Iran's demand for reparations from the United States for five months of bombardment has escalated tensions in a standoff that's kept the Strait of Hormuz closed and energy prices surging ahead of November's midterm elections. President Donald Trump rejected the demand Monday, saying Iranian negotiators hadn't raised it until now.
Trump said he's now demanding "compensation from Iran, for all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded with their roadside bombs and many conflicts." He also said he wants Tehran to compensate the families of Iranian protesters who were killed. "I have instructed my representatives to put this firmly into any, and all, future negotiations," he added.
Iran Won't Reopen Strait Without U.S. Concessions
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said Iran won't reopen the Strait of Hormuz until the U.S. meets its conditions. Tehran wants the U.S. to end its blockade of Iranian ports, lift economic sanctions and release Iran's frozen assets. It also said the U.S. must pay compensation for war damage. "It is up to the U.S. side to stop and make amends for its illegal and destructive actions," Baghaei said.
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has had severe economic consequences. Roughly one-fifth of the world's traded oil supplies passed through the waterway before the war. That's kept energy prices a major focus of U.S. politics ahead of November's midterm elections, hitting working families' budgets and threatening economic stability.
The U.S. government has blamed Iran-backed militants for the deaths and injuries of hundreds of Americans over several decades. Those include a 1983 bombing that killed 241 U.S. military personnel at a Marine compound in Beirut 43 years ago and the deaths of at least 603 U.S. troops in Iraq between 15 to 23 years ago.
Economic Hardship Mounts Inside Iran
Iran's president said Monday the country's supreme leader is calling for "unity and cohesion" as the Islamic Republic faces economic hardships and sanctions stemming from its war with the United States. President Masoud Pezeshkian described a nearly seven-hour meeting with Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in an interview with Iranian state television that aired amid apparent tensions among the Islamic Republic's leaders.
Pezeshkian told the state-run IRIB that he and Khamenei discussed "people's livelihoods, the state of the market, employment, people's housing," as well as "problems that are now being created as a result of the (U.S.) sanctions." He didn't say when or where they met. He said Khamenei emphasized unity. "All of the enemy's plans are aimed at creating division," Pezeshkian said. "What we have to do is prevent divisions from emerging."
It's only the second time the Iranian president has said he has met with the new supreme leader since Khamenei was appointed earlier this year following a U.S.-Israeli strike that killed his father. Khamenei, believed to have been wounded in the same attack, hasn't appeared in public since then.
Hard-Liner Appointed to Security Council
Iran on Sunday appointed Mohsen Rezaei, a military adviser to its new supreme leader, to head its powerful Supreme National Security Council. Rezaei commanded Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard from 1981 to 1997, a period that includes Iran's war with Iraq in the 1980s. The 71-year-old hard-liner last week threatened American forces with "serious risks and casualties" if the U.S. didn't lift its blockade of Iranian ports.
Rezaei replaces Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, who will become a political adviser to Khamenei. The Institute for the Study of War, a U.S.-based think tank, wrote that Rezaei appears willing to negotiate with the U.S. to "secure Iran's maximalist aims, including control of the Strait of Hormuz," but has also been "unwilling to present any Iranian concessions."
Israeli Settlers Prompt Military Zone Declaration
Israel's military said Monday it had declared a Christian-majority town in the occupied West Bank a closed military zone to keep out Israeli settlers and other non-residents. The new tactic is designed to keep Israelis out of Taybeh, which has been subject to arson, vandalism and settlers coming onto private and village property.
The army said Palestinian residents and journalists would be allowed unless soldiers determine their presence poses a threat. The army said its troops would detain suspects and disperse gatherings to keep the peace. The designation comes after months of the army and police struggling to maintain order throughout the territory, where at least 87 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli settlers or soldiers in 2026, according to the Ramallah-based Palestinian Health Ministry.
Houthi Attacks Continue in Yemen
Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacked a Red Sea port town controlled by government forces on Sunday, killing seven and injuring 30 people. Yemen's Defense Ministry, which operates under its internationally recognized government, said four military personnel and three civilians were killed. Clashes continued Monday near the village of Taiz. The Houthi group said a 13-year-old child was killed by artillery shelling and another child was injured.
The attack on Mokha is the latest in one of the largest waves of Houthi strikes on Yemeni military positions and areas held by the Saudi-backed government since a truce four years ago. It comes as threats to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz have renewed focus on the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait at its southern tip.
Why This Matters:
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz is inflicting economic pain on ordinary people worldwide through higher energy costs, while diplomatic brinkmanship prevents resolution of a conflict with mounting civilian casualties. Iran's demand for war reparations reflects the human cost of five months of bombardment, while U.S. counter-demands highlight decades of violence attributed to Iranian proxies. The appointment of a hard-liner to Iran's security council and the continued violence in Yemen and the West Bank — where 87 Palestinians have been killed this year — underscore how regional instability compounds the suffering of civilians caught between governments and armed groups. The economic hardships facing Iranian citizens, discussed in the seven-hour leadership meeting, show how sanctions and conflict create humanitarian consequences that extend far beyond political disputes. With midterm elections approaching, the political pressure to resolve the energy crisis may conflict with the careful diplomacy needed to protect human rights and prevent further escalation.