Iran threatened Tuesday to attack infrastructure across the Middle East unless its security was guaranteed, as negotiations with Washington remained deadlocked over the Strait of Hormuz. “In a region where we cannot sell oil, no one else will sell oil either; or if our security is not guaranteed, no infrastructure will remain safe,” Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in a video released by state TV. Ghalibaf is also Iran’s parliament speaker.
The Threat to Regional Security
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the U.S. claim that the strait remained open was false. Spokesperson Hossein Mohebi warned that vessels trying to pass would be damaged: “either we strike it, or it hits a mine.” He said the strait could count as open only if at least 125 vessels passed daily, carrying a minimum of 20 million barrels of oil and petroleum products.
Iran kept a blockade on commercial shipping through Hormuz, while the U.S. military maintained a counter-blockade of Iranian ports to stop Tehran from exporting oil. Before the conflict, the strait carried a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas. Fighting has subsided in recent weeks. Still, Tehran continues targeting ships, while Washington relies on economic pressure rather than further military action.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran’s conditions would determine when the strait reopened. Those preconditions included a seven-day ceasefire across the Middle East, including Lebanon, the unfreezing of Iranian assets abroad, lifting sanctions on Iran’s oil sector, and ending the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports. Araqchi said the proposed agreement would start a seven-day countdown to reopening the waterway and pause regional fighting. President Donald Trump rejected the plan on Saturday, saying Iran wanted to open the strait “because they’re losing so badly.”
Iran’s Regional Allies and the Gaza Front
Iran struck U.S. allies in the Gulf with drones and missiles, while its Houthi allies in Yemen hit Saudi interests. Houthi fighters advanced in Yemen, routed forces of the Saudi-backed government, and threatened Saudi oil exports through the Red Sea. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said Iranian authorities “need to take a decision to distance our countries from this war and to take a very clear position of non-aggression toward their neighbors.”
In Gaza, Israel said it killed Izz al-Din Al-Beik, identified by Reuters as the head of Hamas’ armed wing in the northern Gaza Strip. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said Beik helped plan attacks and recruit militants. Hamas confirmed his killing. Medics said the strike hit an apartment building in Gaza City’s Nasr neighbourhood. Health officials said another person died of wounds from the attack.
Israel accused Hamas of rearming and launching attacks in violation of an October ceasefire, and said it killed at least 20 Hamas figures that month. Hamas denied trying to carry out attacks or rebuild its arsenal and accused Israel of undermining the Gaza deal. The ceasefire agreement called for eventual reconstruction. Negotiators, though, made little progress because they hadn’t agreed on terms for Hamas to disarm and Israel to withdraw its troops.
Diplomacy and the Nuclear Dispute
Qatar continued relaying messages between Washington and Tehran. Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesperson Majed al-Ansari said: “Qatar’s mediation efforts are ongoing, and we are currently relaying messages between the American and Iranian sides.” U.S. and Iranian officials spoke separately with mediators on Monday, renewing efforts to end the war.
Trump said he had offered Iran nothing to end the war, rejecting reports that he was willing to ease sanctions and release frozen funds in exchange for “concrete” progress on Iran’s nuclear programme. Iran has no nuclear weapons and denies seeking to develop them. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran was ready for talks but wouldn’t accept “bullying or coercion,” adding that Iran had agreed “we’re not supposed to develop nuclear weapons.”
The conflict has also disrupted global energy supplies. Brent crude futures rose to $106.77 a barrel on Tuesday, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude stood at $93.94. Trump and Israel launched the war in February as “Operation Epic Fury”; it has killed thousands and fuelled global inflation.