Iran-US war latest: Tehran drafting list of conditions to open Hormuz as Trump sends new warship to Middle East

Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araqchi said putting diplomacy ⁠back on track was not impossible but hinged ⁠on ​the ⁠US understanding that ⁠pressure does ​not work.

In ⁠a post ‌on X, Araqchi said he ‌had held ‌what he described as “creative discussions” with ⁠Qatar’s prime minister and foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, adding that ‌Washington should ​build trust, ‌speak ⁠respectfully, acknowledge Iran’s rights ⁠and uphold ‌its ​commitments.

Six months after the airstrikes that began the war and propelled a badly wounded Mojtaba Khamenei into the role of Iran’s supreme leader, he remains entirely unseen and unheard by Iranians.

Questions over his condition and role are growing increasingly fraught, with Iran facing critical decisions over a war that has set the Middle East aflame while trashing the country’s already fragile economy.

Iranian officials ⁠and other senior sources in the country say Khamenei remains in control, ruling from the shadows for security reasons as he recovers from disfiguring wounds while delegating broad daily authority to a coterie of top figures.

But with no photograph, video or audio message released since his appointment a week into the war, Iranians are ever more sceptical about his position in an Islamic Republic in which the leader’s voice is meant to be absolute.

“The question is no longer whether Mojtaba is alive, but whether Iran still has a functioning supreme leader,” said Alex Vatanka of the Middle East Institute in Washington.

It’s been six months since the US and Israel attacked Iran with the perennial goal of transforming the Middle East through military force. The region has changed, but not in the way they had hoped.

The Islamic Republic survived the assassination of its top leaders and weeks of heavy bombing, and found a potent form of leverage in the Strait of Hormuz.

Gulf Arab nations saw worrying gaps open up in the American security umbrella they have relied on for decades — and some are looking at alternatives.

Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary Mohsen Rezaei has warned that Tehran would retaliate against US economic interests if the US continued with the blockade of Iranian ports.

“If the blockade continues, we will target US economic interests 100 percent, with intensity and force,” Rezaei told Lebanon’s Al-Manar television.

He claimed that Iran had “broken the maritime blockade” during the ceasefire and exported almost 80 million barrels of oil.

Rezaei added that Iran was preparing a list of conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz after mediators asked Tehran to set them ​out.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has claimed that Donald Trump “continues to retain all options on the table” for the Iran war.

“We’ve had Operation Epic Fury to destroy their military. Now we have Operation Economic Outcast to destroy their economy,” she told Fox News.

“No negotiations are happening right now, and this will continue until the president feels that maybe they come to the table in a meaningful way,” she added.

The US military commanders have claimed that American forces have cleared sea mines from the Strait of Hormuz that had been laid ​months ago by ⁠Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“Bottom line: today, international shipping lanes are open and momentum is building,” said Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of the US military’s Central Command.

He claimed that US forces have in recent months helped 1,500 commercial vessels carrying nearly 750 million barrels of crude oil to transit the strait.

Oil prices fell this morning and are on track to snap a two-week winning streak, despite settling ​higher in the previous session following a report that president Donald Trump is not interested in returning to previous deal terms with Iran.

Brent crude futures were down 25 cents, or 0.3 per cent, to $89.45 a ​barrel. West Texas Intermediate crude futures ​fell 22 cents, also 0.3 per cent, to $83.31.

Both benchmarks were ⁠poised to end the week lower, with Brent down 5.3 per cent ​and WTI falling 4.3 per cent.

The U.S. military is reportedly experiencing a “beyond critical” shortage of advanced missile interceptors in Europe, largely driven by president Donald Trump’s war with Iran.

Citing a US defence official in Europe and a Nato official, The Associated Press reported that the most concerning shortfall involves Patriot missile interceptors, raising concerns about vulnerabilities in Nato countries to a potential Russian attack.

The Naato official confirmed the low inventories of Patriots missile interceptors, which can shoot down Russia’s high-speed ballistic missiles, among American and Nato forces in Europe. Both spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters.

Iran’s security chief Mohsen Rezaei said a report about a potential plot to assassinate US president Donald Trump’s youngest son is a lie.

In an `interview broadcast by Lebanon’s Al Manar TV on Thursday. The U.S. ‌Secret Service said on ⁠Tuesday that it was aware of a video broadcast by Iranian state television discussing ‌a potential plot ​to assassinate ‌U.S. ⁠President Donald ⁠Trump’s youngest son Barron ‌Trump

Dr Andreas Krieg, senior lecturer at the School of Security Studies at King’s College London, told The Independent: “On the US side, Washington has inflicted substantial damage on Iranian military infrastructure, missile capabilities, command networks and the wider architecture supporting Iran’s regional power. It has also demonstrated that it can penetrate Iranian airspace and impose costs almost at will.

“But for more than $38 billion and roughly 750 casualties, the political return is much less impressive. Iran has not surrendered its core positions, the Strait has not returned to predictable commercial normality, and Washington is increasingly reliant on sanctions, naval enforcement and economic pressure because further large-scale strikes offer diminishing political returns.

He added: “The greatest American loss is strategic freedom of manoeuvre. The conflict is consuming naval assets, air defence, ISR, logistics, interceptors and political attention at precisely the moment Washington wants to concentrate resources on Asia. The US has won most of the battles, but it it cannot win the war.”