Trump Says He Has Decided To 'Cancel' Impending Attack On Iran, Insists Deal Is Close
US President Donald Trump said he has decided to "hold off" on any new attacks on Iran, saying that "the perimeters" of a deal have been agreed to with Tehran and adding that Israel was joining him in the commitment.
"The U.S.A. is locked and loaded and ready to go against the Islamic Republic of Iran, at levels of Military Terror, Strength, and Power not seen since World War II. Despite this, we have just been asked by Iran, and other Middle Eastern Countries, to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to," Trump posted on Truth Social late on August 1.
"This would include the Immediate, Complete, and Total OPENING OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT, and an end to Iran’s nuclear threat."
"Based on this request, I have agreed, for the future benefit of the WORLD and, likewise, the survival of a successful and prosperous Iran, to cancel the attack, subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL," he wrote.
"The Country of Israel joins me in this commitment. Get to work, everybody, and get it DONE!" Trump added.
Trump has often threatened major attacks on Iran only to call them off, claiming that an agreement between Washington and Tehran was imminent. Until now, a lasting peace agreement has been elusive, with tit-for-tat strikes by both sides resuming.
Although Trump initially said the elimination of Tehran's nuclear threat was the major aim of the US-Israeli war with Iran, which began on February 28, in recent weeks he has focused on the free flow of traffic through the important Strait of Hormuz.
More than 20 percent of the world's oil and gas supplies moved through the strait prewar, but Iran has at times effectively shut down the waterway, including with attacks on ships it said had not received proper approval from Tehran. Iran has also threatened to impose fees or tolls on ships in the strait.
The US and other countries have insisted that the strait is an international waterway and is not under the control of any nation.
The United States and Iran signed a 60-day memorandum of understanding (MOU) on June 17 aimed at ending hostilities and reopening the strait. However, disputes over the meaning of the terms in the agreement have led to fresh attacks by both sides.
Trump told Axios on July 23 that he was seriously considering “a massive attack” on Iran. But he later backed down from the threat, saying on July 27 that a new round of diplomacy with Iran could produce a breakthrough, although he has always kept open the possibility of further strikes.
Israel, which is conducting a separate war with Hezbollah militants in Lebanon, has often resisted peace deals suggested by the US administration, saying it would continue its attacks as long as necessary.
Iran-backed Hezbollah, a militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon, is considered a terrorist organization by the US, while the European Union has blacklisted its armed wing but not its political branch.
Trump Rejects Iran's Plan To Reopen Strait Of Hormuz
US President Donald Trump said on September 26 that he was "rejecting" Iran's seven-day plan to reopen the key Strait of Hormuz as unacceptable.
"I'm rejecting their deal. They want to make a deal where they open the strait immediately because they're losing so badly," Trump told reporters outside the White House. "I like making a deal, too, but that deal would not be acceptable."
A day earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran had given Washington a "concrete" plan to reopen the strait, requiring steps similar to those outlined in a memorandum the two countries signed in Islamabad earlier this year.
The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has been a major obstacle to a negotiated settlement aimed at ending the war between the United States and Iran.
In response to US and Israeli attacks, Tehran restricted access to the strait at the start of the war, disrupting global oil markets and sending prices soaring. Washington, in turn, imposed a naval blockade on Iran, diverting ships and preventing them from reaching the country's ports.
Trump said the United States had "total control" over the Strait of Hormuz. He said that "massive amounts of oil" were moving through the waterway, with 29 ships crossing the chokepoint over the past day.
"They outsmarted themselves," the US president added, saying Washington had cut off one of Tehran's main sources of income with its naval blockade. "They don't have any money now, because they wanted to close the strait, and we closed it on them."
Iraq In Talks With US Over Exemption From Sanctions On Iranian Airlines
The Iraqi government said on September 26 that it was in talks with Washington to secure an exemption from US sanctions on Iranian airlines that have grounded Tehran's civilian fleet in several countries where they operate.
"The Iraqi government is holding direct talks with the American side to exempt certain Iraqi airports from these measures," the Iraqi prime minister's media office said, adding that the move would allow flights to resume "for humanitarian reasons, including medical treatment, education, religious visits."
Earlier in the week, after a number of countries, including the Middle East's biggest travel hub, the United Arab Emirates, restricted flights to and from Iran, Iraq suspended such flights at the country's airports in Baghdad, Najaf, Erbil, and Sulaimaniya.
Iran's ambassador to Iraq Mohammad Kazem Al-Sadegh said in an interview with the Iranian news agency ISNA that Tehran was in contact with the Baghdad to find a way to restore the flights, adding that there are "roughly 25 daily flights from Iran to Najaf and about 15 flights to Baghdad."
Iraqi airlines stopped flying to Iran when the conflict in the Middle East began earlier this year.
With reporting by AFP.
Trump Warned Xi Against Supporting Iran, US Ambassador Says
WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump directly warned Chinese President Xi Jinping against providing assistance to Iran during their talks in Washington, according to the US ambassador to China, offering new details about an issue that had loomed over Xi's visit.
Ambassador David Perdue, who attended the bilateral meetings, told CNBC that Trump made clear that any Chinese assistance to Tehran -- including intelligence, components, or military equipment -- was "totally unacceptable."
“There’s been indirect support we think, but there’s no direct evidence. We’re very concerned about this indirect work and we’ve made that very clear,” Perdue said.
In a separate interview with Fox News, Perdue said Beijing had given Washington assurances that it was not providing such assistance.
“We've seen movement...on that already. That's what the commitment is. They assured us yesterday they're not doing that,” he said.
The comments come after US lawmakers and national-security experts had urged Trump to confront Xi over allegations that Chinese entities have helped Iran through satellite intelligence, weapons components, and purchases of sanctioned Iranian oil.
Beijing has denied providing Tehran with military or intelligence support.
Xi instead publicly called for Washington and Tehran to return to negotiations aimed at ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran Says It Gave US 'Concrete' Plan To Reopen Strait Of Hormuz
Tehran has given Washington a "concrete" plan to reopen the key Strait of Hormuz, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on September 25.
"If the necessary conditions are met, the strait can be reopened, a normal maritime passage restored within seven days. The choice now rests with the United States," he told reporters at the United Nations.
"The actions that the United States should take are not new," Araqchi added. He did not specify the steps Washington would have to take but said they were similar to those outlined in a memorandum of understanding the two countries had signed in Islamabad earlier this year.
The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz has long been a central issue in the war between the United States and Iran and a major obstacle to a negotiated settlement aimed at ending the broader conflict in the Middle East.
Since the early days of the war, Tehran has restricted access to the waterway in response to US and Israeli attacks on Iran, disrupting global oil markets and sending prices soaring. In the following months, it also sought to impose a toll on vessels passing through the strait.
The United States, in turn, imposed a naval blockade on Iran in mid-April and reinstated it in July, diverting ships and preventing them from reaching Iranian ports.
Yemen’s President Calls On Yemenis To Mobilize Amid Houthi Attacks
Rashid al-Alimi, the Riyadh-based president of Yemen’s Saudi-backed, internationally recognized government, called on Yemenis on September 25 to mobilize and join the armed forces.
Al-Alimi also offered a future general amnesty to Iran-backed Houthi fighters and affiliates who leave the group on or after September 26.
Yemen descended into civil war in 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, ousting the internationally recognized, Saudi-backed government. A 2022 truce had largely held until recently.
In July, a spate of attacks began after the Houthis welcomed an Iranian plane to Sanaa.
Earlier this month, Houthi rebels seized nearly all of Yemen’s Red Sea coastline, giving the militant group control of the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a key chokepoint for global trade. They have also intensified attacks on energy facilities in Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter.
With reporting by Reuters.
Iraqi Airports Suspend Iranian Flights As US Targets Tehran’s Aviation Sector
Iraqi airports have suspended flights operated by Iranian airlines after the United States targeted Tehran’s aviation sector. At least five other countries have imposed similar restrictions.
All flights to and from Iran have been suspended at airports in Baghdad, Najaf, Erbil, and Sulaimaniya, according to Iraqi state media and sources cited by Reuters on September 25.
Two days earlier, Washington had announced that it would impose sanctions on any company doing business with Iranian airlines, aiming to ground Tehran's entire civilian fleet worldwide.
The announcement was followed by flight suspensions in Oman, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkmenistan, and the United Arab Emirates, the Middle East’s biggest travel hub.
With reporting by Reuters.
At Asian Games, Hadiani Becomes Iran's First Woman To Compete In Gymnastics Since 1979
Twenty-year-old gymnast Hengameh Hadiani has become the first Iranian woman to compete in gymnastics at the Asian Games since Iran’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
For 47 years, Iran’s hard-line authorities had refused to issue competition licenses to female gymnasts because of the country’s dress code restrictions.
On September 22, she placed 13th in artistic gymnastics at the Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, with Iranian state-affiliated media celebrating her achievement as a “historic performance.”
The shift in tone echoes a pattern in state media coverage of women’s participation in other sports and activities. Reports celebrating such breakthroughs often overlook the official arguments used for decades to justify the restrictions.
About three years ago, for example, Mahin Farhadizadeh, a former Iranian deputy sports minister, said that standard gymnastics violated the Islamic republic’s “cultural standards,” adding that rhythmic gymnastics had “no athletic or medal value whatsoever.”
Iran has already won 24 medals in Nagoya, including six golds, 11 silver, and seven bronze.
With reporting by IranWire and Asianet News
Bosnian Arms Probe Leads To Iran-Linked Criminal Network, Sources Tell RFE/RL
Firearms allegedly diverted into illegal channels by a police officer near Sarajevo may have reached Iran-linked criminal networks across Europe, sources familiar with a Bosnian weapons-trafficking investigation told RFE/RL's Balkan Service.
The Bosnian State Investigation and Protection Agency (SIPA), working with Europol, carried out searches this week at several locations across the country, detaining a police officer in the town of Ilijas. While under SIPA supervision, the officer obtained a gun and committed suicide.
He was suspected of misusing firearms permits issued to residents of the town and the surrounding area to purchase pistols from at least two Bosnian companies -- Bratunac and Doboj -- and rerouted them into illegal channels.
Information obtained by RFE/RL suggests that dozens of firearms were acquired by the criminal groupings through this path in 2024 and 2025.
To read the full report, click here.
Pezeshkian Offers To Dilute Uranium, Calls For Return To June MOU
Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian said Tehran is willing to dilute its stockpile of uranium enriched to 60 percent and allow international verification of its nuclear program, while calling for Washington to return to a June memorandum of understanding (MOU).
In an interview with Fox News's Bret Baier that aired on September 24, Pezeshkian rejected the possibility of Iran seeking a nuclear weapon, saying, "Not at all. Not at all." He cited a religious decree by the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei against nuclear weapons and said Iran was ready to "dilute" its enriched uranium and "submit ourselves to verification."
Pezeshkian also said Tehran remained willing to move forward with the United States on the basis of the June MOU, which established a framework for ending hostilities and negotiating a broader agreement. The agreement provided for negotiations over a period of up to 60 days.
Speaking separately to NBC News on September 24, Pezeshkian said Tehran did not want negotiations to extend until the US midterm elections. "We wish Americans to return to the MOU before the midterms," he said.
Fellow Protesters Call For Ali Zarei's Life To Be Spared
Nine Iranians who suffered eye injuries during the 2022 Women, Life, Freedom protest movement have called for international and domestic action to prevent the execution of fellow protester Ali Zarei Doozdarrehsi.
Zarei, who is being held at Ghezel Hesar Prison near Karaj, was transferred to solitary confinement on September 21, prompting concerns that his execution could be imminent. The Iran Human Rights group and HRANA reported the transfer, while Iran Human Rights said Zarei had previously sent a voice message from prison stating that his death sentence had been upheld.
Zarei was injured in one eye during the 2022 protests and later lived in Germany. He returned to Iran this year and was arrested by Intelligence Ministry agents on April 28. Branch 23 of the Tehran Revolutionary Court subsequently sentenced him to death on the charge of "corruption on Earth." HRANA said the verdict was formally communicated to him on August 23.
The nine protesters who recorded messages supporting Zarei are Ghazal Ranjkesh, Erfan Ramizipour, Mersedeh Shahinkar, Majid Movafegh, Hossein Noori-Nikoo, Hamidreza Heydari, Salar Vatan-Shenas, Parsa Ghobadi and Ali Delpasand. Their appeal was published by Reza Pahlavi's communications account on X.
The protesters also appealed to international organizations, including the UN, to intervene on Zarei's behalf.