President Donald Trump extended the ceasefire with Iran indefinitely, citing a "seriously fractured" Iranian government and stating the pause in hostilities will last "until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other."

In a Truth Social post on Tuesday, Trump said the decision was made at the request of Pakistani mediators, specifically Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and military chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, who urged the U.S. to hold off on attacks while Iran’s leadership unifies around a peace proposal.

The ceasefire extension came hours before the original deadline, averting an expected resumption of hostilities.

Iranian officials dismissed the ceasefire extension as a tactical delay, with Mahdi Mohammadi, adviser to parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, calling it "a ploy to buy time in order to deliver a surprise strike." He argued that the continuation of the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports constitutes an ongoing act of war, stating, "The continuation of the blockade is no different from bombing and must be responded to militarily." Iran's armed forces also warned they are "100% ready" to retaliate against any U.S. aggression.

Vice President JD Vance’s planned trip to Islamabad was postponed following Trump's meeting with top national security officials, and after Iran refused to attend talks unless the blockade was lifted.

Internal divisions in Iran’s leadership are reportedly deepening, with civilian officials favoring negotiations while Revolutionary Guard commanders oppose talks under current conditions.

The U.S. maintains control of the Strait of Hormuz, and oil prices fluctuated sharply ahead of and after Trump’s announcement.

"Iran doesn’t want the Strait of Hormuz closed, they want it open so they can make $500 Million Dollars a day (which is, therefore, what they are losing if it is closed!)" the presidet claimed on Truth Social. "They only say they want it closed because I have it totally BLOCKADED (CLOSED!), so they merely want to 'save face.' People approached me four days ago, saying, 'Sir, Iran wants to open up the Strait, immediately.' But if we do that, there can never be a Deal with Iran, unless we blow up the rest of their Country, their leaders included!"

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent writes on X: "As @POTUS has made clear, the United States Navy will continue the blockade of Iranian ports.  In a matter of days, Kharg Island storage will be full and the fragile Iranian oil wells will be shut in. Constraining Iran’s maritime trade directly targets the regime’s primary revenue lifelines.

"The @USTreasury will continue to apply maximum pressure through Economic Fury to systematically degrade Tehran’s ability to generate, move, and repatriate funds. Any person or vessel facilitating these flows—through covert trade and finance—risks exposure to U.S. sanctions. We continue to freeze the funds stolen by the corrupt leadership on behalf of the people of Iran."

A SpaceX Falcon 9 launched the GPS III SV10 (Space Vehiche 10 also known as GPS III-8) satellite for the U.S. Space Force from Space Launch Complex 40(SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Tuesday (April 21) at 0653 UTC marking the delivery of the final satellite in the GPS III production block and completing the service's most resilient constellation to date.

The Falcon 9 Block 5's first-stage booster B1095, came back to Earth about 8.5 minutes after launch as planned on Tuesday, touching down softly in the Atlantic Ocean on the SpaceX droneship "Just Read the Instructions."

This was the seventh launch and landing for this particular booster, according to a SpaceX mission description. And it was the final Falcon landing for "Just Read the Instructions," SpaceX said during Tuesday's launch commentary; the droneship will now pivot to supporting liftoffs of SpaceX's Starship megarocket.

"After 156 successful Falcon 9 landings, Just Read the Instructions will be fully dedicated to support Starship operations going forward," SpaceX wrote on X.

The Falcon 9's upper stage, meanwhile, continued powering its way to medium-Earth orbit, deploying GPS III SV10 about 90 minutes after liftoff. Following separation, the satellite will use its own liquid apogee engines to raise its orbit to the operational medium Earth orbit at approximately 20,200 kilometers altitude, a process taking roughly 10 days.

With the addition of SV10, the active GPS constellation now includes 32 satellites, providing increased redundancy and resiliency. Mission Delta 31 of the Space Force will oversee on-orbit checkout and eventual integration into the live navigation network.

SV10 is the tenth and last spacecraft under the original GPS III production contract awarded to Lockheed Martin in 2008. The satellite, nicknamed "Hedy Lamarr" after the actress and inventor who co-patented frequency-hopping technology, was built in Colorado and declared available for launch in December 2022.

The new satellite enhances the constellation with M-code technology, providing three times greater positional accuracy and eight times improved jam resistance compared to previous generations. This upgrade significantly boosts the effectiveness and lethality of U.S. military weapon systems while improving civilian navigation.

"GPS III satellites have a three-fold increase in positional accuracy and an eight-fold improvement in jam resistance compared to prior versions," Space Force officials said in a statement on Jan. 28, just after GPS III SV09 rode a Falcon 9 to orbit.

"These advanced features enable the constellation to provide an across-the-board boost in effectiveness and lethality to weapon systems in every theater," they added.

SV10 carries several developmental payloads to test future GPS capabilities, including:

• Crosslink Demonstration Payload: Tests optical crosslink communications to improve ground segment resilience and enable faster satellite tasking.

• Digital Rubidium Atomic Frequency Standard (DRAFS): A new space-qualified atomic clock to enhance long-term timing precision for future GPS IIIF missions.

• Laser Retroreflector Array (LRA)**: The second use of an LRA to support NASA's scientific research and improve Earth center determination.

• 3D-Printed Omni Antenna: The first use of this advanced manufacturing component, which reduces production time and costs by nearly 60 percent.

GPS III-8 mission demonstrated the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program's flexibility, as SpaceX was selected as the launch provider with less than seven weeks notice following a change in launch service provider. This rapid turnaround built upon accelerated timelines established by previous GPS III launches in 2024, 2025, and early 2026.

GPS III SV10 was originally supposed to fly aboard United Launch Alliance's new Vulcan Centaur rocket. Last month, however, the Space Force announced that it was switching the satellite to a Falcon 9 due to issues that Vulcan has experienced with its solid rocket boosters (SRBs).

As part of this rocket swap, Vulcan Centaur will now launch the USSF-70 national security mission, which had been slated to fly on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy. USSF-70 is expected to launch no earlier than summer 2028, Space Force officials have said. (Presumably, Vulcan Centaur's SRB issues will be worked out by then.)

Tim Cook is stepping down as Apple CEO on September 1, 2026, following a nearly 15-year tenure that grew the company’s market capitalization from $348 billion to roughly $4 trillion. He will be succeeded by John Ternus, the current Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering, who will become Apple’s fourth CEO.

Cook will remain at the company as Executive Chairman, a role focused on global policy engagement and regulatory relationships.

The transition was unanimously approved by the board and described as the result of long-term succession planning, despite Cook recently dismissing departure rumors.

Ternus, 50, has been with Apple since 2001 and oversees the hardware development for products generating about 80% of Apple’s revenue, including the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch. His promotion follows the departure of key executives such as COO Jeff Williams and CFO Luca Maestri, leaving Ternus to inherit significant challenges in AI integration, regulatory compliance, and supply chain management.

A mechanical engineer from the University of Pennsylvania, Ternus rose through the hardware ranks, leading the teams behind the iPad, AirPods, and recent iPhone models. He is viewed as a stable, internal choice who understands Apple’s product roadmap deeply.

Ternus inherits a complex landscape, including Apple’s lagging AI strategy, ongoing antitrust fines in the EU, and a need to navigate a substantially rebuilt executive team.

Since becoming CEO in 2011, Cook transformed Apple’s supply chain, launched the services business (now exceeding $100 billion annually), and introduced major product categories like the Apple Watch and AirPods.

Apple shares fell slightly (around 1%) in after-hours trading Monday, with investors largely viewing the leadership change as an orderly transition rather than a crisis.