President Donald Trump said the United States will meet with Iran in Doha on Tuesday, following a weekend exchange of fire near the Strait of Hormuz that strained a fragile ceasefire. A Trump administration official said Sunday that both sides agreed to "stand down for now" and that vessels can move freely, though it was not immediately clear what Iran's position was on the matter.
Iran has not officially confirmed that the talks will take place. However, a diplomatic source with knowledge of the negotiations told CNN that technical teams working to implement the agreement are scheduled to meet in the Qatari capital in the "coming days." A senior US official also said technical talks regarding the memorandum of understanding were "on track" as planned.
Weekend escalation and military exchanges
The recent hostilities began Thursday when Iran attacked a Singapore-flagged container ship near the Strait of Hormuz. Trump described the move as a "foolish violation" of the initial agreement to end the war. On Friday, the US military conducted strikes around the strait, targeting Iranian missile and drone storage locations and coastal radar sites.
On Saturday, Iran said it launched strikes on American military targets in the Middle East, though a US official said the drones did not reach their target. The US military then conducted more strikes "in direct response to continued Iranian aggression," according to US Central Command. Iran subsequently launched missiles and drones at US facilities in neighboring countries including Kuwait and Bahrain, according to Reuters, which cited the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. There were no US casualties or major damage to the facilities, a US official told Reuters.
Bahrain and Kuwait confirmed they were targeted, with a residential building in Bahrain heavily damaged. Qatar's Interior Ministry said a Qatari citizen on a vessel was killed after sustaining injuries from shrapnel resulting from "the military operations in the area."
Shipping and Strait of Hormuz traffic
Marine traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has modestly picked up in the last 36 hours, according to ship tracking data. However, a total of 124 commodity vessels transited through the strait since Thursday, according to data intelligence firm Kpler, which is similar to the number of vessels that used to pass through in a single day before the war.
Three distinct routes for ships have now emerged, with different authorities vying to organize transit. One southern route goes through waters off Oman; a second route, used before the war, passes through the middle of the strait; and a third route further north is controlled by Iran. The lack of clarity over which route to take is complicating efforts for trade to return to pre-war levels, leaving ship operators facing uncertainty and risk.
Iran demands full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon
Iran said Sunday that a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Lebanon must be part of a final deal with the US, as fighting continues to strain the tentative agreement. "The withdrawal of occupiers from all occupied Lebanese areas is necessary for reaching a final and lasting agreement to establish regional stability," Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said, according to the official Iranian news agency IRNA.
Iran also insisted on the full implementation of the first clause of the memorandum, which calls for "the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon." Fighting between Hezbollah and Israel continued in Lebanon over the weekend despite a recent agreement between the countries. On Friday, the Israeli and Lebanese governments agreed a process by which the Lebanese military would gradually take control of zones in southern Lebanon.
First commercial flight between UAE and Iran since war began
A commercial plane flew from Iran to the United Arab Emirates on Monday in the first direct flight between the two countries since the war erupted four months ago. The Sepehran Airlines plane landed at Dubai International Airport at 1:39 p.m., according to the airport's website. Another flight from Dubai to Tehran is scheduled for later Monday.
The UAE bore the brunt of Tehran's attacks during the US-Israeli war, with Iran firing nearly 2,000 missiles and drones at the UAE, targeting military, energy and civilian sites. Relations between Iran and the UAE remained turbulent even after Washington and Tehran reached a ceasefire in April.
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