Iran’s Foreign Ministry declared Monday that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the United States meets Tehran’s conditions. This direct challenge to global commerce underscores Iran’s escalating belligerence and its maximalist demands on the West.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian reported a nearly seven-hour meeting with Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei. Khamenei, appointed in March after a U.S.-Israeli strike killed his father, has not appeared publicly since. Pezeshkian stated the supreme leader called for “unity and cohesion” as Iran faces economic hardships and sanctions from its war with the United States.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei stated Iran demands the U.S. end its blockade, pay compensation for months of war damage, lift economic sanctions, and release frozen assets. The closure of the strait, which carries roughly one-fifth of the world’s traded oil supplies, has become the war’s most lasting consequence. This impasse has kept energy prices a major focus of U.S. politics ahead of November’s midterm elections.
Iran is holding separate talks with Oman regarding transit through the strait, including a potential temporary shipping corridor. However, Tehran insists any reopening hinges on discussions with the U.S.
Iran's Global Blackmail
Mohsen Rezaei, a military adviser to Iran’s new supreme leader, was appointed Sunday to head the Supreme National Security Council. Rezaei, a 71-year-old hardliner, commanded Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard from 1981 to 1997. Last week, Rezaei threatened American forces with “serious risks and casualties” if the U.S. did not lift its blockade of Iranian ports.
The Institute for the Study of War, a U.S.-based think-tank, noted Rezaei appears willing to negotiate with the U.S. to “secure Iran’s maximalist aims, including control of the Strait of Hormuz.” However, the think-tank also stated he has been “unwilling to present any Iranian concessions.” Rezaei replaced Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, who assumed the security council role in March after his predecessor was killed by an Israeli strike. Zolghadr will now serve as a political adviser to Khamenei.
The Houthi Terror Front
In Yemen, U.N. envoy Hans Grundberg warned the country faces a greater risk of renewed large-scale conflict than at any point since the U.N.-brokered truce of April 2022, now in its fourth year. He stated the escalation risks “jeopardizing the gains of the 2022 truce” and “drawing the country into a broader regional confrontation.” The latest spiral began July 13, less than one month ago, when a Saudi airstrike hit the runway of Sanaa airport, preventing an Iranian flight carrying a high-ranking Houthi delegation from landing.
The Houthis had attempted to fly the plane without prior permission from the Saudi-led coalition, a decade-long war-related requirement. The Associated Press reported this was an attempt to establish a new reality on the ground and challenge the coalition’s control over Yemeni airspace. The rebels rejected an offer by the Saudi-backed internationally recognized government in Yemen to facilitate the delegation’s travel on a non-Iranian airline.
Instead, the Houthis proceeded with the flight operated by Iranian privately owned, U.S.-sanctioned Mahan Air, forcing the Saudi-led strike that disabled the Sanaa airport. Yasmeen al-Eryani, an analyst at the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies, identified the Mahan Air flight saga as part of Iran’s escalation of the war. Al-Eryani stated that “By activating the Yemeni front, Tehran reiterates the strategic value of that pressure lever and signals that attacks on Iran can produce costs elsewhere, particularly for Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.”
Following the Sanaa airport strike, the Houthis attacked Abha airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia. They also announced a blockade on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea, attacking Saudi vessels and oil facilities inside the kingdom, causing further disruption to the global economy. The Saudi-led coalition responded with strikes on Hodeida and Kamaran, Yemen’s largest island in the Red Sea. The coalition also reinforced Yemeni troops along the front lines to launch a ground offensive on the Houthis.
Anticipating this offensive, the rebels launched dozens of missiles and drones on military camps in central and southern Yemen, killing dozens of troops and civilians. On Sunday, the Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacked the government-held Red Sea port town of Mokha, killing seven people, including four military personnel and three civilians, and injuring 30, according to Yemen’s Defense Ministry. This attack was part of one of the largest waves of Houthi strikes on Yemeni military positions and government-held areas since the 2022 truce. The Associated Press noted that threats to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz have renewed focus on the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait, with some shipping shifting to that route.
Israel's Defensive Stance
Israel’s military declared the Christian-majority town of Taybeh in the occupied West Bank a closed military zone on Monday to keep out Israeli settlers and other non-residents. This new tactic aims to prevent Israelis from entering Taybeh, which is surrounded by settlements and has been subject to arson, vandalism, and settlers coming onto private and village property. The order does not apply to Palestinian residents or journalists, who the army said would be allowed unless soldiers determine their presence poses a threat.
The army stated its troops would detain suspects and disperse gatherings to maintain peace. This designation follows months of the army and police struggling to maintain order throughout the territory. The Ramallah-based Palestinian Health Ministry reported that at least 87 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers in 2026. Residents of Taybeh, parts of which lie in Area B where Israel maintains security control, have complained that the army and police are slow to respond to attacks by extremist settlers. Israel's efforts to stabilize the volatile West Bank underscore the constant security challenges faced by the region's only democracy.