Day 61 of the WarWednesday, April 29, 2026
Day 61 — WSJ: Trump Locks In Long-Term Iran Blockade — Oman Rejects Hormuz Co-Administration — Idemitsu Kosan VLCC Passes Hormuz with Iran Permission — UN: 21 Wartime Executions, 4,000+ Detained
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Boroujerdi Calls Trump Threats 'Empty' — Tasnim Releases Footage of Eliminated Pakpour and Larijani at Turkey Border — Pezeshkian Cabinet Distances From IRGC
- Alaeddin Boroujerdi, Deputy Chairman of the Parliament National Security Commission, described Donald Trump's threats as 'empty' and stated Iran will not back down — emphasizing control over the Strait of Hormuz and asserting Iran's missile stockpiles are sufficient for several years of war. Open Source Intel published Tasnim agency's release of previously unseen footage of eliminated IRGC Ground Forces chief Mohammad Pakpour and former Supreme National Security Council secretary Ali Larijani at the Turkey border — released within IRGC-affiliated channels as a quasi-memorialization of the faction's losses, but read by Iran International analysts as a quiet acknowledgement that the chain of command has been visibly broken.
- A WSJ analytical brief reports that Trump told advisors to prepare for the prolonged blockade and that Iran's offer to share Hormuz administration with Oman was both rejected by Muscat and explicitly mocked by Republican senators as evidence of regime desperation. The Pezeshkian-aligned cabinet has begun a more visible distancing from IRGC operational decisions; signals over the past 24 hours include Mohajerani repeating the internet-restoration hint and quiet pushback against Tasnim's defenses of the Vahidi-aligned faction. Tehran-based analysts continue to track parliamentary fault-lines visible since the assassination-attempt period: hard-line bloc supporting IRGC posture, and a centrist-Pezeshkian bloc looking for an off-ramp.
UN Confirms 21 Wartime Executions, 4,000+ Detentions — Sotoudeh Sisters Missing for One Month After IRGC Abduction — 30-Agent Raid on 29-Year-Old Hosseini in Kerman
- United Nations on April 29 confirmed at least 21 wartime executions and over 4,000 national-security detentions since the start of the war. The Baha'i International Community, Iran International, and Hana Human Rights jointly verify additional cases overnight; running totals continue to climb. Day 61 of the international internet shutdown — the U.S. State Department on April 28 had already classified the blackout as one of the longest in modern peacetime history; the IRI government continues partial-restoration signaling while interior ministry under IRGC influence blocks.
- Iran International publishes case files on two notable disappearances: Mahsa Sotoudeh and Mandana Sotoudeh, two Baha'i women from Shiraz, were forcibly taken by IRGC forces nearly a month ago and have not been heard from since — the family is unable to determine their whereabouts or condition. Mohammadreza Hosseini, born 1996, resident of Kerman, was raided by 30 armed agents earlier in the war, accused of fabricated protest-related charges, detained 30 days under extreme conditions and transferred to solitary confinement. The Niyusha Berg account documented Hamid Mahdavi (firefighter) — killed in January after entering a conflict zone to rescue injured Iranians; community video confirms IRGC fire as cause of death.
WSJ — Trump Locks In Long-Term Iran Port Blockade — Oman Rejects Hormuz Co-Administration Proposal — Cramer Calls Iran Offer 'Ridiculous'
Gulf & Naval- Wall Street Journal, citing U.S. officials, reports that Donald Trump has instructed his advisors to prepare for the continuation of a long-term naval blockade of Iranian ports — the blockade that began on April 13 after the failure of direct talks with Tehran. Trump emphasized that he will not permit Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon under any scenario. The New York Post separately reports, citing several informed American sources, that Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi during his Oman visit floated a proposal to share the administration of the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman; Muscat rejected the proposal, opposing any Iranian sovereignty claim over the strategic waterway. U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R) called the Islamic Republic's proposal to lift sanctions in exchange for nuclear talks 'ridiculous' and stressed that the Trump administration aims to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons while preferring a peaceful resolution.
- United Nations announced on Wednesday April 29 that since the start of the war Iran has executed at least 21 people and detained more than 4,000 individuals on national-security-related charges. Trump posted on Truth Social an image of himself with a war-landscape backdrop captioned 'I'm not going to be a nice person anymore', accompanied by text demanding Iran 'become wise' regarding nuclear non-agreement. RadioFarda reports U.S. retail gasoline reached $4.18/gallon on April 27 — a 40% increase since the war began on February 28; the AAA partly attributes the surge to the Hormuz disruption (~20% of world crude previously transited the strait).
First Refinery-Owned Tanker Exits Persian Gulf — Idemitsu Kosan VLCC Passes Hormuz with Iran Permission, No Toll — Russian Superyacht 'Nord' Transits Unimpeded
Gulf & Naval- A Japanese supertanker owned by Idemitsu Kosan passed through the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday — reportedly the first refinery-owned tanker to exit the Persian Gulf since the IRGC-imposed closure began, transiting with explicit Islamic Republic permission and without payment of tolls. The Islamic Republic embassy in Tokyo highlighted a historical parallel to the tanker Nishomaru that helped Iran circumvent a blockade during the nationalization of the oil industry. Separately, Reuters reports that the superyacht 'Nord', owned by Russian billionaire Alexei Mordashov, passed through the Strait of Hormuz without interference — flying the Russian flag, adhering to international maritime law, with neither the Islamic Republic nor the United States objecting. Kepler tracking confirmed that the LNG carrier 'Mabrouz' (managed by UAE ADNOC, 132,890 cubic meters) passed Hormuz on April 1 — the first such LNG passage since the strait was effectively closed in early March.
- U.S. Central Command reiterates publicly that since the U.S. naval blockade was announced on April 14, no vessel associated with Iran is permitted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, and CENTCOM social media posted footage of U.S. Army soldiers conducting pre-flight checks on UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters at an undisclosed location within the CENTCOM area of responsibility. The selective Hormuz passage pattern of the past 48 hours — Japanese refinery tanker, Russian superyacht, UAE LNG carrier — combined with full U.S. interdiction of Iranian-flagged vessels (31st MEU boarding earlier this week) signals a hardening 'two-track' regime: full passage for non-Iranian commerce by U.S. consent or Iranian permission; total interdiction of Iranian flag/cargo.
Pezeshkian Government Approves Credit Purchase Scheme for Subsidized Households — Bessent: Kharg Island Near Non-Operational — Polymarket War Bets Top $2B
Gulf & Naval- Fars News Agency reports that the Pezeshkian government has approved a resolution permitting households receiving subsidies to purchase essential goods on credit from physical and online stores; non-repayment amounts will be deducted from their cash subsidies and transferred to the supplying companies. The move is widely interpreted in Tehran economic media as a tacit admission that consumer-level liquidity has collapsed and that the government cannot deliver basic-goods price stability without forcing the consumer-credit channel onto state-controlled retailers. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated publicly that 'Kharg Island, Iran's primary oil export terminal, is soon non-operational' — Kharg handles roughly 90 percent of Iranian crude exports.
- NBC News analysis shows global betting volume on the Iran war on the Polymarket platform has exceeded $2 billion, raising serious ethical and security concerns. An American military service member is accused of earning approximately $400,000 by betting using classified information — highlighting the potential for misuse of sensitive operational data and intelligence indicators against the U.S. interest. Separately, Iran International reports a citizen account that financial pressure on regime-loyal forces has led to defections among Basij members who have not received salaries — anecdotal but consistent with Bessent's structural-collapse framing.