War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

The US military has exhausted nearly 80 per cent of its interceptors for a key missile defence system as senior US military commanders are warning that the Pentagon’s munitions stockpile is “dangerously low,” according to multiple sources familiar with the matter, CNN reports.

Stockpiles of key air defence systems have been particularly depleted during the war with Iran. The US military has burned through nearly four-fifths of its THAAD missile inventory compared to pre-war numbers and roughly half of its Patriot interceptors since the start of the war, according to two sources familiar with the latest inventory report.

The disclosure of the low THAAD inventory has not been previously reported.

President Donald Trump said there was an “all-day negotiation” on Tuesday with Iran, characterising the talks positively while also threatening to hit Iran “really hard” if a deal was not reached, Reuters reports.

Trump made the comments in an interview with Fox News’ “@Night” show.

From the looks of it, America has no exit strategy to extricate itself from the disastrous war with Iran. US President Donald Trump has alternated between issuing bombastic threats to the Iranians, to claiming that peace was at hand, sometimes making a sharp U-turn within hours. This is not how responsible statecraft plays out.

In the past, he had threatened to destroy Iranian civilisation, while more recently he said the US was ready to use “Military Terror … not seen since World War II” against the Islamic Republic. In his latest pronouncement, the US leader has given Iran a “last chance” to choose between a “deal [or] total surrender”. The five-month-old war has shown that the Iranians have mostly remained unfazed by Mr Trump’s threats.

The chaos at the White House is understandable. Mr Trump jumped headfirst into the war on Feb 28 at Israel’s persuasion, without doing his homework. Perhaps if he had studied the mistakes his predecessors had made in Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, he would have refrained from launching a new war. But the US leader is not known for deep reflection, not even on critical issues.

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US President Donald Trump has said that the Strait of Hormuz will open “very soon” or Iran will be “hit very hard”. He made the remarks while speaking to Fox News.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said that “the southern route through the Strait of Hormuz remains free and open for all commercial vessels seeking to transit the international waterway”.

“Over the past three months, US forces have assisted more than 1,000 vessels in successfully transiting the strait despite unwarranted Iranian aggression, and these transits continue today,” it said.

Oil has steadied after steep falls in the previous two trading sessions, as investors waited to see if efforts to end the US-Iran war and restore traffic through the blockaded Strait of Hormuz were making progress, Reuters reports.

Brent crude futures rose 26 cents, or about 0.33 per cent, to $79.62 a barrel by 0110 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate futures rose 0.16pc, or 12 cents, to $75.90 a barrel.

Qatar said on Tuesday mediators were making progress in efforts to end the war, driving oil prices lower, although Tehran has denied US President Donald Trump’s assertion that talks are already under way. Brent closed on Tuesday below $80 a barrel for the first time since July 13.

Brent closed more than 5pc lower on Tuesday after the comments from Qatar, extending Monday’s steep losses on hopes that an arrangement could soon be reached.

US Central Command (Centcom) says American forces have redirected 45 commercial vessels, disabled two and boarded two others are part of a naval blockade of Iran.

Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani has held a phone conversation with US President Donald Trump on recent regional developments, including efforts to “deescalate” US-Iran tensions and “bridge the gap” in their positions, Al Jazeera reports citing a statement by the Emir’s office.

During the call, Trump commended Qatar’s role in “supporting diplomatic efforts and facilitating dialogue”, while Sheikh Tamim stressed the need to press forward with dialogue and for all parties to adhere to the US-Iran MoU agreed in mid-June, according to the statement.

The White House is expected to extend a waiver of the century-old Jones Act in the coming days, sources say, reaching for one of the few tools it has to try and hold down gasoline prices as President Donald Trump escalates his attacks on Exxon Mobil and Chevron for making “too much money”, Reuters reports.

The Jones Act requires cargo moving between US ports to be carried on ships built in the US, owned by US companies and crewed by American workers, and the waiver aims to lower gas prices by increasing shipping flexibility and reducing transport bottlenecks.

The oil industry expected an extension by the end of July. But administration officials have continued meeting with maritime industry representatives and lawmakers over potential changes to narrow the scope of the waiver while preserving flexibility to move critical fuel supplies, according to three people familiar with the discussions who requested anonymity because they are not authorised to speak publicly.

The current waiver is set to expire on August 16 and has already become the longest suspension of the Jones Act rules in the programme’s history.

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Oil prices have fallen to a three-week low after comments by Qatari and US officials raised hopes for a diplomatic resolution to the Iran war that could improve oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reports.

Brent crude futures have dropped $3.30, or 3.9 per cent, to $80.47 a barrel by 1519 GMT (8:19pm PKT), and US West Texas Intermediate futures have dropped $3.67, or 4.6pc, to $76.67 a barrel.

The latest round of US-facilitated talks between Israel and Lebanon has begun in Rome and will continue through Thursday, Reuters reports quoting State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott.

“The United States remains fully committed to supporting both governments as they carry this process forward in a manner that delivers lasting security for both countries, eliminates security threats to Israel, and restores Lebanese state authority throughout the south,” Pigott writes in a post on X.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei says Iran and Oman are continuing talks aimed at ensuring the safe flow of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, with discussions focused on designating safe inbound and outbound lanes, Al Jazeera reports.

In comments carried by Iran’s IRIB broadcaster, Baghaei says the talks have “been assessed positively at both the technical and political levels” as Iran works to develop the needed “mechanisms” to manage traffic in the strait.

Indian Shipping Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has said that an Indian vessel, the MSV Faize Noore Oliya, has been hit by a projectile near Yemeni waters, causing it to capsize and sink.

“India strongly condemns this unprovoked attack on the defenceless mechanised sailing vessel,” he writes on X. “The safety of our people is our supreme priority and I am relieved to inform that all 14 seafarers (including 13 Indians) have been safely rescued by the Yemeni Coast Guard and brought to the Port of Mokha.”

He adds that he has instructed the director general of Maritime Administration to take immediate steps in coordination with all agencies to “ensure the absolute security of Indian seafarers in the region and provide all necessary assistance to the rescued crew”.

Operations have been suspended at an airport in Saudi Arabia, a regional source with knowledge of the matter tells AFP, after Yemen’s Houthis claimed they had attacked the site.

The regional source adds that the airport’s main radar was hit, affecting operations.

The airport website the status of flights scheduled for the next few days as “unknown”.

Saudi Arabia has not, so far, issued any comment on the claimed attack.

The small airport is located near the Yemeni border and has a single terminal handling a few flights a day.

Iraq exported over 30 million barrels of crude oil in one month through the strategic Strait of Hormuz, AFP reports citing data from the maritime tracking firm Kpler.

Before the Middle East war, which choked shipments through the vital waterway, Iraq produced around four million barrels per day, and exported an average of 105 million barrels per month, mostly from its Basra oil terminal via the strategic waterway.

Around 30 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil passed through Hormuz between July 4 and August 4, according to vessels detected by Kpler.

Speaking to reporters at the State Department, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says that the “denuclearisation of Iran” is the “ultimate deal”, Al Jazeera reports.

“I think there is a conversation and a negotiation that we are involved in between Iran and Oman on how more ships can be able to go through there safely in the short term, as we move towards … longer-term talks about [Iran’s] denuclearisation,” says Washington’s top diplomat.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says there has been progress in discussions with Iran and Oman on getting more ships through the Strait of Hormuz, but no final agreement has been reached, Reuters reports.

“There’s been progress made in those talks, but not finality yet. We’re hoping that will happen very shortly,” Rubio tells reporters at the State Department.

Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem emphasises that Iran has prevailed against the United States and Israel and “thwarted their goals in the region”, according to state news agency IRNA.

In a speech, says that Washington and Tel Aviv “sought to overthrow the Islamic system in Iran, but they ultimately failed”.

“Iran stood firm with its army, the IRGC, its people, and its leadership. The country that was predicted to be defeated within four or five days managed to endure and proved itself as a vital, influential, and deeply rooted nation,” he adds.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam appears to have taken a swipe at Hezbollah, accusing the group of “recklessly” dragging the country into a war and “usurping” Lebanese sovereignty as a result, Al Jazeera reports.

Without naming the group or its leader, Naim Qassem, he alleges in a post on X that Hezbollah pulled the country into “futile ‘support’ war adventures, thereby giving [Israel] pretexts to aggress against our country, trample its sovereignty, destroy its cities and villages, kill its sons, and displace them by the hundreds of thousands”.

The world has lost more than 2.6 billion barrels of oil since the US-Israeli war with Iran began in February, the head of Saudi oil giant Aramco says, warning global inventories were running low despite measures to reroute flows, Reuters reports.

The lost supply is equivalent to nearly a month of normal global crude production, underscoring the scale of the disruption that has closed a major oil chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz, upending energy markets, and shows little sign of easing.

“If the Strait were to open today, it would take up to 18 months at an average rate of 2.1 million barrels a day to replenish depleted inventories,” Aramco Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser says.

“Despite the unprecedented supply disruption through the Strait of Hormuz, we continued to demonstrate our ability to maintain business continuity by capitalising on our diverse asset base and multi-decade planning,” Nasser adds.

Aramco, the world’s top oil exporter, posted a 44 per cent increase in net profit of $32.69bn in the three months to June 30 as it reaped higher prices for crude oil, refined products and chemicals, while rerouting shipments away from Hormuz.

Oil prices have tumbled after a top US official said Washington could soon reach a deal with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, easing concerns over crude supply disruptions that have sent prices soaring in recent months, AFP reports.

The main US oil contract, West Texas Intermediate, has dropped five per cent to $76.32 a barrel, while the international benchmark Brent North Sea crude is back below $80 a barrel.

Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari says mediators’ “focus right now is on avoiding escalation, reopening the strait and reopening the door for diplomacy between the parties”, Al Jazeera reports.

“What we do not want to see right now is a major escalation in our region,” he tells reporters during a news conference. “We are working very closely with our partners in the region and with the parties of the conflict to reach a diplomatic resolution.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says that the United States can reach a deal with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Wednesday, adding that this will stabilise energy prices, AFP reports.

“We are in talks with the Iranians, and I think there is a chance we may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the strait and move towards a more normalised position in this conflict,” Bessent says in an interview with CNBC.

Asked if a deal would allow Iran to charge a toll on shipping using the strait, Bessent said: “I think it would be freedom of movement.”