Hong Kong leader says fire investigation 'must uncover the truth' and promises construction reforms

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong will set up an independent committee headed by a judge to determine the cause of a deadly high-rise fire that shocked the city and to recommend changes to prevent a future tragedy, its leader said Tuesday.

John Lee, the chief executive of the southern Chinese territory, pledged to overcome vested interests and bring about systemic change in the construction industry. Police said Tuesday afternoon that more bodies had been found, raising the death toll to at least 156 with about 30 people still missing a week after the fire.

“We must uncover the truth, ensure that justice is served, let the deceased rest in peace and provide comfort to the living,” Lee told reporters at a weekly press conference. “We want to ensure that we will prevent such a tragedy from happening again.”

The fire started last Wednesday around scaffolding on a building at the Wang Fuk Court complex and spread to seven of its eight towers. They were home to more than 4,600 people and many have been left homeless. Forty injured people remain hospitalized, Lee said.

A survivor of the fire welcomed the creation of the independent committee. “Everyone, every Hong Kong citizen, every person affected by this accident, all of them want to know the truth of this fire,” said May Liang, who was out to lunch with her husband when the fire started. They lost all their belongings, she said.

At least 15 people have been arrested by anti-corruption investigators and police, including scaffolding contractors, company directors and an engineering consultant, as authorities investigate suspected corruption and negligence in a renovation project at the housing complex.

The initial investigation has focused on why the fire expanded so rapidly, overwhelming firefighting efforts. Authorities have cited both high winds and substandard materials used for the maintenance work.

Contractors were found to be using substandard netting, authorities said Monday. Among the 20 samples of netting investigators collected at the complex, seven were found to have failed safety standards.

Lee said that those responsible had mixed substandard netting with qualified materials to trick inspectors.

The entire building renovation system in Hong Kong will be reformed, he vowed.

Lee refused to comment on media reports that people were arrested last weekend in what some saw as an attempt to snuff out criticism of the government, including one person who was reportedly involved in a petition calling for government accountability and arrested on suspicion of inciting sedition. Lee said only that “I will not tolerate any crimes, particularly crimes that exploit the tragedy that we are facing now.”

John Burns, an honorary professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong, said the investigation results will likely be credible as the government seeks to reassure the public.

“It’s in everyone’s interest that the process and results of the investigations be credible,” Burns said. “Transparency is crucial for restoring trust.”

Lee said 2,500 residents of the towers have been moved into transitional housing units, some in government housing and others in hostels and hotels. About 20 people remain in shelters that housed hundreds on the first night.

Moritsugu reported from Beijing. AP video journalist Jonathan Lee in Hong Kong contributed to this report.

The moon rises over the site of a deadly fire at Wang Fuk Court, a residential estate in the Tai Po district of Hong Kong's New Territories, on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

People pray after offering flowers for the victims near the site of a deadly fire at Wang Fuk Court, a residential estate in the Tai Po district of Hong Kong's New Territories on Tuesday, Dec 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

A man holding flowers arrive at the site of a deadly fire at Wang Fuk Court, a residential estate in the Tai Po district of Hong Kong's New Territories, on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee walks to a press conference with a darken screen in the aftermath of a deadly fire in Hong Kong on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee speaks during a press conference with a darken screen in the aftermath of a deadly fire in Hong Kong on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee speaks during a press conference with a darken screen in the aftermath of a deadly fire in Hong Kong on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee speaks during a press conference with a darken screen in the aftermath of a deadly fire in Hong Kong on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump was set to address the nation Wednesday night and offer an update on the war in Iran, his first prime-time speech since launching strikes alongside Israel more than a month ago.

The speech will offer Trump a wide audience to articulate clear objectives for the war that could attempt to reconcile weeks of changing goals and often contradictory messages about whether he’s winding down or ready to escalate military operations — even as Iran kept up its attacks on Israel and Persian Gulf neighbors and airstrikes pounded Tehran.

It comes amid rising oil prices, volatile financial markets and polling showing many Americans feel the U.S. military has gone too far in Iran — even as more American troops move into the region for a possible ground offensive. Trump opted not to deliver such an address closer to when the U.S. and Israel first launched attacks 4 1/2 weeks ago, and questions now remain about whether it is now too late for what he says to break through.

A White House official, who was not authorized to speak publicly ahead of the address and spoke on condition of anonymity, said the president will talk about the U.S. progress on achieving his goals in Iran and will reiterate his estimated timeline for concluding operations within two to three weeks.

In a social media post Wednesday morning, Trump maintained a belligerent tone, demanding that Iran stop blocking the Strait of Hormuz — the waterway vital to global oil supplies — or the U.S. would bomb the Islamic Republic “back to the Stone Ages.” The president has also said the U.S. “will not have anything to do with” ensuring the security of ships passing through Hormuz — an apparent backtrack from a previous threat to attack Iran’s power grid if it didn’t open the strait by April 6.

In another post, he claimed that “Iran’s New Regime President” wanted a ceasefire. It wasn’t clear to whom the U.S. president was referring since Iran still has the same president. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, called Trump’s claim “false and baseless,” according to a report on Iranian state television.

Speaking earlier to Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi signaled Tehran’s willingness to keep fighting. “You cannot speak to the people of Iran in the language of threats and deadlines,” he said. “We do not set any deadline for defending ourselves.”

Hours before Trump’s address, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian posted a lengthy letter in English on his X account appealing to U.S. citizens and stressing that his country had pursued negotiations before the U.S. withdrew from that path. “Exactly which of the American people’s interests are truly being served by this war?” he wrote.

Since the war began on Feb. 28, Trump has offered shifting objectives and repeatedly has said it could be over soon while also threatening to widen the conflict. Thousands of additional U.S. troops are currently heading to the Middle East, and speculation abounds about why.

Trump has also threatened to attack Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub. And the U.S. could decide to send in military forces to secure Iran’s uranium stockpile — a complex and risky operation, fraught with radiation and chemical dangers, experts and former government officials say.

Adding to the confusion is what role Israel — which has been bombing Iran alongside the U.S. — might play in any of these scenarios.

Trump has been under growing pressure to end the war that has been pushing up the cost of gasoline, food and other goods. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, is up more than 40% since the start of the war.

The U.S. has presented Iran with a 15-point plan aimed at bringing about a ceasefire, including a demand for the strait to be reopened and for its nuclear program to be rolled back.

Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful. And in a report last week by Iranian state TV's English-language broadcaster, an anonymous official was quoted as saying Iran had its own demands to end the fighting, including retaining sovereignty over the strait.

In the interview with Al Jazeera, 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.”

He warned against any U.S. attempt to launch a ground offensive, saying “we are waiting for them.”

In a deal ostensibly to give diplomacy a chance, U.S. officials have given “clear assurances” that Araghchi and Iran's Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf won't be targeted, according to three officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they're not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.

A cruise missile slammed into an oil tanker off Qatar’s coast Wednesday, the Defense Ministry said. The crew was evacuated and no casualties were reported. A Kuwaiti oil tanker came under attack off Dubai the day before, one of more than 20 ships attacked by Iran during the war.

In the United Arab Emirates, a person was killed when he was hit by debris from an intercepted drone in Fujairah, one of the country’s seven emirates.

In Kuwait, the state-run KUNA news agency said a drone hit a fuel tank at Kuwait International Airport, sparking a large fire.

Jordan’s military said it intercepted a ballistic missile and two drones fired from Iran in the last 24 hours. No casualties were reported. Two drones were also intercepted in Saudi Arabia.

Very early on Thursday, Israel’s military said Iran had launched missiles at the country, the first time of the day.

In Lebanon, at least five people were killed in an Israeli strike on a Beirut neighborhood.

Israel invaded southern Lebanon after the Iran-linked Hezbollah militant group began launching missiles into northern Israel days after the outbreak of the war.

More than 1,200 people have been killed in Lebanon and more than 1 million displaced, according to authorities. Ten Israeli soldiers have also died there.

In Iran, authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel. More than two dozen people have died in Gulf states and the occupied West Bank, while 13 U.S. service members have been killed.

Grambell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Rising reported from Bangkok. Associated Press writers Giovanna Dell’Orto in Miami, Farnoush Amiri in New York and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.

A young girl is comforted by her father and Israeli soldiers as they take cover in a bomb shelter during air raid sirens warning of incoming Iranian missile strikes in Bnei Brak, Israel, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

People inspect the site of an Israeli strike amid debris and damaged vehicles in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

A man feeds stray cats in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

The Indian flagged LPG carrier Jag Vasant transporting liquefied petroleum gas, is seen at the Mumbai Port in Mumbai, India, after it arrived clearing the Strait of Hormuz, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

Firefighters and rescue workers work at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

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

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)

A police vehicle is seen through a shattered windshield at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Two men ride scooters past charred debris at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)