Senate approves bill to end the shutdown, sending it to the House

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate passed legislation Monday to reopen the government, bringing the longest shutdown in history closer to an end as a small group of Democrats ratified a deal with Republicans despite searing criticism from within their party.

The 41-day shutdown could last a few more days as members of the House, which has been on recess since mid-September, return to Washington to vote on the legislation. President Donald Trump has signaled support for the bill, saying Monday that “we’re going to be opening up our country very quickly.”

The final Senate vote, 60-40, broke a grueling stalemate that lasted more than six weeks as Democrats demanded that Republicans negotiate with them to extend health care tax credits that expire Jan. 1. The Republicans never did, and five moderate Democrats eventually switched their votes as federal food aid was delayed, airport delays worsened and hundreds of thousands of federal workers continued to go unpaid.

House Speaker Mike Johnson urged lawmakers to start returning to Washington “right now" given shutdown-related travel delays, but an official notice issued after the Senate vote said the earliest the House will vote is Wednesday afternoon.

“It appears our long national nightmare is finally coming to an end," said Johnson, who has kept the House out of session since mid-September, when the House passed a bill to continue government funding.

After weeks of negotiations, A group of three former governors — New Hampshire Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Sen. Maggie Hassan and Independent Sen. Angus King of Maine — agreed to vote to advance three bipartisan annual spending bills and extend the rest of government funding until late January. Republicans promised to hold a vote to extend the health care subsidies by mid-December, but there was no guarantee of success.

Shaheen said Monday that “this was the option on the table” after Republicans had refused to budge.

“We had reached a point where I think a number of us believed that the shutdown had been very effective in raising the concern about health care," she said, and the promise for a future vote “gives us an opportunity to continue to address that going forward."

The legislation includes a reversal of the mass firings of federal workers by the Trump administration since the shutdown began on Oct. 1. It also protects federal workers against further layoffs through January and guarantees they are paid once the shutdown is over.

In addition to Shaheen, King and Hassan, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, home to tens of thousands of federal workers, also voted Sunday in favor of moving forward on the agreement. Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman and Nevada Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen also voted yes. All other Democrats, including Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York, voted against it.

The moderates had expected a larger number of Democrats to vote with them as 10 to 12 Democratic senators had been part of the negotiations. But in the end, only five switched their votes — the exact number that Republicans needed. King, Cortez Masto and Fetterman had already been voting to open the government since Oct. 1.

Schumer, who received blowback from his party in March when he voted to keep the government open, said he could not “in good faith” support it after meeting with his caucus for more than two hours on Sunday.

“We will not give up the fight,” Schumer said, adding that Democrats have now “sounded the alarm” on health care.

Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, who caucuses with the Democrats, said giving up the fight was a “horrific mistake.” Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., agreed, saying that voters who overwhelmingly supported Democrats in last week's elections were urging them to "hold firm.”

House Democrats swiftly criticized the Senate.

Texas Rep. Greg Casar, the chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said a deal that doesn’t reduce health care costs is a “betrayal” of millions of Americans who are counting on Democrats to fight.

Others gave Schumer a nod of support. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries had criticized Schumer in March after his vote to keep the government open. But he praised the Senate Democratic leader on Monday and expressed support for his leadership throughout the shutdown.

“The American people know we are on the right side of this fight,” Jeffries said Monday, pointing to Tuesday's election results.

It’s unclear whether the two parties would be able to find any common ground on the health care subsidies before a promised December vote in the Senate. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., has said he will not commit to bringing it up in his chamber.

On Monday, Johnson said House Republicans have always been open to voting to reform what he called the “unaffordable care act” but again did not say if they would vote on the subsidies.

Some Republicans have said they are open to extending the COVID-19-era tax credits as premiums could skyrocket for millions of people, but they also want new limits on who can receive the subsidies. Some argue that the tax dollars for the plans should be routed through individuals.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins said Monday that she's supportive of extending the tax credits with changes, like new income caps. Some Democrats have signaled they could be open to that idea.

“We do need to act by the end of the year, and that is exactly what the majority leader has promised,” Collins said.

Other Republicans, including Trump, have used the debate to renew their yearslong criticism of the law and called for it to be scrapped or overhauled.

In a possible preview, the Senate voted 47-53 along party lines Monday not to extend the subsidies for a year. Majority Republicans allowed the vote as part of a separate deal with Democrats to speed up votes and send the legislation to the House.

Associated Press writers Seung Min Kim, Michelle Price and Stephen Groves contributed to this report.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks to reporters after final Senate passage of the stopgap funding bill to reopen the government through Jan. 30, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday evening, Nov. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., heads to the chamber as the Senate votes to bring the longest government shutdown in U.S. history to an end after a bipartisan compromise, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Nov. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., walks to his private office after speaking to reporters about a stopgap funding bill to reopen the government through Jan. 30, 2026, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Nov. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., makes a statement to reporters following a vote in the Senate to move forward with a stopgap funding bill to reopen the government through Jan. 30, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Nov. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

President Donald Trump meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban in the Cabinet Room of the White House, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Speaking to reporters, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., responds to Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer to reopen the government if Republicans extend expiring health care subsidies for one year, at the Capitol in Washington, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, day 38 of the government shutdown. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

U.S. President Donald Trump said the military could end its Iran offensive in two to three weeks and will shift responsibility for the Strait of Hormuz to countries that rely on it for oil and shipping as the White House announced a prime-time presidential address Wednesday evening on the war.

Trump expressed frustration Tuesday with allies who have been unwilling to do more to support the U.S. war effort, telling them to “go get your own oil.” Trump recently has vacillated between insisting there is progress in diplomatic talks with Iran and threatening to widen the war.

In an interview with pan-Arab broadcaster Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi acknowledged receiving direct messages from U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. He insisted, however, that there were no direct negotiations and said Iran has no faith that talks with the U.S. could yield any results, saying “the trust level is at zero.”

Trump said the U.S. “will not have anything to do with” what happens next in the vital waterway that has been closed by the Islamic Republic. Instead, he told reporters, the responsibility for keeping the strait open will rest with countries that rely on it. Gulf states rely on the waterway for both exports and imports, including food, and 20 percent of the world's oil supply flows through it.

U.S. gas prices jumped past an average of $4 a gallon for the first time since 2022 on Tuesday, as the Iran war continues to push fuel prices higher worldwide. Analysts say those high fuel costs will trickle into groceries as businesses’ transportation and packaging costs pile up.

Here is the latest:

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi signaled Tehran’s willingness to keep fighting no matter what Trump may threaten.

Trump’s April 6 deadline for the Strait of Hormuz to open still stands, otherwise he threatened to hit power plants.

“You cannot speak to the people of Iran in the language of threats and deadlines,” Araghchi said.

Asked if the United States would launch a ground war in Iran, Araghchi dismissed the idea.

“I do not think they would dare to do such a thing,” he said. “Very heavy casualties would await them.”

Oil fell below $100 per barrel and Asian shares jumped Wednesday over renewed optimism about a de-escalation of the Iran war.

Brent crude, the international standard, was down 4.7% to $99.05 per barrel.

Benchmark U.S. crude dropped 4% to $97.33 a barrel.

South Korea’s Kospi recovered its losses from earlier this week, surging 8.4% to 5,478.70, while Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 5.2% to 53,739.68.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 2.3% to 25,346.42, while the Shanghai Composite index was trading 1.5% higher at 3,948.55.

An airstrike in Iran’s capital, Tehran, on Wednesday morning appears to have struck inside of the former U.S. Embassy compound there.

The embassy has been controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard since the 1979 hostage crisis.

Its all-volunteer Basij force operates the compound, running an anti-American museum inside the embassy and having different operations on its grounds in newer buildings.

Witnesses saw blown-out windows surrounding the massive compound on Tehran’s Taleghani Street. However, there was no missile strike visible around the compound, with witnesses saying they believe the strike happened inside the compound.

The 444-day hostage crisis saw American diplomats held until President Ronald Reagan took office from President Jimmy Carter in 1981.

An oil tanker contracted to Qatar was struck by an Iranian cruise missile on Wednesday while two others were intercepted, authorities said.

The missile slammed into the tanker off Qatar's coast that is contracted by state-owned QatarEnergy. The ministry said the tanker’s 21-member crew was evacuated, and no casualties were reported.

In a statement, the Defense Ministry said two other missiles were intercepted.

QatarEnergy said there was no environmental impact from the tanker attack.

The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said earlier that a projectile slammed into the side of the ship.

The Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen said Wednesday they fired a barrage of ballistic missiles toward Israel.

Air raid sirens went off in southern Israel in the early morning, from Beersheba to the Mediterranean coast following the launch. There were no immediate reports of impacts.

Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a military spokesman for the Houthis, said in a prerecorded statement that they fired at “sensitive targets” in southern Israel.

The attack is the third since the Houthis joined the war on Friday when they fired their first missile towards Israel since the U.S. and Israel launched massive airstrikes on Iran on Feb. 28.

Their entry has raised concerns that they could resume attacks on vessels in the Red Sea further disrupting the global shipping industry and sending oil prices much higher

A drone attack has killed a citizen of Bangladesh in Fujairah, one of the UAE’s seven emirates, authorities said.

He was killed Wednesday when Emirati air defense systems intercepted a drone, and shrapnel landed in a farm, the Fujairah media office said.

The fatality has brought the death toll in the UAE to nine civilians and two soldiers. A Moroccan contractor with the UAE army was also killed in Bahrain.

Earlier Saudi Arabia said it had destroyed two Iranian drones.

Emergency personnel said an 11-year-old girl was severely wounded in central Israel in the latest missile attack from Iran.

Two more people suffered moderate injuries including a 13-year-old boy and a 36-year-old woman, according to Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue services.

Iran’s foreign minister has acknowledged receiving direct messages from U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff.

The comments by Abbas Araghchi came in an interview with pan-Arab broadcaster Al Jazeera aired late Tuesday. He insisted that the messages didn’t constitute negotiations.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly described Iran and America has having talks over the war, while Pakistan has been a key intermediary along with Egypt and Turkey during the conflict.

“I receive messages from Witkoff directly, as before, and this does not mean that we are in negotiations,” he said.

He added: “We do not have any faith that negotiations with the U.S. will yield any results. The trust level is at zero.”

Asked about a possible ground offensive by the U.S., Araghchi said “we are waiting for them.”

“We know very well how to defend ourselves,” Araghchi reportedly told the Qatar-based broadcaster. “In a ground war, we can do it even better. We are completely ready to confront any sort of ground attack. We hope they do not make such a mistake.”

Lebanon’s Health Ministry said in a preliminary count early Wednesday 21 people were also wounded in the strike in Jnah.

The strike came without warning, and Israel did not declare the target. When it does, it often says it is targeting operatives from the Hezbollah militant group.

Emergency workers rushed to the scene to search for victims.

Israel’s military warned the public Wednesday a missile was incoming from Yemen, yet another attack from the country’s Houthi rebels who have just entered the war on Iran’s side.

Air raid sirens went off in southern Israel, from Beersheba to the Mediterranean coast.

The warning, just around dawn, broke a long lull, more than 19 hours since the last time Israel’s military warned of an incoming missile launch from Iran, and more than six hours from the last alarms in the northern part of Israel, which in past days received near-constant fire from Hezbollah in Lebanon.

A drone attack by Iran and its allies hit a fuel tank at Kuwait International Airport, sparking a fire, authorities said.

The state-run KUNA news agency said the attack early Wednesday sparked a “large fire” at the airport.

It said there were no immediate injuries from the attack and firefighters were working to control the blaze.

Kuwait International Airport has been attacked before by Iran during the war. The KUNA report suggested the attack may have been launched by Iranian-supported militias in Iraq with Tehran’s support.

In another strike, Bahrain said early on Wednesday morning that it was working to extinguish a fire at a business facility that resulted from an Iranian attack.

Israel said early Wednesday it struck a plant supplying Iran’s theocracy with fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid, to allegedly use in a chemical weapons program. Iran acknowledged the strike on Tofigh Daru factory, but insisted it only supplied “hospital drugs” used in medical operations.

The strike happened Tuesday, both the Israelis and the Iranians said.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted a picture of the factory in Tehran, writing on X: “The war criminals in Israel are now openly and unashamedly bombing pharmaceutical companies.”

Hospitals extensively use fentanyl to treat severe pain. But a small amount of the drug can be fatal.

Both Israel and the United States have warned in recent years Iran was experimenting with fentanyl in munitions. The U.S. previously pointed to Iranian academic research studying how Russia likely used a fentanyl derivative during the 2002 Moscow theater hostage seizure by Chechen militants.

Israel alleged Tofigh Daru supplied fentanyl to an advanced research institute in Tehran, known by its acronym SPND. The U.S alleges SPND has conducted research and testing that could be applicable to the development of nuclear explosive devices and other weapons.

The United Arab Emirates has barred Iranians from entering or transiting the country as the war rages, three major airlines said Wednesday.

Long-haul carriers Emirates and Etihad, as well as the lower-cost airline FlyDubai, made the announcements on their websites.

Entry rules can sometimes be opaque in the autocratic United Arab Emirates, a federation of seven sheikhdoms, the three airlines agreed on the order. It said holders of 10-year Golden Visa residency permits could still enter the country.

Authorities have offered no official comment. But Dubai has already shut down the city-state’s Iranian Hospital and Iranian Club, institutions that date back to the time of the shah.

Members of civic groups hold signs against the U.S. and Israel attacks on Iran near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

Israel's rescue teams and residents take shelter as sirens sounds next to a site struck by an Iranian missile in Bnei Brak, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

People stand near a damaged van beside scattered debris following an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A firefighter extinguishes a car at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Residents and Israeli security forces inspect a site struck by an Iranian missile in Petah Tikva, Israel, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

A man inspect the wreckage of an Iranian missile that landed near the West Bank village of Marda, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)

Smoke rises after an Israeli airstrike hits a building near the airport road in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

A family who fled Israeli shelling in southern Lebanon warm themselves by a bonfire next to tents used as shelters in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)