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Compensation demands escalate
President Donald Trump demanded compensation from Iran as talks over reopening the Strait of Hormuz continued, saying his administration would seek payment for “50 years” of damages caused by Iran.
“his administration was going to seek payment for “50 years” of damages caused by Iran”
Trump told reporters at the White House on Monday that the move was a direct response to Tehran’s claims, saying “They asked for reparations, you might say. Or they asked for money for the damage that we’ve done.”
Al Jazeera reported that Trump also linked the compensation demand to deaths and injuries tied to the conflict, and it described Tehran’s position that the Strait of Hormuz would not reopen unless Washington agrees to pay war reparations and end sanctions.
The Al Jazeera account said Tehran’s demands were largely in line with an interim peace agreement signed in June that has since broken down, and it said talks between Iran and Oman over the waterway are ongoing.
Al Jazeera further reported that Trump claimed “52,000 people have been killed in Iran in the past four months,” while Tehran said it would not open the strait without compensation and an end to sanctions.
Trump scoffs, Iran holds line
In a separate report, WTVA said Trump “scoffed at Iran’s demand for reparations” and responded to Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei’s warning that Iran would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the U.S. meets its conditions.
WTVA quoted Baghaei saying, “It is up to the U.S. side to stop and make amends for its illegal and destructive actions,” as Tehran demanded the U.S. end its blockade of Iranian ports, lift economic sanctions, and release frozen assets.
Trump’s response, as quoted by WTVA, was that he is now demanding “compensation from Iran, for all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded with their roadside bombs and many conflicts.”
WTVA also said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz—through which roughly one-fifth of the world’s traded oil supplies passed before the war—kept energy prices as a major focus of U.S. politics ahead of November’s midterm elections.
The same WTVA report said Iran’s supreme leader is calling for “unity and cohesion,” with President Masoud Pezeshkian telling Iranian state television that “All of the enemy’s plans are aimed at creating division.”
Gaza plan rejected, Gaza named
The Guardian said Trump’s compensation demands are part of an effort to end conflicts in Iran, Gaza and Lebanon, and it reported that Israel rejected Trump’s terms for a 15-point roadmap to end the war in Gaza.
“Israel has rejected Trump’s terms for a 15-point roadmap to end the war in Gaza”
The Guardian quoted Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying, “Unlike all those who lecture us, we do what needs to be done for Israel’s security, and we can and know how to stand our ground, even against our best friends when necessary,” after Netanyahu said Hamas must fully disarm before Israel would consider pulling out of Gaza.
In the same Guardian account, Trump’s Truth Social post broadened the compensation demand to include “the people of Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Gaza!” as well as families of protesters, and it said the remarks followed setbacks for Trump’s efforts before the midterm elections in November.
Al Jazeera, meanwhile, reported that Trump framed the compensation move as a response to Tehran’s claims and said the payments would cover deaths among US forces in the region as well as civilian protesters in Iran.
Together, the sources show that Gaza is both a named arena in Trump’s compensation language and a point of direct dispute in Israel’s rejection of the Gaza roadmap, while the Strait of Hormuz negotiations remain tied to compensation and sanctions demands.