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Hormuz talks amid strikes
An Omani delegation arrived in Tehran to discuss options for managing shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz as the United States and Iran continued attacks, with Iran’s state-run IRNA reporting the diplomats arrived late on Friday for talks with Iranian officials.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held a phone call with his Omani counterpart, Badr Albusaidi, while no details were released about the ideas being discussed.
Control over the strait has become the main focus of hostilities between the US and Iran, with the global economy exposed to rising energy prices due to the closure of the strategically important waterway that carried around 20 percent of oil and gas exports before the outbreak of the conflict.
The BBC described a parallel escalation in Iran–Oman relations, saying that on July 12 the Omani Foreign Ministry summoned Musa Farhang, Iran’s ambassador to Muscat, and handed him a formal protest note over drone attacks in Musandam and Al-Wusta governorates that Muscat attributed to Iran.
Oman’s stance, Iran’s response
Al Jazeera reported that Albusaidi posted on X that “Vital waterways, including the Strait of Hormuz, must remain open and accessible for navigation, free from any measures that would impede freedom of navigation and international trade flows,” while the US and Gulf states rejected Iran’s proposed coordination setup.
The BBC said Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Ghareebabadi told Iranian television that “We went on a mission to address the Strait of Hormuz,” and added that if Oman did not align with Iran’s position, “expect new developments in the region and in the Strait of Hormuz.”
The BBC also described how Muscat opposed collecting fees or imposing mandatory charges for ships passing through the Strait, saying such a move would be contrary to international law.
In the same account, the BBC said Iran strongly protested a temporary passage set up by Oman with the United Nations to facilitate the removal of ships stranded in the strait in Omani territorial waters.
What’s at stake next
As diplomacy continues, Al Jazeera said the US and Iran exchanged air strikes for the 14th day in a row despite efforts to rekindle talks under a Memorandum of Understanding that had achieved a pause in fighting last month but collapsed over differences about freedom of navigation in the strait.
Al Jazeera reported that the crisis deepened after Houthi rebels declared a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia on Monday, opening a new front alongside the Strait of Hormuz hostilities.
Iran’s Health Ministry said at least 55 people have been killed in recent US attacks and nearly 650 injured, while Al Jazeera also reported drone crash near Iraq’s Erbil International Airport forced the temporary suspension of flights.
The Kurdistan24 report added that Bahrain’s General Command of the Defense Force announced its air defense units intercepted several Iranian missiles and drones targeting civilian areas, and that Jordan’s air defense systems and Royal Jordanian Air Force aircraft intercepted seven Iranian missiles and six drones on Friday after they entered Jordanian airspace.
