• Saudi-led coalition spokesperson Turki al-Maliki says that Saudi air defences have intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone that attempted to enter the airspace of Mecca.
• Several explosions have been heard on Iran’s Qeshm Island, according to state media, though no official sources have commented on their cause.
• US Central Command (CENTCOM) says that its forces have redirected 103 commercial vessels in its blockade of Iran to date, ensuring compliance with trade restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz.
• The Congressional Budget Office says that the US has used between half and two-thirds of its key missile-defence interceptors amid Middle East operations, with the war on Iran accelerating the depletion.

US congressional report shows Iran war increasing inflation, straining munitions

The US war on Iran is worsening inflation and straining the country’s munitions stockpiles, a report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has found.

The report, released on Tuesday, found that the cost of the six-month war has reached $38bn and is expected to rise by $3bn per month. The war is projected to increase inflation by 0.5 percentage points in the first three months of 2027.

“Donald Trump’s disastrous war in Iran has already taken the lives of brave American service members and left others wounded,” Brendan Boyle, a top Democrat on the US House of Representatives Budget Committee who requested the study, said in a statement.

US House passes resolution to end Iran war for third time

The US House of Representatives has approved a War Powers resolution intended to halt military action against Iran without congressional approval.

This marks the third House vote on similar measures in recent months, with a small number of Republicans joining Democrats to pass the resolution by a 220-204 margin. While four Republicans supported previous efforts, that number rose to seven in the latest roll call.

The legislative push follows a newly released CBO report estimating that the conflict has cost more than $38 billion since it began in late February, with expenses mounting by up to $3 billion monthly.

The report warns that sustained missile defense operations have heavily depleted US interceptor stockpiles, a shortfall that could take years to correct.

Enacted in the aftermath of the Vietnam War, the War Powers Act requires a president to secure congressional authorization for prolonged military engagements.

While the US Constitution designates the president as commander in chief, the statutory mechanism allows lawmakers to mandate the withdrawal of forces, though any final measure faces an almost certain presidential veto.

Oil falls as US crude inventories rise despite Saudi supply concerns

Oil prices declined on Wednesday following an unexpected expansion in US crude reserves, while market participants weighed supply vulnerabilities after Saudi Arabia halted oil shipments at its Yanbu terminal following an attack on its East-West pipeline to the Red Sea.

Brent crude futures dropped 93 cents, or 0.86 percent, to $107.82 a barrel as of 00:28 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate futures declined 97 cents, or 0.92 percent, to $104.86 a barrel.

Both major contracts had previously settled more than $3 higher on Tuesday, hitting their highest marks since May 19 as the Yanbu loading halt heightened supply anxieties alongside Saudi cutbacks on crude deliveries to Europe.

Strait of Hormuz vessel transits drop to four, data shows

Preliminary shipping data shows vessel transits through the Strait of Hormuz remaining in the single digits at four on Tuesday, down from seven a day earlier, Reuters reports.

Citing preliminary figures, Reuters said that a total of four vessels transited the waterway, with two exiting and two entering.

The data is preliminary and subject to updates, as no very large crude carriers or liquefied natural gas tankers were involved, and some vessels navigate the passage with their transponders switched off, meaning they are excluded from the official counts.

The figures fall well short of the 10-day average of 18.

US Energy Secretary claims 18 million barrels of oil flowed through Gulf on Tuesday

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has acknowledged that the conflict with Iran has “taken some energy resources out of the marketplace,” forcing US consumers to make what he called a “short-term sacrifice”.

“But this is to end Iran’s ability to forever drive up energy prices,” he said in an interview with Fox News.

Asked to provide a timeline on when energy prices would drop, Wright said he “can’t predict Iranian behaviour” but claimed the amount of oil flowing out of the Gulf had risen significantly.

“About 18 million barrels ⁠flowed out yesterday, ⁠basically pre-conflict ⁠levels,” Wright said. He added that increased flows from the Bab al-Mandeb Strait would be helpful.

US military spokesman tells Al Jazeera US has helped move 900 million barrels of oil out of Hormuz since May

US Central Command (CENTCOM) spokesman Tim Hawkins has reiterated US claims that Iran “does not control” the Strait of Hormuz, saying the US military has helped commercial vessels transport more than 900 million barrels of crude oil through the waterway since early May.

Hawkins said “traffic through the Strait of Hormuz continues to flow”.

“We have for months and months helped facilitate the flow of commercial vessels, moving cargo and also moving crude oil,” said Hawkins.

US CENTCOM spokesman says blockade of Iranian ports ‘ironclad’

CENTCOM spokesman Tim Hawkins said the US blockade of Iranian ports is “ironclad”.

“The blockade is highly effective. We have redirected more than 100 ships that were trying to violate the blockade … It’s ironclad,” he said.

Yesterday, CENTCOM said it had redirected a total of 103 vessels to “ensure compliance” with the blockade.

US CENTCOM spokesman says primary traffic lines in Hormuz ‘remain clear’ of mines

CENTCOM spokesman Tim Hawkins said that primary, internationally recognised traffic lines in the Strait of Hormuz are still clear of mines, after the US military announced it had completed its mine-clearing operation there in late August.

“We remain present and watchful to ensure those lanes stay clear,” said Hawkins. “The strait is open, those lanes are open and that is why commercial vessels continue to flow through them.”

CENTCOM spokesman says US military ‘strictly adheres to laws of armed conflict’

US CENTCOM spokesman Tim Hawkins said that the US military is fully adhering to the laws of armed conflict in Iran, exclusively attacking “military targets” in its operations.

Asked about US attacks that Iranian authorities say have killed civilians, Hawkins said, “We have never targeted civilians in our operations, and that is in stark contrast to Iran and in particular the IRGC.”

IRGC claims it downed US drone over Qeshm Island

Iran’s IRGC says its advanced air defence system has intercepted and destroyed a US MQ-9 drone over Iranian airspace.

In a statement carried by the semi-official Tasnim news agency, the IRGC said the drone was shot down at 2:29am (22:59 GMT) in the skies over Qeshm Island.

China urges US and Iran to return to MoU as Araghchi visits Beijing

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has arrived in Beijing for talks with his counterpart, Wang Yi, as China pressed both Washington and Tehran to step back from further confrontation.

“We do not want to see regional tensions escalate further to include Yemen and the Red Sea,” a statement quoting Wang said.

“We urge Washington and Tehran to engage in substantive consultations on outstanding issues. We urge Washington and Tehran to rebuild the negotiating framework based on the consensus reached since the Islamabad [memorandum of] understanding.”

Both countries should “act rationally and with restraint”, Wang added, warning “continued conflict between Washington and Tehran does not serve the interests of any party”.

Araghchi and Wang also met last week on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in New Delhi. China is one of Iran’s largest economic partners, buying a significant share of its oil exports.

Strait of Hormuz a main topic of discussion between Iran-China ministers

It is a very brief visit lasting only one day. Its announcement came late yesterday from the Chinese Foreign Ministry, as is customary. China has been trying to keep Iranian officials’ visits during this phase of the war highly confidential.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi has already met his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, in Beijing today.

China is trying to move forward along the negotiation and diplomatic track. Beijing has actively engaged from the beginning of the first round of talks between Washington and Tehran in Islamabad in April.

China’s position has been consistent since the beginning of the US aggression against Iran: it opposes and strongly condemns it – but at the same time does not want to see countries in the Middle East targeted by Tehran.

The Strait of Hormuz was also expected to be an important topic during Araghchi’s first visit.

China could play ‘an enormous role’ in ending US war on Iran

Huiyao Wang, president of the Center For China and Globalization think tank in Beijing, says China’s role in international affairs is increasing in importance during current geopolitical turmoil.

He noted the US war on Iran “has been dragging on now for nearly seven months and we’re not seeing any end in sight”.

Wang said historically there are always difficulties for two warring sides to end a conflict on their own, and mediator nations are required to intervene.

“China has an enormous role to exercise if needed. So the mere fact that the two fighting parties have no end in sight shows the need for a big guarantor to come in … I think the US wants to end this war and they also need China’s help,” Wang said.

Iran playing a balancing act amid Araghchi’s Beijing visit

Iran faces pressure from the US through military and economic sanctions, and from the UN.

Tehran seems realistic about what to expect from China, Iran’s largest trade partner. Iran exports 90 percent of its oil to China. It is only about 15 percent of Chinese oil imports, but still, this is a strategic relationship.

On the other hand, Tehran acknowledges that China, as a huge economic power, has strong relations with Tehran’s neighbors as well, like Saudi Arabia and other countries.

That’s why a balancing act is expected, and they are realistic about the outcome.

However, let’s remember China brokered a peace deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran in 2023; of course, China didn’t start the negotiations from scratch; regional mediators were already involved at the time.

Whether the same will happen between the US and Iran is a question everyone is curious about, because regional players and mediators, including Pakistan and Qatar, were involved.

As US summit looms, China has ‘a delicate tightrope to walk’ in relations with Iran

Beijing for years has been portraying itself as a state that can speak to all sides, and China would argue that engaging with all sides doesn’t mean taking sides. And certainly China under Xi Jinping, it’s almost become a point of pride that China is willing and able to speak to countries such as Iran, engage with the Taliban, countries that have been isolated by the rest, that the West is not willing or able to speak to.

Xi Jinping was just at BRICS, and I think it follows on from that wider message Xi Jinping has been espousing at BRICS, which is that smaller, Global South nations should have a bigger say in what should be a multilateral global system, not just everyday smaller diplomatic issues, but a say in big security issues such as the Iran conflict. So I think all of these engagements are part of that wider argument that China is trying to make.

The balancing act really is having all these engagements, having all these meetings, sending out these statements, without irritating or provoking the US, especially with the timing. It’s just over a week before Xi Jinping heads to Washington, DC, to sit down with Donald Trump. A delicate tightrope to walk.

Iran FM says Tehran open to diplomatic solutions during visit to Beijing

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Iran welcomes diplomatic solutions while being prepared to defend its national sovereignty.

During a meeting in Beijing with the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, Araghchi said that Tehran had initiated a dialogue with neighbouring countries to restore calm to the region.

“While upholding our principles and standing firm to secure the inalienable rights of the Iranian people, we seek the restoration of calm to the region and the fostering of friendly, peaceful relations with our neighbours,” Araghchi said, according to a statement from the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

Officials from Iran, Iraq and five Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations had been scheduled to meet in Oman to discuss navigation in the Strait of Hormuz amid Tehran’s ongoing hot-and-cold war with the United States.

However, the meeting, to which Bahrain was the only GCC country to object, was postponed. Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr bin Hamad Albusaidi said that the meeting was postponed “in the interests of consensus”.

Turkish state body to take near-total control of US-sanctioned bank

Turkiye’s banking regulator has said that the country’s state deposit insurer, TMSF, will take over most shareholder rights of a Turkish bank sanctioned by the US over alleged ties to Iran.

The rights cover 99.98 percent of the shares in the bank – Golden ⁠Global Yatirim Bankasi – although TMSF will not have the right to receive dividends.

Earlier this month, the ⁠US Treasury Department imposed sanctions ⁠on Golden ⁠Global Yatirim Bankasi and two of its subsidiaries. The Treasury accused Golden Global Yatirim Bankasi of facilitating “tens of millions of dollars’ worth of transactions for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force” and providing the Iranian government with banking access to move its funds internationally.

Iranian airline Mahan Air suspends Turkey routes amid latest US sanctions on aviation industry

Iranian airline Mahan Air’s flights to Turkey scheduled for Monday, September 21, have reportedly been suspended until further notice, according to Jamaran News. The suspensions also include routes to Istanbul, Ankara, and Van, with the last flights between the two countries having been planned for Sunday, September 29.

The Turkish Civil Aviation Authority (SHGM) has not yet released any details about the matter or whether the suspension applies to all Iranian airlines. Similar reports are also circulating about the possible suspension of Mahan Air flights to Oman.

These developments come after the United States’ latest round of sanctions against Iran’s aviation sector last week. The Trump administration imposed sanctions targeting more than 20 commercial and private airlines, as well as foreign cargo service providers, according to AP News.

In 2011, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Mahan Air pursuant to Executive Order 13224 for “providing financial, material, and technological support to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF),” according to a statement from the U.S. Department of the Treasury. In December 2019, the U.S. Department of State also designated Mahan Air pursuant to Executive Order 13382, which “targets weapons of mass destruction (WMD) proliferators and their supporters.”

Iran security chief says US must take steps to ‘earn confidence’

Iran’s national security chief Mohsen Rezaei has said the United States must take practical steps to earn Iranian confidence.

“We do not trust the US at all; they must take practical steps to earn our confidence,” the Iranian Supreme National Security Council secretary said, according to Iranian Press TV.

Rezaei had said in a social media post on Tuesday that Iran will not participate in talks with the US until Iranian conditions are met.

US President Donald Trump on Monday reiterated his assertion that Iran wants to make a deal, adding he will decide if the US “will choose to engage”.

Oil prices fall as Saudi Arabia offers more crude via Oman

Oil prices settled lower today after reports that Saudi Arabia was offering additional crude shipments through Oman eased concerns about Middle East supply disruptions, Reuters reports.

Brent crude futures fell $2.92, or 2.7 percent, to settle at $105.83 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate dropped $3.40, or 3.2 percent, to $102.43.

Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that Saudi Arabia was offering additional crude to Asian refiners through ship-to-ship transfers off Oman’s Sohar port. The move follows drone attacks that damaged the kingdom’s East-West pipeline, which supplies the Red Sea export terminal at Yanbu.

“News that Saudi Arabia is exporting from the Gulf suggests concerns about a potential worsening of the disruptions are easing,” UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo said.

Prices also came under pressure after US crude inventories fell by 640,000 barrels last week, less than the 1.6-million-barrel decline expected by analysts. US petrol and distillate inventories also increased.

Bipartisan group of US senators calls for disclosure of Saudi nuclear deal documents

A bipartisan group of US senators are pressing the Trump administration to disclose the full terms of its proposed civil nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia, including two binding documents negotiated alongside the deal.

In a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, the lawmakers argued that Congress and the public need access to the complete text to assess the commitments made by Washington and Riyadh, Reuters reported.

The initiative was led by Democratic Senators Jeff Merkley and Ed Markey and backed by 16 other senators, including Republicans Rand Paul and John Kennedy.

The proposed 30-year agreement was submitted to Congress in August and is undergoing a 90-day review. It would allow for the construction of AP1000 nuclear reactors in Saudi Arabia as part of a project worth tens of billions of dollars.

Critics say the proposal does not explicitly prevent Saudi Arabia from enriching uranium or reprocessing spent nuclear fuel – activities that could potentially produce material for nuclear weapons. The Trump administration maintains that the agreement includes non-proliferation safeguards required under US law.

Trump says US is nearing end of Iran war

President Donald Trump has told reporters that the US is “hopefully toward the end” of its war with Iran, reiterating his assertion that Iran is eager to make a deal.

When asked by a reporter whether he had recently heard from the Iranian side, Trump said he had spoken with them “directly”.