• Oil price rise:Brent crude futures — the global oil benchmark — has reached its highest level since July as hopes of a resolution to the war fade. Iran’s parliament speaker has reiterated key demands of the US before it will reopen the critical Strait of Hormuz
• Threat to Oman:Oman has yet to respond toPresident Donald Trump’s repeated threat to attack the country if it intervenes in efforts in the strait, where a vessel was struck by an “unknown projectile,” according to the UK’s maritime agency
• Expanding conflict:Elsewhere, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis said today they had again targeted Saudi Aramco’s Jazan refinery on the Red Sea coast in Saudi Arabia. Clashes near the Bab al-Mandeb strait have intensified in recent weeks after a Houthi-declared blockade of Saudi shipping
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Iran’s parliament speaker has today issued a list of demands that the US needs to fulfill before Tehran reopens the Strait of Hormuz, including lifting sanctions on Iranian oil and ending “all military threats and operations.”
The Strait of Hormuz has been a crucial bargaining chip throughout the US-Israeli war with Iran. It’s been effectively closed by Iran since the fighting began in late February
The waterway, passing between Iran and Oman, serves as the main route for shipping crude from oil-rich countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait to the rest of the world
Iran controls the strait’s northern side. About 20 million barrels of oil, or about one-fifth of daily global production, used to flow through the strait every day, according to the US Energy Information Administration, which calls the channel a “critical oil chokepoint.” According to the EIA, “very few alternative options exist to move oil out of the strait if it is closed.”
The strait also carries about one-fifth of global trade in liquefied natural gas
Energy analysts have warned that oil and natural gas prices are likely to remain elevated until the strait is passable, even as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates seek to expand other routes to get their crude to market
CNN’s Billy Stockwell and Aida Karimi contributed to this reporting
Oil prices and government borrowing costs climbed higher on Tuesday as traders’ hopes of a swift resolution to the US-Iran conflict fade
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, was up0.1% to $91a barrel early morning ET – its highest level since late July. WTI futures, the US benchmark, rose 0.7% to $85
Washington and Tehran agreed in June to a 60-day ceasefire, allowing time to negotiate a more durable peace deal while active fighting subsided and the Strait of Hormuz could be reopened
But that agreement, which had already effectively collapsed, officially expired on Monday with no sign of a breakthrough and as tensions have escalated. On Monday, President Trump threatened to bomb Oman, a US ally, if it interfered with US efforts in the strait – sparking further concern among traders that a peace deal may still be far off
US government bond yields – essentially, the interest the government must pay to borrow money from investors – were rising Tuesday as traders anticipate that a prolonged US-Iran conflict will keep energy prices high, in turn, boosting the odds that central banks will raise interest rates to keep inflation in check. Other factors, including enormous public debt piles, are also contributing to elevated yields
The yield on the US 30-year Treasury bond rose to an intraday high of 5.33% on Tuesday, its highest level in nearly two decades The yield on the German government’s 10-year bond hit a 15-year high, the publication said
Deutsche Bank analysts said on Tuesday that 30-year government bond yields had “hit multi-year highs across several countries, (showing) how the fiscal pressures on governments aren’t going away.”
Vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, on Monday.
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf issued a list of demands today it said the US needed to meet before the Strait of Hormuz reopens, such as lifting sanctions on Iranian oil and ending military threats
Traffic through the critical waterway, through which one-fifth of global crude oil typically flows, has been greatly reduced since the start of the war. Mirroring previous demands made by Tehran, Iran’s state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) cited Ghalibaf’s conditions as:
- Lifting the US blockade on Iranian ports
- Releasing Iran’s frozen assets
- Lifting Iranian oil sanctions
- Ending all military threats and operations
Earlier today, a vessel was struck by an “unknown projectile” in the strait, causing one casualty onboard, according to a report made to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO)
The Iranian official also called on the US to implement the “other terms” Washington committed to as part of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) reached between the two nations in June
That agreement was aimed at stopping hostilities and paving the way for a “final deal” to end the war within 60 days – a deadline which expired yesterday – and settle complicated issues such as Iran’s nuclear program
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis said Tuesday it had targeted Saudi Aramco’s Jazan refinery, a major crude oil refinery located on the Red Sea coast in southwestern Saudi Arabia
The Houthi-run Saba news agency said the drone attack was “in response to the violation of Yemeni airspace over the Saada and Hajjah governorates,” citing an unnamed “military
CNN cannot independently verify the militant group’s claim, and there has been no immediate comment from Saudi authorities
This is not the first time the group has claimed an attack on the Jazan refinery. Earlier this month, the Houthis said they had targeted the site after Saudi authorities said a fire had broken out at a facility belonging to the refinery
Clashes have intensified near the Bab al-Mandeb strait, a key maritime chokepoint, in recent weeks after the Houthis declared a blockade of Saudi shipping in the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia is the main backer of Yemeni government forces
On Monday, the Houthi group said it had attacked what it described as a Saudi military ship and four escort vessels in the Red Sea with ballistic missiles, following a weekend of escalation in the region
CNN’s Mostafa Salem contributed reporting
‘Very hard to understand’ US policy on Iran, analyst says
4:35• Source:
CNN
‘Very hard to understand’ US policy on Iran, analyst says
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President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to bomb Oman if it gets in the way of his country’s efforts in the Strait of Hormuz is not helping the United States improve its relations with Gulf countries, an Israeli analyst and Iran-watcher said Tuesday
Iran says it is finalizing a deal with Oman on new shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, and Citrinowicz said Trump is worried that such a deal would allow Iran control over the waterway
“President Trump is fearing that if there will be such an agreement, the Gulf States will follow this agreement, thus pressuring the US to lift the maritime blockade,” said Citrinowicz, the former head of the Iran branch of Israeli military intelligence
Iran, he said, will not capitulate under economic pressure from the US
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf speaks during a press conference in Tehran, Iran, on November 27, 2024.
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf will lead a “high level parliamentary delegation” to Iraq on Wednesday
Ghalibaf has played a key role as lead negotiatorin several rounds of talks since the US and Israel launched a war against Iran in February
The delegation is scheduled to meet with senior Iraqi officials for meetings on “strengthening bilateral relations, border security, counterterrorism efforts, expanding economic cooperation, and advancing the implementation of agreements between the two countries,” state broadcaster IRIB reported
The meetings will also explore “joint initiatives to promote stability and security across West Asia.”
The visit comes at a tense moment for the region with the framework diplomatic agreement between the US and Iran, which was meant to end the war, expiring Monday and no resolution to the conflict in sight
Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Monday also accused Iran of launching drone attacks targeting his office and the residence of the head of the Kurdish intelligence agency Parastin. Tehran denied the allegation and suggested the incident may have been a “false flag” operation
U.S. Senator Mark Kelly on Trump’s Oman threat
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CNN
U.S. Senator Mark Kelly on Trump’s Oman threat
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Oman is a “critical negotiator with Iran” and it “doesn’t make a ton of sense” to make more enemies by threatening to bombthe country, Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly said early Tuesday
Rising costs of gas, diesel, fertilizer and food prices will only continue if Trump “doesn’t find a way out of this,” he said
Kelly said Trump has not “been able to articulate to the American people what this is all about and how this is in our best interest as a country” and so “until he figures out a way out of this, we’re going to just see a compounding number of problems.”
Donald Trump disembarks Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland, U.S., on August 16.
As Donald Trump’s critics see it, he’s striking out badly on foreign policy
But the president is still taking mighty swings
His long-broken memorandum of understanding with Iran reached its 60-day expiration date on Monday. Instead of celebrating a nuclear deal that might have justified his war, Trump vented his frustration by finding some of America’s friends to punish and rekindling his relationship with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un
Trump had on Sunday announced the US would scale back military drills with South Korea, a US ally since the 1950s, citing the cost; the fact that Seoul declined to participate in the war on Iran; and a desire not to upset Kim — a tyrant
On Monday, Trump threatened to bomb Oman, apparently for negotiating with Iran to get shipping moving through the Strait of Hormuz — which was also a requirement of the MOU once hailed by Trump as the greatest-ever Middle East peace deal
Once again, Trump seemed to be deliberately turning everything the world once thought it knew about American power and foreign policy values upside down
Read the full analysis about Trump’s chaotic foreign policyhere
The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received a report that a vessel was struck by an “unknown projectile” in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, causing one casualty onboard
The vessel was “conducting an outbound transit” of the critical waterway at the time, the UKMTO said
“The impact caused damage to the engine room and resulted in a crew casualty. The remaining crew are currently being assisted by the Omani Coast Guard,” it said
Further details on the casualty have not been given
The incident came as traffic remains depressed in the strait, with at least three commercial ships passing through over the last 24 hours, MarineTraffic data showed on Monday
US special envoy Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, claimed that “progress could come quite soon” in Gaza if both sides cooperate
Kushner said Hamas could disarm soon but indicated the US would support further Israeli military action in the territory if the group does not
Here’s what to know about what happened Monday:
Kushner meets Netanyahu after talks with Hamas on stalled Gaza peace plan
1:50• Source:
CNN
Kushner meets Netanyahu after talks with Hamas on stalled Gaza peace plan
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- Kushner told Fox News his meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu, in which he pressed him to move forward with the US-backed Gaza ceasefire plan, as“very, very good,” saying they were able to address “some valid concerns” raised by the Israeli prime minister.
- Kushner said that Hamas officials “said all the right things” in their meeting on Sunday, but “it’s very, very hard to trust, you know, a terrorist organization that committed these terrible atrocities.”
- Netanyahu told Kushner that Israel would not withdraw any of its forces in Gaza or allow reconstruction to beginuntil the complete disarmament of Hamas, according to a senior Israeli official.
US-Iran tension
- Oman has not responded to Trump’s threat to “bomb” the country if it “gets in the way” of US efforts in the Strait of Hormuz. But it isn’t the first time Trump has threatened Oman, which is a US ally. In May, the president said: “Oman will behave just like everybody else, or we’ll have to blow ‘em up.”
- Talks between Iran and Oman regarding the strait are complex but continuing “in all seriousness,” Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said. He pointed to several “actors trying to exert influence on this process” as a reason for the delay in a deal.
- Vessel movements through key shipping channels remains depressed. MarineTraffic data shows at least three commercial ships passed through the Strait of Hormuz over the last 24 hours. The US said it redirected 64 commercial vessels as of August 17.
- Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani accused Iran of launching drone attacks targeting his office and the residence of the head of the Kurdish intelligence agency Parastin. Tehran denied the allegation and suggested the incident may have been a “false flag” operation.
- Trump pushed back on reports of dwindling supplies and low morale on the USS Abraham Lincoln, calling recent reporting from CNN “fake news.” The carrier has been deployed for more than 250 days after being redirected to the Middle East.
- Trump also suggested that he and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have recently communicated, a day after announcing that he plans to reduce military exercises with key regional ally South Korea over a lack of help in Iran.
CNN’s Mostafa Salem, Mohammed Tawfeeq and Eyad Kourdi, Jennifer Hansler, Molly English, Alayna Treene, Tal Shalev and Avery Schmitz contributed to this report
CENTCOM commander addresses concerns over USS Abraham Lincoln’s crew
2:27• Source:
CNN
CENTCOM commander addresses concerns over USS Abraham Lincoln’s crew
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President Donald Trump pushed back on reports of dwindling supplies and low morale on the USS Abraham Lincoln Monday, calling recent reporting from CNN “fake news.”
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that there was enough food on the aircraft carrier, despite sailors and family members telling CNN the ship has experienced intermittent food shortages, low supplies of hygiene items and problems with the water system
Since the Lincoln left its home port of San Diego last November, the aircraft carrier has been deployed for more than 250 days after being redirected to the Middle East to support US operations in the war with Iran, now entering its sixth month. The ship may break a record for the longest trip away from its home port for a US carrier since the Vietnam War
US businessman Jared Kushner speaks at the “Board of Peace” meeting during the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos on January 22, 2026.
US special envoy Jared Kushner claimed that “progress could come quite soon” in Gaza if both sides cooperate, but indicated the US would support further Israeli military action in the territory if Hamas does not disarm
“If Hamas actually gives over the weapons in the tunnels willingly over the next 60 to 90 days, that obviously would be the elimination of a huge security threat for Israel, almost an unthinkable achievement,” Kushner said in an interview with Fox News after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Monday
Kushner said that Hamas officials “said all the right things” in their meeting on Sunday, but “it’s very, very hard to trust, you know, a terrorist organization that that committed these terrible atrocities.”
“We had a very cordial meeting,” he said. “And so we’re going to give them a chance to perform, but it’s going to have to be based on actions and steps.”
Kushner described the nearly four-hour-long meeting with Netanyahu on Monday as“very, very good.” He said they were able to address “some valid concerns” raised by the Israeli prime minister
“We were able to go through some of the misunderstandings and misinformation,” such as on Israel’s right to defend itself and Gaza’s reconstruction, Kushner said
