Newshour

Rubio: US trying to reopen strait as a 'favour to the world'

The US is working to get ships through the Strait of Hormuz as a "favour to the world," The US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said in the news conference. Also in the programme: Why staff at Google DeepMind in Britain are unionising over Google's policies on artificial intelligence; and the frontman of the band Iron Maiden opens up about the future of heavy metal and life on tour. (Photo: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio briefs reporters on Iran war at White House, Washington, USA - 05 May 2026. Credit: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA/)

Hegseth: Strait of Hormuz shipping lane is clear

US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth says the ceasefire in the Gulf is 'not over' despite attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. Also in the programme: The son of the last and only Lebanese leader to meet an Israeli premier, says the current Lebanese President Joseph Aoun should meet with Benjamin Netanyahu, despite the risks; and Chinese Wu Yize becomes the second youngest winner of snooker's world championship. (Photo: US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth holds briefing on the Iran war, at the Pentagon in Washington. Credit: Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)

Tensions spike in the Strait of Hormuz

There's been an escalation of the conflict in the Gulf after the US said it had sailed two destroyers through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said it had fired warning shots at one warship and denied US claims that two US-flagged merchant ships had transited the waterway. Iran has retaliated. The UAE says four cruise missiles were fired towards its territory and a drone hit the Fujairah Oil Industry Zone. Also, Cape Verde has refused docking permission to a cruise ship with a suspected outbreak of hantavirus; and Samsung pays a massive inheritance tax bill in South Korea - but do some super-rich companies dodge tax bills? (Photo: Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz near Bandar Abbas, Iran, 4th May, 2026. Credit: Amirhosein Khorgooi/ISNA/WANA via Reuters)

US military says it's helped two ships transit the Strait of Hormuz

The US military's Central Command says two US-flagged merchant ships have passed through the Hormuz strait with its assistance. But a huge number of vessels and crew remain stranded. Can Donald Trump deliver on his promise to break the Iranian blockade? Also in the programme: The leaders of Europe and Canada stress a new unified approach to security, amid strained relations with the US; pet rescue scammers in Uganda; and the multi-billion dollar bid to buy eBay. (Photo shows vessels in the Strait of Hormuz near Bandar Abbas, Iran on 4 May 2026. Credit: Amirhosein KhorgooiWest Asia News Agency via Reuters)

Iran says US has responded to its latest peace proposal

Iran says US has responded to its latest peace proposal. Iran says President Trump must now choose between an impossible military operation and a bad deal if he wants to end the war. We hear from the brother of the jailed Iranian Nobel peace laureate Narges Mohammadi. He says she and other prisoners are dying as a result of deliberate medical neglect. Also on the programme: Ukraine's been stepping up its offensive against Russia's oil infrastructure in recent days; and ahead of the 2026 Met Gala, British fashion designer Zandra Rhodes and Elizabeth Way, curator at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, discuss if fashion is art. (Photo: Iranians walk past a huge anti-US billboard referring to US president Donald Trump and Strait of Hormuz at Valiasr square in Tehran, Iran, 02 May 2026. Credit: ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH/EPA/Shutterstock)