Caracas, July 10: The death toll from the earthquakes that struck Venezuela has climbed to 3,889, with 16,740 people injured, Venezuelan National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez said on social media that the two powerful earthquakes that hit the country on June 24 have also left 17,907 people homeless.

According to the latest official figures, 6,462 people have been rescued.

Since the earthquakes struck, Venezuela has recorded 1,142 aftershocks, Xinhua news agency reported.

Meanwhile, Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez expressed gratitude for the humanitarian aid provided by 28 countries to support victims of the country’s recent quakes.

She made the remarks after inspecting a collection center in Caracas, where more than 2,000 tonnes of international aid are sorted for distribution to temporary camps housing victims of the June 24 earthquakes.

“Venezuela never tires of thanking the countries, the peoples of the world, and the governments of the world that have offered a helping hand,” Rodriguez said.

“Each country will be able to see how its aid is being used so that the Venezuelan people feel the friendly helping hand of that country,” she added.

Thanks to the international response to the tragedy, Venezuela knows it is not alone, said Rodriguez.

“The most important thing is to look to the future, how we are going to recover, how we are going to rebuild the affected areas.”

An official report earlier said 17,345 people were also displaced.

Authorities have also set up many temporary camps to assist displaced and affected people.

Venezuela’s acting president declared seven days of national mourning last week in tribute to the victims of the powerful earthquakes that struck the country on June 24.

“In honour of the memory of the victims, I have decided to decree National Mourning for seven (7) days, starting at 6:00 p.m. today,” Rodriguez wrote in a statement posted on social media.

She said that “in these moments of profound sadness, we embrace those who suffer from this tragedy and reaffirm our commitment to accompany and protect them.”

Washington, July 9: Vice President J.D. Vance has accused Iran of violating a recent understanding with the United States by resuming attacks on commercial shipping, warning that any further attempts to disrupt maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz would trigger a stronger US military response.

Speaking in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Wednesday (local time), Vance said the Trump administration had reached an agreement with Tehran after recent hostilities, but alleged that Iran had failed to uphold its side of the arrangement.

“We made a deal with the Iranians,” Vance said, adding that the agreement came after the United States had negotiated “from maximum leverage and maximum strength.”

He credited President Donald Trump and the US military with weakening Iran’s capabilities before diplomacy resumed.

“Thanks to the incredible efforts of our amazing US military, …the President of the United States, just amazing people. But most of all, thanks to the troops, we came into the situation with maximum leverage and maximum strength. Their nuclear programme was destroyed, their conventional military was destroyed, and you’ve got some people within the Iranian system who are saying, ‘You know what? We want to change our relationship with the United States. We want to turn over a new leaf,'” Vance said.

According to Vance, the understanding between Washington and Tehran centred on freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important oil shipping lanes.

“The basic deal that we cut was we’ll lift our blockade if you stop shooting at ships. But if you shoot at ships, we are going to punch back, and we’re going to punch back harder than ever before,” he said.

Vance claimed Iran initially complied with the arrangement.

“They said they would stop shooting at ships, and what happened 24 hours ago? They started shooting at ships again. They were good, they were well behaved for about a week, but then they started shooting at ships,” he said.

He warned that Washington would continue to respond militarily if attacks persisted.

“So the deal is very simple. If they shoot at ships, we’re going to knock the hell out of them, and it’s that simple. That’s the basic way it’s going to work,” Vance said, adding that President Trump “maintains a lot of options” but declining to discuss possible military action.

Vance said ensuring the Strait of Hormuz remains open was a strategic priority because of its importance to global energy supplies.

“The President has said to them very simply, the Strait of Hormuz is going to be open. That means oil and gas is going to flow to the American people. That’s why we see gas prices starting to come down. That’s why we see the oil prices so low, is because the President said that crucial artery through which we ship a lot of the world’s energy, that artery has got to remain open,” he said.

“If they try to close it down, there’s going to be a response from the American military. It’s that simple. They can either follow it, or they can have exactly what happened to them last night. It’s just going to keep on happening until they open up that lane and stop shooting at ships,” Vance added.

Tehran, July 8: Iran on Wednesday strongly condemned the United States’ decision to revoke the temporary suspension of sanctions on Iranian oil sales, describing the move as a “clear violation” of Article 10 of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on June 18 and holding Washington responsible for the consequences of the decision.

In an official statement, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran strongly condemns the US Treasury’s move to lift the temporary suspension of the embargo on Iranian oil sales, which is a gross violation of Article 10 of the Memorandum of Understanding to End the War and holds the US government responsible for the consequences of this breach of promise.”

The Ministry said the US decision, announced less than 20 days after the signing of the agreement, reflected what it described as Washington’s “malicious intentions, instability, and unreliability.”

It further alleged that the United States had repeatedly violated various provisions of the memorandum, either directly or “through the actions of the Zionist regime against Lebanon.”

According to the Ministry, Iran had made sincere efforts to implement its commitments under the agreement ever since the Memorandum of Understanding was signed and had acted in good faith while fulfilling its obligations.

“Since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding… the Islamic Republic of Iran has tried in good faith and using all its capabilities to fulfil its obligations… However, the US government, as usual, has simultaneously violated its obligations and sought to justify them with various excuses,” the Ministry said.

Issuing a warning over the latest development, the Ministry stated that Tehran reserved the right to take appropriate measures to safeguard its national interests and security.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran, while warning of the consequences of America’s breach of the agreement, will take any action it deems necessary to protect its interests and national security,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, US forces launched strikes against Iran after three commercial ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz were attacked, the US Central Command said.

US forces “have begun launching a series of powerful strikes against Iran to impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway,” the command said in a post on X.

“The US strikes are in response to Iranian attacks on three commercial vessels that were transiting the Strait of Hormuz,” said the command.

Explosions were heard near Iran’s Qeshm Island and the port cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik, Xinhua news agency reported, quoting Iranian state outlet Press TV.