President Donald Trump has threatened to bomb Oman – a US ally – if it “gets in the way” of his administration’s talks with Iran.

The US and Oman have been negotiating separately with Tehran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that is vital to the global economy. It has been largely closed for nearly six months during the US-Iran war.

The US president made the threat to Oman while using an expletive during a phone interview.

Earlier in the day, Iranian officials said they were close to finalising a deal with Oman. Meanwhile, the future of talks between the US and Iran is unclear as a 60-day Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two sides is expiring.

Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office on Monday, Trump was asked by BBC News if he was seeking an extension to the MoU, to which he replied: “No.”

Since the US and Israel attacked Iran in February, Tehran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz – through which about a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas usually passes.

Oman borders the southern side of the Strait and says it is a neutral country in this conflict. However it has suffered attacks strikes from Iran and is now playing a leading role in negotiating with Tehran to reopen the waterway.

Washington has pursued its own efforts to secure the reopening. Fox reporter Trey Yingst quoted Trump as saying: “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the shit out of them.”

Jane Hill presents BBC News at Ten reporting by Sarah Smith and Jeremy Bowen.

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President Trump took to Truth Social last weekend to announce that the US will “substantially reduce” joint military exercises with …

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03:45 The founder of the Chinese property giant Evergrande, Hui Ka Yan, has been sentenced to life in prison, and had all of his personal property confiscated.

Mr Hui – once Asia’s richest man – pleaded guilty in April to several charges, including embezzlement of assets and corporate bribery.

Also in this this edition of the Global News Podcast:

00:40 Russia launches deadly strikes on Kyiv, as Ukraine asks its allies for more Patriot missile systems

07:49 Conservators remove thousands of coins from cracks in the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland

09:34 Armed men hijack a tanker off Yemen and divert it towards Somalia

12:33 Prince Harry and Meghan are moving back to the UK

17:51Erin Patterson, Australia’s “Mushroom murderer”, appeals her conviction

19:58 “Niu Lai”, the Chinese amateur film that’s “so bad yet so good”

The Global News Podcast brings you the best of the BBC’s news coverage and analysis from around the world. You can watch us on YouTube every weekday – and find the audio version wherever you get your podcasts.

If you would like to get in touch, you can email us at globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk.

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Buying your first house in the UK right now might seem like a distant dream to many.

Today’s prospective first time buyers may well feel hard done by; they are still worse off than recent generations.

If you were born in the mid-1990s you’ve about a 25% chance of owning your own home. But for twentysomethings in the 1990s were almost twice (47%) as likely to be on the housing ladder.

But is it getting a bit easier to get onto the housing ladder?

BBC Deputy Economics Editor Dharshini David has been looking into how it got so hard to get onto the property ladder and how house prices – compared to average income in England and Wales – have come down in recent years.

00:31 – 01:13 Are you less likely to own a house than your parents generation?
01:13 – 01:58 How have house prices compared to average household income changed over time?
01:58 – 03:11 Why have house prices increased?
03:11 – 05:19 Why has it got more expensive to build a house?
05:19 – 06:07 How was planning impacted house prices?
06:07 – 07:40 Has saving for a deposit got harder?
07:40 – 08:34 Is it getting easier to buy a house?
08:34 – 09:14 What could the Victorians teach us about making houses more affordable?

Subscribe to our channel here: https://bbc.in/bbcnews

For the latest news download the BBC News app or visit BBC.com/news

#HousePrices #HousingLadder #FirstTimeBuyer #BuyingAHouse #BBCNews

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Even before India and Pakistan won their independence from Britain in August 1947, Kashmir was hotly contested.

Under the partition plan provided by the Indian Independence Act, Kashmir was free to accede to India or Pakistan.

The maharaja (local ruler), Hari Singh, chose India and a two-year war erupted in 1947.

A new war followed in 1965, while in 1999 India fought a brief but bitter conflict with Pakistani-backed forces.

By that time, India and Pakistan had both declared themselves to be nuclear powers.

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