Two Iranian gas infrastructure sites have allegedly come under attack, according to Fars news agency
The Strait of Hormuz could be “open very soon” if diplomatic talks go well with Iran, US President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday. The Iranian Foreign Ministry, however, has flatly denied the US president’s claims that any talks have taken place, either directly or through an intermediary.
A gas pressure regulation station in Isfahan and a gas pipeline to the Khorramshahr power plant were both reportedly damaged on Monday – although it remains unclear whether the strikes came before or after Trump said he called off US strikes targeting Iranian energy facilities for at least five days.
Meanwhile, Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said while his “friend” Trump seeks to “leverage the massive achievements of the IDF and the US military” in potential talks, Israel is “continuing to strike” both Iran and Lebanon to keep up the pressure.
Trump upped the ante over the weekend, threatening strikes on Iranian energy facilities if Tehran did not lift its threat to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, to which Iran responded by publishing a list of power stations and energy facilities across the Gulf that it would target. Iran has kept the vital shipping route closed to most vessels since February 28, when the US and Israel launched the first wave of strikes against the country.
Here are the latest developments:
- Trump has announced that he called off strikes targeting Iranian energy facilities, following alleged “productive conversations” with Tehran. Trump also claimed that there will be “a very serious form of a regime change” inside Iran. Tehran has denied that any conversations took place with the US.
- Asked if Iran would still be able to control the crucial waterway, one of the world’s busiest oil shipping channels, Trump replied it would be “jointly controlled” by him and “whoever the next Ayatollah” is. Tehran, however, has already announced the Islamic Republic’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.
- Trump’s announcement coincided with significant losses on European markets and triggered a volatile bounce, as well as a 10% drop in the price of crude oil.
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