• US President Donald Trump says the renewed fighting with Iran will not last “too long”, while adding that the US is ready to strike Iran “at any time.”
• Iran’s security chief, Mohsen Rezaei, says Washington will witness Tehran’s “new strategy” for war soon.
• Iran’s health minister says the death toll from US attacks has risen to 18, including two children. The US military denies targeting civilians.
• US Central Command (CENTCOM) says Washington is continuing its blockade against Iran, redirecting 86 commercial vessels as of today.
• US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warns that any country helping Tehran create “mechanisms” to generate funds will face sanctions from Washington.
• The Iranian currency has dropped to a record low of more than 2.2 million rials to the dollar, Reuters reports.

Trump says US sees ‘everything’ Iran does, threatens further attacks

Trump has threatened further attacks on Iran following US strikes that Iranian authorities say hit a wedding, killing four people, including two children.

Trump also claimed that the US controls the Strait of Hormuz and destroyed an Iranian mine-laying rocket.

UN chief ‘deeply alarmed’ by US strike on Iran wedding

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is “deeply alarmed by reports of civilian casualties, including a strike that reportedly hit a wedding ceremony in Iran,” the Anadolu news agency quotes his spokesperson as saying.

Speaking at the UN’s daily briefing on Wednesday, Stephane Dujarric told reporters that Guterres “condemns all attacks against civilians” and is “gravely concerned” by renewed fighting between the US and Iran.

“Few countries in the region are immune from this escalation,” he said, with airspace and shipping routes still heavily affected.

Dujarric relayed Guterres’s call for an immediate halt to military action, warning that further escalation would have “devastating consequences for civilians and the wider region”.

Iran says 142 people injured in latest US strikes

Iran’s health ministry spokesperson, Hossein Kermanpour, has provided an update on the number of people injured in the latest US strikes on Iran.

He said that 142 people were injured in the attack, including 61 women and 44 people under the age of 18.

In total, 18 people were killed in the strikes, including two women and a child, Kermanpour added.

Bernie Sanders criticizes Trump’s suggestion to rename Strait of Hormuz after himself

US Senator Bernie Sanders has responded to Donald Trump’s suggestion that the Strait of Hormuz should be renamed “Trump Strait”.

In a post on X, Sanders said, “No, Mr. Trump. The American people don’t want you to rename the Strait of Hormuz after yourself.

“They want you to end your illegal war in Iran that has raised diesel prices to $5.69 a gallon & gas prices to $4.12 a gallon.

“You’re the President, not a mad king. Act like it,” Sanders added.

Self-glorification is known by tyrants and dictators

Oil prices dip as markets weigh US-Iran conflict risks

Crude prices move lower on Thursday as market participants weigh ongoing uncertainty surrounding renewed military strikes between the US and Iran that threaten regional supplies.

Brent crude futures dropped 43 cents, or 0.45 percent, to $95.20 per barrel as of 00:29 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude decreased 24 cents, or 0.26 percent, to $90.77.

Kuwait says air defences responding to Iranian missile, drone attacks

The Kuwaiti army says the country’s air defences are responding to “hostile” missile and drone attacks, which it blamed on Iran.

In a post on X, the Kuwaiti army said any explosions heard were the result of air defence systems intercepting the attacks.

It urged the public to follow safety and security instructions issued by the relevant authorities.

Hormuz still gives Iran leverage as it seeks to restore deterrence

Ross Harrison of the Middle East Institute says the Strait of Hormuz continues to give Iran leverage in the short term, despite efforts by other states to find alternative routes.

“Right now, Iran’s regime is focused on survival and on the short term. And so, for the short term, it still maintains that leverage,” Harrison said.

He said Iran’s “endgame” is to re-establish deterrence and inflict enough damage to prevent another conflict “five months from now, six months from now, or a year from now”.

Harrison also said there are different views inside Iran over whether to negotiate with the US, escalate further or withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty.

But he said decision-making has remained relatively disciplined during the war.

“Right now, under the crucible of war, the regime is remarkably cohesive, as far as we can see.”

Australia says Iran’s Hormuz shipping restrictions ‘unacceptable’

Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles has called for the Strait of Hormuz to be reopened, accusing Iran of restricting shipping through the key waterway.

“What we need to see is the Strait of Hormuz open,” Marles told ABC News from Washington, DC, saying Iran’s actions were “fundamentally in contravention with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea” and the principle of freedom of navigation.

“We do want to see a de-escalation to what’s occurred in the Middle East, but we need to see the Strait of Hormuz open and global fuel supply chains return to normal,” he said.

Marles added that Iran was currently “seeking to limit shipping” through the strait, calling that “unacceptable”.

Iran retaliates after US strikes, as Trump threatens further attacks

Trump says the US is prepared to strike Iran again, warning that Tehran must not be allowed to develop nuclear weapons.

The comments follow US strikes on southern Iran in which 18 people were reported killed, including civilians attending a wedding.

Iran has responded with missile launches against US-linked assets in the region.

Analyst Ross Harrison assesses the impact of the US campaign, arguing that while the attacks have caused significant damage, they have not achieved Washington’s broader political objectives.

Harrison also discusses the resilience of Iran’s political system, Tehran’s efforts to restore military deterrence, and the strategic importance of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran’s Castle Breaker missile

Iran’s Kheibar Shekan missile, which means Castle Breaker in Persian, has emerged as one of the most talked-about weapons in the US-Israel war on Iran.

Iran has used the medium-range ballistic missile in strikes on US military targets and infrastructure in the Middle East this week, as Tehran aims to demonstrate that its missile arsenal remains well-stocked following six months of intermittent US and Israeli attacks.

The war entered a new phase this week following a lull in fighting for a month, when US forces struck rocket launchers on Iran’s Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz, close to the country’s strategic port of Bandar Abbas, on Monday. That prompted Iran to strike back at US military assets in Jordan.

Since then, the US has carried out more attacks on various Iranian targets, with Tehran again responding in kind, targeting several US bases in the region, including in Jordan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

Six vessels transited Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday

Just six commodity vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, down from 11 the day before, according to the latest ship-tracking data from Kpler, cited by Reuters.

The vessels included two very large gas carriers, two long-range tankers, one Supramax tanker and one Panamax tanker, the data showed.

The figure is well below the current 10-day average of about 13 ships a day.

The number of vessels transiting the waterway may be updated as some ships typically switch off transponders during the voyage.

Iran warns US confrontation could be ‘a prelude to a bigger war’

Iranian local reports and state media have confirmed that civilians, including children, were killed in US attacks near Sirik in southern Iran overnight on September 1-2, with Tehran condemning the attack as a war crime.

Researcher Ali Akbar Dareini of the Centre for Strategic Studies in Tehran told Al Jazeera that the attack “cannot be ignored” and that Iran has to respond.

He said this is “a prelude to a bigger war”, arguing that the US is combining sanctions, a naval blockade and military strikes in the hope of forcing Iran to surrender.

Oil prices fall slightly during uncertainty over US war on Iran

Oil prices edged lower as investors weighed ⁠the uncertainty of ⁠renewed military attacks between the US and Iran that continue to disrupt supplies from the Middle East.

Brent crude futures fell 59 cents, or 0.62 percent, to $95.04 a barrel at 05:09 ⁠GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 38 cents, or 0.42 percent, at $90.63.

The latest attacks were the most substantial exchange of fire between the US and Iran since July, with ⁠the war now in its seventh month.

Brent and WTI swung between gains of as much as $2 a barrel and losses of $1 a barrel during the previous trading session. The session highs for both benchmarks were the highest since July 24.

Israeli PM says Israel is working to overthrow Iran’s government

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says his country is working to “overthrow” Iran’s government.

In an interview with i24 News, Netanyahu said: “All of our systems, under my direction, are working to bring down this regime and defeat it.”

Watch video from Middle East Eye on Facebook

Israel threatens to again attack Iran’s energy facilities

Defense Minister Israel Katz says his country would strike Iran’s energy and civilian infrastructure if ⁠Iran were to attack Israel.

Katz said an “Iranian attack on ⁠Israel would free Israel from any existing limitations on attacking Iran”.

“We will cripple all ‌of Iran’s national military and civilian infrastructure – including energy infrastructure – and return Iran ‌deep ‌into the Stone Age and darkness,” he said in a speech.

Israel – which with the US ⁠launched a joint air ⁠war against Iran in February – has not been involved in the latest round of fighting.

Read how the Israelis have made themselves being the problem.

UAE leader, Trump discuss Middle East latest

United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan received a phone call from President Trump.

The two leaders discussed the latest developments in the Middle East, according to the UAE’s state news agency. It did not elaborate on the ongoing fighting between the US and Iran.

Talks included “ways to further strengthen ties” in support of their “mutual interests”, it said.

In the war’s first six weeks, Iran targeted the UAE with retaliatory strikes more than any other Gulf country, launching more than 530 ballistic missiles, dozens of cruise missiles, and 2,200 drones at what it described as “US assets”.

Iran still willing to negotiate with US but only on deal signed in June

Tehran remains open to peace talks with Washington based on the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding and not a newly drafted agreement, a former Iranian diplomat and political analyst says.

“Iran has affirmed that it is ready as soon as America returns to the negotiating table, but on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding – not to establish, draft, or write another memorandum,” Hadi Afghahi said.

“Even if we reached another memorandum of understanding, what guarantee would there be that the new memorandum would be implemented? Both the American and Iranian sides welcomed it, but the American side did not implement any of its provisions except partially, and Iran rejected this.”

Afghahi said the interim deal signed in June – drafted in both Persian and English by specialist teams – left no ambiguity in its terms. “[But] the Americans wanted something else. They want to control Iranian oil and bring down the system, and that is something Iran will not accept.”

Iran-US attacks risk further escalation; ‘serious diplomacy’ only way out

The latest escalation between Iran and the US was predictable following the collapse of the Islamabad memorandum of understanding (MoU), an analyst says.

“At its heart is a struggle over who controls the Strait of Hormuz with both Washington and Tehran using military force to assert their authority over the waterway,” said Negar Mortazavi, a senior fellow at the Center for International Policy and host of The Iran Podcast.

The confrontation could lead to further military action unless an understanding is reached, she told Al Jazeera.

“This cycle will lead to further attacks and counterattacks unless both sides change course,” said Mortazavi, adding the US should recognize military pressure alone is unlikely to force Tehran to capitulate.

“Washington must understand that military force and economic coercion will not force Iran to surrender. The only path forward is serious diplomacy, which requires concessions from both sides,” she said.

“A mutual return to the MoU remains the clearest route to de-escalation and a final peace agreement.”

China’s support for Iran shows its limits as US ramps up pressure on Tehran

China has long been a rare partner to Iran with the economic heft to blunt the United States’ efforts to strangle the Iranian economy.

Yet even as China opposes US President Donald Trump’s latest pressure campaign, few observers expect it to go much further than the modest economic links it has so far forged.

While China opposes the Trump administration’s military attacks and sanctions against Iran, Beijing’s relationship with Tehran is just one foreign policy consideration.

“China, with broader global interests, can only actively promote de-escalation of the US-Iran conflict, and cannot, and will not, engage in fierce confrontation with the US for Iran’s sake,” said Hongda Fan, director of the China-Middle East Center at Shaoxing University in China.

“Ultimately, the US-Iran conflict must be resolved by the two countries themselves.”

Basic commodities readily available in markets, Iranian official says

The head of Tehran’s Food Bankers’ Union says the supply and distribution of essential goods is proceeding normally, with basic commodities readily available in markets, state media outlet IRNA reports.

“Now the price of Iranian rice has dropped by 25 percent and [the price of] legumes has also started to decline,” IRNA quoted the official as saying.

The comments come amid an ongoing US naval blockade of Iranian ports.

Iran calls on UN to hold US accountable for ‘war crimes’ after deadly wedding strike

In a letter to the Security Council, Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations condemned the US attack on a wedding in Hormozgan province calling it a “war crime” and a violation of international law.

Gholamhossein Darzi described the strike on civilians as an “appalling” and “egregious” crime, and called for the UN to “hold the United States fully responsible” and ensure it brings “an end to its acts of aggression” against Iran.

At least four people were killed, including a child, and 50 others wounded at the wedding gathering in Sirik in the south. At least 18 people were killed and 142 others injured in recent days in US air strikes, the Health Ministry said.

Iran Red Crescent urges ICC probe into deadly US strike on wedding party

The Iranian Red Crescent Society has asked the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate a missile attack by the United States that hit a wedding party in the southern town of Kuhestak, killing at least four people and wounding dozens.

In a letter to the court on Wednesday, the humanitarian group said the attack warrants “an independent, impartial, thorough, and effective investigation” given the “civilian character of the location”.

The strike, which took place at 9:30pm local time (18:00 GMT) on Tuesday, killed at least four people and wounded 67, the group said, warning that the number of deaths may increase “given the critical condition of some of the injured”.

Those killed were two women and two children, aged four and 16. An Iranian official said most of the wounded were also women and children.

The Red Crescent said the attack could amount to a “war crime”, noting that international law prohibits directing attacks against civilians or civilian objects, or launching a strike while knowing it could cause disproportionate civilian harm.

Guided-glide munition ‘most likely’ used in deadly Iran wedding attack

State media reports debris recovered from a home attacked in southern Iran during a wedding celebration was “most likely” from a US-made, AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon – a guided-glide munition.

The strike killed five people including a four-year-old child named Amirali.

Broadcaster IRIB said images released by US Central Command of attacks in southern Iran showed a F/A-18 Super Hornet loaded with a similar munition.

The targeted house was 200 meters (650 feet) from a communications tower, and the strike could not have been an error given the munition’s accuracy, reports said.

Separately, a funeral was held in Aghajari, in Khuzestan province, for six people IRIB said were killed in another missile attack.

Death toll from US attack on Iranian wedding ceremony rises to five

President of Iran’s Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences, Pejman Shahrokhi, says the death toll from the US attack on a wedding ceremony in Sirik on Tuesday has now risen to five, state broadcaster IRIB reports.

According to Shahrokhi, Asia Molainejad, 22, died from injuries sustained during the attack this afternoon.

Funeral for Iranian wedding attack victims

Six of the victims killed in the US attacks on Iran on Monday night are having funerals in Khuzestan.

For the wedding party that was hit by the US in Kuhestak, we are hearing that the funeral for the victims is going to be held at 4pm (12:30 GMT).

The Health Ministry has told us that most of the wounded were discharged from the hospital, but 11 are still being cared for in the intensive care unit.

US investigating wedding ceremony attack, says Vance

The US is investigating Iranian reports that Washington struck a wedding ceremony in Iran earlier this week, US Vice President JD Vance said.

When asked about Iranian reports that the US struck a wedding ceremony in Iran on Tuesday, resulting in the death of five people, US Vice President JD Vance said that Washington is investigating what happened but said Iranian state media has “not been a very good scribe about what’s happened in the conflict so far”.

“I’m extremely sceptical of this, but what I can say with 100 percent confidence, unlike the IRGC, the United States never targets civilians in combat. We never will do that, we never have done that, and unfortunately, obviously, sometimes things happen.”

“We’re investigating it because obviously we care, we want to know, and if we do make mistakes, again this is the big difference between us and Iran – when our military makes mistakes, they learn from them to try to get better from them,” Vance remarked.

Vance casts doubt on Iran’s accusations of civilian killings

US Vice President JD Vance said he is skeptical and is casting doubt on the claims made by the Iranians that the attack on the wedding party, was a targeted strike by the United States.

It’s clear from independent information that this was a US weapon that was responsible and fired in this location. US Central Command (CENTCOM) has not denied that.

But what the VP is trying to do is state that the US policy is not to target civilians deliberately, which of course would violate the laws of war.

What he’s not doing, though, is acknowledging that the US may have made a mistake.

All he’s saying is he’s leaving open that possibility, and putting the onus on Iran in terms of how mistakes are dealt with. Vance is saying that if this is a mistake by the US, then the difference between the US and Iran is that the United States learns from its errors.

Former Pentagon official questions US ethics after alleged Washington strike on wedding in Iran, killing civilians

The alleged US strike on a wedding in Iran reveals the moral and legal accountability defining success within the Pentagon and the Trump administration, a former Pentagon official says.

“Is the US intentionally targeting civilians in Iran? It is,” Wes J Bryant, who was the Pentagon’s chief of civilian harm assessments and now works as a principal war crimes analyst, said.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) has said that it doesn’t attack civilians, but Bryant argues that the US is “recklessly and negligently endangering and killing civilians” in its military operation against Iran.

“I can tell you from experience, every single target location is recorded at multiple levels throughout the chain of command”, he says. Comparing this week’s alleged wedding attack that killed four people to the US strike on the Minab school which killed 156 people, Bryant explained that in both cases the US military would have been able “to report within hours” if the school or wedding was struck.

At least 6 people still in intensive care after US attacks on Iran’s Sirik, state media says

Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB is reporting that 60 people who were injured in the US attacks on Sirik have been treated and released from a hospital.

Some 11 people, however, remain hospitalized, with six of them in intensive care.

Iran said the attacks on Wednesday killed 18 people, including children. The strikes also hit a wedding party in Sirik, killing four people.

The US has denied attacking civilians and said it was targeting military positions.

Six Iranian navy personnel reportedly killed in US attack

Six Iranian navy personnel were killed in renewed US strikes over the past few days, Tasnim news agency reported.

Earlier, Iran’s Health Ministry said 18 Iranians have been killed and more than 140 wounded – a majority women and children – since August 30 after the United States again launched its bombing campaign.

Three Iranian pilots reportedly killed in US attacks this week

Three Iranian pilots were killed in US attacks this week, the semi-official Tasnim news agency is reporting.

Iran’s army says it struck satellite systems, hangars at US base in Kuwait and Al Minhad base in UAE

Iran’s army says it has struck satellite communication systems, equipment depots and fighter jet hangars at Ahmad Al-Jaber Airbase in Kuwait, in what it described as the 31st phase of an operation it calls “Saiqa”, or Lightning.

In a statement carried by the semi-official Tasnim news agency, the Iranian army’s public relations office said missiles and drones were used in the strikes, which it said damaged communication systems and aircraft hangars. It said the base “plays a pivotal role” in supporting US forces in the region and their air and reconnaissance operations.

The statement said Iranian forces also struck troop deployments and radar systems at the Al Minhad Airbase in the United Arab Emirates, which it described as an important hub for the support and air mobility of foreign forces.

Iran’s army called the strikes retaliation for previous casualties among its armed forces, and warned that its response to further attacks “will be harsh and destructive” and would continue “until the final victory”.

Amid Iran attacks on Kuwait, Hormuz traffic drops by half

The skies over the Gulf overnight have remained relatively quiet, especially compared with earlier nights this week, with the Iranian drone attack in Kuwait being the largest event reported.

The Iranians say they were targeting US bases.

Meanwhile, after the spike in exchanges between US and Iranian forces earlier this week, there’s been a flurry of diplomatic activity. That has continued with various conversations between the heads of Gulf states, as well as UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan speaking on the phone with US President Donald Trump about the latest developments.

These attacks have also focused attention on the amount of shipping going through the Strait of Hormuz. We’ve had confirmation from a Saudi national shipping company about the attack on one of its tankers at the start of this week that killed two crew members.

The latest tracking data shows that the number of ships passing through the strait has dropped almost by half, to about six commercial vessels compared with the preceding week. But these numbers are somewhat misleading, as ships tend to turn off their transponders when they pass through the Strait of Hormuz, especially during periods of heightened tension or risk.

Strait of Hormuz cannot be opened without Tehran’s consent, Iranian security official says

Ebrahim Azizi, the chairman of Iran’s parliamentary National Security Commission, said the Strait of Hormuz cannot be opened without Iran’s consent.

Azizi said Iran’s adversaries had previously maintained a presence in the region but had now retreated more than 500 miles (800km), adding that they were resorting to “malicious actions” because they could not “unlock” the strait.

He also said Iran’s adversaries were aware that the sites Tehran had targeted had received “the strongest blows”, adding that the attacks demonstrated Iran’s ability to carry out its threats.

Sanctions no substitute for military action against Iran

Sanctions cannot be treated as an alternative to military intervention against Iran according to Sultan Barakat, Professor of Public Policy at Hamad bin Khalifa University.

“They could never say this is an alternative to a military intervention, because sanctions take a long, long time for it to bite,” Barakat said, noting that Iran is already “one of the most sanctioned countries on earth,” meaning fresh measures will take considerable time to have any effect. “They’re basically using all the tools they have in their toolkit to try and pressure Iran as much as possible,” he added.

His deeper concern, he said, is that Washington is “not helping to restore the traffic in the Hormuz Strait”. Trump “is claiming that he is in control, but the traffic is still not flowing,” Barakat said. Instead, the US is bringing alternative oil supplies from Venezuela and elsewhere onto the market, “slowly making the whole Gulf oil almost irrelevant to international energy market” a trend, he said, that “should be of concern not only for Iran but also for the Gulf states”.

Iran VP threatens ‘asymmetrical’ response to US attacks

The first vice president of Iran says the United States has changed Tehran’s security and defence calculations, warning its response will be “asymmetrical” and “multi-layered”.

“The Americans should start thinking about stockpiling gasoline and fuel. Dark months await the American economy,” Mohammad Reza Aref posted on X.

On Wednesday, President Trump said the US is ready to strike Iran “at any time” but he doesn’t expect the renewed fighting to last “too long”.

He also said Washington has “almost total control” of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran ‘received more than $1bn in oil revenues’ in last 11 days

More than $1bn in oil revenues entered Iran during the 11 days of the period ending September 2, the semi-official Fars reports.

Citing documents reviewed by its reporter, the news agency said the oil-related foreign currency was added to the country’s foreign exchange reserves during the period.

The report said the additional funds would increase the central bank’s ability to meet the country’s foreign currency needs.

It said Iran’s oil sales during the first five months of the current fiscal year generated revenues equivalent to more than 80 percent of the oil income projected in Iran’s 2026-27 budget, which runs from March 21, 2026 to March 20, 2027.

Republican senator calls on Trump to fire defense secretary Hegseth

Senator Thom Tillis has called on President Trump to fire Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth for creating a “leadership void” within the US military during the ongoing war with Iran.

In a social media post, Tillis contrasted Hegseth unfavorably with former Army Secretary Dan Driscoll, who submitted his resignation on Monday after reported disagreements with the Pentagon chief.

“I have never witnessed more inept management of the brave men and women who serve our country,” said Tillis.

“He is intimidated by competence and retreats to ginning up culture wars instead of soberly attending to the vital work of our national defence and the health and well-being of our fighting force.”

Qatar condemns Iranian attacks on Kuwait

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry says that renewed Iranian attacks on Kuwait constituted a violation of the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and a breach of international law.

The ministry said in a statement on Thursday that the continuation of the attacks risked complicating efforts to contain tensions and could undermine diplomatic efforts aimed at regional security and stability. It said Iran bears legal responsibility for the attacks and their consequences.

Qatar said it stood in solidarity with Kuwait and supported measures Kuwait takes to preserve its sovereignty and security, the statement added.

The ministry called for an end to military actions in the region, restraint from further escalation, and a return to dialogue and negotiations based on previously reached diplomatic understandings.

Oman and Qatar discuss boosting ties as Hormuz shutdown bites

Oman and Qatar have discussed enhancing commercial, industrial, and investment cooperation between the two countries, according to Oman News Agency.

The two sides also explored new prospects for partnerships across several sectors of mutual interest, it added.

Oman and Iran have been negotiating for weeks how to jointly govern the crucial Strait of Hormuz waterway.

Qatar is a key behind-the-scenes negotiator between the US and Iran and was pivotal in securing a Memorandum of Understanding in June that briefly paused hostilities, but the deal has since expired.

China seeks strengthening ties in the Middle East after US turmoil

President Xi Jinping’s visit to Egypt this week reflects China’s desire to strengthen ties with a region long dominated by archrival the United States.

With oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz stifled by the US-Israel war on Iran, the Suez Canal – controlled by Egypt – has become an important alternative path for getting energy supplies out of the Middle East.

“China has good reason to strengthen ties with the country that controls the route still open,” said Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat, a Middle East analyst with Jakarta’s Center of Economic and Law Studies.

Xi views Egypt “as a base to reach the wider Arab and African world at a time when the US has less attention to spare there”, said Rakhmat.

Xi aims to present China as a stabilizer in contrast with the US, which for decades has been militarily entangled there, analysts say.

“China continues to build up its soft power reserves while the United States self-sabotages its own stock,” Amr Hamzawy, director of the Washington-based Carnegie Middle East Program, wrote in a paper earlier this year along with Kathryn Selfe, a former fellow.

Oil hits 6-week high on renewed Middle East fighting

Oil prices hovered near six-week highs after US strikes on Iran and renewed Israeli threats heightened concerns about further disruption to Middle East supplies.

Brent crude futures were up $1.76, or 1.8 percent, at $97.39 a barrel by 10:25 GMT, erasing earlier losses, while US West Texas ⁠Intermediate crude futures rose $1.91, or 2.1 percent, to $92.92.

Both contracts were heading for their fourth day of gains and hit six-week highs earlier in the session.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz renewed warnings that Israel would “cripple” Iran’s infrastructure, including energy facilities, if Tehran launched attacks against it.

Saxo Bank analyst Ole Hansen said ⁠Katz’s comments helped fuel the latest jump in oil prices.

Asia looks to store oil, gas closer to home after Strait of Hormuz crisis

Asia suffered some of the worst economic fallout when the United States and Israel went to war with Iran six months ago.

The region is heavily reliant on Gulf oil and gas that normally flow through the Strait of Hormuz, where shipping has been reduced to a trickle by Iranian attacks and the US naval blockade.

Asian countries quickly imposed fuel conservation measures as oil and gas prices surged, ranging from price caps to alternate driving days and work-from-home mandates for civil servants.

In the months since, Asia has begun seeking a more permanent solution to the biggest energy disruption in history – keeping the oil and gas it needs much closer to home.

“The crisis is producing two very different kinds of investment: infrastructure that bypasses geopolitical risk and infrastructure that eliminates exposure to imported fuel altogether,” said Parul Bakshi, a visiting research fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.

Sultan of Oman to make state visit to UK, balancing pressures from US and Iran

The Sultan of Oman will visit the UK for a three-day state visit next month, as Muscat, which controls the southern shore of the Strait of Hormuz, comes under pressure from the US and Iran.

King Charles III and Queen Camilla will host Sultan Haitham bin Tariq at Windsor Castle from October 20 to October 22, Buckingham Palace said in a statement on Thursday. More detailed plans of the visit were not released.

Britain often uses state visits to reward friends and cajole reluctant allies by honouring visiting heads of state with all the pomp and ceremony the monarchy can muster.

They usually include a ride in a horse-drawn carriage, reviewing the troops, and a lavish state dinner hosted by the king, as well as bilateral meetings with senior government officials.

News of Sultan Haitham’s trip to Britain comes after Trump last month threatened to bomb Oman as it appeared close to making a deal with Iran to manage ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway through which 20 percent of the world’s oil and natural gas flowed before the war in the Middle East.

Iran seeks ‘to break’ US will to continue war

Neither the US nor Iran are looking for a return to full-scale war but sporadic fighting is likely to continue, says security and policy analyst, Wolfgang Pusztai.

“What we’ll see is some kind of hot and cold phases of this war, some limited military engagements. The US sharp sword in this conflict with Iran is not the military. The military is just assisting the economic instrument strategy,” he said.

“The sharp sword is the maritime blockade, which costs Iran more than $250m per day.”

He noted that before the war, Iran was exporting more than 1.5 million barrels of oil per day – “a huge source of revenue”.

“This needs to be seen in combination with the sharpened American sanctions,” said Pusztai.

“So, from the Iranian point of view, they need to break the capability of President Trump to continue the war, and this is why they need to escalate every now and then with attacks on ships and by laying some sea mines.”

US official claims no US bases in the region were hit in last night’s attacks

A US official claims that US bases in the region “were not subjected to any hits,” including US bases in Kuwait, as Iran launched retaliatory strikes on Wednesday night,

Bahrain condemns Iranian attacks on Kuwait

Bahrain has condemned repeated Iranian missile and drone attacks on neighboring Kuwait, describing them as a flagrant violation of Kuwaiti sovereignty and a grave breach of international law and the principles of good neighborliness.

In a foreign ministry statement, Bahrain said the attacks undermined regional de-escalation efforts and posed a threat to security and stability.

Bahrain considers Kuwait’s security an integral part of its own national security, the statement said.

The ministry renewed Bahrain’s call on the UN Security Council to uphold its responsibilities and take firm, deterrent action to compel Iran to comply with its obligations under international law and relevant agreements, halt attacks on the region’s states and peoples, ensure the safety of maritime navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and other vital waterways – and prevent piracy.

UAE condemns ‘in the strongest terms’ Iranian attack on Kuwait

The United Arab Emirates has condemned “in the strongest terms” what it called an aggressive Iranian attack targeting Kuwait with missiles and drones.

The attack constituted “a flagrant violation” of Kuwait’s sovereignty and a threat to its security and stability, said a foreign ministry statement.

Trump says Hormuz oil flows restored to nearly pre-war levels

US President Donald Trump has shared a graphic implying that the volume of oil transiting through the Strait of Hormuz is nearly back to pre-war levels.

According to Trump, 20 million barrels of oil flowed through the strait daily before the US-Israel war on Iran, and about 18 million barrels per day (bpd) are flowing through now.

He shared the image on his Truth Social website but did not cite any sources for the figures.

According to the International Energy Agency, before the war, some 20 million bpd transited the passageway. However, at the peak of the crisis, flows collapsed to about 5 million to 6 million bpd.

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright told CNBC news on Monday that oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz had hit a wartime record of more than 17 million bpd.

The US military said last week it had “completed” de-mining efforts in the strait, although Iran has repeatedly warned vessels against sailing in the passageway without proper authorization.

What happened to the oil reserve of the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve?

The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, created in 1975 after the Arab oil embargo, currently holds about 290 million barrels, less than half of its 700-million-barrel capacity and its lowest level since 1983.

Stored in 61 salt caverns along the Gulf of Mexico coast, the reserve was significantly drawn down during the Russia-Ukraine war and after this year’s Strait of Hormuz closure. A recent Government Accountability Office report warned that ageing infrastructure could hinder future emergency releases with about a quarter of the reserve currently unavailable for drawdown.

The Department of Energy has allocated $1.4bn for repairs, but officials said full restoration could take up to seven years.

Trump says reports of low US weapons stockpiles are ‘100% wrong’

President Trump has denied numerous news reports and independent analyses saying the US military is running low on weapons stockpiles, calling such reports “treasonous”.

Al Jazeera, as well as several other US news outlets, have reported in recent weeks that the US is running out of some of its most powerful weapons, including Tomahawks, Patriot missiles and the THAAD anti-ballistic missile system.

In a series of posts on his Truth Social site, Trump maintained that the reports are “100% wrong”.

He added that the US military has “virtually unlimited amounts” of mid- to high-grade munitions and that the US is also accelerating weapons production.

He also said sales to allies are set to restart. Amid the US war on Iran, weapons deliveries to allies, including Switzerland and Japan, have been delayed by several months.

French and UK leaders stress need for de-escalation in Strait of Hormuz

France and the United Kingdom have discussed the need for “de-escalation in the Strait of Hormuz” during a meeting between UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham and French President Emmanuel Macron in London.

Burnham also called Israel’s proposal for the large E1 settlement project unacceptable, saying it “only serves to undermine the prospect of the two-state solution”.

Residential building in Kuwait City damaged by Iranian drone

An Iranian drone attack has damaged a residential building in Kuwait, authorities say. No casualties have been reported.

Neither Iran or US ‘has intention to escalate’

The US has not disabled Iran’s military capabilities, Wolfgang Pusztai, former Austrian defense attaché to Libya, says.

“For the time being, neither side has an intention to escalate,” Pusztai said.

Tehran or Washington could be forced to escalate, however, if either side endures further civilian or military casualties, the defence analyst said.

Iran appears unwilling to escalate as Tehran could have struck additional targets and American bases in the region but refrained from doing so, he said. The US also appears unwilling as Washington did not use short- and medium-range ballistic missiles in their strikes this week, the former defence attaché argued.

“I’m rather optimistic that we will not see a major escalation in the near future”, Pusztai remarked, saying that he would advise Tehran to take a “peaceful approach” to living with its Gulf neighbors and not “threaten them every other day” with missiles.

Netanyahu calls overthrowing Iran’s leadership Israel’s ‘next main mission’

Israel Hayom, an Israeli newspaper, reports that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said overthrowing Iran’s leadership is his “next main mission”, and that he believes it is within reach.

Netanyahu’s comments came during a meeting with senior Israeli army officials, according to the newspaper.

Yesterday, US President Trump told Israeli media that Israel should not worry about the Iran war ramping up, and that the US would “take care” of it.

White House says global energy crisis averted due to US efforts

US Vice President JD Vance, speaking from the White House in the recently vacated role of press secretary, reiterated that the main reason behind Washington’s military operations against Tehran is for Iran to never have a nuclear weapon.

“Number two, what we’re doing right now, is protecting commercial shipping in order to ensure that we don’t have a world wide energy crisis”, Vance said.

“The only reason we don’t have an energy crisis is because of the leadership of the president but also because of the fine work of our military,” he said.

Vance said that 15 million barrels of oil passed through the critical waterway yesterday.

“Major combat operations are not ongoing”, Vance said, adding that Washington “has a lot of tools at their disposal”, despite the lack of diplomatic channels with Tehran.

US VP says Iranian control of Strait of Hormuz ‘effectively gone’

S Vice President JD Vance says that the Iranians are “losing their capabilities by the day”.

“I think they’re realizing, by the way, that their control over the Strait of Hormuz is effectively gone and it’s a diminishing asset. If you go back three months ago, how much oil and gas was coming out of the Strait under Iranian threats? It was virtually nothing; now it’s almost back to where it was when the conflict started,” he said.

“So my advice to the Iranians is to stop acting like crazy people and stop shooting at commercial shipping,” he added.

Vance says all options on the table against Iran, rules out talks until shipping attacks stop

Vance ⁠says that everything that could happen going forward is on the table, including “economic pressure, military pressure, diplomatic pressure, covert pressure”.

Separately, he said that the US does ‌not plan to hold talks with Iran unless Tehran stops ⁠attacking commercial shipping ⁠in the Strait of ⁠Hormuz.

When asked about a timeline for bringing the war to an end, he told reporters to ask Iran.

China ‘more responsible’ than Iran amid shipping attacks, US VP says

Responding to a question about needing China to isolate Iran, US Vice President JD Vance told reporters that Beijing is “willing to play ball here”.

“Say what you will about them [China], they are not the sort of nation that shoots at commercial shipping because they’re not getting their way in an international dispute,” he said.

“They are, in that way, willing to be a little bit more responsible – again, I’m not saying they’re doing everything we’ve asked them to do, but I think the PRC [People’s Republic of China] has been much more responsible certainly than the Iranians and much more responsible than a couple of other nations as well,” he added.

Vance also said that other countries, including Gulf states, Turkiye and Azerbaijan, were all working behind the scenes to help Washington ensure that the “Iranians pay a penalty for firing at commercial shipping”, adding that everything was being done to ensure that “Iran does not become a nuclear weapons power”.

US Vice President Vance downplays US strikes on Iran

A reporter just asked US Vice President JD Vance whether or when the United States would say that the war with Iran would be over.

Vance’s response was very interesting. He said that there are not any major combat operations under way. He has downplayed the strikes and counterstrikes between the US and Iran that have been ongoing since Sunday, just about four days ago, saying that this was simply about maintaining the safety and the availability of the Strait of Hormuz to international commercial and civilian shipping.

That is quite significant because there’s been considerable reporting in the US, in the past 24 hours, suggesting that the administration, being very much aware of how unpopular the war between the US and Iran is, is perhaps looking to either downgrade the amount of military activity carried out by the Pentagon against Iranian targets, or perhaps declare the war over in order to try to boost Republicans’ efforts to win re-election and possibly hold on to control of the House of Representatives and the US Senate in the November midterm elections.

US military claims 87 vessels diverted so far in renewed blockade on Iran

US Central Command (CENTCOM) claims it has redirected a total of 87 vessels in the Strait of Hormuz amid the naval blockade of Iran.

That’s one more vessel than the 86 vessels CENTCOM reported it had diverted yesterday.

CENTCOM also said in its update that it has disabled 3 ships so far and boarded another 2 to ensure “total compliance” with the blockade.

Opening of Hormuz now seems to be main goal, according to US VP Vance

It appears that keeping the Strait of Hormuz open is the main goal of the United States.

The wider strategy – based on the military activity that has occurred in the last week – involves preventing Iran from blocking shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

The White House did suggest that a global energy crisis was averted as a result of the US intervention. The opening for diplomacy now has preconditions, and the onus is on Iran to stop shooting for the talking to begin.

US military actions on Iran reveal ‘disarray’ in strategy

The latest round of US military action against Iran shows its strategy is in disarray, Trita Parsi of the Quincy Institute says.

“I think it’s quite likely that what we’re seeing right now is just complete military, strategic disarray on the American position in which the positions, the actions, the tactics, the strategies keep on getting changed,” Parsi said.

The US imposed economic sanctions on Iran that were meant to make further military intervention unnecessary, but, Parsi explained, this didn’t have the intended effect: “Seven days later, the US is back into bombing Iran.”

Iran still calls for the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding that it signed in June, to extend the ceasefire. Pariso explains the US position is not to go back to the agreement: “The American position right now is either one of supreme confidence that they have already managed to open up the Strait, and as a result, they can adopt much tougher demands on Iran than they did before.”

Parsi says the US is “ jumping from one position to the other.”

Iranian crude continues to circumvent US blockade, petroleum minister says

Iranian Minister of Petroleum Mohsen Paknejad has told the Iranian Students News Agency (ISNA) that the country’s oil industry continues to circumvent the blockade imposed by US forces.

Paknejad told ISNA the US military blockade on Iran’s ports and vessels presented a “difficult situation,” but that Iranian leaders had found ways around it.

“We are pursuing various strategies and have taken measures to overcome the blockade”, he said.

Paknejad also said that US forces attacked Kharg Island off Iran’s southwestern coast “more than 550 times” in the first 40 days of the conflict. Prior to the war, the country was exporting around 90 percent of its crude oil from the island.

“Even under bombardment, our colleagues were loading oil tankers. The country’s crude oil exports were not interrupted, even for one hour,” he said.

China has played an important role to avert a global recession after US-Iran war: Analyst

Recent steps taken by China and India prove that they’re doing all they can to avert a global economic meltdown, Trita Parsi, the executive vice president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, has said.

“It lies in their interests that this conflict – that the United States started – does not lead to a global recession,” Parsi said.

He noted that China has gone so far as to cut its own oil consumption and shifted to other energy sources to suppress the price of oil in international markets.

“The Chinese are pursuing their own interests, and their interests happen to be that the rest of the world should not suffer economically. Because if that happens, that’s going to also backfire on China,” he said.

Parsi hedged that he “would not cast that as some sort of effort to help the United States”.

Iranian strategy to humiliate Trump before US midterm elections may backfire: Analyst

Trita Parsi, the executive vice president of the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, says the Iranian strategy to maximize pressure on US President Trump ahead of the US congressional elections in November may backfire.

Parsi says the Iranian expectation is that Trump is poised to restart the war against them, but he doesn’t want to do so before the elections. As a result, Trump is trying to use the next couple of weeks and months just to prepare himself and keep the situation calm, he maintained.

“The reaction of the Iranians to that might be to actually trigger the war themselves early right before the midterm elections in order to maximize the pain that will impose on the US President”, Parsi said, adding that the Iranians may come to regret this approach.

“I’m not so sure that it’s going to pay off necessarily for the Iranians because a Trump that is humiliated at the elections, who is faced with a Democratic [majority] House [of Representatives] and potentially a Democratic Senate, may also become a much more desperate and reckless president.”