Trump says Iran talks to resume Monday; Tehran seeks US MoU commitment

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said that negotiations between Iran and Oman on the Strait of Hormuz are in their final stages, the official news agency IRNA reported.

Araghchi said on Sunday during a cabinet meeting that the negotiations have progressed and are on the path of being finalised.

Elaborating on the Iran-Oman talks in an interview with state-run IRIB TV on Sunday, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei stressed that reaching an agreement between the two countries is not related to the waterway's reopening or continued closure, reports Xinhua news agency.

Baghaei said Iran and Oman are working to designate a "new route" in the strait within a traffic separation scheme format that can ensure both sides' sovereign rights as well as Iran's national interests and security.

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has echoed President Donald Trump’s claim that the US military was prepared to launch attacks on Iran at levels “not seen since World War II”.

In a post on X, Hegseth said the Pentagon “remains ready” and is “locked and loaded”.

The US military has redirected 38 commercial vessels as part of the renewed naval blockade of Iranian ports, according to the latest figures reported by the command amid continued enforcement operations in the region.

The update came as the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln transited the Arabian Sea, with a US Marine Corps F-35C stealth fighter launching from its deck in support of the mission.

The blockade of maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports resumed on July 14 at the direction of President Donald Trump.

Israeli strikes on Gaza hit multiple residential buildings and killed at least 13 people, authorities said Sunday, despite Hamas saying it agreed to the latest stage of a deal to end the war.

Hamas said Friday it had agreed to a plan championed by US President Donald Trump that includes provisions for handing over its weapons and the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip.

Israel has yet to officially comment on the agreement, but a political source has told AFP "that there will be no withdrawal whatsoever" without Hamas's "genuine disarmament".

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported an explosion in close proximity to a tanker off the coast of Oman on Sunday.

According to UKMTO, in an X post at 4.37am on Monday (August 3, 2026) the incident occurred approximately 20 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, Oman.

It confirmed that all crew members and the vessel are reported to be safe following the incident.

Maritime authorities have launched an investigation into the event. Meanwhile, the UKMTO has advised all vessels transiting the area to exercise caution and immediately report any suspicious activity to the agency.

US President Donald Trump said that negotiations with Iran will begin Monday after he decided to hold off on new "disastrous" strikes against the Islamic republic to pursue a deal.

"Obviously, they don't want to be attacked. They knew the extent of the attack because they saw it forming," Trump told reporters on Sunday aboard Air Force One. 

"Now what we're doing is we're talking to them in the form of a negotiation. It begins tomorrow afternoon," he said, without providing further details of the venue of the talks or the participants.

President Donald Trump said on August 1 that he would halt new planned attacks on Iran pending renewed talks to wind down the war and revive stalled cargo traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. It was the latest in a pattern of announcements the US president has made to first threaten massive strikes and then later call them off. The abrupt shifts have been a defining feature of the five-month conflict that has sent prices of oil and basic goods soaring — and the announcements to date have been upended by renewed attacks days or even hours afterward.

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by the US and Iran in June will serve as the foundation of the country’s future foreign relations, the Iranian leader said early on Monday.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that the deal was the product of collective decision-making by Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) and all members of the council are aligned with the agreement.

“I believe that this memorandum of understanding will be the centre of gravity of our foreign relations in the future,” he wrote in a post on X.

“We must strive to force the enemy to remain committed to what it has signed. The security of the country, the region and our allies will be enhanced with this memorandum of understanding.”

Iran has prepared an "extensive" plan for responding to potential attacks on Iranian infrastructure, the country's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported Saturday. Tasnim cited a senior security official as saying that Iran has prepared an "extensive" plan in response to US media's recent claims about possible US and Israeli strikes against its infrastructure.

 Day 152: Trump pauses strikes as Iran demands US honour deal

Day 152: Trump announces Hamas disarmament deal

Day 151: GCC condemns renewed Iranian attacks on Kuwait, Jordan

Day 150: US, Saudi forces strike Iran-backed militias in Iraq

Day 149: Trump holds 'positive' talks with Zelenskyy, Netanyahu

Day 148: Saudi air defences foil drone attack on oil facilities

Day 147: Iran says military ready as Netanyahu heads to US

Day 146: Iran says it earned $11.5b in oil sales during the war

Day 145: US-Iran war escalates as Tehran targets US bases in Gulf