Iran-US war latest: Tehran threatens retaliation after accusing Ukraine of missile strike on tanker in Caspian Sea – UK Times

Oman and Iran are reportedly moving closer to an agreement on managing the Strait of Hormuz, though they remain divided over Tehran’s proposal to charge transit fees.

Progress in the Oman-Iran talks, backed by China, Qatar and Pakistan, is believed to have influenced the US decision to pause its attacks on Iran after nearly two weeks.

Tehran has rejected Donald Trump’s characterisation of the talks, with foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei saying there are currently no direct negotiations with Washington and that only mediators are passing messages between the two sides.

“Mediators may convey messages from the American side to us regarding current developments in the region. But at present we are not engaged in any negotiations with the United States,” he said, according to the Guardian.

Donald Trump said the US would resume “very strong military action” against Iran if ongoing diplomatic efforts do not produce a rapid resolution to the crisis in the Middle East.

“We are in very deep talks with Iran. If they don’t work out, we will go back to very strong military action,” the US president told Axios.

He told reporters later on Air Force One: “They want to meet, and we’re meeting. Without what we did, they wouldn’t even be talking to us … They would not have requested the meeting if we were doing poorly. The only reason they want to meet is because we’ve been hitting them very hard.”

The Independent’s Karl Matchett writes:

Europe faces a gas shortage this winter due to lower global production and reserves being run down due to the Iran war, an analyst has warned.

Liquified natural has (LNG) is a key part of the overall energy mix for the UK and Europe. On the continent, natural gas as a whole accounts for around a fifth (21 per cent) of total energy consumption, according to Eurostat’s research, with LNG representing around 40 per cent of that gas usage in 2024.

An estimated 89 per cent of Europe’s overall gas supply in 2025 came from outside the EU – including the UK – and analysts at Wood Mackenzie have cautioned that the continent “is approaching energy crisis territory.”

Research from the firm shows European inventory is “only just above 50 per cent, an historically low level” for this period of the year.

“Low European inventories, strong Asian demand and limited new LNG supply growth almost guarantee elevated prices through this winter and into 2027,” said Massimo Di Odoardo, Wood Mackenzie’s vice president of gas research.

Yemeni ​Houthis are looking to copy Iran’s Hormuz strategy in the Red Sea by disrupting shipping in the Bab el-Mandeb.

Yemen’s ⁠top diplomat said that the movement has been emboldened by an insufficient international response.

Foreign Minister-designate Afrah Al-Zouba told journalists on Monday: “The Houthis want to copy the Iranian model and this will shut down two main straits, the gateways into the Gulf and Red Sea.”

The Red Sea has become a new front in the Iran war, with the Houthis taking ⁠an escalatory approach against Saudi Arabia by firing missiles and drones ​at ⁠the kingdom and declaring a blockade ‌on Saudi shipping.

The Independent’s Isabel Keane reports:

Casualties reported overseas since July 7 — when the U.S. cease-fire with Iran collapsed and the conflict intensified — are no longer listed on the Pentagon website under “Operation Epic Fury,” where earlier casualties were listed.

As of Sunday, the Defense Department appears to be tracking casualties in the “Defense Casualty Analysis System,” under a new category labeled “overseas operations casualties.”

This means that to track all U.S. casualties since the Iran war began February 28, the numbers from the two separate webpages must be added up.

With the change, four fatalities that had been scrubbed from the website last week were added back but on a new webpage. Those deaths include First Lieutenant Tyler James Feehan, Sergeant Angel S. Rampersad, Private Isabella Gonzales and Sergeant Michael Emmanuel Swinton.

There is a chance with a deal between the US and Iran following “good talks”, Donald Trump said on Monday, warning that strikes would resume if the negotiations failed to deliver.

It comes as Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Iraq reported drone attacks today, despite the US abruptly suspending a two-week campaign of air strikes on Iran on Saturday

“We’re having good talks,” he said. “I think there’s a good chance that something could happen, and if it does, good, if it doesn’t, we go back to doing what we were doing two days ago.”

At a campaign rally in Michigan later on Monday, Trump said of ⁠Iran: “You can’t bribe them. You’ve got to beat them, and we’ll beat the hell out of them. But ​we’ll ⁠see how it turns out. Right now, there are very friendly negotiations going on.”

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said on Monday that messages were still being passed between the sides through mediators and Iran had not forsaken diplomacy, but reports that it requested negotiations were “fabricated.”

“This is not in our DNA,” he said.

Just one in three Americans support the war on Iran, the lowest reading in a Reuters/Ipsos poll since the five-month-old conflict’s early days, with most respondents saying that Donald Trump has failed to explain his goals.

The poll, conducted Friday through Sunday, also showed the Republican president’s approval rating ticking higher to 37 per cent, up three points from last month ⁠when his rating tied the lowest of his presidency.

Trump has offered shifting objectives for the conflict such as aiding Iranians to topple their leaders, taking out Iran’s ballistic-missile capabilities and preventing it from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

The poll found that 69 per cent of Americans — including four in 10 Republicans – think Trump has not “clearly explained the goals of U.S. military involvement in Iran.”

White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said Trump will not make decisions based on “fluid opinion polls” and reiterated the president’s resolve to prevent Iran from ever acquiring a nuclear weapon.

“What matters most to the American people ⁠is having a commander in chief who takes bold action to keep them safe,” Wales said.