War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

Qatar’s PM Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani has confirmed he met Trump and VP JD Vance.

“We discussed the situation in the region and ways to progress the US-Iran talks. Grateful for the positive discussions on reaching a deal and bringing peace to the region,” he wrote on X.

US President Donald Trump has said he had an “excellent conversation” during his meeting with Qatar’s PM Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, wherein “much was discussed” with respect to Iran.

“Most importantly, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, and others, would prefer the status quo, in other words, a continuation of the Greatest Naval Blockade in History, and the new Operation Iron Gate — Therefore, Land and Sea,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

He said all countries agreed that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, adding that is non-negotiable.

“Should there be any change with respect to developments in the Middle East, the United States of America is ‘locked and loaded’ and ready to go.

“At this point, however, that seems to be quite unlikely,” he added.

Trump asserted that Israel and the entire Middle East was protected from “Iranian danger and threats”.

“We are seeing positive momentum toward an end to this Conflict, and will ensure that America’s interests are at all times protected,” he declared.

Schools in the Saudi capital Riyadh will return to online classes as Yemen’s Houthis step up attacks on the kingdom, according to a message to parents seen by AFP.

“As part of the ongoing precautionary measures, we would like to confirm that classes will be online beginning tomorrow, Tuesday,” the message reads, without specifying how long the measure is expected to last.

The Saudi-led coalition says it has destroyed several facilities used by the Houthis to produce components for missiles and drones.

According to a statement by spokesperson Major General Turki Al-Maliki, coalition forces have destroyed a factory which assembled and produced ballistic missile components, a chemical plant which produced solid fuel for missiles and drones and an electronics workshop which produced electronic guidance systems.

“We continue to weaken and dismantle the terrorist Houthi militia’s ballistic missile network,” he says in a separate statement.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei has categorically rejected transferring enriched uranium out of Iran, stressing that the option is “off the table” and that there is no justification for such a move, according to state-run IRNA.

Speaking to Al Mayadeen, Baqaei said Iran remains committed to a diplomatic solution without compromising its national interests and security.

Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf says that the US and its allies “are headed straight for a dark age” unless they abandon an “Israel first” mindset.

“Israelis are working overtime to drag the US into an endless war with Iran, a quagmire that no president, now or in the future, Republican or Democrat, could escape,” he writes on X.

Stocks of crude oil in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell to 279.5 million barrels last week, the lowest level since October 1982, Reuters reports citing data from the US Department of Energy.

The recent drawdowns have been part of a US agreement to release 172 million barrels from the facility.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot has accused Iran’s Revolutionary Guards of being responsible for a recent cyberattack on French supermarket fridges, saying there would be consequences for Tehran, Reuters reports.

An official in the Saudi energy ministry says that the East–West Pipeline in the Madina region has been targeted, causing a limited fire that was extinguished by emergency response teams, according to a statement carried by Saudi state media.

No injuries or fatalities have been reported and pipeline operations are unaffected.

The official adds that emergency response teams and specialised technical teams responded immediately following the attack and took the necessary measures to secure the site and ensure its safety.

French officials suspect that Iranian state-backed hackers were behind the cyberattacks that knocked out commercial refrigerators and freezers across France last month, Reuters reports, citing two people familiar with the matter.

This would make the hacks among the most disruptive cyberattacks of the Middle East war, which began in February, which include disruptions to the Los Angeles transit system in March, to US water treatment plants in July and to ships bound for the United States in August.

The French foreign ministry and the Paris prosecutor’s office have not immediately responded to requests for comment. Iran’s mission to the United Nations has not returned messages seeking comment.

Iran routinely denies carrying out malicious cyber operations.

A senior security official has told Iranian state media that the country has no plans to negotiate with the United States unless Washington takes practical steps to meet Tehran’s seven conditions, according to Reuters.

Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan and his Omani counterpart, Badr Albusaidi, have stressed the need to press ahead with diplomatic efforts to contain the regional crisis and safeguard maritime security and sea lanes during a phone call, Reuters reports citing Saudi state media.

A beach on the eastern coast of the UAE has been closed after oil was detected, AFP reports citing the Khor Fakkan municipality, with tankers repeatedly coming under attack in the nearby Strait of Hormuz.

“Al Luluia beach has been temporarily closed after oil patches were detected on the beach,” the municipality says.

Wim Zwijnenburg, an environmental open-source investigator from Dutch peace organisation PAX, tells AFP that satellite imagery from Sunday showed a spill off the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates “with clear patches of dark oil, indicating crude oil”.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi made an unannounced visit to Tehran on Friday for talks with Iran’s parliament speaker and head negotiator on efforts to end the war between Iran and the US, Anadolu reports citing Iranian media.

Iran’s Fars News Agency, citing an informed source, says al-Zaidi and his accompanying delegation met Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf during a visit lasting several hours, adding that the discussions focused exclusively on diplomatic efforts to end the war, with no other issues addressed.

Ghalibaf expressed appreciation for Baghdad’s efforts and outlined Iran’s two-day proposal, stressing that Washington must respect Tehran’s rights under the plan to advance negotiations, according to the report.

The visit had not been publicly announced beforehand, and there has been no immediate official confirmation from Tehran or Baghdad.

Pakistan has strongly condemned a Houthi attack on a Saudi Aramco administrative facility in Riyadh, noting that there have been no casualties, according to a statement from the Foreign Office (FO).

“The targeting of civilian facilities demonstrates a reckless disregard for human life and regional security,” the FO says, demanding the unconditional cessation of Houthi attacks Saudi Arabia.

It adds that Pakistan commends the “vigilance and swift response” of Saudi to the attack and reaffirms that Islamabad will “stand resolutely” with Riyadh and support all measures necessary to safeguard the kingdom’s security, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“The security of Saudi Arabia is of paramount importance to Pakistan. Our commitment to the safety and well-being of our Saudi brothers and sisters remains steadfast,” the FO says.

Oil prices have sharply fallen on hopes for diplomatic talks aimed at ending the US-Iran war, with the main international contract, Brent North Sea crude, shedding more than five per cent, AFP reports.

Brent has dropped as low as $93.32 a barrel, while the main US contract, West Texas Intermediate, has retreated 4.5pc to $86.75 a barrel.

US strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island last week caused no damage to residential or commercial areas or vital infrastructure, Anadolu reports citing an Iranian provincial official.

Ahmad Nafisi, the deputy governor of the southern Hormozgan province for political, security and social affairs, says the targeted sites were located away from residential and commercial areas, according to the semi-official Fars News Agency.

“The targeted sites were outside residential and commercial areas and public service infrastructure, and no damage was caused to the island’s vital infrastructure or essential services,” Nafisi says, adding that the situation on Qeshm Island is under control, with emergency services, public utilities and administrative agencies remaining on high alert.

Nafisi has not identified the targeted sites or provided details on possible casualties.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei has said that “South Korea’s best help is to keep themselves out of this matter,” in response to a question about whether Seoul will carry out a military deployment in the Strait of Hormuz, state broadcaster IRIB reports.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy has announced that it is halting “oil smuggling through an illegal passage” in the Strait of Hormuz, according to state broadcaster Press TV.

Citing a report by the Fars News Agency — which cites an IRGC source — Press TV says the IRGC has achieved this by destroying “enemy navigation aid systems on the key waterway’s southern rocks”.

“No unauthorised vessels managed to enter the illegal passage overnight following the destruction of the navigation systems,” Press TV says.

Syria’s foreign minister has said that his country has no troops deployed in Yemen and was not planning on sending any, after Yemeni sources told AFP that Syrian soldiers were in Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

“There is no deployment of troops to Yemen nor is there a plan for such deployment in the near future,” Asaad al-Shaibani said during a press conference.

Oil prices have fallen sharply after US President Donald Trump downplayed the likelihood of renewed strikes on Iran, though attacks on ships near the Strait of Hormuz keep supply concerns in focus, Reuters.

Brent crude has slid by $3.49, or 3.6 per cent, to $94.83 a barrel by 1219 GMT (5:19pm PKT), while US West Texas Intermediate has lost $2.66, or 2.9pc, to $88.17.

Iranian state broadcaster IRIB reports that four tankers have been “halted and brought to a standstill” in the Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours.

European top diplomats are set to press US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to steer clear of any new escalation with Iran, at talks of the G7 group in Paris.

The meeting of ministers from the leading industrialised nations of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States will provide Europe and its allies with a chance to air preoccupations with their US counterpart.

Europeans are eager to see a resolution and shipping traffic return to normal in the Strait of Hormuz energy transit hub.

“We certainly cannot afford any military escalation at this point,” says German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, adding the G7 talks would “focus on identifying ways to ensure it is indeed avoided”.

Turkey does not want to see a new wave of attacks against Iran, President Tayyip Erdogan says, adding that he conveyed his concerns to US President Donald Trump in a recent phone call, Reuters reports.

“We emphasise at every opportunity that it is possible to resolve these issues through dialogue and diplomacy.

“Unfortunately, we see a negative shift once again. We are doing our utmost to prevent this,” Erdogan told reporters on a return flight from Azerbaijan, according to a transcript shared by his office on Monday.