Trump Demands Iran Compensate Victims as Iran Sets Conditions to Reopen Strait of Hormuz

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 directly 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. Recommended Stories list of 3 items- list 1 of 3Oil prices, stocks surge as Hormuz closure drags on - list 2 of 3Iran hierarchy consolidation as IRGC veteran tapped for key security role - list 3 of 3Trump demands compensation from Iran as talks on Strait of Hormuz continue 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. Experts said broader peace negotiations between the two countries are unlikely to restart until the issue of the Strait of Hormuz is resolved. “The two sides are further apart,” Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi reported from Tehran. “They are getting more and more distant when it comes to the possibility of any diplomatic settlement.” The latest developments threaten to further complicate the talks between Tehran and Oman on future management of the strait despite both Iran and the US previously indicating they want an agreement to end the fighting. Here is what we know: What has Trump said about ‘compensation’? Trump said Iran should pay compensation for people killed or seriously wounded through Iranian actions. “We’re going to ask for money for the damage they’ve done over a 50-year period,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “So if there’s damages to be paid, I think Iran should pay those damages.” Then in a post on his Truth Social platform, the US leader said Iran should compensate families of the 17 US sailors killed in an October 2000 attack in Yemen on the naval vessel USS Cole, which was blamed on al-Qaeda not Iran. He also demanded compensation for the families of Iranian protesters killed during antigovernment unrest in January. “Also, with respect to the Iran negotiations, Iran should be responsible for the damages and death caused to the people of Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Gaza!” Trump wrote. Trump’s demands came after Iran said the US should compensate Tehran for damage caused by US and Israeli attacks during this year’s war. The escalatory rhetoric from the US president appeared to conflict with comments made by his vice president, JD Vance, who on Saturday said he was confident about reaching a deal with Iran and the agreement would be good for the American public. Vance also said Iran had told the US that it has “no plans” to impose tolls on the Strait of Hormuz – one of the points of friction between the two sides. However, oil prices jumped more than 5 percent on Monday after Trump’s new demands while prices rose again on Tuesday as hopes for a deal faded. What are Iran’s new demands? Iran says reopening Hormuz, which it essentially closed to shipping shortly after the start of the war, depends on Washington taking several steps, including agreeing to a set of new demands. Six new conditions announced by Iran’s Supreme National Security Council on Saturday were: - An end to US threats and insults against Iran - A permanent end to attacks against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq - The lifting of the US naval blockade on Iranian ports and the withdrawal of US naval and air forces from around Iran - Compensation for damage from what it called two “imposed wars”, referring to the war begun on February 28 and the 12-day war with Israel in June 2025, which the US also joined - The lifting of sanctions - The unconditional release of frozen Iranian assets At the same time, Tehran said negotiations with Oman over a new shipping arrangement in the Strait of Hormuz, in which they are to define new shipping lanes, have made progress and are in their “final stages”, according to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. On Sunday, Araghchi reiterated the Iranian position that there are no direct talks with the US, but messages are understood to be being exchanged through intermediaries. What does this mean for peace talks? US-Iran negotiating positions over the Strait of Hormuz appear to be hardening, raising doubts over the prospects for a diplomatic breakthrough for a broader peace deal, according to analyst Negar Mortazavi. Experts said it is unlikely that talks for this larger agreement could restart until the issue of the Strait of Hormuz and how it will be managed is settled. “Both sides appear to be putting forward maximalist demands ahead of serious negotiations,” Mortazavi, senior fellow at the Centre for International Policy, told Al Jazeera. Mortazavi said the latest US stance is especially sensitive. “Trump’s new demands are particularly problematic because they introduce issues that go beyond ending the current conflict. If compensation over protests and other past events becomes a genuine US condition for an agreement, rather than simply a negotiating position, it could make a deal extremely difficult for Tehran to accept,” she added. In turn, Tehran, she said, is also seeking significant guarantees, not only for an end to the fighting but also “assurances that the conflict will not simply restart later, as well as economic relief after the war”. Tehran has previously indicated that it has lost trust in US negotiators because the US has commenced attacks three times on Iran while previous talks had been going on. According to Tehran-based political analyst Hossein Royvaran, how the Strait of Hormuz standoff ends will come down to which party has the greatest endurance. “This equation now exists: closure vs blockade. But the question is, who cries out first?” he told Al Jazeera. “Right now, America is suffering: in petrol prices, in inflation, in the rising cost of living at home. There is deep discontent inside America over this war and its consequences for society there,” Royvaran told Al Jazeera. “The same is true in Iran, though in Iran there are justifications society finds acceptable: that this war was imposed on Iran and Iran had no choice but to defend itself.”

What are Iran’s six conditions for opening the Hormuz Strait? Both Iran and Oman said that negotiations on establishing a new arrangement to manage navigation through the strategic Hormuz Strait have been “positive” and have reached an advanced stage, boosting hopes for resuming shipping through the strait. In recent days, negotiations have focused on a proposal to create a new route through the strait, with Iran and Oman sharing responsibility for managing it. But alongside growing optimism, Iran announced a series of demands that it says the United States must meet before reopening this vital maritime corridor. Some of these demands go beyond what was stated in the memorandum of understanding reached by the United States and Iran on June 17, while others revisit earlier demands, but this time tying them to reopening the strait to navigation. What are these conditions? And can the United States meet them? In a statement published by the official Iranian state broadcasting company, Mohammad Bagher Zadeh Qadr, the former secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and current adviser to the Leader, warned that the United States must “correct” its behavior and meet a set of demands. The statement clarified what is meant by “correcting behavior,” namely: 1. Do not threaten Iran in any language, and never insult the sacred beliefs of the Iranian people. Iran says the United States must stop threatening it and provide guarantees that such threats will not be repeated. This is largely a political and security demand. While ceasefire agreements implicitly assume both sides’ restraint, the public demand for guarantees to prevent future threats appears to be a broader strategic condition, not a clause clearly stated in the previously announced terms of the provisional agreement. 2. End the war and aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, and Iraq forever. Iran insists on halting military operations not only against itself but also against its allies and groups associated with it in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, and Iraq. The U.S.-Iran Memorandum of Understanding signed in June referred to “all fronts, including Lebanon,” whereas the current demand explicitly mentions other countries and effectively seeks wider regional security guarantees. 3. Lift the maritime blockade and withdraw American, naval and air, forces from around Iran. Under the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding signed in June, the United States was supposed to end the blockade within 30 days, but that was not directly linked to reopening the Hormuz Strait. 4. Full compensation for damages Iran suffered from the wars of “aggression.” This demand refers to the 12-day war of 2025, in addition to the more recent conflict. It was expected that compensation mechanisms would be discussed within the framework of negotiations on a final agreement after the June memorandum. But Tehran now publicly links the payment of compensation to reopening the Hormuz Strait. 5. Lifting the “unjust and illegal” sanctions imposed on the Iranian people. It was already anticipated that setting a timetable for sanctions relief would be part of the negotiations toward a final settlement. Therefore, Iran is not raising a completely new issue here. The new element is its insistence on explicitly linking sanctions relief to reopening the Strait. 6. Unconditional release of frozen and “stolen” assets of the Iranian people. This demand is not new either; the issue of releasing Iranian assets abroad that were blocked or frozen has been discussed before. The six conditions broaden the scope of demands that Iran says now must be met before reopening the Strait. Sebastian Ash, a Middle East analyst at BBC, sees this as reflecting a hardening of Iran’s stance, saying: “These conditions were already on the table within the framework of the memorandum of understanding…but the timing and the mechanism of implementation are substantially different.” He adds that Tehran may feel it has become a stronger negotiating position because the Hormuz Strait “is still largely closed.” But Treena Parisi, the executive vice president of the Quincy Institute, a U.S. policy think tank, told the BBC World Service’s Weekend program that he believes the Iranians themselves recognize that these positions are exaggerated and are likely to back down. He said, “What is being stated publicly does not necessarily reflect what is on the negotiating table.” Parsi notes that these demands may be part of a negotiating tactic, saying, “It is very possible they are simply trying to drag out this process.” He adds that some hardliners within the Iranian system believe Tehran agreed to the memorandum too quickly in June. At that time, the agreement collapsed after only a few days, as mutual attacks resumed shortly after it was signed. Parsi says some voices in Iran see that if the negotiations had continued longer, it would have led to higher oil prices and greater damage to the world economy, and perhaps then President Trump would not have rushed to order strikes on Iranian targets. It seems Tehran does not want to repeat what these people consider a “mistake.” Nevertheless, Parsi still expects that an agreement on the Hormuz Strait could be reached within a few days. Those on ships waiting or watching oil prices rise hope his forecast comes true.

Follow the latest updates on the war in the Middle East for Tuesday, Aug. 11, here. See earlier coverage below. What to know about the Iran war: - President Trump demanded Monday that Iran compensate victims' families and Middle Eastern countries after Tehran said it wouldn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz without being compensated for war damage, . - Mr. Trump told Axios the U.S. is only "semi-negotiating" with Iran and signaled he would allow economic pressure to pile on Tehran. - Meanwhile, Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen attacked the government-held port city of Mocha late Sunday night for the second time in 24 hours. Attacks like this threaten to expand the conflict into another strategic shipping route on the Red Sea. Iranian-backed Houthi rebels renew attacks on key port city Iranian-backed Houthi rebels renewed their attacks Tuesday on government-controlled areas in Yemen as ongoing violence threatened to reignite the country's civil war and raised fears over new threats to shipping lanes. Yemen's military said the rebels targeted both the port city of Mokha on the Red Sea coast and the central province of Marib with missiles and drones, but did not provide further details. The Houthis struck Marib and the eastern province of Hadramout last week, killing dozens of government troops and civilians. They hit Mokha with missiles and drones over the weekend and killed at least seven people, including three troops, according to the Yemeni military. Mokha is a main port under Yemen's internationally recognized government and has been renovated to handle shipping to avoid the Houthi-held port of Hodeida. The strikes came as part of a recent escalation by the Houthis against government forces in Yemen and oil facilities in neighboring Saudi Arabia, which supports the internationally recognized Yemeni government, and the kingdom's shipping in the Red Sea. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively shut down by Iran, there has been a renewed focus on the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait at Yemen's southern tip, which is an alternate route for Saudi Arabia to ship its oil to open oceans. The Houthi attacks could reignite Yemen's civil war after a four-year hiatus following a 2022 truce, and open a new front in the Middle East war. CBS/AP Oil prices jump further as hopes for Hormuz deal fade Oil prices extended a strong rally Tuesday as hopes for a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz faded, fanning fresh inflation fears and ramping up bets on at least one U.S. interest rate hike this year. Crude has surged more than 10% over the past week, with the United States and Iran appearing no closer to a deal on the crucial waterway despite upbeat comments from the White House earlier in the month. In the latest blow to a possible ceasefire, President Trump said Monday he would for damage caused by the conflict as part of any peace negotiations, citing attacks and killings stretching back decades allegedly backed or perpetrated by Tehran.On Monday, both main crude contracts jumped around 5%. They rose more than 2% on Tuesday, with Brent edging back toward $90 a barrel. "In the absence of any positive headlines on negotiations to reopen the strait, pressure on oil prices has been upward," wrote Jason Wong at Bank of New Zealand. And Stephen Innes, global strategist at Quintex Intel, said: "In effect, both sides are trying to weaponize the oil barrel without firing another shot. Washington is trying to choke Iran's ability to get its crude out while Tehran is squeezing the artery through which everybody else's crude gets through. "It is quite the game of chicken." The prospect of oil prices remaining elevated for the time being has revived concerns over inflation and boosted the chances of interest rate increases in the U.S.. CBS/AFP "We control the strait 100%," Trump says, but Iran "can make trouble" President Trump told reporters Monday that the U.S. controlled the Strait of Hormuz but admitted that Iran "can make trouble" in the key waterway. "We control the strait 100%," Mr. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office after signing an executive order on . "Now, can they make trouble? Yeah, they can make trouble, but they're broke, they have no money."Mr. Trump called the U.S. Navy's blockade on Iranian-bound ships a "steel wall" and "infallible," and he described the situation in the strait with Iran as "a little bit complex." "They will, on occasion, drop a mine, and we find the mines," the president said. Trump extends waiver for foreign ships moving energy, fertilizers President Trump on Monday extended a waiver for 90 days for foreign ships to transport goods, including oil, fertilizers and other fossil fuel products, among U.S. ports. The president first waived the Jones Act on March 17 so that it would be easier to transport oil and refined fuels among ports, reducing price pressures after the start of the war. The latest extension will take effect on Aug. 17 and suggests that the U.S. might be preparing for continued price pressures as the Strait of Hormuz, a primary waterway for shipping oil and natural gas, remains effectively closed because of the war. Unlike previous extensions, the Pentagon will consult with the Maritime Administration to decide which voyages are exempt from the 1920 law containing the Jones Act. The new waiver will only apply to cargo that are sources of energy and commodities related to agriculture such as fertilizers and soybean oil. Taylor Rogers, a White House spokeswoman, said the administration extended the waiver "to ensure our military and key industries maintain uninterrupted access to critical resources." Rogers added that the waiver has increased domestic deliveries of gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. Trump adds to demand that Iran pay compensation President Trump added to his new demand that Iran must pay compensation in response to Tehran saying it wouldn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz without being compensated for war damage. "With respect to the Iran negotiations, Iran should be responsible for the damages and death caused to the people of Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, and Gaza!" Mr. Trump said on his Truth Social platform. Trump responds to Iran's demand for compensation with his own After Iran made compensation for war damage one of its conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, President Trump responded with his own demand for compensation Monday. "I am likewise demanding compensation from Iran, for all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded with their roadside bombs and many conflicts," Mr. Trump said on his Truth Social platform. The president said the families of the 17 U.S. sailors killed in the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen as well as "thousands of others killed in combat" should be included. He also said Iran should pay "the families of the hundreds of thousands of innocent protestors that Iran has killed over the last 50 years, not to mention the 52,000 that have been killed in the last five months." Mr. Trump said he's instructed his representatives "to put this firmly into any, and all, future negotiations." Iran's supreme leader replaces several key military figures Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has made six new military appointments to both the country's army and paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to Iran's state-owned Press TV. The moves include Maj. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi becoming the Guard's chief commander and Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi being appointed the chief of staff of the army. Khamenei has still not been seen since he replaced his father, Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a U.S.-Israeli airstrike in late February. The younger Khamenei was reportedly gravely wounded in the same strike. Iran's president says supreme leader urges "unity" amid U.S. sanctions Iran's president said Monday that the country's supreme leader is calling for "unity and cohesion" as the Islamic Republic faces economic hardships and sanctions stemming from its war with the U.S. President Masoud Pezeshkian described a nearly seven-hour meeting with Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in an interview with Iranian state television that aired amid apparent tensions among the Islamic Republic's leaders. Pezeshkian told state broadcaster IRIB that he and Khamenei discussed "people's livelihoods, the state of the market, employment, people's housing," as well as "problems that are now being created as a result of the [U.S.] sanctions." He didn't say when or where they met. Most important, he said, was Khamenei's emphasis on unity. "All of the enemy's plans are aimed at creating division," Pezeshkian said. "What we have to do is prevent divisions from emerging." It is only the second time the Iranian president said he has met with the new supreme leader since Khamenei was appointed in March following a U.S.-Israeli strike that killed his father. Khamenei, believed to have been wounded in the same attack, has not appeared in public since then. Iranian missiles can change course to evade air defenses, paramilitary spokesperson claims Iranian missiles are now able to change course to evade air defenses, a spokesperson for the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed Monday. "Iran's missiles no longer merely fire from one point and land at another point, as in the past, but have the capabilities of guidance and rerouting," IRGC spokesman Brig. Gen. Hossein Moheb said. "Some missiles can change their course, changing direction against the enemy's air-defense systems." After an Iranian missile strike on a U.S. air base in Jordan last month , Jordanian Lt. Gen. Qasid Mahmoud, who served as deputy chief of staff for his country's armed forces before he retired, told that the Iranians "use simple missiles to distract the radar … They then fire better quality missiles, which change their final target in the last 30 or 40 kilometers."Moheb also claimed that Iranian forces can now modify a missile's designated target mid-flight. Iran reiterates Strait of Hormuz will not return to pre-war conditions Iran reiterated Monday that the Strait of Hormuz will not return to pre-war conditions. The deputy speaker of Iran's Parliament, Ali Nikzad, said the U.S. and Israel have realized they must accept the new reality, in remarks reported by state broadcaster IRIB. "The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz has no military solution and [they] must submit to the new regional order," he said. Regarding ongoing talks with Oman, Nikzad said Iran recognizes no route through the Strait other than one agreed upon by the two countries. "The route determined by the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran is the only possible route for the passage of ships," he said. Iran reiterates Strait of Hormuz will not return to pre-war conditions Iran reiterated Monday that the Strait of Hormuz will not return to pre-war conditions. The deputy speaker of Iran's Parliament, Ali Nikzad, said the U.S. and Israel have realized they must accept the new reality, in remarks reported by state broadcaster IRIB. "The reopening of the Strait of Hormuz has no military solution and [they] must submit to the new regional order," he said. Regarding ongoing talks with Oman, Nikzad said Iran recognizes no route through the Strait other than one agreed upon by the two countries. "The route determined by the powerful armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran is the only possible route for the passage of ships," he said. Oman moves to contain oil spill after tanker rocked by explosions ran aground Oman said on Monday it was working to contain an oil spill off its southern coast after a tanker ran aground in June inside a protected marine area, triggering calls for action by environmentalists. It follows an investigation by the Agence France-Presse news agency that found the ship had been stranded for weeks near al-Qibliyyah island after it was rocked by explosions. The Oman Environment Authority said Monday the ongoing spill had affected roughly 150 square miles, according to its most recent analysis. The slick was concentrated around Oman's Hallaniyat archipelago off the country's southern coast, where a marine reserve was established last year to protect sensitive ecosystems home to diverse marine life, including rare sea turtles. Omani authorities have not yet identified the cause of the spill. But British maritime security company Vanguard told AFP last week that the tanker was rocked by explosions in early June as it sailed off the coast of Yemen, causing water to enter several sections of the vessel. Advocacy groups Greenpeace and PAX told AFP that the spill was on the verge of causing an "environmental disaster," saying the tanker was carrying around 1 million barrels of crude. The ship is believed to be part of Russia's "shadow fleet" that Moscow uses to circumvent Western sanctions on its oil exports. The fleet includes aging vessels that have faced criticism over maintenance, insurance and safety standards. Oil prices rise with no deal in sight to reopen Strait of Hormuz Oil prices gained close to 2% Monday as the United States and Iran remained deadlocked over a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to Gulf tanker and cargo traffic. Crude prices extended gains after Iran's Revolutionary Guards warned Sunday that they would not reopen the strait until Washington complied with demands including compensation for war damage. "The Iran conflict remains a key source of concern for markets, with a lasting resolution seeming a distant prospect at this point," said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould. Tehran insists on retaining control of the waterway through which about one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas pass, and wants to charge tolls for passage, a demand U.S. officials have rejected. Iran says Strait of Hormuz blockade cannot be lifted through diplomacy Iran said Monday that its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz cannot be lifted through diplomacy. Asked in a press briefing about a possible resolution to the situation in the strategic waterway, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said: "Diplomacy is certainly part of our struggle to safeguard our national interests. But when dealing with a side that insists on the use of force, a maritime blockade is not a diplomatic action that we can lift through diplomacy." "Certainly, you have to use authority and military power, along with diplomacy, to prevent the United States' aggression, and that is what is being done," he added. Iran and Oman are engaged in negotiations over the strait's future, but Baghaei said it will not reopen until the U.S. lifts its blockade of Iran's ports. Iran says Ukraine must "compensate us" for attack on Iranian vessel, has "not been convinced" it was accidental Iran said Monday Ukraine must "certainly compensate us" for an attack on an Iranian vessel in the Caspian Sea last month, and that it has "not been convinced" the strike was accidental. After the attack, which killed one sailor, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he didn't want to open a "new front," but that Iran had "already attacked us," referring to Tehran supplying Russia with attack drones. Ukraine later said the strike had been a mistake. "We still believe that we have not been convinced by the Ukrainian side's claim that

(CNN) -- Global oil prices rose on Tuesday as the United States and Iran tightened the conditions each must meet to reopen the Hormuz Strait. Brent crude—the global price benchmark— climbed about 2% shortly after 5:30 a.m. Eastern Time, reaching $89 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude, the U.S. benchmark, rose about 2.3% to around $84 per barrel at roughly the same time. Brent has been volatile in recent weeks but has surged overall since early July, when it fell to levels last seen before the war, aided by hopes for progress in peace talks. The latest gains come as prospects for a deal between Iran and Oman to reopen the strait, through which roughly 20% of global oil supply passed before the war, fade. Tehran said on Saturday that the United States must meet several conditions before reopening the waterway, including lifting its maritime blockade on Iranian ports and paying compensation to Iran. U.S. President Donald Trump also raised his demands to reopen the strait, saying on Monday that the United States requires compensation from Iran for its actions, including the killing of people in previous conflicts that he did not specify.

The United States must end the war and unfreeze Iran’s assets The Persian Independent - Mohsen Rezaei, the new secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, said on Tuesday the 20th of Mordad (Iranian calendar) in a meeting with the Chinese ambassador about reopening the Strait of Hormuz: “The United States must end the war, pay Iran’s frozen funds, and, across the region—including Lebanon and Gaza—the war must end.” Rezaei added that other conditions have also been conveyed to the United States through intermediaries. He also announced that if Iran and Oman reach an agreement on a passage route through the Strait of Hormuz, this agreement will be a separate matter from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Mohsen Rezaei described Washington as the “agent of insecurity in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Sea of Oman” and said that by imposing an illegal war on Iran, Washington has endangered the entire region. In continuation, the Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council repeated Tehran’s position, saying that as long as the United States does not change its behavior and does not accept Iran’s conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will not open. These remarks come as Donald Trump on Tuesday described continuing maritime blockade and pressure on Iran’s economy, alongside negotiations or a severe attack, as the United States’ strategy in confronting Iran.

Tehran ties reopening of Hormuz to sweeping US concessions as Israel defies Gaza blueprint Highlights Yemeni government forces and medical sources reported that Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched a large-scale missile and drone assault on the Red Sea port city of al-Mokha (also spelled Makha or Mocha) late on Sunday, August 9, 2026, killing at least seven people — including three civilians and four to eight military personnel — and wounding around 30–32 others. The Yemeni military stated that four armed forces members and three civilians were killed and 30 others injured in the strikes targeting civilian infrastructure, the commercial port, and armed forces positions. Air defences intercepted and shot down 11 Houthi drones. Later medical and AFP-cited figures raised the toll to at least 11 dead (three civilians and eight military personnel) and 32 wounded (including six civilians), with all civilian casualties linked to hits on the port. Iran's Revolutionary Guards insisted late on Sunday that they would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the US complied with a list of demands, including paying compensation for war damage. Iran's effective blockade of the crucial energy conduit has rattled allies, roiled markets and driven up prices, but US President Donald Trump said Sunday that he was "low-keying it" in his approach to Tehran, suggesting he believed he could wait them out economically. Oil prices were higher in early Asian trading Monday as uncertainty over a possible agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz continued to outweigh hopes for a quick return to normal shipping. At 8:33 am Tokyo on Monday (Aug. 10, 2026), market data on OilPrice.com showed West Texas Intermediate crude at $78.71 a barrel, up 53 cents, or 0.68%; Brent crude at $84.28, up 73 cents, or 0.87%; and Murban crude at $80.25, up 72 cents, or 0.91%. Egypt's Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty has called for the implementation of all provisions of the Gaza roadmap, including a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian enclave and sustained humanitarian aid delivery. Abdelatty made the call during a phone conversation with US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace Director-General Nikolay Mladenov, as per Anadolu news agency. According to the Egyptian Foreign Ministry statement, Abdelatty and Mladenov discussed developments in Gaza and efforts to implement Trump's peace plan. The two officials also reviewed arrangements for the deployment of the International Stabilisation Force, which is expected to monitor security during the transitional period. Abdelatty emphasised the need for ensuring the "full, safe and sustainable" delivery of humanitarian assistance to Gaza and said that a complete Israeli withdrawal would help pave the way for the second phase of the roadmap, including early recovery and reconstruction efforts. Reports circulating on social media early on Monday claim that Iran has launched multiple missiles from the area of Sirik in southern Iran, striking an oil tanker off the coast of Oman. The vessel was reportedly transiting the US-backed southern shipping corridor of the Strait of Hormuz and is said to be on fire. The post, timestamped around 21:23 UTC on August 9, 2026 (1:23 am Gulf Standard Time on Monday), has been widely shared and amplified by other accounts monitoring regional conflicts and markets. Some secondary posts describe the tanker being hit by "multiple missiles" (one account claimed four) and noted possible additional targeting of another vessel, along with unconfirmed reports of a US MQ-9 drone being downed over southern Iran. The former commander in chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, Mohsen Rezaei, has been named head of the country's highest national security body, the Iranian presidency announced on Sunday. "In light of the resignation of Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr from his position as secretary of the Supreme National Security Council and his appointment to new functions, President Masoud Pezeshkian has named Mohsen Rezaei as the head of this body," presidency spokesman Mehdi Tabatabaei said on X. Rezaei, 71, led the Guards from 1981 to 1997 - a tenure that included almost all of the Iran-Iraq war - before going on to occupy several high-ranking political posts. He then served as military adviser to supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei. Rezaei declared in July that control of the Strait of Hormuz, now at the centre of the ongoing conflict between Iran and the United States, was "more important than dozens of atomic bombs". His predecessor, Zolghadr, was also a former Guards commander and took up leadership of the council in March. He will now become a political adviser to Khamenei, according to a statement released by the supreme leader's office on Sunday. Trump signalled he is prepared to let economic pressure mount against Iran, apparently backing away from ordering more military strikes even as Tehran issues tough demands. "We are low-keying it," Trump said, according to the news outlet Axios, which said it spoke to him in a brief phone call. Only a week ago Trump made the latest of his series of threats to hit Iran hard, only to back off, as he presses for a deal to end the war he started along with Israel on February 28. Axios said Trump did not express any frustration Sunday with Iran's delaying an agreement to open up the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has demanded that the US first end its blockade of Iranian ports and lift oil sanctions, as per the memorandum of understanding the two countries signed in June. The strait's blockage by Iran since the war started has sent fuel prices soaring and rattled the world economy, putting pressure on the Trump administration as midterm elections in November grow nearer. "We are only semi-negotiating with them. We are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money," Trump was quoted as saying. Trump also said oil prices are falling so American consumers are feeling less pain from the war. "It will work out. It always works out. It's like a chess game," Trump said of US dealings with Iran. Iran's Revolutionary Guards said that they would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the United States complied with a list of demands, including paying compensation for war damage. Iran has effectively blockaded the crucial energy conduit since the United States and Israel attacked it in late February, and wants to charge tolls for passage, striking ships it accuses of attempting to circumvent its preferred route. Attacks in the waterway, which was free to transit before the war, led to the collapse of an April ceasefire, and mediators have urged both sides to return to the terms of a subsequent June memorandum that set out a path for peace talks. Iran's security chief Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr had laid out on Saturday a list of conditions for reopening the strait, including an end to the "war and aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq". He also demanded the lifting of a US counterblockade of Iranian ports, the end of sanctions, the release of frozen assets and compensation for wartime damage, the Tasnim news agency reported. The US Department of Defence has urged military contractors to accelerate weapons production amid concerns over stockpiles as the Iran war continues, CNN reported. A memo from Deputy Defence Secretary Steve Feinberg gives defence companies 21 days to submit plans for faster deliveries and increased production of critical weapons. The memo was first reported by The Washington Post. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the move is part of efforts to rebuild the US defence industrial base and speed up weapons production. He said the push could also shape the fiscal 2028 defence budget, while the fiscal 2027 budget could accelerate the effort sooner. Netanyahu rejected a US-led Gaza plan endorsed by Hamas, taking fresh distance from President Donald Trump as he faces razor-tight elections. After more than a week of gradually escalating criticism of the plan, Netanyahu explicitly opposed it in the face of pushback from his right-wing base. "Israel rejects the 15-point document," Netanyahu said, referring to a plan signed off on by Hamas in late July. The Israeli military "will not carry out any withdrawal until Hamas is genuinely disarmed and will continue to thwart threats against our forces and our citizens," Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting. Netanyahu described Trump, with whom he has also had a growing break on Iran, as "our greatest friend in the White House" - but quickly made clear he was willing to challenge him. He said Israel was raising its objections to the Gaza plan with the United States. "They have ideas; some of them are acceptable to us and some are not, and we know how to stand our ground on these matters," he said. Images of Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei in public will soon be released for the first time since his appointment in March, state-run Mizan news agency reported. Mizan, citing Basij Organisation deputy Qasem Qoraishi, said images would show Khamenei “among the people and out in the streets”, as well as meeting armed forces commanders. The announcement comes amid months of speculation over the Supreme Leader’s health. Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar said the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement with Saudi Arabia and Türkiye is “purely defensive” and not aimed at any country. Signed in Mecca on Friday, the pact says an external attack on one member will be considered an attack on all three. Dar said the agreement aims to strengthen regional peace, stability and security and remains open to other countries willing to uphold its principles. Read more here Attacks by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen on Sunday killed at least four troops from the internationally-recognised government forces and injured 20 more personnel, two military sources told AFP. The initial toll came from strikes on the Yemeni city of Mokha and surrounding areas, as well as Khokha, south of the port city of Hodeida, the sources said on condition of anonymity, after the Houthis announced they had targeted military forces and equipment on the Red Sea coast. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Sunday to prevent Iran from having nuclear weapons, a goal he has long alleged Tehran is pursuing, regardless of the course of diplomacy with Washington and Arab states. "I want to emphasise once again: with an agreement or without an agreement, as long as I am prime minister, Iran will not have nuclear weapons," Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian recently met with supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since assuming the post early in the Middle East war, Khamenei's office said Sunday. "Dr. Masoud Pezeshkian met Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei and spoke with him at the start of his third year in the presidency," the supreme leader's office said in a statement, without indicating the date of the meeting. Pezeshkian, who took office in July 2024, had said in early May that he met with Khamenei, also without specifying the date, but the supreme leader's office did not issue any statements at the time. The president had said on Wednesday that communication with Khamenei was "very difficult at the moment", and speculation has swirled about the supreme leader's health after he was reportedly wounded in strikes that killed his father. Khamenei's office said the two "discussed in detail the country's issues and problems", including the "current military situation and future prospects". Iran had been engaged in negotiations with Washington on ending the war launched by the US and Israel in February, but a preliminary deal fell apart, and its top diplomat has said talks are now limited to exchanging messages through mediators. The Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they had targeted "Saudi enemy" troops and equipment on Yemen's Red Sea coast city of Mokha after residents there said they heard blasts. The group's military spokesman Yahya Saree said the Houthis had "carried out a large-scale and precise military operation targeting Saudi enemy troop concentrations and weapons depots in the Mokha area," using "a large number of ballistic missiles and drones". Iran's semi-official Mehr News Agency has released a 12-second, undated video showing Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, amid reports and speculation surrounding his health. The agency did not disclose when or where the footage was recorded. The brief clip shows Khamenei seated and speaking with several officials and advisers. He appears composed throughout the footage, but the video provides no independent evidence regarding his current health. Mehr said it was the first video it had published of Khamenei since he became Supreme Leader. Khorfakkan Port, affiliated with the Sharjah Ports, Customs and Free Zones Authority, is set to receive a large RoRo vessel carrying 6,068 new energy vehicles produced by Chinese automaker BYD. The vessel departed from Xiaomo International Logistics Port in Shenzhen, China, marking the launch of a direct maritime shipping route between the two sides. The new route offers a strategic logistics solution for Chinese exports to the UAE and the wider Middle East, cutting maritime transit time between the two countries by three to five days and reducing potential disruptions in the shipment of vehicles and large equipment. The shipment bound for Khorfakkan Port also set a new record at China's Xiaomo Port as the largest single vehicle shipment handled by the port. The Syrian Arab Republic strongly condemned the Iranian attack on an oil tanker operated by ADNOC while transiting the Strait of Hormuz. In a statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates reaffirmed Syria's solidarity with the United Arab Emirates and reiterated its rejection of any acts targeting the security of maritime navigation in international waterways. The ministry stressed the importance of respecting the sovereignty of states and safeguarding international trade routes in a manner that contributes to preserving regional security and stability. Iran's Revolutionary Guards on Sunday said they would not reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the United States accepts all of Tehran's demands. "Our current strategy is to maintain this strait until the enemy accepts all our conditions," said Guards spokesman Hossein Mohebi, as quoted by state TV, adding that "the strait is now actually a theatre of war for us and not just a waterway". Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels said on Sunday they had struck an oil facility on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coast. The group's military spokesman Yahya Saree said the Houthis had "succeeded in targeting the Aramco refinery in Jazan with a drone, and the strike was precise", adding the attack had been launched in response to Saudi incursions into territory in northwest Yemen. Yemeni troops conducted a military operation targeting Iran-backed Houthi militants on Saturday, reports CNN. A spokesperson for the country’s armed forces condemned the group, saying it has “dragged Yemen into regional conflicts in service of foreign agendas and schemes”, it added. The Houthis are among several Iranian proxies that have threatened to widen the conflict as the US and Israel remain at war with Iran. The Pentagon is pressing the US defence industry to accelerate production of weapons to help replenish its diminished stockpile of munitions, including those depleted in the ongoing war

Bloomberg News Agency reported in a Tuesday evening report, August 11, that Mohammed Asefi told reporters: “The indicators that have appeared in recent days suggest that the United States and Iran are nearing some kind of agreement to replace the path to peace, and that developments are moving in favor of peace.” At the same time, Pakistan’s Interior Minister, Mohsin Naqvi, arrived in Iran to meet Iranian officials. On Tuesday, alongside Iranian President Masoud Beshkian, he met with the oil minister, Mohsen Bakhnejad, interior minister, Iskandar Momeni, and foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi. The Al Jazeera network had previously reported, citing a spokesman for the Qatari Foreign Ministry, that negotiations between Iran and the Sultanate of Oman to reopen the Hormuz Strait to a portion of maritime traffic had reached an advanced stage. Mutual demands between Tehran and Washington on reparations. The latest appearance by the Pakistani defense minister adds to a series of contradictory assessments about the fate of these negotiations. In recent days, Iranian officials spoke of nearing an agreement, yet they also posed broad conditions for reopening the strait. U.S. President Donald Trump took a tougher stance toward Tehran on Monday, August 10, and in response to Iranian officials’ statements about demanding reparations as a condition for returning to negotiations, he said that Iran must pay reparations to the families of those killed, as he put it, in attacks, wars, and internal protests. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, on August 8, said that reopening the Hormuz Strait is tied to other conditions, including reciprocally compensating for U.S. violations of the Islamabad understandings. Former secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council, Mohammad Bagher Zadeh Qadri, also wrote on the same day that the Hormuz Strait will not be opened unless the United States “corrects” its behavior. He said this change must include refraining from threatening Iran, and permanently ending the war on Tehran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, and Iraq, lifting the naval blockade, and withdrawing U.S. naval and air forces from Iran’s vicinity, paying full compensation for the two wars, lifting sanctions, and unconditional release of Iranian assets frozen abroad. Iranian officials reaffirmed on Tuesday, August 11, that any possible agreement with Oman does not mean reopening the Hormuz Strait. Willing terms for opening Hormuz Strait Mohammad Mokhber, aide to the Iranian Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, wrote on X that the enemy will face increasingly severe and rigid conditions every time it violates its commitments and returns to war. He added that “punishing the aggressor will continue this time as well, and the Hormuz Strait will not be opened until Iran’s conditions are met.” Also, the new secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, said during his meeting with the Chinese ambassador on Tuesday that the Hormuz Strait will not be opened unless the United States changes its behavior and accepts Iran’s terms. He added that any potential agreement between Tehran and Muscat regarding passage of ships through the Hormuz Strait would be separate from the issue of closing the waterway. Rezaei stated: “The United States must end the war, pay the Iranian frozen funds, and end the war in the entire region, including Lebanon and Gaza.” He added that Iran’s other conditions were conveyed to the American side through intermediaries. He also described the strategic agreement between Iran and China, along with both countries’ membership in the Shanghai Organization and BRICS, as an opportunity to expand the ties between the two sides. Oil prices fell after the Pakistani defense minister’s statements. The conditions put forward by Iran and Trump’s responses had dampened early market optimism about a quick deal on the Hormuz Strait. Brent crude futures closed the session near $87 per barrel on Monday after rising more than 5% over three trading sessions. Dutch and British natural gas futures for the nearest month also rose by more than 10%. But following the Pakistani defense minister’s statements about the United States and Iran nearing a deal, oil prices gave up their gains. Brent fell slightly in London afternoon trading, trading just above $87 per barrel. Before the outbreak of war on February 28, nearly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas passed through the Hormuz Strait. The fate of negotiations to reopen this waterway remains one of the main factors behind energy price volatility in global markets.

Iranian position: The Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until Tehran's conditions are accepted by the United States Erbil (Kurdistan24) - Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said on Tuesday, August 11, that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the United States changes its behavior and accepts Iran's conditions for ending the war. Rezaei's remarks, according to Reuters, represent the strongest indication so far that even if Iran and Oman reach an agreement on the passage through the Strait of Hormuz, that agreement would not necessarily mean an immediate reopening of the waterway to shipping unless the United States also fulfills its obligations under the memorandum of understanding whose goal is to end the war and which was reached in June between Washington and Tehran. Tasnim News Agency cited Rezaei as saying: “The Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until the United States changes its behavior and accepts Iran's conditions.” Rezaei added: “the United States must end the war, release Iran’s blocked assets, and the war must end across the region, including in Lebanon and Gaza.” He also said that if Iran and Oman reach an agreement on passage through the Strait of Hormuz, that agreement would be a separate matter from Iran's decision to keep the strait closed. Tehran has conveyed its conditions through intermediaries Rezaei, who was appointed on Sunday as deputy secretary of Iran’s Security and Foreign Policy Coordination Council, said these conditions have been transmitted to the United States through intermediaries. Mohammad Mokhbar, adviser to Mohammad Baqer al-Sadr, also stated on Tuesday: “Punishment of the aggressor will continue and the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until Iran’s conditions are met.” Concerns about the Strait of Hormuz and possible continued shipping restrictions have also affected oil futures and helped push prices higher. Washington has not commented on the latest statements by Iranian officials. However, U.S. President Donald Trump, on Tuesday, called for compensation from Iran for damages and casualties caused by wars, attacks, and protests, and accused Tehran of having “deceptive negotiators.” Trump said on Monday in the White House: “We will seek compensation for the damages they have caused over the past 50 years.” In an interview broadcast late Monday, he also said some options facing the United States include “waiting” and waiting for Tehran’s economic collapse, or delivering a “very, very hard” blow to Iran. In a telephone interview with Voice of America, Trump said: “I am somehow negotiating... they are very untrustworthy negotiators.” Trump’s positions in recent days have fluctuated between threats of intensifying the crisis and statements about approaching a deal between the two sides. Pakistan reports progress toward Tehran-Washington agreement Before the tone of officials on both sides intensified again, Pakistan, which, along with Qatar, is mediating to end the war, had spoken of possible progress in talks, raising hopes for reaching an agreement that could pave the way for reopening the Strait of Hormuz. Before the war, the Strait of Hormuz was the route for about a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas liquids. Khawaja Asif, Pakistan’s defense minister, told Bloomberg News: “Indications in the last two or three days show that we are somehow nearing an agreement.” The war, since the attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran on February 28, has resulted in the deaths of thousands, especially in Iran and Lebanon. Iran has, in response, attacked American assets and infrastructures in countries including Oman, Jordan, Kuwait, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia. Two attacks on ships While there are signs of progress in diplomatic efforts, reports have emerged of two new attacks on ships in the Gulf of Oman and the Red Sea, raising concerns about maritime security and trade. Yemen’s Ministry of Transport said four crew members of a small cargo ship were killed today, Tuesday, in an attack by Iran-backed Houthi forces on a tanker near the Bab al-Mandab strait. If confirmed, this would be the first casualty from a Houthi attack on a ship since the start of the U.S.-Israel war on Iran on February 28. Houthis have not claimed responsibility for the attack. Also, sources reported a strike on a container ship on the coast of Pakistan in what is believed to be carried out by American forces. The Wall Street Journal, citing a U.S. official, reported that a U.S. military helicopter targeted the ship after its crew ignored warnings about encircling Iranian ports. The United States first announced a blockade of Iranian ports in April and, after the collapse of the initial agreement in June, reimposed the blockade in July. On July 20, in response to what it called “the Yemen blockade by Saudi Arabia,” the Houthis announced a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea. Riyadh has rejected such blockade against Yemen. Reuters / B.N.

Mohsen Rezaei, the newly appointed head of the Supreme National Security Council (SNSC), told Chinese Ambassador to Tehran Zong Piyu in a Tuesday meeting that the US must end the war on Iran and its regional allies and release Iran's blocked funds for a full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, according to a translation of the piece of news provided by Press TV. “As long as the US does not change its behavior and accept Iran's conditions, the Strait of Hormuz will not be reopened,” Rezaei said in the meeting. He said Iran has also communicated some other conditions to the US through intermediaries that have been involved in indirect negotiations between the two sides in the past weeks. Rezaei reiterated that if Iran and Oman, the other littoral state in the Strait of Hormuz, reach an agreement on the transit routes in the waterway, that agreement will have no impact on Iran’s decision to close or reopen the strait. That comes as the United States is desperately seeking to persuade Iran through mediators to reopen Hormuz, as its closure has caused a major rise in international energy and fertilizer prices. Iran and the US signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in June that allowed Iran to manage the strait and gradually return transit to normal levels, in return for the US lifting its sanctions and blockade on the country. However, Iran reinstated restrictions in Hormuz after the US violated the terms of the MoU by seeking to undermine Iran's management over the strait. In his meeting with the Chinese ambassador to Iran, Rezaei appreciated as “a positive step” China's decision to oppose an “anti-Iranian and illegal” draft resolution presented at the UN Security Council during the US-Israeli war of aggression on Iran in March. He also hailed the strategic partnership between Iran and China and the fact that the two countries are members of key international pacts such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS, saying the partnership can serve as a great capacity for the development of bilateral relations in the future. Zong Piyu, for his part, reiterated China’s opposition to the US and Israeli military aggression on Iran. He said Chinese President Xi Jinping has put forward a four-point initiative to establish peace and stability in West Asia. “We believe that Iran, in addition to its strength, possesses prudence and wisdom and is capable of managing the situation,” he said, according to a readout of his remarks provided by the SNSC media office. The Iranian security chief also posted a message on X pertaining to the issue of the Strait of Hormuz. “IRAN’s message is clear: the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until the U.S. ends the war and blockade, releases Iran’s frozen assets, and agrees to a region-wide ceasefire, including in Lebanon and Gaza.” Rezaei reiterated in the post that “Until all conditions are met, the Strait will remain closed.” MNA

A senior Iranian official told MSNOW on Monday that Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz only if the United States meets all of the conditions that Tehran contends are in the June memorandum of understanding between the two countries. The Iranian official, who spoke one the condition of anonymity to describe closed-door discussions, said those conditions include unfreezing Iranian funds and assets and the end of fighting in Lebanon. The Iranian official said the U.S. is to blame for the closure of the strait because it has failed to fully implement the memorandum. When the memorandum was signed in June, experts warned that some of its wording was vague and could be interpreted differently by Iranian and American officials. Iran began threatening ships in the Strait of Hormuz — a crucial global oil choke point — soon after the war began at the end of February. Commercial shipping through the waterway has all but shut down. Since then, oil and gas prices have skyrocketed, at times above $100 a barrel, hiking the costs of gas and other goods. On Monday, the price of global benchmark Brent crude hit $86 a barrel. The price of West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, was above $80 a barrel. Israel began launching strikes on Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon in early March. Iran has cited ending that conflict as a condition for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

There are no ongoing negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday, after Tehran set out a steep series of demands for the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. “The intermediaries are still making efforts to find ways to resume negotiations,” Araghchi said. He tempered optimism stirred by Iran’s separate discussions with Oman over the future management of the waterway, saying that “changes to maritime routes in the Strait of Hormuz are a technical and legal matter and do not mean that the Strait of Hormuz has been reopened.” Araghchi’s statement came a day after top Iranian security official Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr laid out the country’s conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, saying it would not do so “until America corrects its behavior.” The statement from Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary, as carried by Iranian state media, stated that the U.S. must withdraw its naval blockade, pay Iran damages for the war, unfreeze Iranian assets, lift sanctions on Tehran and permanently end the conflict against Iran and its regional allies. Even though the demands are steep, analysts say they are still largely within the framework of the initial deal the two sides reached in June. “The Supreme National Security Council of Iran, which is really a consensus body, they have come to a realization that for them the best route is returning back to the MOU,” Mehran Haghirian, director of research and programs at the Bourse & Bazaar Foundation London-based think tank, said in a phone interview. “They want to make sure that they get some of those things up-front, or at least there is a process for them before there is any movement on Hormuz.” The U.S. has yet to respond publicly to the list of conditions. Top officials have previously ruled out making any immediate payments to Iran during past efforts to seal a deal to end the war. The country’s enriched uranium stockpile has also been a sticking point for Washington, which insists Iran must abandon its nuclear ambitions. The stalled negotiations have left the Strait of Hormuz largely impassable for months, save for brief periods of operation. Thousands of sailors remain stranded in the region, unable to return home or keep the world’s supply of oil flowing. “What we’re really working through now is how you can actually set up a traffic scheme so that the ships that pass can pass through safely,” Vice President JD Vance told Fox News on Saturday. That scheme, Vance said, would include demining efforts and also assurances from Tehran that it would not fire on transiting vessels. On Saturday, Oman condemned attacks on the vessels that were attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, saying in a statement that such attacks could affect its negotiations with Iran over the waterway’s management. The UAE and Kuwait on Saturday also condemned an Iranian missile attack on an Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. tanker. Oman nonetheless said its discussions with Iran were “proceeding in a positive and constructive atmosphere.” Iran and Oman, neighbors across the Strait of Hormuz, have been negotiating an agreement on how to manage traffic through the waterway, including considerations of a toll fee. The discussions have also been viewed optimistically, raising hopes that they could finally lead to reopening the strait. But Iranian officials have dismissed any such possibility. Iran’s discussions with Oman do “not mean the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz,” Araghchi said Saturday. Even though the Iranian officials say the discussions don’t mean an immediate reopening of Hormuz, Haghirian said the discussions would lay critical groundwork for if and when Iran reaches an agreement with the U.S. over Hormuz. Iranian state media on Sunday reported that President Masoud Pezeshkian had met with the country’s absent Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, discussing “the war and the future ahead.” No evidence was provided that the meeting took place. Pezeshkian earlier this week said that it had been “very difficult” to contact the 56-year-old leader, who has not been seen publicly since he was badly injured in the U.S. strikes that killed his father. Meanwhile, the Iran-allied Houthi rebels in Yemen again attacked Saudi Arabia on Sunday, with Yemen’s news agency saying the forces targeted the Mocha port along the Red Sea. The Houthis have launched several attacks on Saudi Arabia in recent days, also hitting a Saudi Aramco oil refinery in the port city of Jizan with a drone. It said Sunday that the attack on the refinery was in response to Saudi drones’ incursions into the Saada and Hajjah airspaces of Yemen. The Saudi Energy Ministry said Sunday on X that the fire that broke out at the refinery had been extinguished and nobody was injured. The world’s top oil exporter, Aramco, is seeking to reroute some of its exports to the Red Sea instead of the Persian Gulf in an effort to circumvent the shuttered Strait of Hormuz. Riyadh on Saturday condemned the attacks by the Houthis, who it said had attacked the kingdom since July 13 and shipping vessels since July 22.

Iran has issued tough new demands for reopening the strait of Hormuz, while the United Arab Emirates said one of its ships was targeted by an Iranian missile, as a deal to open the strategic waterway remained out of reach on Saturday. Iran’s politburo-like body known as the supreme national security council said the strait of Hormuz will not open until the United States “corrects its behaviour”, and its state broadcaster published a statement from the council’s secretary, Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, who is also a commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The US must never threaten Iran again, the statement said, and must permanently end the war with Iran and its armed allies in the region. The US must lift the naval blockade of Iranian ports and withdraw its military from the area. It also must “completely compensate” Iran for war damage, lift sanctions and “unconditionally” release frozen assets. There was no immediate comment from the US, which has wanted an acceptable deal on the strait before ending the blockade. According to the interim deal signed in June, a schedule to end sanctions and a plan for compensation would be part of the final deal, and negotiations would address frozen assets. The Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, said on Saturday that they were close to reaching an agreement on navigation, “specifically the determination of a transit route”. But the waterway’s reopening is contingent on other conditions, he said, in remarks shared on social media, and blamed the situation on what he called the US violation of the interim deal. Oman, which is mediating and has made relatively few comments on the talks, said in a statement on Saturday that the discussions were continuing “in a positive and constructive atmosphere”, and condemned attacks on ships on the strait. Iran has imposed an effective blockade of the strait and wants to charge users for passage, repeatedly attacking ships it accuses of attempting to circumvent its preferred route. The US opposes any Iranian tolls in the strait, though the June deal allows Tehran to hammer out arrangements for the “future administration” of Hormuz in conjunction with fellow coastal state Oman. The 60-day period to negotiate a final deal will end in just over a week but could be extended. Iran has said it was close to reaching a separate deal with Oman to manage the strait, which runs between the two countries. Iran’s president Masoud Pezeshkian, a relative moderate, said he believed now was the best time for an agreement. “There is cohesion, strength, and unity in the country, and as far as I know, Iran is considered victorious and powerful in this war,” Iranian news agencies quoted him as saying. Continued attacks in the strait, which was free to sail through before the war, led to the collapse of an April ceasefire, and mediators have since urged both sides to return to the terms of the June memorandum. The strait, which is crucial to global supplies of oil and natural gas, had been considered an international waterway before the war. Ship transits remain low. Meanwhile, a vessel owned by Abu Dhabi’s state-owned Adnoc oil and gas company was attacked while sailing through the strait of Hormuz, Emirati authorities said earlier on Saturday. The foreign ministry said Iran fired the missile as part of attacks on commercial shipping. Adnoc said in a statement that there were no casualties following the attack early on Saturday. The company said more than a dozen of its vessels have been attacked by missiles and drones while using the strait since the US and Israel launched the war on Iran in February. One crew member has been killed and 20 others wounded, it said. Adnoc did not elaborate on the location of the attack or any damage. Later, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said a vessel east of the town of Khasab, Oman had been struck by a projectile that caused a fire that was put out, and the vessel and crew were safe. It was not clear whether this was the Adnoc incident.

President Donald Trump on Monday responded to Iran's demand for the U.S. to meet certain conditions in order for the Strait of Hormuz to be fully reopened by turning the call for compensation back on the country. Rejecting the stipulations, Trump said he had instructed his representatives to demand compensation "for all of the people" that Iran has "killed and gravely wounded with their roadside bombs and many conflicts." Trump's remarks came after Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, the outgoing secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, on Saturday listed six demands that the U.S. would need to meet before Tehran will allow the free-flow of naval navigation in the trade passage. “Until America corrects its behavior, the Strait of Hormuz will not open,” Zolqadr declared, in a statement carried by state media. The conditions were as follows: Never threaten Iran with any language or insult the sanctities of this nation. End the war and aggression against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen, and Iraq forever. Lift the naval blockade and withdraw its military forces (naval and air) from around Iran. Pay the damages of the two wars of aggression and imposition on Iran without any reduction or reduction. Lift the cruel and illegal sanctions against the Iranian nation. Unconditionally release the frozen and stolen assets of the Iranian people. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday said an agreement with Oman to define new shipping routes through the Strait was in its “final stages,” but re-emphasized Tehran’s call for the U.S. to meet certain conditions. “This does not mean that the Strait of Hormuz will be opened,” said Araghchi of the progress regarding a new shipping route, insisting it remains “contingent on the fulfillment of other conditions, which have been conveyed to the American side through intermediaries." Esmail Baghaei, spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, also reiterated several of Tehran's demands, such as the removal of the U.S. blockade and compensation for Iran, during a press briefing Monday. “The U.S. government continues to proudly announce that it is besieging Iranian ports and harassing Iranian ships. In this situation, the United States has no moral or legal standing to complain about the Strait of Hormuz not being open. In short, you reap what you sow,” he said, in televised remarks carried by state media. Former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, who served under Trump from 2019 to 2020, has referred to Iran’s conditions as “frankly ridiculous.” "It shows that they believe that they have the upper hand, they believe they are winning, and they are emboldened, and that's what we're up against right now after five-and-a-half months of conflict," he said during an appearance on ABC News’ This Week. What is the status of U.S.-Iran talks? The back-and-forth over demands and compensation has further tarnished hope for a new deal to be agreed upon. Rosemary Kelanic, director of the Middle East Program at Defense Priorities, tells TIME that these demands are the equivalent of “Iran shooting [for] the moon.” “They're going big and asking for everything they could possibly want. I don't expect that they think they're going to get all of these demands,” she says. Kelanic reasons that Iranian leadership may be factoring in Trump’s domestic situation regarding the upcoming November midterms, making them all the more aware of the leverage they have as polls show Americans as feeling uneasy over the conflict and its financial ramifications. Not to mention the fact lawmakers have criticized the resumption of hostilities, and some Republican Senators have joined Democrats in attempts to limit Trump’s ability to continue the Iran war without congressional authorization. Iran understands its “power to coerce Trump is higher before the midterms than it is after the midterms,” says Kelanic. “They're trying to maximize their benefit in the short term, and in a way that it's still plausible that Trump could get some benefit from making a deal with them in terms of oil prices going down and staying low.” Kelanic suggests that by going to Trump with some unattainable demands, Iran may be hoping to land some of their more "achievable” ones. “In terms of reparations [compensation], that's almost impossible. Sanctions lifting that's a possibility. Unfreezing assets, that's a possibility,” she says, taking note of Tehran’s six demands. Meanwhile, Trump on Sunday said Washington is “low-keying it” with Tehran. "We are only semi-negotiating with them. We are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money,” he told Axios, arguing that Iran "is in very bad shape" economically because of the U.S. blockade on Iranian ports. The U.S. and Iran signed a Memorandum of Understanding on June 17, which outlined commitments aimed to ensure the full, toll-free reopening of the Strait as part of the terms for an extended 60-day cease-fire to allow time for technical talks to take place. But the respite after the signing was short-lived, with Washington and Tehran seemingly adopting different interpretations of the language used in the interim agreement. The tussle over the Strait reignited, with Trump declaring the cease-fire as “over” while at the NATO summit in Turkey on July 8. Days of consecutive tit-for-tat strikes marked a resumption of the war that has stretched on for over five months. When the cease-fire collapsed, the U.S. reimposed its naval blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait. Before Iran’s conditions landed, Vice President J.D. Vance was asked Saturday whether Tehran maintaining a tighter grip over the Strait would be an acceptable status quo. "Our expectation is you're going to see the same amount of oil and gas come out of the Gulf that you saw before the conflict started," Vance said. "That is what the Iranians have told us that they are going to do. That's what the entire Gulf coalition wants to do, as well." However, Vance acknowledged that control of the Strait remains an unresolved issue. "We're in the middle of the game, and we're applying a whole host of tools—diplomatic, economic, military tools—to ensure that we get the best outcome for the American people," he said. Kelanic suggests the stalemate, of sorts, remains when it comes to the waterway. “Iran can't completely close the Strait of Hormuz, but the U.S. can't completely open it,” she tells TIME. “The U.S. is using its military power to get some oil through, but not all of the oil to replace what was lost through the Strait.” According to a report by Kpler, a commodities data and analytics firm, since the resumption of the Iran war, an average of 13 vessels per day are crossing the Strait. Prior to the Iran war starting on Feb. 28, 138 vessels typically passed through the vital trade waterway during a 24-hour period. This pressure on global oil markets could eventually lead to a willingness from the Trump Administration to “give in to some of” Iran’s demands, Kelanic says, just not necessarily the six issued over the weekend.