WASHINGTON, United States, April 2, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

- Arrest -

Iranian authorities have arrested the prize-winning rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, her daughter said on Thursday, as activists accuse the Islamic republic of cracking down on civil society during the war with Israel and the United States.

- Putin, Saudi prince call -

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday called for intensifying political and diplomatic efforts to end the war during a phone call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The call comes after Ukraine signed an air defence deal with Saudi Arabia as the Gulf nation grapples with Iranian drone attacks.

- Katz vows revenge -

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz on Thursday warned that Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem would pay an "extraordinarily heavy price" for escalating attacks during the ongoing Jewish holidays.

"I have a clear message for Naim Qassem... you and your associates will pay an extraordinarily heavy price for the intensified rocket fire directed at Israeli citizens as they gathered to celebrate Passover Seder," Katz said in a video statement.

- 'Refused' -

Neutral Austria has rejected all US requests for military overflights of its territory since the start of the conflict in the Middle East, a defence ministry spokesman told AFP on Thursday.

"There have indeed been requests and they were refused from the outset," Colonel Michael Bauer said, adding that every time a similar request "involves a country at war, it is refused".

- Iran steel plants shutter -

Iran's two largest steel plants have been forced out of action by several waves of US and Israeli attacks, the companies have said.

"Our initial estimate is that restarting these units will take at least six months and up to one year," Mehran Pakbin, deputy head of operations at the Khuzestan Steel Company, was quoted as saying by the Mizan Online website on Thursday.

Mobarakeh Steel Company in central Isfahan province said that its "production lines have completely shut down following the high volume of attacks".

- 'Recklessness' -

British Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper stressed Thursday the "urgent need" to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as she convened a meeting of more than 40 countries on the vital shipping route.

Cooper said Iran's "recklessness" in blockading the waterway was "hitting our global economic security" as she kicked off the virtual meeting. The strait has been virtually closed since the US-Israeli war against Iran started on February 28.

- 'Unrealistic' -

French President Emmanuel Macron said that a military operation to liberate the Strait of Hormuz would be "unrealistic".

"There are those who advocate for the liberation of the Strait of Hormuz by force through a military operation, a position sometimes expressed by the United States," Macron said in South Korea.

"It is unrealistic because it would take an inordinate amount of time and would expose anyone crossing the strait to coastal threats from the (Iranian) Revolutionary Guards, who possess significant resources, as well as ballistic missiles, (and) a host of other risks."

- 'Unhindered' Hormuz passage -

The Philippines said Iran has pledged to allow safe passage for shipments of oil to the import-dependent archipelago through the Strait of Hormuz.

"The Iranian Foreign Minister assured the (Foreign) Secretary that Iran will allow the safe, unhindered, and expeditious passage through the Strait of Hormuz of Philippine-flagged vessels, energy sources, and all Filipino seafarers," the foreign affairs department said in a statement.

- Nuclear 'war crime' -

A US or Israeli strike on Iran's Bushehr nuclear power plant would constitute a "war crime" under international law, Tehran's envoy to the UN atomic agency told AFP.

Reza Najafi, Iran's ambassador to the International Atomic Energy Agency, also denied that Tehran had "restarted enrichment" of radioactive uranium following the US-Israeli strikes on the Islamic republic's nuclear facilities in June 2025.

- Iran execution -

Iranian authorities executed a man convicted of acting on behalf of Israel and the US during a wave of anti-government protests earlier this year, the judiciary said.

- Iran medical centre struck -

A century-old medical centre in the Iranian capital suffered extensive damage in a strike, the country's health ministry said.

"The aggression against Pasteur Institute of Iran -- a century-old pillar of global health and member of International Pasteur Network -- is a direct assault on international health security," said health ministry spokesman Hossein Kermanpour in a post on X.