Washington (GNP): United States President Donald Trump has said Washington will not attack Iran before the midterm congressional elections on November 3, adding that the two countries are holding talks aimed at ending the months-long conflict.
Trump said Iran was in “very bad condition” economically and militarily. He also said the US blockade would stay in full force, and claimed that 22 million barrels of oil passed through the Strait of Hormuz overnight, with none going to or coming from Iran.
That claim sits uneasily with preliminary data published on Thursday. It showed only 4 million barrels crossing the strait on Tuesday, down sharply from a daily average of 15 million in late September.
The oil figures matter because reopening the strait, a vital global energy route, is central to the diplomacy. Iran and the US have exchanged proposals in recent weeks aimed at ending the war and reopening the waterway.
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday that negotiations are continuing, with messages passing through mediators. He said Tehran has received the US views on its seven-day plan, which proposes ending the war and reopening the strait within a week if Washington accepts its conditions. Araghchi added that Iran is reviewing those views and will respond in the coming days.
The nuclear file remains the sticking point. Iran’s state broadcaster reported that Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said Tehran would neither abandon uranium enrichment nor hand over its stockpile of enriched uranium. He said the programme complies with Iran’s safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
His remarks followed a call from US Vice President JD Vance for “meaningful” reductions in Iran’s enrichment capacity.
Washington is also keeping up economic pressure while talks continue. The US Treasury Department announced fresh sanctions on Thursday targeting individuals, networks and 17 vessels allegedly involved in transporting Iranian crude oil, petroleum products and petrochemicals.
The pressure extends beyond Iran’s borders, as fighting between Yemen’s Houthi group and Saudi-backed forces has intensified. At least three people were reportedly killed and eight injured in Saudi-led coalition strikes on Yemen on Thursday.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said Saudi forces carried out 59 air and missile strikes on Sanaa and 10 provinces in 24 hours. The Houthis claimed missile attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, and ballistic missile strikes on Najran International Airport and King Khalid Air Base in the southwest.
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Coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki said forces intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles heading towards Riyadh and one towards Khamis Mushait. The Saudi Civil Defense said debris from an intercepted missile caused material damage to a kindergarten and a medical complex in Riyadh.
The latest attacks followed Houthi strikes on two Saudi airports on Tuesday and Wednesday, which left three people dead and 36 injured, according to the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation. The Houthis claimed responsibility for both.
Trump said, “We are having productive discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
Managing Editor at Global News Pakistan (GNP), with a Bachelor's degree in International Relations from Riphah International University, graduated with a Gold Medal. Reach out at sabahtareengnp@gmail.com
