to be present in the region – the Type 45 destroyer HMS Dragon – departed for Cyprus on Tuesday, where it will bolster RAF Akrotiri after it was hit by drone strikes.
The Royal Navy used to keep minesweepers based in Bahrain, but no longer has that capability after it withdrew HMS Middleton.
Ministers have insisted the UK built up an RAF presence in the region before the conflict, with the aim of protecting British military personnel.
Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said on Saturday that Sir Keir must “rule out deploying British ships just because Trump tells him to”.
“Last week, Trump said he didn’t need Britain’s help because he’d already won this war. So we mustn’t let him push the UK around now. Any decision on the deployment of our armed forces should be made in the UK’s national interest and subject to a vote in Parliament.”
France’s President Emmanuel Macron has previously said he was willing to send warships to the Gulf as “purely an escort mission” – but only once the most “intense phase of the conflict” had ended.
Serbia’s President Aleksandar Vucic announced his resignation on Sunday, seven months before his tenure was originally scheduled to expire.
56-year-old Vucic ended his second and final five-year term amid campaigning for the October 25 snap parliamentary vote to elect 250 members of the National Assembly.
His departure sets the stage for early presidential elections and allows him to be appointed Prime Minister if the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) retains majority control of government.
“I have faithfully served you and my fatherland, Serbia. I am proud of what we have done together,” he told supporters at the Presidency building in Belgrade.
The populist politician, who previously served as Minister of Defence, said the first round of presidential elections will be held by the end of December.
Serbia’s constitution stipulates that the presidential election must be completed within 90 days, with the campaign lasting between 30 and 60 days.
Outgoing parliament Speaker Ana Brnabic will serve as acting President until her successor is elected. She was the Prime Minister from 2017 until 2024.
Factor Plus polling places public support for Vucic’s United Serbia, led by the SNS, at 49%. The youth-backed opposition challenger, known as the Student List, has about 37% popularity.
The movement stemmed from the “Students in Blockade” group after the collapse of the Novi Sad railway station canopy in November 2024, which sparked anti-corruption protests.
The group, which comprises academics, public figures, and professionals, gathered nearly 70,000 signatures and was proclaimed as number 3 on the ballot by the Electoral Commission.
At least 27 people have been killed and 26 others wounded in two separate mass shootings near South Africa’s two biggest cities, Johannesburg and Cape Town, triggering a police manhunt for the attackers.
The shootings occurred within hours of each other, adding to growing concern over gun violence and organised crime in the country.
In the first attack, eight gunmen armed with assault rifles and pistols stormed a tavern in Wedela township, about 80 kilometres southwest of Johannesburg, at around 9:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Police said the attackers opened fire on patrons drinking outside before moving into the tavern and continuing the shooting.
Seventeen people — 13 men and four women — were killed, while 15 others sustained gunshot injuries.
The suspects reportedly searched some patrons and took their mobile phones before fleeing in two vehicles, which they later set ablaze. No arrests had been made as of Sunday, according to police.
The motive for the Wedela attack remained unclear. However, police said preliminary information suggested it could have been linked to an earlier incident at the same tavern.
Deputy provincial police commissioner Major General Fred Kekana said investigators had obtained images of the suspects and were confident they would eventually be identified and arrested.
The shooting occurred in an area where authorities have been intensifying operations against illegal mining and criminal networks operating around abandoned mine shafts.
Second attack near Cape Town
Hours later, another mass shooting was reported in Lwandle township, near Cape Town.
Police said gunmen opened fire at an entertainment venue selling grilled meat at about 1:46 a.m. on Sunday, killing 10 people and injuring 11 others.
Five victims died at the scene, while five others succumbed to their injuries after being taken to medical facilities.
Police said detectives were searching for the perpetrators, with no arrests reported in connection with the attack.
Videos circulating on social media showed people drinking and dancing before gunfire erupted, sending revellers scrambling for safety.
Ramaphosa vows action
The two attacks came just days after another mass shooting near Durban in which 11 people, including a pregnant woman, were killed at a house party.
South Africa has long struggled with high levels of violent crime, with shootings frequently linked to gangs, organised criminal groups and disputes involving local businesses.
President Cyril Ramaphosa condemned the latest attacks and said security agencies would continue efforts to reduce violent crime.
“This cannot go on like this,” Ramaphosa said, stressing that people should not be able to pick up firearms and randomly shoot others.
South Africa has repeatedly deployed soldiers to support police operations in areas affected by serious violence and organised crime.
Despite those efforts, shootings remain a persistent security challenge.
The latest attacks have renewed questions about the availability of firearms, organised crime and the ability of security agencies to prevent repeated mass-casualty shootings.
Police investigations into both incidents are ongoing, and authorities are urging anyone with information about the attackers to come forward.
TikTok on Friday agreed to pay Alabama at least $100 million and enact time limits and other restrictions for teen users, avoiding trial with a settlement modelled on Instagram-owner Meta’s recent agreement with US states.
A trial had been set to begin Monday in the southern US state over claims by Alabama that TikTok misled parents about tools meant to shield children from harmful content.
Attorney General Steve Marshall hailed the settlement as “a great day for Alabama parents.”
“Tonight, they can rest easier knowing real protections are in place to shield their children from the dangers of social media addiction,” he said.
Under the settlement, TikTok will send $100 million to Alabama and could possibly pay up to $300 million in total if other states accept similar agreements.
Alabama’s suit was the latest in a wave of litigation targeting social media companies across the United States over the harm their apps allegedly cause young users.
In August, Meta agreed to pay $18 billion to settle a sweeping lawsuit brought by US states accusing it of designing Instagram and Facebook to get children addicted.
TikTok’s settlement with Alabama mirrors safety provisions agreed by Meta, including a two-hour daily time limit for teens, restricted access from midnight to 6:00 am, and suspending notifications during school hours.
It will also strengthen age verification, ban beauty filters for teenagers, and offer young users a non-personalised content feed.
In addition, it includes a conditional restriction that Meta also agreed to: expanding the nighttime shutdown period to 10:00 pm to 7:00 am, if other platforms also commit to do the same.
– More suits pending –
“TikTok’s priority has always been fostering a safe and positive space where people can be creative, discover what they love, and connect with their community,” a company spokesperson told AFP.
“This builds on our commitment and core objective to continually enhance our robust safety tools to protect teens,” the spokesperson added.
More than a dozen other states, including California and New York, still have active suits against TikTok.
The company has previously settled cases against it that were headed for trial, including a Los Angeles lawsuit brought by a young woman and a suit from a Kentucky school district.
Meta, by contrast, has taken its chances in court — with bruising results.
In March, a jury in New Mexico ordered the Facebook and Instagram owner to pay $375 million after finding it had misled the public about the safety of its platforms for children.
That same month, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google’s YouTube negligent in the case of a 20-year-old woman who said she became hooked on social media as a child, awarding her $6 million.
Going to trial would have exposed TikTok to unprecedented public scrutiny of how it handles safety internally, with company documents and executive testimony potentially aired in open court.
Alabama originally sued TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance in April 2025, alleging the app was engineered to hook young users “just like a sophisticated gambling machine.”
The state later narrowed its case to claims under Alabama’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act, focusing on whether TikTok misrepresented the effectiveness of features such as “Restricted Mode” and “Kids Mode.”
Despite TikTok’s assurances that users in that mode should not see mature themes, the accounts were quickly served videos about suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, alcohol and sex, according to the filing.
AFP
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