Talks between Oman and Iran on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and their respective territorial waterways have made progress, two regional sources told CBS News. The Iranian military said it halted retaliatory attacks against U.S. allies in the Middle East, after Washington paused its strikes on Iran for the last two nights.
That pause followed consecutive nights of strikes by the U.S. A CBS News poll found that the Iran conflict is marked by feelings of uncertainty, with most respondents saying it's more difficult than President Trump expected. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday accused Russia of assisting Iran target U.S.
bases in the Middle East with advanced satellite imagery, just days after President Trump said the two countries were not involved in the war . The U.S. military said Friday it disabled a commercial ship that attempted to evade the blockade on Iranian ports.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani held a phone call Sunday with Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the deputy ruler of Abu Dhabi and national security adviser of the United Arab Emirates, to discuss "bilateral relations and ways to support and enhance bilateral cooperation," said Qatar's Foreign Affairs Ministry in a statement. "They also addressed the latest regional developments, particularly diplomatic efforts and joint coordination to de-escalate tensions and strengthen security and stability in the region," the statement continued, adding that Al-Thani "stressed the importance of all parties adhering to dialogue and diplomacy" and "ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz." https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/iran-war-us-trump-strait-hormuz-middle-east/#post-update-4268f61b link copied Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday warned that his country would respond to a deadly attack by Ukraine on an Iranian ship in the Caspian Sea. It came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Kyiv had carried out long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea against vessels transporting military cargo involving Iran, underscoring the increasingly international dimensions of Russia's war in Ukraine.
"Zelenskyy has attacked an Iranian commercial vessel, killing a sailor," Araghchi said on X , describing it as "a blatant UN Charter violation done at Israel's behest to drag Europe into its war." Iran's foreign ministry said the attack caused the ship "to explode, killing one sailor and injuring several others." The Islamic Republic "has never intervened in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine," the ministry said in a statement. On Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media that armed forces had achieved "very strong results with long-range strikes in the Caspian Sea — including vessels used in military cargo shipments involving Iran, as well as a warship." Ukraine's intelligence services, for their part, reported on Telegram that drone attacks had been carried out against "cargo vessels under international sanctions that were used to transport military cargo between Iran and Russia." https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/iran-war-us-trump-strait-hormuz-middle-east/#post-update-3ca467a9 link copied More than 400 U.S. service members have been flown out of the Middle East for various types of treatment since Operation Epic Fury began, a U.S.
official told CBS News. However, most cases were not combat-related, the official said. Operation Epic Fury, the military campaign carried out jointly by the U.S.
and Israel against Iran, started Feb. 28. https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/iran-war-us-trump-strait-hormuz-middle-east/#post-update-7b6e7b71 link copied Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei, said on Sunday that the Strait of Hormuz's status remains unchanged, as Iranian and Omani officials continued talks to manage the safe transit of ships through the waterway that passes between both countries.
Baghaei said the talks had made progress. They took place after Tehran asserted that its interim deal with the U.S. allows it to manage shipping in the strait for now, and objected to U.S.
efforts to support a route through the strait that passes close to Oman instead. The strait was considered an international waterway before the war. The U.S.
military on Saturday said its recently reimposed naval blockade against Iran continued, with a dozen commercial ships redirected, two disabled and two boarded. U.S. forces "remain highly vigilant, focused, lethal, and ready," it added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures" that he supports Mr. Trump's pressure on Iran to end its nuclear program. During his upcoming visit to Washington, Netanyahu suggested he wouldn't share new intelligence with Mr.
Trump and instead listen to "what he has in mind, because I think in many ways, it's his decision." https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/iran-war-us-trump-strait-hormuz-middle-east/#post-update-1d5cb56e link copied Ahead of his scheduled trip to Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu again warned of the retaliation that would follow any potential attack by Iran. "If Iran attacks Israel, either directly or through proxies, either with ballistic missiles, or UAVs, or killer drones, it will make a terrible mistake," said Netanyahu on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures." "Because our response, Israel's response, will be very, very forceful." Speaking about dismantling Iran's nuclear program, he suggested that military actions carried out by the U.S. and Israel "pushed them back a good few years" by targeting top Iranian nuclear scientists and nuclear facilities.
But, he added, that "doesn't mean that they can't try again." https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/iran-war-us-trump-strait-hormuz-middle-east/#post-update-f39ab70f link copied Discussions between Iranian officials and their Omani counterparts over the last two days have been constructive, one Iranian official told CBS News on Sunday. Talks to reopen the Strait of Hormuz are also moving in a positive direction, the official said. This diplomacy aims to reopen waterways around the Strait.
It's directly linked to the U.S. halting strikes on Iran for the last two consecutive nights, although President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth say the Strait is open already, and the U.S. controls it.
The U.S. Central Command paused bombings Friday and Saturday after 13 straight days of strikes. Tehran also paused bombings on Sunday.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz told "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Sunday that the pause was aimed at "giving diplomacy some space." "It's giving diplomacy a little bit of time. The president tried diplomacy last year, tried it this year.
He is a president of peace. He is giving diplomacy a chance," said Waltz, who added that the U.S. will gauge how things are going in the coming days.
"Make no mistake, assets, additional military assets, are moving into the region. The regime should believe the president when he says they're locked and loaded." In a letter dated July 10, Trump gave formal notification to Congress that hostilities against Iran resumed on July 7. https://www.cbsnews.com/live-updates/iran-war-us-trump-strait-hormuz-middle-east/#post-update-813a79e8 link copied United States ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz called reports that the U.S.
military does not have enough firepower in the Middle East "nonsense" in an appearance on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan." "Not only do we have what we need in the theater, there's more (assets) moving into the theater," Waltz said. CBS News has reported that U.S. forces cannot sustain the rate at which it has expended precision munitions.
Previous reports showed that the U.S. military was using such munitions faster than they can be replaced. Other reporting has shown a shortage of indicators.
Waltz did not address the specific...
