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(AWP Alliance News) - A new clash between US and Iranian forces in the Gulf dented optimism for a negotiated peace Friday, despite President Donald Trump insisting a shaky truce was still holding while the sides inch towards a deal. US Central Command said Iranian forces had launched missiles, drones and small boats at three US warships overnight but that none were hit, while American forces destroyed the incoming threat and retaliated against land bases in Iran. Iran's own central military command, Khatam al-Anbiya, countered that the clash had erupted when US vessels targeted an Iranian civilian tanker heading towards the Strait of Hormuz, and accused its foe of hitting civilian areas. These strikes hit Bandar Khamir, Sirik - cities on the Iranian side of the Strait - as well as Qeshm island, it said, alleging that the attack was carried out with the cooperation of 'some regional countries'. Asked in Washington on Thursday if the ceasefire with Iran was still in effect after the clash, Trump said: 'Yeah, it is. They trifled with us today. We blew them away. They trifled. I call that a trifle.' Iran did not identify the accused US allies by name, but the clash came as the United Arab Emirates complained that it had been forced to intercept a wave of drones and missiles from Iran. Following the start of the war with US-Israeli attacks on February 28, Iran largely closed the Strait of Hormuz and the US later imposed its own blockade of Iranian ports. Around 1,500 ships and 20,000 international crew are now trapped in the Gulf region because of the conflict, according to the UN International Maritime Organization. Tehran had denied carrying out a strike on Monday on the major UAE oil terminal in Fujairah, but Iranian analysts have been allowed to appear on state media to suggest the Emiratis have been involved in recent attacks on Iran. World markets had perked up and oil prices fell this week amid hope that a Pakistani-mediated peace process will prolong the US-Iran ceasefire that began on April 8 and lead to a negotiated accord to end the conflict. But stock markets sank again on Friday after the exchange of fire in Hormuz, which fuelled fears renewed fighting could delay or derail the re-opening of the key maritime trade route, despite Trump dismissing the incident as an irrelevance. This week Trump has fed hopes of a deal, saying an agreement could be near even as he again threatened to return to bombing if Tehran refused to back down. But he doubled down on that stance after Thursday's clash, posting on his Truth Social platform: 'We'll knock them out a lot harder, and a lot more violently, in the future, if they don't get their Deal signed, FAST!' Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei had said Thursday that Tehran would communicate its position to mediator Pakistan 'after finalising its views.' Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif struck an optimistic tone prior to the exchanges of fire on Thursday, saying in televised remarks: 'I firmly believe that this ceasefire will turn into a long-term ceasefire.' Any agreement between Washington and Tehran could also help lower tensions in Lebanon, where a separate truce was under renewed strain after an Israeli strike on southern Beirut killed a Hezbollah commander on Wednesday. A US State Department official confirmed on Thursday that the new Israel-Lebanon talks would take place on May 14 and 15. It will be the third meeting in recent months between the two countries, which have technically been at war for decades and have no diplomatic relations. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that a peace deal between the two sides was 'eminently achievable', insisting that Hezbollah was the sticking point, rather than any issue between the two governments. Both Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah have kept up their attacks despite the ceasefire. Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the outbreak of the broader war. By AFP teams in Tehran, Washington, Beirut and Jerusalem source: AFP Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

(AWP Alliance News) - Nintendo Co Ltd on Friday reported sharply higher annual sales and profit following the successful launch of the Switch 2 console, but forecast lower earnings and revenue for the current financial year as it warned on rising hardware costs and announced price increases. The Kyoto-based gaming company said net sales for the year ended March 31 nearly doubled to JPY2.313 trillion, around USD14.75 billion, from JPY1.165 trillion a year prior. Operating profit rose 27% to JPY360.12 billion from JPY282.55 billion, while net profit attributable to owners of the parent jumped 52% to JPY424.06 billion from JPY278.81 billion. Ordinary profit increased 46% to JPY542.20 billion from JPY372.32 billion. Nintendo proposed an annual dividend of JPY219.00 per share, up from JPY120.00 a year earlier. The company said the Switch 2 'got off to a good start' following its June launch, with hardware sales reaching 19.86 million units during the financial year. Software sales for the Switch 2 totalled 48.71 million units, helped by titles including Pokémon Pokopia, Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza. Nintendo also sold 3.80 million units of the original Switch console during the year, while software sales for the original platform totalled 136.91 million units. Digital sales rose 25% year-on-year to JPY407.6 billion, driven by increased downloadable software sales. Looking ahead, Nintendo forecast net sales of JPY2.050 trillion for the year ending March 2027, down 11% year-on-year. It expects net profit to fall 27% to JPY310.00 billion. The company forecast operating profit of JPY370.00 billion for the current year. Nintendo also announced price increases for the Switch 2 console, citing rising memory chip costs and supply disruptions linked to the Iran war. The Switch 2 price in Japan will rise 20% from May 25. In the US, the price will increase 11% from September 1 to USD499.99, while the European price will rise 6% to EUR499.99. Nintendo said higher memory chip prices, fuelled by demand linked to artificial intelligence, had affected the wider electronics industry. The company ended the financial year with cash and cash equivalents of JPY1.317 trillion, down from JPY1.414 trillion a year earlier. Shares in Nintendo closed up 3.6% at JPY7,667.00 in Tokyo on Friday. By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News reporter Comments and questions to newsroom@alliancenews.com Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

(AWP Alliance News) - Keir Starmer on Friday insisted he will carry on as prime minister despite Labour suffering disastrous local election losses. He acknowledged it had been a 'tough' night for Labour but said that 'days like this don't weaken my resolve to deliver the change that I promised'. Nigel Farage's Reform UK made gains across the country as hundreds of Labour councillors were voted out, heaping pressure on the prime minister. Farage said the results showed a 'truly historic shift in British politics' away from the old era of Labour and Conservative domination, vowing 'the best is yet to come' for his party. Starmer faces further heavy losses as vote counting continues throughout Friday in both English local elections and contests for the Scottish Parliament and Welsh Senedd. In Wales, Labour is expected to lose the national vote for the first time in more than a century while the SNP appears likely to remain the largest party in Scotland after 19 years in power. Starmer, speaking at Kingsdown Methodist Church in Ealing, west London, on Friday morning, said: 'The results are tough, they are very tough, and there's no sugarcoating it. 'We have lost brilliant Labour representatives across the country, these are people who put so much into their communities, so much into our party. 'And that hurts, and it should hurt, and I take responsibility.' Starmer has already faced speculation about his position, with the Times reporting Energy Secretary and former leader Ed Miliband had urged the prime minister to set out a timetable for his departure. But Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy urged his party not to play 'pass the parcel' with the leadership in response to the election results. And Defence Secretary John Healey said Starmer should be given more time, saying 'he can still turn it round'. But Hartlepool MP Jonathan Brash, who watched his wife lose her council seat overnight as Reform UK surged in the authority, said: 'It's clear to me that the prime minister should take this opportunity to set out a timetable for his own departure, and then allow for the widest possible leadership election that includes all the talents of our party.' Labour sources pointed to poor local election results under previous prime ministers, including Tony Blair who lost 1,100 councillors in 1999 but went on to win re-election in a landslide in 2001. Meanwhile, Farage hailed early results from Thursday's local election as a sign his party was on course for victory at a general election that is still up to three years away. A jubilant Farage heralded a 'historic change in British politics', telling reporters 'there is no more left-right' as his outfit was 'scoring stunning percentages in traditional old Labour areas'. His party claimed victory in Havering, its first London borough, and Farage said it showed Reform were a truly national outfit, with gains across England and progress expected in Scotland and Wales. Farage said: 'It's a big, big day, not just for our party, but for a complete reshaping of British politics in every way.' After 41 of 136 English councils had declared full results: - Labour had lost control in eight, losing 204 seats. - Reform won control of Newcastle-under-Lyme from the Conservatives and have gained 275 councillors. - Labour's losses included Wandsworth and Westminster in London, and Tameside, which includes Angela Rayner's Greater Manchester constituency. - The Liberal Democrats appeared on course to record an eighth consecutive year of council gains, taking control of Stockport and Portsmouth, and becoming the only party on Richmond upon Thames Council, but lost their slender majority in Hull. - The Conservatives suffered losses, but enjoyed some bright points, managing to regain Westminster from Labour and hold on to Harlow in Essex and Broxbourne in Hertfordshire and once again became the largest party in its former flagship authority in Wandsworth. - The Green Party made modest gains in the early hours, but expected to improve significantly over the course of Friday as the party's target councils in London declare their results. By David Hughes, Christopher McKeon, Sophie Wingate and Ted Hennessey, Press Association source: PA Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.