Iran's Revolutionary Guards: Hormuz to stay closed until US meets all conditions

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has said the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until the United States accepts all of Tehran's conditions. The IRGC described the waterway as now effectively a "theatre of war" rather than simply a shipping route.

Iran's security official Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr on Saturday set out a list of demands for reopening the strait, including an end to what he called "war and aggression" against Iran and its allies in Lebanon, Palestine, Yemen and Iraq. Other demands include lifting the US counterblockade of Iranian ports, ending sanctions, releasing frozen assets, and compensation for wartime damage.

Iran has maintained an effective blockade of the strait since attacks by the US and Israel in late February, and has sought to charge tolls for passage while striking vessels it accuses of trying to bypass its preferred shipping route. Foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said talks with Oman over transit arrangements were nearing their final stages, though reopening remains contingent on further conditions and compensation. President Masoud Pezeshkian said he believes now is the best moment for an agreement with Washington.

The UAE said on Saturday that Iran struck a tanker linked to its state oil company with a missile while it was transiting the strait, with no injuries reported. Britain's maritime trade monitor UKMTO reported a separate vessel catching fire after being hit by an unidentified projectile, though the blaze was extinguished. US Central Command said it has let through more than 30 ships for humanitarian purposes since the blockade began, while turning away 53 vessels, disabling two and boarding two others.

Netanyahu rejects Gaza plan

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his cabinet that Israel rejects the 15-point Gaza plan accepted by Hamas in late July and endorsed by US president Donald Trump. The plan calls for Hamas to hand over its weapons to a new Palestinian governing body, with Israel beginning a troop withdrawal in parallel. Netanyahu said Israeli forces will not pull out until Hamas is "genuinely" disarmed, and will keep countering threats to Israeli troops and citizens. He said Israel is discussing its objections with Washington but insists on "real, not fictitious" disarmament — a goal members of the Board of Peace consider unrealistic.