The United States has struck targets across Iran, including as far as the Caspian Sea, while Donald Trump threatened “major military punishment” against Tehran and its Houthi allies over attacks on Red Sea shipping. Iran retaliated on Friday with missile and drone fire against US bases and allied nations across the region.
Diplomatic efforts appear stalled after the New York Times reported that Iran had rejected a US ceasefire proposal delivered by Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi. The report contradicted US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s earlier claim that Iran was “begging for a ceasefire”, and Iraq disputed the account.
Trump also warned China and Russia against selling weapons to Iran, saying he accepted assurances from Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin that they were not doing so. Iran said it remained in consultations with both countries. Meanwhile, Iran’s military said it had launched drone strikes against US targets in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait, and advised civilians to stay 500 metres away from US troop locations.
The Houthis, who control parts of Yemen, continued their blockade of Saudi-linked shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb strait. After striking two Saudi tankers on Thursday, oil prices jumped 7% above $100 a barrel for the first time since May. Shipping insurance costs doubled for some firms, and tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell to just one vessel on Thursday, the lowest since May.
Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, insisted the obstacle to peace talks was “the American approach”, adding that preserving Iran’s interests in Hormuz was a core principle. Pakistan has been mediating, with exploratory talks held during a visit by Iran’s interior minister to Islamabad this week.
