US-Iran war news highlights: US forces conducted ‘self-defense strikes’, says CENTCOM after explosions in southern Iran

US-Iran war news LIVE: Trump says countries he spoke with would be honoured to have Iran join Abraham Accords

US-Iran war news LIVE: US President Donald Trump said on Monday negotiations with Iran were "proceeding nicely" and said he asked countries including the UAE, Qatar, Pakistan, Egypt and Jordan to sign onto the Abraham Accords as part of US efforts to reach a deal with Iran.

Trump said those countries would be honored to have Iran as part of the accords, a set of agreements to normalize relations with Israel.

via Reuters

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran's central bank governor is part of the delegation, led by top negotiator Mohammad ​Bagher Ghalibaf, to Doha to discuss potential release of frozen assets as part of an eventual final Iran-US deal, Reuters reported, citing an official.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iranian top negotiator Mohammad ​Bagher Ghalibaf and foreign minister Abbas Araghchi are in Doha for talks with Qatar's prime minister on a potential US-Iran deal to end the conflict, an official briefed on the visit said on Monday.

The discussions are focused primarily on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium, the official told Reuters.

Iran's central bank governor is also part of the delegation to discuss the potential release of frozen Iranian funds as part of a final agreement, according to the official.

via Reuters

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran has said that operations at 20 airports have resumed successfully, Press TV reported. Majid Akhavan, spokesperson for the Civil Aviation Organization (CAO), said 40 percent of airports across the country have reopened, the report added. Akhavan also said that Iran's third busiest international airport in Tabriz will begin operations within the next few days.

Middle East war news LIVE: An Israeli airstrike on a tent in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday killed two people including a six-year-old girl and wounded 17 other people, including children, Palestinian health officials said.

Medics said the Israeli airstrike on a tent encampment of displaced families in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, in the south of the enclave, had killed six-year-old Mennatallah Abu Libda and a 31-year-old woman, Hanan Mahmoud.

The attack was carried out by two helicopters, witnesses said.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment.

via Reuters

US-Iran war news LIVE: ussian President Vladimir Putin and Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa discussed by phone the need to find a rapid diplomatic resolution to the Iran crisis, the Kremlin said on Monday.

via Reuters

US-Iran war news LIVE: Chinese leader Xi Jinping thanked visiting Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for Pakistan’s work in mediating talks between the US and Iran — underscoring Beijing’s push to end a war that poses a range of risks to the world’s second-biggest economy.

“We appreciate the constructive role played by Pakistan, and I am willing to extend my warm greetings to the Pakistani people through Prime Minister Sharif,” Xi said when the two sides met at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Monday.

Xi also singled out Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir, who has played a central role in the peace talks and was also in Beijing. “I know that you have just returned from Iran and made positive efforts for the current peace,” the Chinese leader said.

Xi indicated that ending the war that has led to the biggest energy crisis in decades was a top priority when Vladimir Putin visited Beijing last week, saying that restarting the fighting was “unacceptable.” The war presents challenges for China’s economy, pushing up shipping costs, hurting demand abroad and briefly causing an outflow of cash.

via Bloomberg

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei on Monday said the focus of indirect talks with the United States is to end aggression on all fronts and that the nuclear issue or the management of the Strait of Hormuz are not part of the negotiations, Press TV reported.

“The focus of the negotiations is on ending the war, and at this stage we are not discussing nuclear issues,” Baghaei was quoted as saying.

US-Iran war news LIVE: US President Donald Trump said on Monday that a deal with Iran would either be "great and meaningful" or there would be "no deal."

"The deal with Iran will either be a great and meaningful one, or there will be no deal," he wrote on Truth Social.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Crude oil prices fell more than 4 per cent in futures trade on Monday, tracking a sharp selloff in global markets amid growing optimism over a possible breakthrough between the US and Iran that could pave the way for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

On the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), crude oil for June delivery plunged by ₹412, or 4.49 per cent, to ₹8,756 per barrel in a business turnover of 13,313 lots.

Analysts said easing geopolitical concerns and expectations of restoration in oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz dragged crude prices.

According to reports, Iran and the United States have reached a broad framework to end their over two-month-long conflict, though a potential memorandum of understanding does not yet specify arrangements related to the management of the Strait of Hormuz.

via PTI

US-Iran war news LIVE: At a time when the Iran war is upending energy flows and roiling economies across the world, Saudi Arabia is scoring billions in added oil revenue and building on ambitions to become a trading hub.

Even as the war has slowed economic growth and driven a jump in defense and logistics spending, surging oil prices combined with contingency planning have bolstered revenue. Simultaneously, the kingdom’s Red Sea coast has emerged as a vital corridor to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, which has been all but closed to commerce since the war began.

“Saudi Arabia has shown it is the indispensable Red Sea backstop,” said Hesham Alghannam, a Riyadh-based scholar at the Malcolm H Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center.

That’s turning the Gulf nation into a key transit route for supply chains across the peninsula, a potential boost for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s $1.3 trillion economy. Despite those gains, the kingdom faces rising competition. Alternative trading routes are also developing on the eastern coast of the United Arab Emirates as well as in Oman. And both the UAE and Qatar have been ramping up their own energy flows.

via Bloomberg

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran's top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf has been re-elected as the speaker of the Iran Parliament. Ghalibaf has been at the forefront of negotiations with the US being mediated by Pakistan.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran’s foreign ministry said negotiations to end the war were ongoing but cautioned that no imminent agreement with the United States should be expected. Tehran added that nuclear discussions were not currently the focus of talks.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Global oil prices fell nearly 5% to two-week lows after optimism grew around a possible US-Iran understanding that could reopen the Strait of Hormuz and ease fears of prolonged supply disruptions.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Chinese President Xi Jinping met Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Beijing amid global diplomatic efforts to formally end the Iran war. Sharif also held talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang as regional powers pushed for stability in West Asia.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, speaking in Beijing alongside army chief Asim Munir, said peace efforts are progressing in the right direction amid renewed diplomatic activity linked to the Iran conflict.

“The world is passing through a critical moment,” he said.

“Things are moving in the right direction. I would like to thank China’s support to promote peace,” he added.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Israel may “undermine” ongoing US-Iran talks, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei has said. He commented on negotiations and a recent Trump-Netanyahu phone call.

“The Zionist entity are doing their best to undermine the agreement and we do expect some actions by Israel,” he said.

“Nothing is ruled out; however, those countries calling for war and hostilities, the Zionist entity included, are widely felt in the media, and they may have a bearing on US officials,” he added.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran says ships may be charged for “navigational services” in Strait of Hormuz amid tightening control. (AFP)

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran's FM Abbas Araghchi will not travel to New York for a UN Security Council meeting due to “overall circumstances” and a US visa-related issue, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman said.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Israeli political commentator Ori Goldberg said he believes Trump will prioritise US interests over Israel amid reports of Netanyahu's efforts to undermine a Washington–Tehran deal.

He wrote on X that “Israel can offer him absolutely nothing of use” and added, “Israel is as weak as it has ever been, and it has not yet even begun to pay the costs of its genocide” in Gaza.

In another post, he said, “Israel and the US were never fully synched on Iran.” He added, “Trump harped on the nuclear program. Israel wanted nominal regime change but mostly death and destruction.”

US-Iran war news LIVE: Esmaeil Baghaei said there were “no guarantees” the US will honour its commitments in any potential deal. He added that Tehran was not concerned about “threats”.

He said, “The changes in recent weeks have been caused by mediation from Pakistan and other countries,” and said that discussions also included a clause to end the ongoing Israeli war on Lebanon.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Thousands of people in Gaza are suffering from skin infections. UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East) said its teams are treating cases linked to rodents and insects, with more than 125,000 infections reported across the enclave.

The agency said its sanitation teams are spraying “safe pesticides in areas where huge numbers of displaced people still live in overcrowded makeshift settlements.”

It warned that shortages are worsening conditions, saying, “Acute shortages of fuel, pesticides, tents and medications are limiting the response to the crisis. Unrestricted flows of sanitation and medical supplies are urgently needed in Gaza.”

UNRWA added that displaced families living in tents continue to struggle with access to clean water and rising exposure to disease-carrying animals amid limited reconstruction efforts.

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said “we have reached a conclusion on a large portion of the discussion topics this is correct but this does not mean that the signing of an agreement is imminent,” while stressing that a US-Iran deal is not close.

He said the talks are currently focused on ending the war and not on detailed nuclear issues, adding that Iran is working on safeguarding its national interests.

“The focus of the negotiations is on ending the war, and at this stage we are not discussing the details of the nuclear issue. Threats, pressures, depictions, and publishing caricatures are well part of politics in that part of the world. We pursue our work in the field of action. We see the facts, regardless of the perceptions and depictions of the opposing side.”

He also said Iran will respond when necessary: “We are focused on designing and advancing the best methods to safeguard Iran’s national interests. Wherever necessary, we respond. We have our own style, and we are not going to copy the enemy’s style and approach.

As a civilised, stylish, and powerful nation, wherever we deem necessary, in whatever way is appropriate, we will respond to the enemy, as we have already done so.”

US-Iran war news LIVE: Iran is not discussing the nuclear issue in current negotiations and is focused on ending the war, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei has said.

He said Tehran is working to find “the best solution for the country” and will respond to the “enemy” at a time of its choosing, as it has done before.

“At this stage, we are not talking about the nuclear issue and our focus is on ending the war.”