Portal:Current events/2026 April 12

April 12, 2026 (Sunday)

Armed conflicts and attacks

Middle Eastern crisis
- 2026 Iran war
  - 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis
    - 2026 Strait of Hormuz campaign
      - U.S. president Donald Trump announces a U.S. naval blockade of Iran and the strait "effective immediately," which will "seek and interdict" any vessel that paid Iran's toll to cross the strait. (Axios)
  - 2026 Iranian strikes on Arab countries
    - 2026 Iranian strikes on Saudi Arabia
      - Saudi Arabia announces the restoration of its East–West Crude Oil Pipeline and other energy facilities following an Iranian attack. (AFP via New Straits Times) (Reuters)
  - 2026 Iran war ceasefire
    - The initial three rounds of ceasefire talks between Iran and the United States conclude in Islamabad, Pakistan, after 14 hours. However, the Iranian government says that negotiations will continue. (AA) (Reuters)
    - U.S. vice president JD Vance, who led the American delegation in the ceasefire talks, says that the two sides have not reached a deal to end the war, with disagreement over nuclear weapon development, and that the U.S. made its "final and best offer" and stated "We'll see if the Iranians accept it". (Al Jazeera) (NBC News)
    - Pakistani deputy prime minister Ishaq Dar urges Iran and the U.S. to uphold their commitment to observe a ceasefire after Vance said that both sides didn't reach an agreement. Dar also says that Pakistan will continue to play its role in facilitating engagement and dialogue between both sides. (Arab News PK)
    - Pakistani sources say that the major disagreements during the talks were Iran's nuclear program, missile program, restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz, and calls for a ceasefire in Lebanon. (MENA via The New Arab)
  - The Iranian government updates the death toll in Iran to 3,375 people. (Al Jazeera)
- Hezbollah–Israel conflict
  - 2026 Lebanon war
    - At least 24 people are killed by Israeli airstrikes across southern Lebanon. (Al Jazeera)
- Israeli–Palestinian conflict
  - Gaza war
    - The Israeli military claims that they have killed several Hamas terrorists who took part in hostage-taking during the October 7 attacks, including Nukhba commander Ali Sami Mohammad Shakra, in a strike in central Gaza yesterday that killed seven people. (The Jerusalem Post) (The Times of Israel)
Three Pakistan Coast Guard personnel are killed when Balochistan Liberation Army militants open fire on a patrol boat in the Arabian Sea near the Iran–Pakistan border. (Reuters)

Arts and culture

2026 Laurence Olivier Awards
- In theatre, Punch wins Best New Play and Paddington: The Musical wins seven prizes, including Best New Musical, at the 2026 Laurence Olivier Awards. (AP) (Reuters)

International relations

Azerbaijan–Iran relations
- Azerbaijan's embassy in Tehran resumes its operations during the ceasefire, initially with a limited staff. (AA)
Iraq–Saudi Arabia relations
- The Saudi foreign ministry summons the ambassador of Iraq over "continued attacks and threats" against it and other Gulf Arab states from Iraqi territory. (AA)

Politics and elections

2026 Peruvian general election
- Peruvians vote to elect 130 members of the Chamber of Deputies and 60 members of a newly created senate, while also determining the top two presidential candidates that will advance to a run-off election. (AP)
- Peruvian police and prosecutors conduct searches at the electoral authority's headquarters and a private company as part of an investigation into delays in delivering voting materials that prevent more than 60,000 people from voting. Officials attribute the issue to logistical failures affecting multiple polling stations in Lima. The electoral authority later announces that some polling stations will reopen. (AFP via Free Malaysia Today) (AFP via NAMPA)
- Exit polls show Popular Force's Keiko Fujimori leading the presidential election with about 16 percent of the vote, with no candidate securing a majority and a run-off expected between Fujimori and Popular Renewal's Rafael López Aliaga. (AFP with Le Monde)
2026 Beninese presidential election
- Beninese citizens vote to elect a president that will succeed the incumbent Patrice Talon and serve for the next seven years. Finance minister Romuald Wadagni and FCBE candidate Paul Hounkpè are the only two candidates on the ballot. (Reuters)
2026 Hungarian parliamentary election
- Hungarians vote to elect all 199 members of the National Assembly. The incumbent prime minister, Viktor Orbán, who was seeking a fifth consecutive term in office, concedes defeat and calls Tisza Party leader Péter Magyar on the telephone to congratulate him on his victory. The pro-European Tisza Party wins two-thirds of the seats in Hungary's legislature. The turnout is the highest since the fall of communism, at 77.8%. (BBC) (The Guardian)
2026 Iraqi presidential election
- Nizar Amidi, elected the previous day, takes office as President of Iraq, succeeding Abdul Latif Rashid. (Qatar News Agency)

Sports

2026 Masters Tournament
- In golf, Rory McIlroy wins back-to-back titles at the Masters Tournament. (The Guardian)