President Donald Trump said on Monday the United States would either ​reach a deal with Iran or “finish the ‌job,” renewing his threat of military action as Tehran projects defiance following the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Indirect ​US-Iran talks ended last week without any ​public sign of headway toward a lasting peace, ⁠despite a 60-day ceasefire intended to create space ​for diplomacy following the US and Israeli strikes that ​triggered the conflict.

“We’re either going to make a deal, or we’re going to finish the job. OK. And it won’t ​be tough to finish the job. I’d rather ​make a deal, because I don’t want to affect 91 million ‌people,” ⁠Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

“We can knock down their bridges in one hour, we can knock out their energy supply…. They don’t have any ​money now. ​We haven’t ⁠given them any money.”

Trump spoke after Khamenei’s weekend funeral, where, rather than looking weakened ​by the war that began with US and ​Israeli strikes on February 28, Iranians appeared to be defiant, united and determined to shape what comes next.

The 60-day ceasefire ⁠was ​intended by Washington to revive diplomacy ​on stopping Iran from developing a nuclear arsenal.

Vast crowds of Iranians loyal to the Islamic Republic massed in Tehran on Saturday to begin almost a week of funeral ceremonies for slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei, which authorities want to send a message of defiance to the West after the war with the United States and Israel.

Clad in black and waving blood-red flags seen as a call for vengeance and justice, mourners thronged the Grand Mosalla religious complex in the Iranian capital, AFP correspondents said.

Khamenei, who had ruled Iran since 1989 and pursued a course of confrontation with the West while crushing dissent at home, was killed aged 86 along with several members of his family and top officials in an Israeli strike on the first day of the war on February 28.

There was still no sign of Khamenei’s son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, who has been unseen in public since being named. Other top Iranian officials who survived the war welcomed foreign dignitaries who paid their respects at the coffin on Friday before the complex opened to the public.

Sprayed with mists of water to keep cool in temperatures that may nudge 40C in Tehran over the next days, thousands of women and men — strictly segregated by gender — filled the vast complex.

They beat their chests in a sign of grief, overlooked by a giant portrait of the former leader.

The coffins of Khamenei, with his black turban on top, and four other family members were placed at the front on a raised dais, AFP photographs showed.

Chants of “death to America” and “revenge, revenge” echoed at the venue.

“The leader was a father to us all. With his passing, we have all been left orphaned… There was no one like him. He was truly unique and peerless,” said Mohammad Mirsalehi, 38, a cleric.

Hamidreza Shabani, a student, 18, added: “We must rise up and, God willing, avenge the blood of our leader”.

Authorities believe the ceremonies will mobilise more than 10 million people in the capital alone.

But before they began, Tehran was quieter than usual, with many normally busy streets free of the capital’s notorious traffic and some residents telling AFP in Paris that they had decided to leave the city for the duration of the ceremonies.

Marathon funerals

After five weeks of war, the conflict is on hold after a ceasefire and an initial accord with the US. But both the US and Iran have warned they are ready to resume fighting at any time.

The killing of Khamenei after over three-and-a-half decades in power created a new era in the Islamic Republic, shadowed by uncertainty.

His funeral is being viewed outside Iran as a test of support for the government, with authorities already shaken by mass protests in January that rights groups say were put down in a crackdown that left thousands dead.

The funeral ceremonies will see the coffin remain three days in Tehran, before moving on Tuesday to the clerical city of Qom, then on Wednesday to neighbouring Iraq, before burial on Thursday in Khamenei’s northeastern home city of Mashhad.

He will be buried with his infant granddaughter, son-in-law, daughter and Mojtaba Khamenei’s wife, Zahra Haddad Adel, who were all killed in the February 28 strikes.

The tiny coffin of his granddaughter Zahra Mohammadi Golpaygani, who, according to state media, was just 14 months old, was prominently displayed.

‘Call for vengeance’

Surviving officials showed their grief and displayed a united front on Friday.

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker and top negotiator in peace talks with the US, appeared tearful while Ahmad Vahidi, named chief of the powerful Revolutionary Guards after his predecessor was killed in the strikes, made his first public appearance in that post.

“The nation’s call for vengeance must ring in the ears of the whole world,” said Ghalibaf, who urged Iranians to turn out en masse.

The coming days will be closely watched for signs of Mojtaba Khamenei, who has communicated only by written statements and is said to have been wounded in the same strikes, though the extent of his injuries was never made clear.

Significant security measures have been imposed, with roads blocked and people forced sometimes to walk several kilometres to attend the largest-scale public event in Iran since the burial of Khamenei’s predecessor Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989.

Authorities will also want the event to go smoothly, deeply aware of the risk of crowd crushes that have marred similar events in the past, with TV broadcasting guidelines on how to stay safe.

Representatives from Tehran-backed Hezbollah and Hamas attended the funeral ceremonies of late Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei on Saturday and met with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, state media reported.

Tehran has for years provided support to Palestinian group Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthis — all designated terrorist groups by the United States and other western nations, making itself the target of international sanctions.

The Hezbollah delegation included officials and families of killed and wounded members, the group told Lebanese media. It was headed by senior official and former minister Mohammed Fneish.

Hamas, meanwhile, said in a statement that its delegation was led by the head of its political bureau, Mohammed Darwish and included other bureau members such as Bassem Naim.

In July 2024, Ismail Haniyeh, the political leader of Hamas, was killed in his accommodation in Tehran by an Israeli operation after he attended the inauguration ceremony for Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian.

Most foreign officials and dignitaries paid their respects on Friday to Khamenei, who ruled Iran from 1989 and was killed aged 86 along with several members of his family and top officials in a US-Israeli strike on February 28, triggering the war in the Middle East.

On Saturday, crowds of people gathered at the Grand Mosalla religious complex in the Iranian capital to bid farewell to the late supreme leader, who had the final say in major state policies during his tenure.

The ceremonies at Tehran Grand Mosalla will continue on Sunday, which was declared a national holiday by the government. The weekend in Iran runs from Thursday to Friday.

The foreign ministry in a statement on Saturday urged the public to attend the ceremonies en masse, to “show the world the greatness of Iran and the glory of national unity and authority.

Thousands of mourners gathered in Tehran on Saturday as Iran began public farewell ceremonies for late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, with funeral rites expected to continue for several days in Iran, Iraq and elsewhere before his burial in Mashhad.

Large crowds began entering Tehran’s Imam Khomeini Mosalla early Saturday after authorities opened several gates ahead of schedule to accommodate mourners who had gathered around the complex overnight.

State media reported that thousands of people, including women, had arrived from across Iran to pay their respects to Khamenei, who was killed in a US-Israeli strike on February 28.

The official ceremony began with the recitation of verses from the Holy Quran, followed by religious elegies and the playing of Iran’s national anthem.

Mourners carrying Iranian flags and portraits of Khamenei chanted slogans expressing support for the late leader and the Islamic Republic’s leadership.

State television showed large crowds filling the sprawling prayer complex and surrounding streets, with many participants dressed in black mourning attire.

Some mourners carried red flags bearing religious slogans associated with calls for justice and revenge.

Banners bearing verses from the Holy Quran and tributes to Khamenei were displayed throughout the venue, while groups from different Iranian provinces and several foreign countries participated in the ceremony.

Authorities implemented extensive security and logistical arrangements for the event, including cooling systems, emergency medical services and expanded public transport access.

Three Tehran metro stations were temporarily opened to facilitate the movement of mourners.

Iranian officials said the funeral ceremonies were being covered by thousands of domestic and international journalists.

According to the official funeral schedule, public mourning ceremonies will continue in Tehran through Sunday, culminating in funeral prayers before a procession through the capital on Monday.

The funeral rites will then move to Qom city on Tuesday, followed by ceremonies in the Iraqi cities of Najaf and Karbala on Wednesday.

Khamenei’s final funeral and burial ceremony is scheduled to take place on Thursday at the Imam Reza shrine in the northeastern city of Mashhad.

On Friday, Iranian officials hosted foreign delegations and dignitaries from across the region and beyond who travelled to Tehran to pay tribute to the late leader.

US President Donald Trump has said that Iran was eager to reach an agreement with Washington, adding that the US had temporarily paused negotiations to allow funeral ceremonies for Iran’s former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to take place.

Speaking at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota during celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of American independence on Friday, Trump said Tehran was seeking a settlement following recent hostilities between the two countries.

“We knocked the hell out of Iran; they’re dying to settle. They want to settle so badly. We gave them a week off for a funeral because we’re nice,” Trump said, referring to the funeral processions for Khamenei, which officially began in Iran on Friday.

During his address, Trump praised the United States’ military and historical achievements.

“We created the strongest and most powerful military. We won two world wars,” he said, adding that America’s adversaries during the Cold War had been consigned to “the depths of history.”

Trump also referenced recent international conflicts, claiming that the United States had “beat Venezuela in one day” before turning to the situation with Iran.

Marking the country’s semiquincentennial celebrations, Trump described the United States as “the oldest republic on Earth” and “the freest people on Earth,” while praising the country’s constitution and global humanitarian contributions.

“At 250 years, America is the oldest republic on Earth. We are the freest people on Earth. We have the most righteous and enduring constitution on Earth,” he said.

The president also warned of what he described as a growing ideological threat within the United States, accusing progressive political movements of promoting ideas contrary to American values.

“There is now a resurgence of the communist menace in our land, including from newcomers to our country who embrace ideas totally opposed to our way of life and our great success,” Trump said.

Describing communism as “a mortal threat to American liberty,” Trump called it “the greatest threat to our country,” comparing it to major historical conflicts and attacks.

Turning to domestic politics ahead of November’s midterm elections, Trump urged Republicans to remain united.

“We can only lose the midterms if we allow ourselves to lose the midterms,” he said, adding that eliminating the Senate filibuster and passing what he called the “Save America Act” would ensure Republicans “will not lose an election for 100 years.”

Top Iranian officials on Friday paid their final respects to the country’s slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei, at the start of a week of funeral ceremonies, with allies and mourners converging on Tehran, where his body is lying in state.

Authorities expect public mourning and grand processions to attract millions before Khamenei’s burial next week, four months after he was killed aged 86 at his compound in the opening US-Israeli salvo of the Middle East war.

AFP images showed mourners carrying his coffin aloft at the vast Grand Mosalla religious complex in the Iranian capital, with the casket draped in the colours of the Islamic republic that he led for more than three decades.

State TV broadcast footage of Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian paying his respects at Khamenei’s coffin on Friday afternoon, alongside parliament speaker and chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.

Ahmad Vahidi, head of the Revolutionary Guards, the ideological arm of the military, also made his first appearance since the start of the war in February.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, whose country has been mediating between Iran and the US to end the Middle East war, Russian ex-president Dmitry Medvedev and the foreign minister of Afghanistan’s Taliban government also paid their respects.

Delegations from Hamas and Hezbollah joined the mourning, a day before a public ceremony was set to begin.

Representatives from around 30 countries are expected to attend the funeral, with other allies, including China and Iran’s neighbours in the Caucasus region, saying they would be sending representatives.

The city was preparing to take in huge numbers of visitors for the grand display of patriotism and devotion.

Ezzat Shoai, a 61-year-old teacher, told AFP that her neighbourhood had “prepared our houses to welcome those who come from outside the capital”.

“God willing… we will go together to say goodbye to our dear leader.”

‘Call for vengeance’

Ghalibaf had called on Thursday for “all the Iranian people… to write a glorious page in the history of Islamic Iran through your presence”.

“The nation’s call for vengeance must ring in the ears of the whole world,” Ghalibaf said in a statement.

Security has been on high alert, and portraits and quotes of Khamenei have been draped on the walls of the Grand Mosalla ahead of the funeral ceremonies.

Elsewhere in Tehran, a large park was transformed into a camp, with hundreds of Red Crescent tents set up on the grounds.

Workers could also be seen removing barriers from Azadi Avenue, a major thoroughfare through which the funeral procession will pass on Monday.

Tankers were stationed to spray water on the roads to cool down the participants, and a model boat — a Shia symbol — draped in red flags had been erected.

Khamenei will lie in state for three days, and the bodies of his slain relatives will also be present.

They will include his three-year-old granddaughter, whose coffin was also emblazoned with Iran’s tricolour flag.

‘Really difficult’

Tehran — as well as the holy cities of Qom and Mashhad, which will host later stages of the funeral and burial ceremonies — will observe public holidays while the events are underway.

Authorities have ordered public and private offices in Tehran to close from Saturday through Monday, while traffic restrictions will make much of the city centre inaccessible to private vehicles.

The airspace over Tehran will be partially closed from Friday and fully closed on Monday.

Following the ceremonies in Tehran, Khamenei’s body will be taken to the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala before his burial on July 9 at the shrine of Imam Reza in the northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad, his birthplace.

It remains unknown if Khamenei’s son and successor, Mojtaba, who has not been seen in public since becoming supreme leader, will be present at the main ceremony in Tehran.

Ahead of the ceremonies, AFP correspondents reported that Tehran was quieter than usual, with many normally busy streets free of Tehran’s notorious traffic.

Some residents who spoke to AFP journalists based in Paris said they were leaving the city.

“The roads leading out of Tehran are packed,” said tech worker Saeid, 29.

“Many Tehran residents have already headed north, and I’m leaving too because staying in the city has become really difficult.”

At the entrance to the vast religious complex where Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s body is set to lie in state from Saturday, dozens were hard at work under an intense heatwave to prepare for the slain supreme leader’s grand funeral.

Security was on high alert ahead of the start of the funerary activities for Iran’s ruler of three decades, with dozens of personnel stationed at the main entrance to the Grand Mosalla, methodically stopping each car in the vicinity.

Passengers must present a special permit to enter the premises, which have yet to be opened to the public.

AFP obtained special access on Thursday, as a handful of curious bystanders watched the preparations from just outside the complex.

Within, the walls were draped in massive portraits of the late Khamenei, alongside black flags of mourning and red ones symbolising martyrdom and vengeance.

In one image, Khamenei — then the president — appears alongside young fighters in the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s.

Hossein Moghadassi, one of those who has been working on the site for days, said, “We are planting flowers and watering the shrubs for the farewell ceremony of our martyred guide”.

He was clad in a hat and a scarf to cover his face as temperatures soared, with trucks transporting hundreds of boxes of drinking water in anticipation of the mercury surpassing 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit) on Saturday, the first of six days of national mourning.

“People will come from all over Iran. There will be huge crowds,” Moghadassi said.

‘Vengeance’

Authorities expect between 15 and 20 million people to participate in the funeral in Tehran alone.

The gates to the Grand Mosalla are set to open at 6:00 a.m. (0230 GMT) on Saturday.

Within the premises, dozens of ambulances and rescue vehicles have been parked in preparation for the funeral of the supreme leader, who was killed in US-Israeli strikes on February 28.

Black banners bear several of Khamenei’s most famous quotes, while an image of the late leader with a raised fist — a symbol of resistance against the West — was ubiquitous across the site.

Other banners read: “We are mourning, but we remain on our feet.”

The Mosalla’s main building, a mosque, will host the supreme leader’s remains over three days for “pilgrims”, according to the organisers.

On Monday, a procession will travel through the streets of the capital before arriving on Tuesday in the holy city of Qom.

Khamenei will be buried on July 9 in Mashhad in northeastern Iran, another holy city and the late ruler’s birthplace.

Iran’s top negotiator in talks with the US, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, on Thursday called for a massive turnout as a way to avenge Khamenei’s death.

“I invite all the Iranian people… to write a glorious page in the history of Islamic Iran through your presence,” said Ghalibaf, who is also Iran’s parliament speaker.

“The nation’s call for vengeance must ring in the ears of the whole world.”

Iran on Thursday warned that any US interference in the Strait of Hormuz would trigger a “swift and decisive” response, accusing Washington of undermining security in one of the world’s most critical shipping lanes.

In a statement carried by Iranian state media, the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, which coordinates the country’s armed forces operations, said the continued presence of US manned and unmanned military aircraft over the Strait of Hormuz posed a threat to regional stability.

“The Strait of Hormuz is not a playground for the aggressor United States,” the headquarters said, describing the waterway as a sovereign area under Iran’s control and a “red line” for the country’s armed forces.

The statement said all oil tankers and commercial vessels transiting the strait must follow routes designated by Iranian authorities and comply with Tehran’s navigation protocols.

It warned that any vessel deviating from the prescribed routes or failing to follow the regulations would face an “immediate and authoritative” response from Iran’s armed forces, adding that such actions could endanger the security of the vessels involved.

The military command also warned that any attempt by the United States to interfere in security matters in the Strait of Hormuz would be regarded as a violation of Iran’s national sovereignty and would be met with a “swift and decisive” reaction.

Iran further claimed that the continued deployment of US manned and unmanned fighter aircraft over the strategic waterway had created insecurity and threatened regional stability.

The latest warning comes amid heightened tensions between Tehran and Washington, with the Strait of Hormuz remaining a key global energy chokepoint through which a significant share of the world’s oil exports passes.

Iran and the United States concluded ​a round of indirect talks on Wednesday with no sign they had made headway toward a lasting peace, focusing instead on ‌issues that they said had been resolved when an interim agreement was announced two weeks ago.

Sources familiar with the discussions said negotiators for the two countries spent two days in Doha discussing maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and unfreezing Iran’s funds, two critical issues under the initial agreement.

The next meeting will take place after funeral processions for ​Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is due to be buried on July 9, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said.

The Doha discussions ​produced “positive progress” on issues related to the memorandum that halted the war in June and were “building on the outcomes” of ⁠a summit in Switzerland, the ministry spokesperson said in a post on X.

In Washington, US President Donald Trump said the two sides were making progress ​on possible limits to Iran’s nuclear programme — the main reason he launched the war along with Israel in February.

“The denuclearisation of Iran is moving along well,” ​he told reporters.

“They’ve had very good meetings, and we’ll see.”

But the sources said the nuclear programme did not come up in the talks, which were technical in nature.

US Vice President JD Vance said that matter would be addressed later.

“Obviously, we’re worried about the nuclear issue; we’re going to start talking about that,“ he told reporters.

American and Iranian negotiators held ​separate meetings with Qatari and Pakistani mediators, Qatar’s foreign ministry said.

Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and top US envoy Steve Witkoff, dispatched to the region for ​what the White House had billed as “high-level” talks, did not attend the sessions, according to a source who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The leader of Iran’s delegation, Deputy ‌Foreign Minister ⁠Kazem Gharibabadi, said the talks concluded.

Neither side said whether they had managed to bridge any of their differences.

Who controls the Strait?

The initial deal calls for Iran and the United States to allow shipping to resume through the Strait of Hormuz, which handled one-fifth of global oil and liquid natural gas trade before the war.

Though traffic has partially resumed, the status of the strategic waterway remains unclear, and the two countries exchanged strikes last weekend following an ​Iranian attack on a cargo ship.

​Iran is determined to win international ⁠recognition of its control over the strait even if it has to do so by force, two senior Iranian sources said, and has repeatedly said it will assess tolls on shipping starting in mid-August, after a toll-free period specified ​by the initial agreement expires.

Trump’s comments on Wednesday played down the possibility of a return to all-out war ​with Iran.

“I think they’ve ⁠come a long way,” he said.

Oil prices fell to their lowest level in four months following Trump’s remarks, and analysts cut their price forecasts for the first time since the war began.

Iran’s state media said on Wednesday that a foreign container ship had run aground in shallow waters outside the shipping route designated by ⁠Iranian authorities.

“Hormuz ​continues to reopen, but it’s patchy, unpredictable, and not fully transparent,” said Vandana Hari, founder ​of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.

Several European countries have offered to help clear mines from the Strait, but Germany’s defence minister Boris Pistorius said he did not expect his country to ​participate, citing Iran’s unwillingness to cooperate with other countries.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Wednesday that Tehran would use some of its frozen assets in Qatar to purchase goods needed by the country following talks in Doha.

Under the memorandum of understanding that halted the war between Iran and the United States, Washington agreed to make available Iran’s frozen or restricted assets as part of the agreement’s implementation.

It remains unclear how the mechanism for releasing and using the funds would work, or when it would take effect.

“During the meetings with Qatari officials, including the Central Bank, a number of issues related to the expenditure of part of the initial six billion dollars were reviewed,” Gharibabadi said, according to the IRNA state news agency.

“It was agreed that, based on the needs communicated by our country, the required goods would be purchased and made available to Iran.”

The amount Gharibabadi mentioned refers to a portion of Iranian oil revenues that have been transferred from South Korea to restricted accounts in Qatar since 2023.

Last month, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said Tehran alone would decide how to use the released assets, “in whatever way is most beneficial and favourable to the country”.

He also said the funds would “be available for Iran to freely use as it sees fit to supply the goods that the country needs”.

US Vice President JD Vance had said in June that the assets had not yet been unfrozen under the agreement, but if they were, the US and Qatar “have approval over that process”.

He also suggested the money would be used to purchase US goods, including agricultural products such as soybeans.

Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf rejected that characterisation on Tuesday, saying $12 billion of the country’s $24 billion in frozen assets “are to be given” to Iran’s Central Bank “so that it can purchase any goods it needs, at any price and in any currency worldwide”.

Israel’s defence minister said on Wednesday that Israeli forces would remain in so-called security zones established in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza “until further notice”.

“The IDF will remain in the security zones in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza until further notice, in order to protect Israel’s residents and communities from jihadist terrorists,” Israel Katz said, according to the defence ministry.

“We will not withdraw from the security zones,” Katz said at a function held in honour of Israeli soldiers killed during the 2006 war in Lebanon.

Katz also reiterated an earlier warning to Iran, saying the Islamic Republic would be struck with “full force” if it attacked Israel over its operations in Lebanon.

Israel and Lebanon signed a US-sponsored framework agreement on Friday to pave the way for peace between the two countries and disarm Hezbollah.

Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, have repeatedly ruled out withdrawing troops from southern Lebanon, where Israeli forces continue to clash with Hezbollah fighters.

They maintain that any troop withdrawal would happen only after Hezbollah has been disarmed across Lebanon.

Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war in early March with rocket fire aimed at Israel to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader in US-Israeli strikes.

Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground invasion of southern Lebanon.

According to Lebanon’s health ministry, nearly 4,300 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since the war erupted.

The Israeli military says it has lost 38 soldiers and one civilian contractor in Lebanon since fighting began in early March.

Israel has also carried out repeated incursions and bombings in Syria since the overthrow of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, saying it seeks to establish a demilitarised zone in the country’s south.

In Gaza, Israeli forces occupy nearly 70 per cent of the territory.

Both Hamas and the Israeli military accuse each other of violating the ceasefire there, which has been in effect since October last year.

The US and ​Iran held indirect technical talks in Doha on Wednesday as they seek to agree on the flow of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz ‌and secure a lasting ceasefire, a source with direct knowledge of the talks and an Iranian official said.

The talks are based on a 14-point interim accord signed last month that was meant to halt the war that began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran in February and reopen the strait, while setting up 60 days of negotiations for a permanent peace deal.

However, the US and Iran have sparred publicly over the ​m of the interim pact, leading to tit-for-tat military strikes over the past week and leaving little sign of progress on more complex issues, including Iran’s ​nuclear programme.

Iran is determined to win international recognition of its control over the strait and its ability to levy fees on ships entering ⁠or leaving the Gulf, even if it has to do so by force, according to two senior Iranian sources.

Traffic has partially resumed through the waterway, which handled one-fifth of ​the global oil and liquefied natural gas trade before the war.

US President Donald Trump, who has said removing Iran’s highly enriched uranium is a top priority, told reporters on Wednesday that “the denuclearisation of ​Iran is moving along well”, without giving details.

“They’ve had very good meetings, and we’ll see,” he said of the talks in Doha, where there was no evidence the nuclear issue had yet been discussed.

FOCUS ON HORMUZ, FROZEN ASSETS

The indirect talks, mediated by Qatar and Pakistan, began on Tuesday night and were continuing on Wednesday, the Iranian official said.

They are structured as sessions between chief negotiators and specialists, ​the source with knowledge of the talks said, adding that Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and envoy Steve Witkoff met Qatar’s prime minister to lay groundwork for the talks but would ​not be attending.

Kushner and Witkoff later met Qatar’s emir to discuss US-Iran negotiations and developments in Lebanon, where a parallel conflict between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah erupted in early March.

Iran’s Deputy ‌Foreign Minister ⁠Kazem Gharibabadi headed a delegation of representatives from Iran’s foreign ministry, central bank and agriculture ministry, meeting Qatar’s prime minister and holding talks with mediators.

Iran has stated publicly that its priorities include agreeing on management of the strait and the release of $6 billion in Iranian frozen assets, and the Iranian official said the current round of discussions would focus on those two issues.

The stated priority of the US is to ensure the free flow of traffic through the strait, the source with knowledge of the talks said.

Iran’s state media said on ​Wednesday a foreign container ship had run aground ​in the Strait of Hormuz after entering ⁠shallow waters outside the shipping route designated by Iranian authorities.

“Hormuz continues to reopen, but it’s patchy, unpredictable, and not fully transparent,” said Vandana Hari, founder of oil market analysis provider Vanda Insights.

President Donald Trump ‌said on Wednesday the United States ​was getting ​along very well with ⁠Iran and ​that recent meetings in ​Qatar went well.

“The denuclearisation of Iran is ​moving along ​well,” Trump told reporters. “They’ve had ‌very ⁠good meetings, and we’ll see.”

“We’re getting along very ​well,” ​Trump ⁠said, adding that Iran has “come ​a long ​way.”

“I ⁠think they’re fine,” the president ⁠added.

Iran will deliver an immediate and ​powerful response to any threat ‌against its people or leadership, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said ​in an X post ​on Wednesday.

“POTUS has committed the ⁠US to muzzling its pets ​in Tel Aviv. If they ​ignore their master, Iran will school them,” Araghchi said.

US and Iran held technical talks in Doha ​on Wednesday as they seek to agree ‌on the flow of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and secure a lasting ceasefire, ​a source ​with ⁠direct knowledge of the talks and an Iranian ​official said.

Araghchi’s X post ​was ⁠attached to comments made by Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ⁠stating ​that Iran’s supreme ​leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was “marked for death.”

Iranian Parliament Speaker Bagher Ghalibaf has said that transit through the Strait of Hormuz would remain free of charge for 60 days under a memorandum of understanding reached with the US.

Speaking in a televised interview on Tuesday night, Ghalibaf said the temporary waiver on transit charges was agreed at the request of Persian Gulf littoral states after shipping disruptions caused by the recent conflict and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

“The services provided by Iran in the Strait of Hormuz will be offered free of charge for 60 days only,” he said, adding that Iran had also committed to clearing mines from the waterway within 30 days.

Ghalibaf, who heads Iran’s negotiating team in talks with Washington, stated that the 14-point memorandum of understanding signed between Iran and the United States had moved beyond the negotiation phase and entered implementation.

He said the agreement established a 60-day framework for implementing key provisions, which could be extended by mutual consent while talks continue toward a final settlement and the removal of sanctions on Iran.

According to Ghalibaf, Article 5 of the memorandum stipulates that Iran and Oman will jointly determine the future administration and maritime services of the Strait of Hormuz in accordance with international law and the sovereign rights of the littoral states.

“There is no circumstance under which we would compromise on this matter,” he said.

“These are our territorial waters, and Iran’s authority and sovereignty over the Strait of Hormuz are definitive and unquestionable.”

Ceasefire violations

The senior Iranian official said recent incidents in the Persian Gulf constituted violations of the ceasefire agreement and warned that Tehran would respond to any breaches.

“The events that have taken place in the Persian Gulf in recent days are violations of the ceasefire agreement, and we will respond accordingly,” he said, adding that Iran remained committed to both diplomacy and military preparedness.

Ghalibaf said a political communication channel, rather than a military one, had been established between Iran and the United States to address issues related to the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran’s Foreign Ministry representing Tehran.

Clashes in Lebanon

He also claimed that the United States had committed under the memorandum to ending hostilities in Lebanon, ensuring Israeli military operations cease, facilitating the return of displaced people and restoring Lebanese sovereignty over its territory.

“The Zionist regime strongly opposed this memorandum because it is a document of American and Israeli defeat,” Ghalibaf said, adding that Iran, the United States and Lebanon had agreed to establish a joint committee to monitor implementation of the agreement.

On sanctions relief, Ghalibaf said recent US measures had effectively lifted restrictions on Iranian oil exports, banking transactions, insurance and shipping, allowing Tehran to sell crude and petrochemical products under normal market conditions.

Iranian oil sale

“For the first time, the licence appeared on the OFAC website last week,” he said.

“Iranian oil is now being sold at international benchmark prices rather than at discounts.”

He said Iran had exported more than 40 million barrels of oil since the maritime blockade was lifted in mid-June, compared with no exports during the preceding 50 to 60 days.

Ghalibaf also said that under the new arrangement, Iran expected to gain access to $12 billion of its estimated $24 billion in frozen assets held abroad, allowing the Central Bank to conduct international transactions and finance imports.

Authority over released funds

He rejected reports that the released funds would be restricted to purchases from US farmers, saying Iran would have full discretion over their use.

Addressing Iran’s military and nuclear programmes, Ghalibaf reiterated that Tehran’s missile capabilities and offensive military power were “absolutely non-negotiable.”

“Iran’s missile capability is one of our sources of pride,” he said.

He also insisted that Iran’s right to uranium enrichment would not be compromised, while affirming Tehran’s commitment to its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and oversight by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

“Negotiation does not mean surrender,” Ghalibaf said.

Nuclear talks

“It means transferring the arena of confrontation from the battlefield to diplomacy while preserving the country’s deterrent power.”

He added that Iran would continue to pursue diplomacy where possible while remaining prepared to respond militarily if necessary.

“Wherever the language of dialogue and agreements does not work, the language of force will be used,” Ghalibaf said.

“Wherever necessary, we will fight, and wherever we can advance our interests through dialogue, we will pursue that path.”

China on Wednesday called on the United States and Iran to advance negotiations toward a comprehensive resolution of the conflict, while reiterating its opposition to unilateral sanctions on Tehran.

Speaking at a press briefing in Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said China has consistently maintained that unilateral sanctions imposed on Iran should be lifted as soon as possible.

“We hope the US and Iran will jointly implement the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding that has already been signed and move negotiations forward to achieve a comprehensive solution at an early date,” Guo said.

The remarks came as Qatar hosted separate rounds of talks involving US and Iranian delegations on Tuesday and Wednesday amid renewed diplomatic efforts.

The US envoys arrived in Doha after Donald Trump announced on Monday that Iran had requested a meeting in the Qatari capital.

Tehran, however, denied that any direct negotiations with Washington had been scheduled, while confirming that consultations through intermediaries were continuing.

US envoys were meeting with Qatari mediators on Tuesday, the Gulf state’s foreign ministry spokesman said, after Washington said it was sending a negotiating team.

“Mr. Steve Witkoff and Mr. Jared Kushner are here in Doha to meet with mediators, with Qatari officials, and the talks will be around all regional issues,” foreign ministry spokesman Majed Al Ansari said.

Talks with the envoys would include discussions on Iran but also other topics, including Lebanon, the spokesman said.

“They are not here for their negotiations with the Iranians,” he added.

Both the US and Iran had said they would send officials for meetings in Qatar to discuss a memorandum of understanding agreed between the two sides aimed at ending the Middle East war, which broke out on February 28 with US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

Ansari clarified that no high-level meetings or direct talks between the United States and Iran were planned in Doha.

“To the best of my knowledge, there are no direct meetings scheduled between the two parties in the coming days,” he said.

He explained that an Iranian “technical delegation travels to and from Doha based on the progress of negotiations. There is currently no high-level delegation present”.

The so-called technical talks, negotiations between lower-ranking officials on details, included “tracks on the nuclear side… a track on the economic and state performance issue” as well as security, the spokesman said.

Qatar had previously refused to enter into mediation under Iranian fire as Tehran launched an unprecedented aerial bombardment against Gulf states in retaliation for the US-Israeli strikes.

Iran will hold talks with mediator Qatar on Wednesday regarding its frozen assets, the Iranian foreign ministry said, denying that any meeting with the United States was planned in the Gulf state, where delegations from both sides were expected.

“What is expected to take place in Doha, probably tomorrow, will be discussions regarding the implementation of provisions of the memorandum of understanding, including the provision concerning the release of Iran’s restricted assets, and these discussions will be held with the Qatari side,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told reporters at a weekly press conference.

Baqaei was referring to Iranian funds blocked abroad due to US sanctions, a key issue under discussion as part of an agreement between Tehran and Washington to end the Middle East war.

Iran is making any agreement with the United States conditional on the release of a portion of these assets in order to bring a lasting end to the conflict.

Among elements agreed under a so-called memorandum of understanding already signed is a US commitment to eventually “terminate all types of sanctions against” Tehran, and to “make fully available for use the frozen or restricted funds and assets” of Iran.

Iran has been subject to asset freezes and sweeping sanctions by the United States and other Western countries since its 1979 Islamic revolution that toppled the US-backed Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.

While there is no official figure for the total amount of frozen Iranian assets, media reports have estimated the sum at between $100 billion and $123 billion.

‘We won’t leave any action unanswered’

Baqaei warned that Iran would respond to any US violation of the memorandum of understanding.

“We will not leave any action unanswered. As Iran’s powerful armed forces have demonstrated, any act of aggression against the objectives of the Islamic Republic of Iran will be met with an immediate and decisive response,” Esmaeil Baqaei told reporters.

“Such actions would constitute a violation of Article 1 of the memorandum of understanding. Naturally, if such violations are repeated and continue, the continuation of this process will encounter difficulties.”

Iranian and US negotiating ​teams were due in Doha this week, but Iran said on Monday no meeting had been scheduled as weekend missile fire from both sides tested the interim ceasefire ‌to end the four-month-old war.

US President Donald Trump is sending his son-in-law Jared Kushner and his envoy Steve Witkoff to lead the negotiating team, according to his press secretary Karoline Leavitt.

While Iran is sending its technical delegation to Qatar this week, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said this had “no relation” to the Americans’ visit and no talks between the two sides were scheduled.

“We will not have any negotiation meetings at any level with the American side in the coming days,” Baghaei ​said.

The disagreement over whether the sides would even meet underscored the fragility of a June 17 accord to pause a conflict that has disrupted global oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz ​and created a political headache for Trump ahead of November’s congressional elections.

The US and Iran gave themselves at least 60 days to implement the 14-point MoU to extend an April ceasefire, discuss Iran’s nuclear program and negotiate a permanent truce. But progress has been halting, with each side accusing the other of violating agreed terms.

After the US and Israel attacked Iran ​on February 28, maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow chokepoint that previously carried about a fifth of the global oil trade, came to a virtual standstill.

Israel has not joined the US-Iran peace talks ​and has distanced itself from the agreement. Tensions between Washington and Tehran have complicated efforts to end fighting in Lebanon, where Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, an ally of Iran-backed Hezbollah, has cast doubt on a separate, US-brokered agreement between Lebanon and Israel aimed at halting the conflict.

Closure of the waterway sent oil prices above $100 a barrel, pushing up global inflation and putting pressure on Trump ahead of the midterm elections that will determine control of the US Congress, where some of his ​fellow Republicans have criticised the president for waging war without lawmakers’ authorisation.

A senior Iranian official said there would be a meeting in Doha on Tuesday, but unlike previous technical talks between Iran and US teams in ​Switzerland, the focus would be on managing the Strait of Hormuz and de-escalating tensions.

Another official with knowledge of the plans said technical teams from the US and Iran are expected to meet separately with Qatari and Pakistani mediators ‌on Wednesday.

Uncertainty in Washington

Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, “The meeting in Doha is going to be perhaps important, perhaps not. We’re going to find out.”

At the same time, he maintained “we’re winning militarily” and repeated his condition that Iran must be stopped from producing a nuclear weapon.

Iran has sought leverage by flexing its control of the strait shared with neighbouring Oman, saying it plans to charge fees to ships using the waterway and obstruct vessels that stray outside defined paths.

The US has accused Iran of hitting at least two commercial ships with missiles or drones in recent days and has bombed Iranian military facilities in response. Iran, in turn, launched missiles ​and drones at US military sites in Kuwait ​and Bahrain early on Sunday.

Witkoff and Secretary of ⁠State Marco Rubio briefed members of Congress on Iran by phone on Monday. Republican Senator Steve Daines told reporters they kept their remarks to a minimum, but he nonetheless deemed the conversation “constructive.”

Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer, however, called the briefing “deficient and devoid of details.”

“After dragging America into a costly war, the Trump ​administration still can’t name a single thing Americans got in return. Instead, Secretary Rubio confirmed to me that Iran will reap billions in oil revenue ​while retaining dangerous leverage over ⁠the Strait of Hormuz,“ Schumer said.

Release of Frozen Iranian assets

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Monday that $6 billion out of $12 billion of assets frozen in Qatar would be released and returned to Iran, Iranian state media reported.

He described the memorandum, which includes US waivers for sanctions on Iran’s oil and petrochemical sectors, as “a great victory for the Iranian people.”

Oil prices rose more than 1% after weekend hostilities highlighted the fragility of the US-Iran accord.

French President ⁠Emmanuel Macron on ​Monday said he was working with Oman to de-escalate tensions and would cooperate with partners to de-mine the Strait of Hormuz.

But Iran’s ​Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi responded with an X post that the removal of mines was to be carried out solely by Iran according to the 14-point plan. He warned France against complicating the situation.

Iran pushed back on Monday against US President Donald Trump’s claim that the two sides would hold talks in Doha on Tuesday, with Tehran insisting no meetings with American officials had been scheduled.

“IRAN HAS REQUESTED A MEETING. IT WILL TAKE PLACE TOMORROW IN DOHA!” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei flatly contradicted the assertion.

“Over the coming days, we will not have any negotiation meetings with the US side at any level,” he said, adding that Iran had “not yet entered the stage of negotiating a final agreement.”

Baqaei confirmed that an expert delegation from Iran would travel to Doha later this week, but said the visit was solely to review implementation of the memorandum of understanding signed with the United States earlier this month — not to negotiate with American officials.

“The visit of the American representatives to Qatar has no connection to the visit of the Iranian delegation,” the foreign ministry added.

Iran’s embassy in Doha also said preparations for any talks between the two sides had not yet begun.

“We have not received any official information on this matter so far,” it said in a statement to Russian news agency RIA Novosti.

Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said that while consultations with Qatar on MOU implementation were continuing as usual, media reports of technical working group talks being held in Doha “cannot be confirmed.”

He added that a first round of technical talks would only take place once necessary conditions were met and a date and venue agreed upon.

The White House, however, confirmed that US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would travel to Doha for high-level discussions.

Reuters, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that technical talks on implementing the interim peace deal were expected and that mediators had established a dedicated communications channel to keep tensions in check.

The situation surrounding the anticipated Doha talks remained uncertain on Monday, with Iran’s foreign ministry, deputy foreign minister and Doha embassy all issuing denials within hours of Trump’s announcement.

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz slowed sharply over the weekend as ships avoided a transit corridor off Oman after a fresh exchange of strikes between the United States and Iran.

Only four tankers and one container ship used the Omani southern corridor to enter the Gulf on Sunday, escorted by US Navy vessels, according to research firm HFI Research.

No vessels used the route to leave the Gulf on Sunday, according to data by maritime tracking firm Kpler.

Traffic slowed on Saturday after a vessel was struck while transiting the strait — two days after another vessel was targeted on Thursday — and as rounds of strikes between the United States and Iran strained their preliminary deal to end the conflict.

Washington and Tehran have since agreed to halt their attacks but traffic through the strait remains limited.

Just one vessel used the Omani route to exit the Gulf, and another to enter, by 1500GMT on Monday, Kpler data showed.

Iran on Sunday warned ships against using routes it does not approve of to pass through the vital maritime passage.

In total, 29 commodity vessels crossed on Saturday and 12 transited on Sunday, according to data from the maritime tracking firm Kpler.

AXSMarine, another firm that tracks all commercial ships, detected 36 crossings on Saturday and 19 on Sunday.

The figures suggest ships are still passing through the strategic waterway but that traffic has declined from last week’s wartime records after a memorandum of understanding was signed by Tehran and Washington on June 17.

After Saturday’s attack on a vessel crossing the strait, ships continued to use the southern route off Oman for several hours before traffic appeared to slow, according to the Kpler-owned website MarineTraffic.

The website tracks only vessels with active transponders, meaning additional ships may have crossed with their signals switched off.

AXSMarine found that 44 vessels stopped transmitting their AIS signal in the Gulf region after Thursday’s attack.

AXSMarine analyst Mihail Todorov told AFP, however, that large-scale signal spoofing and interference in the region made it difficult to “confirm that every case was a direct result of the recent vessel attacks”.

Ships have continued crossing using Iran-approved routes.

A CMA CMG container ship exited the Gulf on Sunday morning using such a route through Iranian waters north of Larak Island.

Six commodity vessels have used the Iranian route so far on Monday, Kpler shows.

Since Saturday, more ships have entered the Gulf than departed, reversing a trend seen over the previous week, when efforts focused on evacuating seafarers stranded in the Gulf.

“Inbound traffic has remained relatively stable. The decline is almost entirely in outbound traffic,” AXSMarine analyst Mihail Todorov told AFP on Monday.

A UN-led operation to evacuate 11,000 seafarers was suspended on Thursday after a vessel was struck in the Gulf of Oman.

Total figures may rise further as crossings are identified retrospectively, notably through satellite imagery.

Iran said Monday that it had held its first meeting with Oman to discuss managing the strait, as Washington warns it will not accept transit fees for using what it considers an international waterway.

Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun on Monday told the head of US forces in the Middle East that Beirut intended to assert its sovereignty over the entire country, with the army deployed right up to the Israeli border.

Aoun met Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, to discuss the Washington-brokered agreement signed last week by Israel and Lebanon aimed at a peace deal.

Cooper also met Lebanon’s army chief Rodolphe Haykal, with the discussions addressing “the latest developments in Lebanon and the region”, the army said in a statement.

As part of the Washington deal, Hezbollah is to be disarmed, with the onus for doing so on the Lebanese army. Israeli leaders have said their troops will continue to occupy the south until then.

The Iran-backed militant group has fiercely opposed the agreement, and leading figures have warned of conflict within Lebanon if the deal is forced on them.

Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East war in March with rocket fire at Israel, triggering Israeli airstrikes and a ground invasion.

According to the statement, Haykal and Cooper discussed “the importance of successfully implementing the security annex of the framework agreement”, as well as ways of strengthening future cooperation.

In a post on X, Central Command said Cooper, Aoun and Haykal “discussed the path forward in implementing” the Washington agreement. Cooper also visited Israel, it said.

‘Verified disarmament’

The deal commits Lebanon to restoring sovereignty over its territory through the “verified disarmament of non-state armed groups and dismantlement of associated infrastructure,” enabling a progressive Israeli withdrawal, according to the text released by the State Department.

“The components of this process will be detailed in a Security Annex, developed with the full support of the United States,” the text said, without immediately publishing the annex.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday that Washington would reimburse Lebanon’s army for $30 million as it seeks to “improve the capability and capacity” of the Lebanese military.

The US has long been a key supporter of the Lebanese army.

Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem has called the agreement “null and void” and instead called for the implementation of a US-Iran memorandum of understanding to halt the regional war that included Lebanon.

The Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington have sought to separate Lebanon from the Iran deal.

However, Friday’s agreement came after a lull in fighting that followed the US-Iran memorandum, which Tehran insisted should include Lebanon.

Hezbollah on Monday said it reserved the right to self-defence after several Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon the day before, accusing Israel of a “blatant violation of the ceasefire”.

Israeli troops are operating in a self-declared “security zone” stretching around 10 kilometres (six miles) deep inside Lebanese territory along the border.

Lebanese authorities say Israeli attacks since the war began on March 2 have killed more than 4,200 people.

US President Donald Trump said Iran has requested a meeting that will be held in Qatar on Tuesday, despite Tehran earlier denying that any technical talks on the deal aimed at ending the Middle East war were planned.

The announcement came after Iran held its first talks with Oman on managing the Strait of Hormuz since the US-Iran deal was signed, and as Washington and Tehran agreed to halt their attacks, which had strained the agreement.

The exchanges of fire have underscored the fragility of the Pakistan-brokered agreement to stop the war, which sowed havoc across the Middle East and snarled the flow of oil and gas shipments through the vital Strait of Hormuz.

“IRAN HAS REQUESTED A MEETING. IT WILL TAKE PLACE TOMORROW IN DOHA!” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Monday, without specifying the participants.

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt later told Fox News that US envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s adviser and son-in-law Jared Kushner “will be flying to Doha for high-level meetings this week”.

A diplomat with knowledge of the talks confirmed to AFP that officials from the US and Iran were due to meet in the Qatari capital to discuss the deal signed earlier this month.

“Technical teams working on the implementation of the MoU are scheduled to meet in Doha in the coming days,” the diplomat said on condition of anonymity.

The diplomat added that “communications channels created to de-escalate any incidents are in place” after the strikes.

Qatar has played a key role alongside Pakistan in mediating a conclusion to the conflict, with the most recent discussions between Tehran and Washington taking place on June 21 with all four countries in attendance.

Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi, however, denied reports that technical talks were “planned for this week”, state TV reported.

Nevertheless, a US official also told AFP that the negotiations would continue despite the recent strikes.

“Both sides will stand down for now and vessels can move freely” in and around the Strait of Hormuz, the official said in an email.

Hormuz talks

Iran’s exercise of control over the strait has sparked repeated flare-ups, the latest of which came early on Sunday when US Central Command said it had attacked 10 Iranian military targets over “continued Iranian aggression against commercial shipping”.

Iran said it retaliated with strikes against US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain.

The blockade remains a key sticking point in the US negotiations.

Iran and Oman border the strait, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas passed prior to the conflict, and Iran said on Monday it held their first talks since the deal was struck.

“During a trip to Muscat, the first meeting of the Joint Hormuz Committee was held,” said Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi on X. “While reviewing the current issues related to the strait, we exchanged views on the future management.”

The strait comprises Omani and Iranian territorial waters, but under customary international law the two cannot generally block passage or charge tolls.

Iran warned on Sunday that any attempt by ships to bypass its preferred route through Hormuz would “increase tensions” in the Middle East.

Iran insists that ships transiting the strait pass through a corridor near its own shores, instead of the opposite side of the waterway, hugging the Omani coast.

Traffic slowed over the weekend after a vessel was struck while transiting the waterway on Saturday, with 29 commodity vessels crossing on Saturday and 12 transiting on Sunday, according to data from the maritime tracking firm Kpler.

Ships continued for several hours to use a southern corridor through Omani waters before traffic appeared to slow, Kpler-owned website MarineTraffic reported.

‘Hegemonic dreams’

The published text of the memorandum of understanding says Iran will define the future administration of the strait in dialogue with Oman and the other Gulf States, but “in line” with international law.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they were taking measures to control traffic in the strait and that vessels violating those measures would be dealt with more firmly than before.

Mohammad Mokhber, adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, wrote on X that as long as Iran managed the strait, Washington’s “hegemonic dreams in the region will not be realised”.

Experts said there would likely be more Hormuz incidents.

For Iran, “a drawn-out negotiation accompanied by controlled pressure in the strait can work to its advantage”, said HA Hellyer of the Royal United Services Institute, a London think tank.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday said $6 billion of the country’s frozen assets held in Qatar would be released and transferred back to Iran under recent arrangements, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Speaking during a meeting with Ayatollah Mousa Shobeiri Zanjani, Pezeshkian said the funds represented half of the $12 billion in Iranian assets currently held in Qatar, according to IRNA. He said efforts were continuing to secure the return of the remaining balance.

Pezeshkian described the development as part of a broader achievement resulting from what he called the Iranian people’s resilience in the face of external pressure.

The president said that despite the deaths of senior officials, military commanders, prominent figures and students during what he described as a war imposed by the United States and Israel, Iran’s public, armed forces and government had acted together to prevent their adversaries from achieving their objectives.

He accused the United States and Israel of seeking to destabilise Iran through economic pressure and attacks on key infrastructure, including gas production facilities, steel plants and the petrochemical sector, while attempting to restrict Iranian oil exports. Those efforts had failed because of public support and national unity, he said.

Pezeshkian also described a recent Pakistan-mediated, Islamabad memorandum of understanding between Iran and the United States as a major victory for the Iranian people, saying it included the removal of sanctions on Iran’s oil and petrochemical sectors.

The president said the government had expanded social support measures alongside reconstruction efforts, including increasing the value of electronic food assistance vouchers.

Reaffirming Iran’s position on its nuclear programme, Pezeshkian said Tehran was not seeking nuclear weapons and that its nuclear activities would continue solely to meet national needs within its declared policies.

Iran and the United States ​agreed to halt recent hostilities in the Gulf and renew talks regarding their dispute over the Strait of Hormuz, a US official said on Sunday, raising ‌hopes of saving an interim peace deal that was under pressure from days of tit-for-tat strikes.

“Technical talks are slated to continue on all areas of the MOU. Both sides will stand down for now, and vessels can move freely,“ the official said, referring to the 14-point memorandum of understanding that was agreed on June 17 under which the strait would be reopened for traffic.

Axios, which first reported the cessation ​of hostilities, citing a senior US official, said talks would resume on Tuesday in Qatar.

A return to diplomacy would follow several days of strikes and counterstrikes since ​an Iranian projectile hit a cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, with both the US and Iran accusing the ⁠other of breaking an interim ceasefire that was agreed to on June 17.

Iran launched missiles and drones at US military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain early on Sunday, shortly ​after President Donald Trump threatened that the Islamic Republic would cease to exist if it did not honour the agreement to end the war.

Meanwhile, Israel said on Sunday it had once ​again struck Iran-backed armed Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, destroying underground infrastructure used by the group in a village in southern Lebanon. That came after another strike on Saturday, which closely followed its latest ceasefire deal with Lebanon on Friday. Iran says the fighting in Lebanon must end if the wider agreement is to stick.

The US military said earlier it had struck Iran again, hours after a tanker was hit in ​the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important energy shipping route, which Tehran has largely closed for most of the conflict.

“There may come a point when we are no ​longer able to be reasonable, and will be forced to militarily complete the job that we very successfully started,” Trump said on social media, before the Axios report.

“If that happens, the Islamic Republic ‌of Iran ⁠will no longer exist!” he added.

The 14-point interim peace accord was meant to halt the fighting, which the US and Israel started on February 28, and reopen the strait while talks proceeded on issues such as Iran’s nuclear program.

Violence and accusations follow peace deal

One round of mediated talks, led by Vice President JD Vance and Iran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, was held in Switzerland a week ago, and Washington waived sanctions on Tehran, but fighting has since resumed and intensified.

About an hour after Trump’s post, Kuwait’s army said its air defences were responding ​to missile and drone attacks, while Bahrain ​said sirens had sounded there.

Iran’s Islamic ⁠Revolutionary Guard Corps said in a statement its navy and air forces had launched missile and drone operations targeting US military sites in Kuwait and Bahrain.

The Guards said US strikes had violated the ceasefire and “will result in the complete halt of all diplomatic processes”, state-run ​Press TV said. The IRGC Navy command said American bases in the region “will experience hell in the coming days”.

A US official, ​confirming Iran had targeted ⁠US facilities, told Reuters there were no reported US casualties or major damage to US sites in the Middle East, but the situation was still unfolding.

Hours later, alarms sounded for a second time in Bahrain, where authorities said an Iranian attack damaged a residential building in Muharraq province, with no casualties reported. Bahrain urged the UN Security Council to hold an urgent session ⁠to hold Iran ​accountable.

The Kuwaiti army said it had intercepted two ballistic missiles with no damage or casualties.

Separately, Qatar said ​one of its nationals had died after sustaining injuries from shrapnel aboard a vessel that had gone missing on Saturday. A second person was injured in the incident, which was due to “military operations in the area”, the interior ​ministry said, without giving a location or apportioning blame.