War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

Iran’s national security chief Mohsen Rezaei tells state TV the country is debating whether to maintain its longstanding ban on nuclear weapons if hostilities resume, although no decision on any changes has been taken, according to Reuters.

Secretary of the Iranian National Security Council Mohsen Rezaei says that he has read but not responded to a letter sent to Tehran by US Vice President JD Vance.

“Their tone has completely changed, and this is a very good sign that … the Iranian nation has consolidated victory and authority,” he tells state broadcaster Press TV in an interview.

Rezaei has refrained from speaking further about the letter since it has not been made public yet.

The Iranian Navy says a tanker operating in the “prohibited and unsafe area” in the eastern Strait of Hormuz has hit a sea mine and caught fire, the Fars News Agency reports.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says President Donald Trump has not made a decision about fresh strikes on Iran amid stalled peace talks, AFP reports.

“We can achieve military objectives if we seek to. He hasn’t made a decision. I have no announcement in that regard with you today, and nor do we take any of it lightly,” Rubio says at a G20 press conference in Atlanta, Georgia.

The internationally recognised Yemeni government’s forces say they have secured control over strategically important positions and terrain in the northeastern al-Jawf governorate, Al Jazeera reports.

The spokesperson for the government forces, Majed al-Nazili, added in a social media post that government and allied forces continued to repel Houthi attacks in Taiz, southwest of Yemen.

“Over the past few hours, the armed forces have executed 1,119 targeting operations against the Houthi terrorist militia,” al-Nazili said.

He added that the operations “neutralised” 427 Houthi fighters.

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary-General Jasem AlBudaiwi has said that Iran has attacked GCC member states despite those countries not taking part in the war against Iran, Al Jazeera reports.

“GCC countries were subjected to Iranian attacks targeting civilian and vital infrastructure, despite not participating in the war and their efforts toward mediation and restraint,” AlBudaiwi told the Manama Dialogue conference in Bahrain.

AlBudaiwi said that negotiations are “the steadfast option” to resolve regional crises.

“Disrupting navigation in the Straits of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb poses a threat to global economic interests. The international community must restore normal maritime traffic and hold those responsible for the attacks accountable,” he added.

Iranian strikes on more than two dozen US bases across the Middle East targeted early-warning systems before hitting aircraft and buildings, causing billions of dollars in equipment damage, according to an analysis by The Associated Press.

The AP has independently verified damage to US facilities using satellite imagery and speaking to four regional officials briefed on what was hit. The news outlet has found that more than 115 drone and missile strikes in August, claimed by Iran or pro-Iran militias, damaged or destroyed structures on 26 military bases and other sites with American equipment.

The AP has found that Iran initially targeted aircraft hangars and air defence systems that detect incoming strikes, clearing the way for further attacks on warehouses, aircraft troop housing, hangars and other facilities.

Two regional officials say the US has moved many of its assets out of the Persian Gulf, including aircraft, air defence systems, communications systems and other equipment crucial to base operations.

Major General Ali Abdollahi, Chief of the General Staff of Iran’s Armed Forces, says Tehran is monitoring the US’ movements and preparations using our full intelligence capabilities, and “continuously updating our target database”, according to a statement carried by the ISNA news agency.

“Should signs of a hostile act by the enemy be confirmed, the armed forces will not wait for the enemy to initiate their action before determining the timing and manner of our response. Our response will be immediate, effective, and without geographical limitations,“ he warns.

The Israeli military has carried out fresh airstrikes, an explosion and machine-gun fire across southern Lebanon, Anadolu reports citing the state-run National News Agency.

Israeli strikes and military operations have targeted several locations across southern Lebanon, including the districts of Nabatieh, Bint Jbeil and Marjayoun, according to the news agency.

The attacks come despite a US-brokered framework agreement signed by Lebanon and Israel in June and renewed diplomatic efforts to address security disputes between the two sides.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says talks with Qatari mediators have resulted in a shorter period required to implement Iran’s proposal to open the Strait of Hormuz.

“The Qatari side proposed shortening the implementation period of the Iranian proposal to five days. We have reached a proposal at this stage that reduces the implementation period to two days,” Araghchi tells Al Jazeera in an interview.

“Our conditions include lifting the sanctions imposed following the Islamabad memorandum and reducing US forces in the region. We demand the restoration of oil waivers and the release of all our frozen funds, including those held in Qatar,” he adds.

Tehran’s top diplomat says his country demands the recognition of shipping routes discussed by Iran and Oman in the Strait of Hormuz and the closure of other routes.

“Reopening the Strait of Hormuz in accordance with our conditions paves the way for the resumption of negotiations with Washington regarding outstanding issues,” he stresses.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Tehran has not ruled out the possibility of an attack against the country.

“We do not rule out any possibility regarding the outbreak of war, and we are prepared for all scenarios,” Araghchi tells Al Jazeera. “We have upgraded our weaponry, addressed our vulnerabilities, and tested new arms; our forces are at the highest level of readiness.”

Acknowledging the effects of the US-imposed economic pressure on Iran, Araghchi says Iran “will not surrender”.

“We will continue to stand firm and resist, and we will overcome this difficult phase through our own capabilities,” he adds.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi tells Al Jazeera that mediators have presented proposals relating to Iran’s nuclear programme which are currently under discussion.

“Mediators have presented proposals concerning the nuclear dossier, which we are currently reviewing as part of the second phase,” he says, adding that an Iranian delegation has headed to Qatar to continue talks.

“My aide is currently in Qatar to continue consultations. Qatari and Pakistani mediators are continuing consultations regarding our conditions,” Araghchi says.

In an interview with Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denies that there are any planned meetings with US officials.

“What is being circulated in this regard is merely media speculation,” he explains. “We see no need to meet with the Americans at present. Our conditions are clear, and mediators are continuing their consultations regarding them.”

Araghchi adds that a decision on whether to hold direct or indirect talks with the US depends on Washington meeting Tehran’s conditions.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi tells Al Jazeera that a US effort to open dialogue with Iran is “a positive step”.

Tehran’s top diplomat says his country has studied a letter sent by US Vice President JD Vance in high-level meetings.

“The American side’s attempt to open the door to dialogue and understanding more broadly is a positive step,” he says, though he warns, “If Washington’s goal in sending this letter is to stir up discord, it would be yet another mistake to add to its previous ones.”

A Lebanese military court has charged 13 people, allegedly linked to Hezbollah, with trafficking explosives, amid growing pressure on the group to disarm, Al Jazeera reports.

Saudi Arabia has said the region wants a return to peace, as concerns grow over a possible new escalation between the United States, Israel and Iran, Al Jazeera reports.

Speaking at a security forum in Bahrain on Saturday, Saudi Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Waleed ElKhereiji said efforts were under way to prevent a military escalation and reach an agreement that ends the crisis with Iran.

“If you look at the efforts that everybody is trying to do, the message is very clear. People in this part of the world want to bring peace back to the region,” he was quoted as saying.

ElKhereiji added, however, that no one could predict the outcome of those efforts.

An Iranian delegation, including a deputy to Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, is in Qatar for talks following a reported breakthrough in indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington, Anadolu reports citing a Qatari newspaper.

Citing an Iranian source, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reports that the delegation is in the Qatari capital, Doha, “to facilitate engagement with the Qatari mediator.”

The visit follows “intensive discussions held by a Qatari negotiating delegation in Tehran, which resulted in a breakthrough in indirect negotiations between Tehran and Washington,” the newspaper reports, citing the source.

The discussions have also paved the way for the Iranian negotiating team to accompany the Qatari delegation on its return trip to Doha, according to the report.

“Negotiations with the US side are taking place indirectly through the mediator, not directly,” the Iranian source tells the newspaper.

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Fighting between Yemen’s government forces and the Houthis in the Sa’ila Al-Maqatara area of Lahij Governorate has decreased, military sources tell Al Jazeera.

Meanwhile, government forces said that the Houthis are attempting to take control of the Al-Rabou market in the governorate.

Yemeni Foreign Minister Afrah Al-Zuba has described the Houthis’ siege of Taiz as a war crime, in which the population’s need for food, medicine and fuel is being used as a tool for political pressure and blackmail, Al Jazeera reports, citing Yemeni state media Saba News Agency.

Al-Zuba, who is Yemen’s first female foreign minister, demanded the immediate lifting of the siege and the permanent and safe opening of roads in and out of the city.

Speaking at the third plenary session of the Manama Dialogue 2026 in Bahrain, the minister said that ending the Houthis’ attempted “coup” and restoring Yemeni state institutions is a shared responsibility between the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

“The repercussions of the coup against the state have extended beyond Yemen’s borders, affecting the security of neighbouring countries, navigation, and international interests,” the minister was quoted as saying. “This necessitates translating solidarity into practical steps to address the source of threats and to establish sustainable stability.”

Iran says two fishermen it had reported missing have now been found, following what it called a US attack on a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, AFP reports.

“Two fishermen from Qeshm, who had gone missing following an attack by the American enemy on their fishing boat this morning, have been found,” state television says.

Earlier, state TV cited a provincial official as saying that two fishermen had gone missing and two others were wounded in what he called an attack by the United States on their vessel in the crucial Hormuz waterway.

AFP has contacted US Central Command (Centcom), which oversees American military operations in the region, for comment.

Two fishermen are missing and two others injured in an attack on two boats in the Strait of Hormuz, AFP reports citing an official who blames the United States for the incident.

“An attack by the American enemy occurred around 11:30am (1pm PKT) today on two fishing boats, each carrying two people, near Qeshm Island,” says Ahmad Nafisi, Deputy Provincial Governor of Hormozgan, according to state TV.

“Two of those were transported to Qeshm and the other two remain missing while search and rescue operations are currently underway to locate them,” he adds.

Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, in strategic directives to senior armed forces commanders, says that “every form of enemy threat must be met with immediate response, without geographical limitations,” Press TV reports.

“All material and non-material assets of the US-Israeli enemy must be within Iran’s reach,” the supreme leader said.

“If the enemies once again begin military or terrorist attacks, it is the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation that will determine the time and conditions of its end.

“Intelligent combat readiness for a powerful confrontation with enemies is a fundamental prerequisite for achieving maximum deterrence.”

Armed forces, nation would determine timing and terms of any future war, Mojtaba said.

Iran’s army has warned that any new US attack would only spread their war wider, following threats by America and Israel of further military action as they hold crucial elections, AFP reports.

The Iranian warning comes with fresh diplomatic efforts underway to avert a resumption of fighting, with Qatari mediators in Tehran and US Vice President JD Vance reportedly sending a letter to Iran’s security chief Mohsen Rezaei.

“If the US president once again embarks on more regional adventurism under pressure from, and in an attempt to appease, the Zionists, the flames of war will undoubtedly engulf a much wider geographical area,” Iranian army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia said without elaborating.