• Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said the Strait of Hormuz remains closed and that Tehran is in no hurry to reopen it.
• US Senator Elizabeth Warren has accused Trump of profiting from the war, saying oil majors aligned with him have made huge gains since it began.

Iran war’s strikes on Gulf energy

Six months into the war on Iran, large US oil companies have posted their biggest profits since 2022, selling less oil at far higher prices. But the conflict is also putting their longstanding Gulf investments at risk, exposing the industry’s uneasy balance between wartime gains and mounting geopolitical vulnerability for investors worldwide.

Since the war began on February 28, Brent crude has risen about 22 percent, from $72 to $88 a barrel.

The Strait of Hormuz – through which one-fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas was shipped before the war – remains largely closed to commercial traffic, though Iran and Oman agreed last week on a temporary maritime route. Iran says the strait will not fully reopen until the United States fulfils its commitments under a lapsed interim peace deal, leaving longer-term security and management arrangements unresolved.

In the absence of a lasting resolution, the disruption is likely to continue supporting higher energy prices and creating windfalls for producers, despite placing energy companies’ regional assets and future projects at greater risk.

Israel, Iran, and US leaders have been hit by the war

Six months ago, the US and Israel struck targets across Tehran, killing the former supreme leader and other Iranian leaders.

It fulfilled a long-held ambition of Netanyahu for a joint attack with the US on Iran, with Washington now locked in a war from which it is unable to extricate itself.

The US’s stated war aims also appear not to have been achieved, with Trump’s initial claim that Iran’s nuclear capacity had been destroyed now appearing false.

Over 7,000 Iranians rescued from rubble during US-Israel war on Iran: Red Crescent

More than 7,250 people have been pulled from the rubble of the US-Israeli attacks on Iran since the war began on February 28, according to the Iranian Red Crescent.

Pirhossein Kolivand, head of the Iranian branch of the humanitarian agency, said rescuers had to operate under extremely difficult conditions, including during air strikes.

Kolivand added that the Iranian Red Crescent would not remain silent in the face of what he described as war crimes and violations of humanitarian law.

He said evidence of attacks on humanitarian infrastructure had been sent to international legal bodies and that the appropriate legal channels would be pursued.

Economic campaign against Iran will require ‘all the efforts of US government’

Mark Pfeifle, a former US deputy national security advisor, says the US government will have to apply intense effort to its economic campaign against Iran and its international partners for it to succeed.

“That takes all the efforts of the US government – from the Treasury to intelligence – to find out where the money is coming through,” Pfeifle said, adding that Iran switches its money sources “on the hour”.

“I suppose the question isn’t whether sanctions will cause pain? They do. But whether Washington will be able to actually enforce these secondary sanctions globally,” Pfeifle added.

“The White House has to have a strategy that actually hits the pressure points that Iran has,” he continued. “If you sanction all sorts of entities, but Iran still keeps its uranium, still has a ballistic missile programme, still is able to fund its deadly proxies, then it’s all for naught.”

Trump’s sanctions will further squeeze Iran’s precarious economic situation

Donald Trump’s decision to firm up economic sanctions against Iran is part of a well-thought-out strategy that will yield dividends fast, says Tim Constantine, a senior writer at The Washington Times.

“You haven’t ruled out the military option if you’re Trump, but you’re using the economic option as a stranglehold on the economy and on the ability of Iran to generate revenue,” Constantine told Al Jazeera.

He says US sanctions could effectively hasten Iran’s decision to reach a settlement because “by Iran’s own estimate, it was somewhere between $200bn and $300bn worth of damage” from the war.

Iran’s food supply stable despite logistical challenges, agriculture minister says

Iran’s agriculture minister says the country’s food supply is stable despite the huge logistical challenges posed by the US naval blockade, according to the Tasnim news agency.

Gholamreza Nouri said the country’s strategic reserves are increasing and no emergency withdrawals have been needed so far, adding that domestic production has been ramped up, which has resulted in a decrease in import dependency.

“No foreign restriction or prohibition can put the food security of the people at risk,” Nouri said, adding that the government was working to decrease price rises caused by US sanctions.

The US increased its economic campaign against Iran earlier this week, imposing a package of additional sanctions on the country as Trump struggles to get Tehran to cave to his demands.

IRGC says ‘enemy’ using ‘psychological warfare’

The IRGC’s intelligence unit has said “the enemy”, after failing to break the Iranian people’s “resistance”, is resorting to “psychological warfare” to try to erode “national stability”.

In a statement carried by Iran’s Fars news agency, it said Iran is responding by disrupting the enemy’s command capabilities and confronting groups seeking to stoke internal division within Iran.

Rehabilitation of dozens of road, rail, port infrastructure sites under way in Iran: Minister

Iran is rehabilitating approximately 98 sites within the road, rail, and port networks connecting the Hormozgan province in the south of the country, according to Roads and Urban Development Minister Farzaneh Sadegh.

Speaking to Iran’s state media, she said Hormozgan connects southern Iran to global trade and maritime routes through its vital location along the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf.

Sadegh said that infrastructure rehabilitation will take time due to the need to manufacture or purchase certain equipment.

She said repair works were currently under way to rebuild 11 railway bridges, as well as tunnels and roads, which needed repairs.

The official alternative routes were established within hours or even a day to restore traffic flow, while the damaged bridges are currently being rebuilt and are expected to re-open next month.

Khamenei calls for Muslim world to confront ‘real enemy’

Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, says the “enemy” seeks to create divisions within Muslims globally.

Referring to the US and Israel, his written statement added: “They strive to turn various racial, cultural, social, economic, political, and geographical differences into pretexts for creating discord among Muslim people in Iran and in any other Islamic country”.

“From this perspective, they observe the fragmentation of the Islamic Ummah and the weakening of its forces, waiting for the opportune moment to impose their dominance over them.”

He urged against any action that could divide Muslims.

“Would the Palestinian nation be so defenseless, subjected to the oppression and crimes of the occupiers, if Muslims were united, clenching their fists with strength?” asked Khamenei.

“And would the nations and governments residing around the Persian Gulf have the courage to let corrupt and identity-less scoundrels from thousands of kilometers away covet their lands and assets if they established their unity under the banner of Islam?”

He urged Muslim heads of state to “recognise their real enemy, understand its plans, and confront it”.

“The criminal rulers of America and the fake Zionist regime are sworn enemies of this unity and friendship,” said Khamenei.

“They are not only enemies of the Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation, as well as the vast front of Islamic resistance; they also harbor animosity towards the entire Muslim Ummah, including the nations of West Asia and North Africa.”

Khamenei’s message in line with stance ‘the region should be just of the region’

Alexandru Hudisteanu, a military analyst and retired Romanian navy officer, says the supreme leader’s recent message “lines up with the narrative that Iran has always” had.

“The region should be just of the region, and any security arrangements and any deals in the region should be by the regional countries,” he said. “This is a narrative that Iran has constructed for a long time.”

According to Hudisteanu, Iran has proven to be “a very contesting type of entity”.

“Any type of regional security architecture here will most likely also have a component of trying to contain Iran. I’m not sure if that’s the desired outcome.”

Khamenei’s new statement

Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei released a written statement this morning, that includes:

• The “enemy” seek to create divisions within Muslims globally.
• They strive to turn various racial, cultural, social, economic, political, and geographical differences into pretexts for creating discord among Muslims.
• If Muslims were united, the Palestinian nation would not be so defenseless, and the nations residing around the Gulf would have the courage to prevent the “enemy” from accessing their lands and assets.
• Muslim heads of state to should “recognise their real enemy, understand its plans, and confront it”.
• “The criminal rulers of America and the fake Zionist regime” are not only enemies of Iran, but also the “entire Muslim Ummah”.

Japanese should hold Tokyo accountable for US Army’s use of facilities: Araghchi

The Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said people in Japan should hold their government accountable for “their participation in US crimes”.

He raised questions about Japan’s role and the US military’s use of facilities on its territory in operations in other parts of the world.

“The Japanese government is responsible for the use of facilities located in this country,” he was quoted as saying by the Fars news agency, reacting to reports about the dispatch of US F-16 fighter jets from Misawa Air Base in Japan to the Middle East to attack Iran.

We don't agree with this view, as US presence in Japan has different purposes, while the American war belligerent is not attacking Iran from Japanese soil. It only redeployed an aircraft carrier from Japan to the Middle East.

But Trump's move have made the Pacific region vulnerable for China's expansion of dominance, as only one US aircraft carrier is left in the Pacific. Trump is destroying the security in the region that the US has built over years.

Iran seeks ‘to kick Americans out’ of Middle East to make it ‘peaceful’

Mostafa Khoshcheshm, a professor at the University of Applied Sciences in Tehran, says the Iranian supreme leader’s call for Muslim countries to unify against the US and Israel reflects a longstanding Iranian position.

Khoshcheshm said Iran wants Gulf countries to sever ties with the US military, which hopes to continue using their territories, as well as the Strait of Hormuz to advance attacks against Iran.

“If we open up the strait, the Americans would repair and mend their air defenses and military premises and go for another attack on Iran,” said Khoshcheshm. “So, what Iran wants is to kick the Americans out of the region in order to make it a peaceful environment for everyone.”

US influence in Gulf declining due to war on Iran: Ex-US official

Washington’s credibility among the Gulf states is “one of the casualties” of the US-Israeli war on Iran, says former US State Department official Marlin Hardinger.

“The message coming from [Iran’s] supreme leader is to the leadership of the Gulf states and also the populations of the Gulf states who have issues with some of the leadership in the region,” Hardinger said.

He said some US officials understand that Washington has lost influence in the region as a result of the war, which has seen the US fail in its goal of replacing the Iranian government.

“Throughout this military engagement, what you’ve seen from Washington and Tehran is a constant messaging battle either to keep allies or gain new ones,” Hardinger said.

“This is the latest charge from the Supreme Leader. It’s probably going to be effective to some of the key folks in the Gulf area and also a warning to key leaders in the US that change will have to come in the Gulf states after this conflict,” he added.

Energy minister: Israel ready to attack if Iran revives nuclear or missile plans

Eli Cohen says Israel will strike Iran again if it tries to rebuild its nuclear or ballistic missile programs, even if Tehran reaches an agreement with Washington.

“If Iran makes the mistake and tries to renew its nuclear program or ballistic missile program, even if there is an agreement with the United States, we will be there to attack,” Cohen said when asked about the war on Iran in an interview with the Israeli news site Ynet on Saturday.

The Israelis have been obsessed with Iran's nuclear program since 2010.

However, the real obsession that the Israelis have is ensuring being the only nuclear power in the region that dates since Menachem Begin in 1968 spoke out the words:

"Make sure that no enemy has a reactor."

That was a year after they managed to have three nuclear warheads, which the Israeli general Moshe Dayan wanted to use during the six-day war against Arab countries in June 1967.

Since 30 years, it is Netanyahu's obsession, that we would translate into

"Make sure that Iran has no nuclear program." 

Iran’s navy ‘alive and well’ despite Trump claims, commander says

Iran’s navy is “alive and well”, its commander, Shahram Irani, is quoted as saying by state broadcaster IRIB after Trump has repeatedly claimed all of Iran’s naval ships have been destroyed.

“The navy is alive and well, continuing its mission with strength and will spare no effort to defend our beloved Iran and ensure and maintain the security of the great Iranian nation,” Irani said.

Keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed impacting Iran’s neighbors more than US

Iran’s decision to continue its strategy of attrition in keeping the Strait of Hormuz closed has directly impacted its neighbors, not necessarily the US, Tim Constantine, senior writer at The Washington Times, says.

“None of this seems to get back to the opening of Hormuz because this closed waterway is not hurting the United States nearly as much as it’s hurting the region’s country,” he said.

“So when I hear [Iran say], let’s have unity, let’s all work together, the simplest thing Iran could do to back that up would be to open the [Strait of] Hormuz.”

Tanker struck near Oman while transiting Hormuz: UKMTO

The UK’s Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) says it has received a delayed report of a tanker being struck while transiting “inbound in the Strait of Hormuz”.

The UKMTO notice says the attack occurred 12 nautical miles (22km) to the north of the Omani port town of Khasab but does not specify when it occurred.

It said authorities are investigating the incident, which did not cause any “casualties or environmental impact”.

Iran claims it stopped ‘transfer of 2 million liters of diesel’ to foreign vessel

Iranian authorities say border guards at the country’s Bandar Abbas naval base have “prevented the transfer of 2 million liters of diesel [528,344 gallons] to a foreign vessel” in the Gulf, according to the country’s Fars news agency.

“Six of the main suspects in this smuggling network have been arrested and handed over to the judicial authorities”, the report said.

US attack Larak Island

US bombed two IRGC rocket launchers on Iran’s Larak Island, US official says

US forces have bombed two rocket launchers of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp (IRGC) on the country’s Larak Island, according to an unnamed US official .

The official claimed Sunday’s attack came as the launchers were preparing to fire missiles carrying naval mines towards the Strait of Hormuz.

US forces are closely monitoring the area and remain ready to protect the flow of vessels through the waterway, according to official.

Explosions heard on Iran’s Lark Island: Iranian media

Iran’s Fars news agency says residents on Iran’s Lark Island have reported hearing an explosion, the cause of which is unknown.

The report comes shortly after a US official said that US forces bombed two IRGC rocket launchers on the island.

Reported US attack on Larak Island ‘a definite escalation’

There’s been no official confirmation from CENTCOM at this stage, but a number of US officials are confirming that this attack [in the vicinity of Larak Island] took place.

The target was apparently two missile launchers that were being manned by IRGC. According to the US officials, the missiles were about to be loaded with sea mines and launched into the Strait of Hormuz.

This is not the first attack on Larak Island. There was one back in the end of July that came under similar circumstances. This is definitely an escalation in what has been a period of relative calm in this ongoing conflict.

IRGC promises to respond to US attack on Larak island, reports casualties

Iran’s ⁠Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corp says a US ⁠attack on Larak ⁠island on Sunday killed and wounded ‌several Iranian fighters and civilians, and promised to respond ⁠and punish those responsible, according to Iran’s ⁠state broadcaster IRIB.

The ⁠IRGC did ⁠not ⁠provide a precise casualty toll.

IRGC spokesperson accuses US of ‘strategic, fatal mistake’

In a statement on the US attack on Larak Island shared by Iran’s Fars news agency, IRGC spokesperson Sardar Mohebi accused the US of making “a strategic and fatal mistake”, for which it will pay consequences “in both the economic and military arenas”.

Ex-official urges US to withdraw troops from Gulf as tensions rise

Joe Kent, Trump’s former top US counterterrorism official, has urged Washington to immediately withdraw its troops from the Gulf region after Tehran promised to respond to an attack on Larak Island.

“We just struck targets on Lark Island, Iran will respond,” Kent said in a post on X. “If we want to control the escalation cycle and not have the war accelerate we must get our troops out of the region. If Iran gets lucky and kills US troops we will be sucked back into the war on Iran’s terms.”

The former official said the US should use economic pressure and diplomacy to bring the conflict to a close.

Kent resigned from the Trump administration in March in opposition to the US-Israel war on Iran, urging Trump to “reverse course”. He has repeatedly argued that the war only serves Israel’s interests.

Iran blames US-Israel for Larak attack, says sea mining allegations ‘an excuse’

The IRGC acknowledging this attack and acknowledging that there are killed and wounded people among the fighters and civilians. Although some media close to the IRGC quote two killed, three wounded, but no confirmed figure on the casualties yet from the IRGC side.

The IRGC sees this attack as an American-Israeli attack breaking the peace. They call it as a Zionist attack targeting Iran. But the IRGC hasn’t said anything about the US claims that they were planning to seed sea mines in the Strait of Hormuz.

This sea mines story has been very popular on the agenda, especially for the last week.

The US has been claiming that Iranians are trying to lay sea mines. But earlier this week the IRGC was saying that the strait is under their control and there are no sea mines, and we heard the Iranian officials saying that the US is trying to create an excuse through the claim of the sea mines to jump into the strait.

It is unclear whether this is a pinpoint preemptive strike or whether this will go bigger. But the IRGC vows to retaliate. They say the children of Iran will be responding to this attack.

Senior Iranian lawmaker warns of ‘devastating’ response to US strike on Larak

Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament’s national security commission, posted twice on X, promising retaliation, once in Farsi and once in English.

“Undoubtedly, no crime, at any level, goes unanswered; a response that is devastating, more painful, and instructive, which will complete the chain of your failures,” he wrote in Farsi, adding “Wait in fear and terror!”

In English, he wrote: “Test our will once more, and pay a heavier price. Retaliation is coming; JUST RUN!”

Domestic pressure likely to push Iran towards escalation after Larak attack

Mohammad Eslami, a research fellow at Tehran University, underlines about the latest US attack on Larak Island, that Iran’s IRGC is “under a kind of pressure from some parties domestically” over the negotiations with the US.

That pressure will now further intensify with the latest US attacks on Larak Island and the IRGC positions, he said.

“During the last rounds of escalation, the IRGC had the opportunity to primitively attack the US bases in the region and close the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, adding that the IRGC would also look to inflict casualties among the US forces.

He also said the US forces in Jordan were likely to become Iran’s targets for the expected retaliation.

US officials frame Larak attacks as ‘one-off’

This is something that hasn't be seen in weeks, which is an actual kinetic force being used by the United States against targets inside of Iran.

This is also significant because the United States has been portraying shipping as largely normalized along the Strait of Hormuz, saying that mines had already been cleared from the strait, allowing for commercial shipping.

The framing by US officials at the moment is that this was a one-off strike, something that is seen as preventative after Iranian forces were seen or observed allegedly preparing launchers that were going to lay mines along the Strait of Hormuz.

So the question is whether or not this is going to maintain a measured response, and a large part of this will depend on what the response is from the Iranians.

They have shown in the past that they are capable of responding against US interests in the region, against US partners in the region.

IRGC says it launched attacks on US bases in Jordan

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) says it has attacked the US military in Jordan in response to the strike on Larak Island.

In a statement shared by Iranian news agencies, the IRGC said the combined missile and drone operation, which it called “Punishment of the Aggressor”, hit the King Hussein and Al Azraq bases.

It said the strikes “destroyed the technical and repair infrastructure, as well as the enemy fighter deployment sites”, inflicting significant damage.

“Aggression and crimes will not solve the enemy’s desperation in attempting to weaken the Islamic Republic’s control over the Strait of Hormuz, and every attack will be met with even more devastating responses,” the statement said.

Oil jumps more than 2 percent after US attack on Iran’s Larak

Oil ⁠prices ⁠jumped more than 2 percent, ⁠with Brent back above $90 a ⁠barrel, after US forces struck two Iranian launchers on Iran’s ‌Larak Island on Sunday.

Brent crude futures climbed $2.22, or ⁠2.52 percent, to $90.32 a ⁠barrel by ⁠22:02 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude was $85.41 a barrel, up $2.01, or ‌2.41 percent.

Jordan says intercepted 8 missiles that breached airspace

Jordan’s military says it intercepted eight missiles that entered the country’s airspace on Monday.

The statement comes after Iran’s IRGC said it launched attacks on US military positions in Jordan following a US attack on Larak Island.

Turkey to host first trilateral defence pact meeting on Monday

The first meeting of the Strategic Political and Defence Committee, established under the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement signed by Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, will be held in Istanbul on Monday, according to a statement issued by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The foreign minister’s of Turkey, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia will be in attendance – as well as the defence ministers and military chiefs of all three countries.

The Mecca Joint Deterrence Agreement, was signed earlier this month in the Saudi holy city of Mecca by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

The mutual defence pact, is the result of the changing security models which have emerged as a result of the United States-Israel war on Iran, a conflict that has pulled missile and drone fire onto Gulf oil exporters, including Saudi Arabia, and shut down much of the Strait of Hormuz.

Egypt, UAE promise to work together as US blacklists Egyptian bank’s UAE branch

The central banks of Egypt and the UAE have issued a joint statement, saying they will continue to coordinate to ensure that Banque Misr can maintain “business as usual” after the US restricted its access to the US financial market.

Branches of Banque Misr in the UAE have been cut off from the US financial system for allegedly doing business with Iran. The US stepped up its economic campaign against Tehran earlier this week, announcing a raft of new sanctions as the war enters its seventh month.

The statement said Banque Misr would “take all necessary actions and measures” for as long as the restrictions remain in effect.

Iran’s president to attend SCO summit in Kyrgyzstan

The Iranian, Chinese and Russian presidents are expected in Central Asia’s Kyrgyzstan on Monday for a two-day summit.

About a dozen heads of states will head to the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek to mark 25 years of the Shanghai Cooperation Group (SCO).

Pezeshkian is expected to hold talks with other leaders during the summit to discuss the regional issues as well as his country’s bilateral ties.

Netanyahu says Israel succeeded in ‘changing the face of the Middle East’ under his rule

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that the “existence of the state of Israel is at stake” in the country’s upcoming legislative elections in October, in which his Likud party is projected to lose seats.

In an interview with Israel’s Channel 14, Netanyahu said that Israel had succeeded in “changing the face of the Middle East” under his rule. As long as he is prime minister, Iran “will not have nuclear weapons”, Netanyahu said.

He also encouraged smaller right-wing Israeli parties that could fracture his bloc to “unite”, saying it would “be a huge blessing”.

US says it has redirected 83 vessels since reinstating Iran blockade

US Central Command says it has redirected 83 commercial vessels, disabled three and boarded two since reinstating its naval blockade of Iran on July 14.

On Friday, it said 82 ships were redirected, three disabled and two boarded, which means it redirected one vessel over the past 48 hours.