• US forces disable a Panama-flagged cargo ship attempting to sail towards an Iranian port by firing two Hellfire missiles at its steering gear after it ignored warnings.
• CENTCOM also said that US forces have redirected 55 commercial vessels attempting to run the blockade, disabled three, and boarded two.
• Qatar says negotiations between Oman and Iran over the future of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz are making significant progress.
• Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi arrives in Tehran for discussions with Iranian officials as part of mediation efforts to halt the US-Israel war on Iran and unblock the Strait of Hormuz.
• Iran demands a complete end to the US war and blockade, the release of its frozen assets, and a regional ceasefire before it reopens the Strait of Hormuz.
• Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said the strait would remain closed until all conditions were met.

US has ‘veto’ on Iran-Omani deal on Hormuz

Pakistan’s interior minister has held talks with the Iranian president and foreign minister as part of mediation efforts to end the war amid signs that Tehran and Washington may be moving closer to an agreement.

Qatar has said that talks between Iran and Oman on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz are at an advanced stage.

Former senior US diplomat Alan Eyre said Iran and Oman have agreed on a temporary traffic separation scheme for 60 days, with ships passing under Iranian control, but that Washington has a “veto” and the plan will not be implemented without its agreement.

There is no veto right on the Strait of Hormuz in Paragraph 5 in the Memorandum of Understanding included. The second part of Paragraph 5 reads latterly:

"The Islamic Republic of Iran will conduct dialogue with the Sultanate of Oman to define the future administration and maritime services in the Strait of Hormuz in discussion with other Persian Gulf littoral states in line with the applicable international law and the sovereign rights of coastal states of the Strait of Hormuz."

Trump is again resorting to arbitrary interpretation of the framework, only proving that he is the cause of the failing of the Memorandum.

While any memorandum has no legal binding, Iran is right when it accuses Trump, that we would describe as 'not sticking to the latter of the Memorandum.'

Iran, US set new conditions during Hormuz talks

The United States and Iran have exchanged new demands during negotiations for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, raising new doubts about prospects for a wider deal to end their five-month war.

While the US has said it is involved in the talks, Iran has said it is talking directly only with Oman, with which it proposes sharing future management of the critical waterway, through which one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas supplies were shipped before the US-Israel war on Iran began at the end of February.

On Monday, US President Donald Trump said he would demand compensation from Iran for deaths and injuries linked to conflicts and attacks over several decades after Iran last week issued new demands for reparations for the war and said it would not reopen the strait until Washington meets its political and economic conditions.

Netanyahu doesn’t care what Trump wants on Iran

David Hale, a former US undersecretary of state for political affairs:

“Netanyahu is the Israeli prime minister every American president loves to hate because he stands up for what he wants whether or not the US agrees with him.”

Hale pointed out that Israeli public sentiment aligns closely with Netanyahu’s stance on regional security.

“Most Israelis actually want to continue the war with Iran,” Hale said. “It is clear that President Trump wants this war to be brought to an end.”

“So, I think that’s the root of the gap here, and that’s been the point of contention between these two leaders all year long.”

Iranian regime at its weakest point since 1979, US ambassador says

United States Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee says the Iranian regime is “the weakest they have been since they took over in 1979”, praising Trump’s willingness “to bankrupt them” in an interview with Newsmax.

“The operation between the United States and Israel did an enormous level of damage,” Huckabee said.

Welcoming Trump’s military actions in the region, Huckabee claimed that Iran has “carried out actions directly and through its proxies that have killed thousands of Americans”.

“I don’t know why a lot of Americans seem to be oblivious to the fact that this issue with Iran is not a Middle East issue. It is a global issue,” he added.

“Hezbollah is in 12 Western Hemisphere countries already. They’re not there because they’re opening snow cone stands in South America. They are there because they have an ultimate goal, and that’s death to America,” Huckabee told Newsmax.

“It’s what they’ve been saying for 47 and a half years. We need to take them seriously.”

Trump says US in ‘total control’ of Strait of Hormuz

Trump says the situation with Iran is “going fine”, claiming that US forces are in complete control of the Strait of Hormuz.

“Iran is going fine – going just absolutely fine. We totally control the Strait of Hormuz. We have control over it; nobody else, only us. Our navy is unbelievable, and things going great for our country,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews.

“I don’t trust Iran. I’m the last person to trust Iran; they’ve lied to me constantly. We have total control over the Hormuz Strait right now; they don’t have control,” he added.

Trump claims US ‘owns’ Hormuz as Iran lays out conditions to reopen strait

US President Donald Trump has repeated claims that Washington is in control of the Strait of Hormuz, saying: “We have total control over the Hormuz Strait right now. They don’t have control. We have total control. We own it.”

He added that if Iran challenges the US, “they get blown away”.

This comes after Tehran said it would not reopen the vital waterway until Washington met several conditions, including war reparations and ending sanctions.

Vessel traffic through Strait of Hormuz falls to one-week low

The number of vessels tracked passing through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen to a one-week low on Tuesday, as ship owners continue to avoid the strategic waterway amid ongoing disruption from Iran and the US.

Shipping data from Kpler, cited by Reuters, showed eight vessels transiting the strait, below the 10-day average of about 12 and the lowest daily tally since August 5.

Separate data from LSEG recorded 11 transits on Tuesday, down from 14 a day earlier.

In pre-war days, before Iran closed the waterway following the start of US-Israeli attacks on February 28, about 130 to 140 ships typically transited the strait each day.

Oil prices climb towards $90 a barrel

Oil prices are continuing their upward trajectory, with Brent crude futures gaining 72 cents as of 00:53 GMT, or 0.81 percent, to $89.63 per barrel.

US West Texas Intermediate crude went up 71 cents, or 0.85 percent, to $83.91.

The gains came after both benchmark contracts settled more than $1 higher on Tuesday, reaching their highest closes since July 31, according to Reuters.

Prices extended gains following a roughly 5 percent jump on Monday as expectations for a US-Iran peace deal began to fade, despite industry data showing an expansion in US crude inventories.

EIA sharply raises oil price forecasts amid ongoing Strait of Hormuz disruptions

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) has raised its oil price forecast for the third quarter of the year, expecting significant restrictions on oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz to continue throughout August.

The US agency lifted its 2026 average Brent crude price estimate from $81.91 to $86.81 per barrel.

The average price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil was estimated at $80.88 per barrel, up from the EIA’s forecast of $76.26 last month.

The EIA set its average barrel price forecast for next year at $69.39 for Brent oil and $65.39 for WTI.

Global oil supply to drop by 4.3 million barrels per day, IEA warns

Global oil supply will fall by 4.3 million barrels per day (bpd), or about 4 percent, this year, according to the latest forecast released by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

“With an agreement enabling the reopening of Hormuz and unhindered transit through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait still elusive, we have again lowered supply estimates for the rest of the year,” the IEA said in its monthly oil market report.

The 4.3 million bpd supply drop is larger than the 3.7 million bpd reduction forecast in the IEA’s July report. This will bring total supply down to 102.02 million bpd, which is the IEA’s lowest forecast yet for the year, as the ongoing war forces a larger oil-market deficit.

Pakistan’s interior minister in Iran to discuss regional security: Ministry

Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is discussing with Iranian officials “bilateral relations, security, regional security and stability, and constructive engagement amongst the parties in the region and regional developments”.

That’s according to Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Tahir Andrabi, with Islamabad mediating to end the US-Israel war on Iran.

Pakistan’s interior minister meets Iran’s new security chief

Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has met with the recently appointed secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Major General Mohsen Rezaei, as part of his diplomatic tour in Iran.

Iran’s WANA news agency reported that during the meeting in Mashhad, Rezaei welcomed Pakistan’s growing role in regional developments and called for greater unity between Muslim countries.

Naqvi praised Iran’s leadership, highlighted “remarkable solidarity” between the Iranian and Pakistani peoples and called for greater engagement between the two countries, according to the agency.

Trump’s war strategy facing unexpected challenges in Iran

The US has so far been unsuccessful in achieving the desired results from the war on Iran despite its military might, and it is now a case of who blinks first, according to Paul Musgrave, associate professor of government at Georgetown University in Qatar.

“The amount of time that you can sustain economic or political damage, depending on Washington or Tehran, the amount of time that you can endure that pain is a testament to how much you are willing to go to get a better deal,” he said.

Musgrave said the Iranian “hardliners” do not want to back down and appear weak, aiming instead to inflict “maximum humiliation on President Trump”, especially going into the midterm elections. He added that the war has been much harder to win than Trump expected.

“I think the much bigger issue from the point of view of President Trump has simply been that American air power, American munitions, American coercion, has been unable to get what he wants,” he said.

Iran-US MoU to expire next week

Washington and Tehran signed a 14-point memorandum of understanding (MoU) on June 17, establishing a ceasefire and setting a 60-day deadline to negotiate a permanent end to their war. However, within weeks, the agreement began to fray amid renewed escalation and exchanges of fire.

While the MoU declared an end to hostilities and declared the Strait of Hormuz open for commercial vessels, vague wording in critical sections has allowed both sides to accuse each other of breaching the agreement.

The key contested articles of the MoU:

• Article 5 (Strait of Hormuz): This article mandates free commercial passage in the strait, but its interpretation remains contentious. Tehran views it as US recognition of Iran’s authority to manage the entire waterway and says it agreed to waive fees or tolls for only two months. Washington rejects this, insisting the text simply means Iran will ensure safe passage without enforcing restrictions or levies backed by force.
• Article 10 (oil and sanctions relief): Washington agreed to issue waivers enabling Iran to export crude oil, petroleum products and related services, including international banking, insurance and shipping support.
• Article 11 (unfreezing financial assets): The US committed to making Iran’s frozen funds and restricted assets “fully available for use” and said the mechanism for this would be agreed during the negotiations.

With no direct diplomatic talks or tangible progress expected soon towards a final settlement, the future remains uncertain after the expiration of the 60-day window on Sunday.

Pakistan working to bring US, Iran ‘to negotiating table’: FM spokesman

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said his country was working to “bring the two parties to the negotiating table” and prevent efforts to undermine the peace process.

The comments come amid continuing efforts to implement the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at restoring the ceasefire between the US and Iran, while also resolving disputes over the Strait of Hormuz.

Andrabi said Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and deputy foreign minister held talks with officials from Iran, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait on August 10.

The Pakistani and Iranian foreign ministers exchanged views on “efforts to promote peace and stability”, he said.

Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi is also visiting Tehran, with Andrabi saying the trip provides another opportunity to discuss bilateral relations and regional security.

Andrabi also addressed the Mecca Agreement for Joint Defence, describing it as part of Pakistan’s efforts towards “strengthening [its] strategic partnership with Saudi Arabia”.

Iran’s borders ‘completely secure’: Border Guards commander

Brigadier General Ali Akbar Javidan, the commander of the Iranian Border Guards, has dismissed claims that the US would launch a ground attack on the country as “illusory”.

“The actions of the enemies can never undermine the authority and security of the country,” he said, in remarks quoted by Iran’s Tasnim news agency.

The commander added: “Today, the country’s borders are completely secure and impenetrable, thanks to the full vigilance of the border guards and the support of the steadfast border residents.”

Top Turkish diplomat to visit Egypt tomorrow

The situation in Iran, the Strait of Hormuz, Gaza, Syria, Libya and the eastern Mediterranean will be on the agenda during Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan’s two-day visit to Egypt starting on Thursday, according to Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency.

Fidan is expected to exchange views on the implementation of the second phase of the 15-point Gaza deal and address the risks to regional stability posed by Israel’s attacks across Palestine, as well as its aggressive actions against Lebanon and Syria, it said.

He is expected to express support for diplomatic efforts aimed at re-establishing a ceasefire between the US and Iran and reopening the Strait of Hormuz as soon as possible, the agency added.

The latest issues on talks for reopening Hormuz

Iran has rejected Trump’s claim that Washington has “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz, saying the critical waterway will remain closed until the US accepts its demands and changes its “behaviour”.

According to the semiofficial Tasnim News Agency, Mohsen Rezaee, the newly appointed head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, told China’s ambassador to Tehran, Cong Peiwu: “As long as America does not change its behaviour and does not accept Iran’s conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will not be opened.”

The Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of global oil and natural gas supplies were shipped during peacetime, has emerged as a key flashpoint in the US-Israel war on Iran, and peace talks are stalled until the question of its management is resolved. Iran closed the strait shortly after the US and Israel began their bombing campaign at the end of February.

Iran said it is only talking to Oman, whose territorial waters also extend into the strait, about the future management of the waterway.

Iran holding firm on conditions as MoU set to expire on Sunday

The clock is ticking, and over the past few days, there has been less appetite among Iranian officials and sources to talk about any potential extension of the deal. However, they are very vocal in articulating their demands and conditions for any rapprochement with the United States.

Iranians are more concerned about the implementation of any agreements, less concerned about the extension of the deal, and these concerns are basically coming from two important aspects.

First, the security assurances that Iran is looking for to make sure that if a deal could be reached at the end of the day, it could pave the way for a period of stability in the country. And also a second factor, which is the economic demands of the country. And they’re coming with clear demands regarding the naval blockade imposed by the Americans.

The necessity for the removal of that blockade is out there as a key point of concern for the Iranians not only when it comes to the entirety of the potential talks between Iran and the United States and the revival of the memorandum of understanding, but also, more importantly, regarding the potential reopening of the Strait [of Hormuz].

Also, sanctions and the frozen assets are two other economic concerns for the Iranian side.

Trump says US to keep ‘total control’ over Hormuz

President Donald Trump has reiterated his claim that the US is in control of the Strait of Hormuz.

“The U.S.A. has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. I THINK WE WILL KEEP IT! Our Naval Blockade is being called, by everyone, ‘A WALL OF STEEL,’ and there is nothing Iran can do about it,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Trump’s claim of ‘total control’ over Strait of Hormuz undercuts ongoing negotiations

Abas Aslani, a senior research fellow at the Tehran-based Center for Middle East Strategic Studies, says Trump’s claim that the US has “total control” of the Strait of Hormuz does not align with Washington’s own push for renewed negotiations. If the US already controls the strait, there is, in Aslani’s words, “no real need for negotiations”.

As Oman and Tehran continue talks aimed at reopening the strait to shipping, Trump may be trying to project calm to global energy markets, according to Aslani, even as he previously said he intends to keep economic pressure on Iran to bring Tehran back to the table – the same table where talks over reopening the strait are taking place.

“Iran requires Washington to fulfill its commitments first,” Aslani said, adding that the two parties’ positions are very different with Iran working mostly through mediators. Tehran, he said, does not want the Strait of Hormuz treated in isolation while Washington wants to compartmentalize the issue and focus solely on reopening the strait. Iran, on the other hand, wants sanctions relief, the ability to sell its oil and an end to the war.

That shift was echoed by Mohsen Rezaei, a top Iranian security official, whom Aslani said has essentially moved the equation from “reopening the strait” to “ending the war”.

IEA forecasts greater loss of global oil supply as conflict escalates in key waterways

The International Energy Agency has sharply cut its outlook for 2026 due to escalating conflict in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb.

According to its latest monthly report, global oil supply will drop by 4.3 million barrels per day (bpd) this year, a substantial increase over its July forecast of a 3.7bpd drop.

“With an agreement enabling the reopening of Hormuz and unhindered transit through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait still elusive, we have again lowered supply estimates for the rest of the year,” the report says.

The new figure represents a 4 percent loss of global oil supply, and leaves oil supply roughly 1.27 million bpd short of demand.

The agency expects a 1.8 million bpd deficit over the July-to-September period, the deepest quarterly shortfall since 2021.

US-Iran war turning into a ‘war of concessions’

Abas Aslani, a senior research fellow at the Tehran-based Center for Middle East Strategic Studies, says control of the Strait of Hormuz is turning into a match less about freedom of navigation and more about which side can force the other to make more concessions.

For Trump, he said, “it’s important to have victory” as the US approaches the midterm elections.

For Iran, what matters is having “an agreement on paper”, something concrete that can be converted into economic opportunity after decades of sanctions.

“The diplomatic process has been militarized by both sides,” Aslani said, “but essentially by the US, which is using this military threat to pressure the other side to extract further concessions.” According to Aslani, Trump has separately taken pride in what he describes as the destruction of Iran’s military capabilities, even as reports emerged that he had to leave last month’s NATO summit aboard a different plane than planned when departing the region due to an assassination threat posed by Iran.

With no ceasefire yet in place, the US continues to target ships in the strait, as does Iran – while attacks in the Red Sea, involving Yemeni forces and Saudi Arabia, are tied to the broader conflict that Aslani said will ultimately need to be negotiated directly between the US and Iran.

Oil spill from grounded tanker near Oman could be among worst in years

An oil spill from a grounded tanker has started to hit Oman’s coastline in what could become one of the worst incidents of its kind in years.

Oman’s state news agency reports that some beaches have already been affected by oil pollution and estimates that tens of kilometers more of coastline may be affected.

Oil spill specialist John Amos told Reuters that he estimates that the slick covers more than 2,000 square kilometers (770sq miles). “The longer we wait, the more damaged and decrepit that tanker gets, the more complicated and difficult and potentially dangerous that salvage operation is going to be,” he said.

The Caroline Bezengi tanker ran aground while carrying 800,000 barrels of oil on June 30, weeks after it reportedly suffered a blast off the coast of Yemen. No party has claimed responsibility for an attack on the ship.

US says it has redirected 59 vessels since reinstating Iran blockade

United States Central Command (CENTCOM) says it has redirected 59 commercial vessels, disabled three and boarded two others since reinstating its naval blockade of Iran on July 14.

CENTCOM has not provided evidence every time it makes these claims.

Iranian authority rejects Trump’s claim that US fully controls Hormuz Strait

The Persian Gulf Strait Authority has rejected Trump’s claim that the US fully controls the Strait of Hormuz.

“Claims and repeated posts by U.S. officials that the Strait of Hormuz is no longer blocked do not change the reality: the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked and will not be reopened until Iran’s conditions are accepted,” it said in a statement shared on social media.

Anyone who follows the marine traffic data of the Hormuz, and the fluctuations on the oil markets and the changing prices at the fuel stations, knows that Trump doesn't have the control over the strait.

Iran calls for environmental protections in future Hormuz administration

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei has said that addressing the environmental conditions of the Strait of Hormuz and surrounding waters must be an integral part of any future administration of the key waterway.

Baqaei pointed to recent oil pollution along the shores of Qeshm Island, saying preliminary evidence indicated a foreign bulk carrier was responsible.

He said the incident was one example of decades of extensive pollution affecting the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, and argued that parties benefiting from commercial shipping through Hormuz have a “legal and moral obligation” to help remediate environmental damage in the region.

Mecca defence pact an extension of ‘post-Second World War’ US security architecture

Ayesha Siddiqa, a professor of political science at King’s College London and author of Military Inc, says the new Mecca Joint Defence Agreement signed by Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan is “rooted in history” and a contemporary manifestation of a post-WWII security architecture in the Middle East.

“It’s almost a repeat of history, because we’ve seen this happen after the end of the second world war and the withdrawal of the British from South Asia and the Middle East,” Siddiqa says.

Siddiqa says the compromise in the years following the end of WWII had a lot to do with hesitation on the part of India’s former prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, despite “an economic role to be played by India, which New Delhi wasn’t willing to play”.

“Until the mid-50s, Indian currency was primarily used in all GCC countries, but then-PM Nehru wasn’t keen on it – he was cautious and conscious of being geopolitically influenced by Gulf Arab States,” she said, using the acronym for the Gulf Cooperation Council.

“He kept his distance. Whereas Pakistan was keen in the 1950s and 60s to be part of US designs in the Middle East and West Asia.”

It is one reason, says Siddiqa, that Pakistan joined US-backed Cold War military alliances such as the Southeast Asia Treaty Organisation (SEATO) and Central Asia Treaty Organization (CENTO).

“The formula then was that weapons and money were to be provided by the US and its western allies, whereas military manpower would be provided by Pakistan. A similar formula is being used this time.”

US understands necessity of Mecca pact to balance Iran and Israel

Ayesha Siddiqa, professor at King’s College London, who has said that the latest trilateral defence pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan is likely to play “a balancer of sorts” in a post-US-dominated Middle East.

“The US is not averse to this tripartite arrangement. This is a consequence and a natural progression of the US reducing its footprint in the Middle East without reducing its influence,” Siddiqa says.

“This grouping is more likely to play as a balancer between an Israeli-dominated and Iranian-dominated Middle East, and I think the US understands the necessity of this tripartite arrangement to provide balance to this equation, especially in preserving the interests of the Gulf Arab states,” she says.

Lots of work ahead for Mecca defence deal ‘to evolve into something greater’

Ayesha Siddiqa, professor at King’s College London, says the “mutual defence” reportedly contained in the trilateral Mecca defence pact has a lot to do with messaging, as “no one outside has seen the actual document of the signed pact”.

“NATO-style Article 5 – which relates to mutual defence is a possibility”, Siddiqa tells Al Jazeera.

Siddiqa says achieving the ability to offer mutual defence among the three signatories will depend on “a lot of defence, and diplomatic culture needs to be created for this to evolve into something greater”.