Iranian security council says it will hold strait until ‘war fully ends’; Egypt’s FM says Cairo, Islamabad working on US-Iran ‘final agreement’; report: US to seize Iran-linked ships worldwide.
US President Donald Trump said Saturday Iran “got a little cute” byreimposing its closure on the Strait of Hormuz earlier in the day, but insisted that the White House is in touch with Tehran and that the dialogue is “working out really well.” Israel, however, is preparing for the possibility that the talks will collapse and the situation in the strait will escalate, a source told the Kan public broadcaster. In addition, US forces are preparing to begin boarding and seizing Iran-linked ships in international waters across the globe, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
Iran said Saturday that “control of the Strait of Hormuz has returned to its previous state … under strict management and control of the armed forces,” as long as the US blockade of Iranian ports remained in effect. Iran’s security council further said that the strait will remain in Iranian control until “the war fully ends and lasting peace is achieved in the region.” Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said it had been presented with new American proposals during a recent visit by Pakistan’s army chief, who is serving as an intermediary with Washington. The council did not reveal what was in the proposals, but said that they were still under review. Further talks would require the US to abandon “excessive demands and adjust its requests to the realities on the ground,” it added.
Iran also fired on at least three tankers attempting to pass the waterway on Saturday, only a day after it announced that it was opening the strait in accordance with the ceasefire deal with the US. Confusion over the critical chokepoint threatened to deepen the energy crisis roiling the global economy and push the two countries toward renewed conflict, even as mediators expressed confidence that a new deal was within reach. Roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil passes through the strait and further limits would squeeze already constrained supply, driving prices higher once again. Briefing reporters in the White House, Trump downplayed the situation, insisting that dialogue with Iran was “working out really well” despite the closure of the strait. (Read More)
