International News from Thursday, June 18th, 2026

The US military has lifted its blockade of maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports and coastal areas.

Three Saudi-flagged supertankers carrying 6 million barrels of crude sailed through the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, hours after US President Donald Trump signed a deal with Iran to end the war that has disrupted global energy supplies.

Initial talks between the US and Iran are planned at the Buergenstock mountaintop resort in Switzerland on Friday, following the signing of a ceasefire agreement between Tehran and Washington, the Swiss government said on Thursday.

An attack on Thursday on the airport and military airbase in Niger's capital killed 11 members of the security forces and two civilians, the government said in a statement, without identifying the perpetrators.

Ukrainian drones hit Moscow's oil refinery for the second time this week while Russia fired missiles into Kyiv, as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy sought support from the U.S. and Europe to reach a peace deal.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned on Wednesday that Israeli settler groups could be added to a global blacklist for violations against children as he voiced alarm at a "staggering" rise in violations against Palestinian children.