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UN chief warns Hormuz closure ‘strangling’ global economy

UNITED NATIONS: The escalating crisis in the Strait of Hormuz could push tens of millions into poverty, trigger a surge in global hunger and even tip the world toward recession, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned on Thursday. The closure of the vital waterway is “strangling the global economy,” the secretary general said in remarks to the press. Guterres decried the restrictions on free passage through the strait, a crucial chokepoint, which he said is impeding the delivery of oil, gas, fertiliser and other critical commodities. Even if restrictions on shipping and trade were lifted immediately, “supply chains will take months to recover, prolonging lower economic output and higher prices,” he said. Setting out three possible trajectories for a world still reeling from the shocks of a pandemic and the war in Ukraine , Guterres said the best-case scenario would see global growth fall from 3.4 per cent to 3.1pc, wi...
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Analysis: Setting a risky precedent

ON paper, the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) meeting convened for April 28 was about a routine administrative matter: the transfer of a few high court judges under Article 200 of the Constitution. In reality, however, the proceedings evolved into a foundational clash over judicial accountability, the limits of administrative authority, and whether the Constitution permits a quiet correction of conduct without invoking formal removal mechanisms. The extraordinary pre-meeting documentation — including recorded objections by Chief Justice of Pakistan Yahya Afridi and a detailed report from the Islamabad High Court (IHC) — had already brought into the open a conversation that the superior judiciary usually handles behind closed doors: how to respond when a judge is perceived as professionally difficult, administratively overbearing or institutionally reluctant to hear certain cases. The short answer, according to the report, is that Article 200 does not require reasons for a tra...
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Oil spikes while stocks slip ahead of US Fed rate decision

Oil prices shot higher Wednesday on concerns of an extended blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, while Wall Street stocks mostly slid as investors awaited a US Fed rate decision and a slew of tech firm earnings. Both main oil contracts jumped nearly six per cent after President Donald Trump warned Tehran on Wednesday that it should “get smart soon” and capitulate to Washington’s demands for tight controls on its nuclear programme, as a US naval blockade turned the screws on Iran’s economy. Meanwhile, the United States could extend its naval blockade of Iran for months more, oil executives were told in a meeting with Trump, an administration official said. Analysts warned that such a move would prompt Iran to maintain its own blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, leaving the vital oil shipping route at a near standstill. The US Federal Reserve is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged later in the day, with markets closely watching its guidance on inflation as energy costs soar. ...
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Firing from across Afghan border injures 5 in KP's South Waziristan: security sources

SOUTH WAZIRISTAN LOWER: Mortar shells fired from across the Pak-Afghan border injured five people — four children and a woman — in the Angoor Adda village of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s South Waziristan district on Wednesday, according to security sources. The sources said that the shells struck the homes of two residents of the village and that the injured children were between the ages of three and 13. All the injured were take to the district headquarters hospital in Wana, they added. They said that the Afghan Taliban and affiliated elements had repeatedly targeted civilians across the border, adding that after Wednesday’s attack, the Pakistan Army promptly retaliated by targeting their firing positions along the border. As a result, the Afghan Taliban abandoned their posts and fled, the sources said. The attack came three days after the Afghan Taliban opened unprovoked firing at civilians in South Waziristan, leaving three injured. Security sources said at the time that the Afghan ...
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Keir Starmer escapes probe on ‘misleading parliament’

LONDON: British lawmakers voted on Tuesday against launching an inquiry into whether Prime Minister Keir Starmer misled parliament in statements about his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the US. Starmer appointed Mandelson in Dec 2024, and the ex-ambassador was sacked last September when his ties to the late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were found to have been deeper than previously known. Police arrested Mandelson in February on suspicion of misconduct in public office, but did not charge him. The prime minister has resisted pressure to quit over the matter, saying Mandelson lied about his relationship with Epstein. Starmer also said officials had kept information from him about the vetting process that would have stopped him making the appointment. On Tuesday, lawmakers voted 335 to 223 against asking the Committee of Privileges to investigate whether Starmer had misled the House of Commons on several matters, including by saying “full due process” had b...
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US spy agencies examine how Iran would react to Trump declaring victory: sources

US intelligence agencies are studying how Iran would respond if President Donald Trump were to declare a unilateral victory in the two-month-old war that ​has killed thousands and become a political liability for the White House, two US officials and a person familiar with the matter said. The intelligence community is ‌analysing the question along with others at the request of senior administration officials. The goal is to understand the implications of Trump potentially pulling back from a conflict that some officials and advisers worry could contribute to deep Republican losses at the midterm elections later this year, according to the sources. While no decision has been made, and Trump could easily ramp back up military operations, a quick de-escalation could ease political pressure on the ​president, even as it could leave behind an emboldened Iran. The sources spoke ​on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss sensitive intelligence matters. It is not clear when the in...
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Energy prices expected to surge 24pc, reaching highest level since 2022 Russia-Ukraine war: World Bank assessment

ISLAMABAD: Energy prices are projected to surge by 24 per cent this year to their highest level since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, as the war in the Middle East sends a severe shock through global commodity markets, the World Bank Group said in its latest Commodity Markets Outlook. Overall, commodity prices are forecast to rise 16pc in 2026, driven by soaring energy and fertiliser prices and record-high prices for several key metals, according to the assessment.   “The shock will have serious implications for job creation and development,” the analysis indicates.   The World Bank noted: “Attacks on energy infrastructure and shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, which handles about 35pc of global seaborne crude oil trade, have triggered the largest oil supply shock on record, with an initial reduction in global oil supply of about 10 million barrels per day. “Even after moderating from their recent peak, Brent oil prices remained more than 50...
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