US President Donald Trump said Tuesday he has no planned talks with Iran but insisted the Strait of Hormuz remains “open and operational” despite limited traffic and an attack on a ship leaving the waterway. Earlier this week, Trump also threatened to bomb Oman as the country sought a deal with Iran to manage shipping traffic through the strait, two regional officials said Tuesday, a day after Trump reportedly made the threat if Oman “gets in the way.” Iran says the waterway will not reopen until the United States meets its conditions. As talks between Iran and Oman continue, a projectile hit a ship in the strait and Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed they had fired drones at an oil refinery in Saudi Arabia. Here’s a look at Tuesday’s latest developments in the Iran war and across the Middle East. Full coverage can be found here. Trump looms over negotiations to reopen Strait of Hormuz As Oman and Iran say they are moving closer to a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Trump said on social media Tuesday that the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports remains “in full force and effect” but claimed that all water mines had been removed and that other maritime traffic could pass freely. Trump released a map showing the strait as US territory. Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi appeared to respond to Trump’s post. “Just as Trump correctly spelled the name of the eternal Persian Gulf, soon his delusion about the Strait of Hormuz will be corrected or we will correct the delusions of this deluded man,” he wrote on These include joint Iranian and Omani management of the passage route and charging voluntary fees to ships, even if the money is used for security and maritime environmental protection. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to journalists. The White House on Tuesday addressed Trump’s comments in the Oval Office and declined to comment further on Oman. stability.” The statement came after a meeting between Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and his Omani counterpart, Badr al-Busaidi. But it did not address Trump’s latest threat against Oman. The 60-day negotiating period ended this week between the United States and Iran with no clear end to the war in sight. Subscribe to Morning Wire: Our flagship newsletter breaks down the day’s biggest headlines. Ship traffic drops significantly in the Strait Hormuz Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell significantly last week, with confirmed crossings falling by 19.5% to 95 transits. Only three ships crossed the waterway on Sunday, according to maritime data platform Kpler. 6.7% to 254 transits, while so-called dark transits, in which ships turn off transponders that transmit their location, fell from 40 to 16, Kpler said Shell damages ship in strait, causing one casualty An unidentified shell damaged the engine room of a ship in the Strait of Hormuz, near Oman, and “caused a crew casualty,” according to the Maritime Trade Operations center. of the British military in the United Kingdom. The maritime surveillance agency did not reveal any details about the ship or its cargo, and it was not clear whether the crew member was killed or injured. No environmental damage has been reported and the agency said the Oman Coast Guard was assisting other crew members and authorities were investigating. Iran-backed Houthis claim to have attacked a Saudi oil refinery. neighboring Saudi Arabia, the latest attack that threatens to reignite Yemen’s civil war and open another front in the Middle East The attack targeted a facility run by Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s state oil company, according to a report by the Houthi-run SABA news agency. There were no immediate reports of damage or comment from Saudi Arabia. The Houthis have stepped up attacks on government forces in Yemen and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, which supports the Yemeni government, and shipping. of the kingdom in the Red Sea, an important alternative to the Strait of Hormuz. Israel attack in Gaza City kills 6 An Israeli attack hit Gaza City on Tuesday, killing six people, including a child, and wounding 14 others, according to Shifa Hospital, where casualties were treated. The Israeli military said it attacked Hamas commanders in the Shati area, who it said were planning to carry out attacks against Israeli forces. The most intense attacks have subsided since a ceasefire in the more than two-year-old war came into effect in October. Israeli forces have carried out repeated airstrikes since then, killing at least 1,266 Palestinians, according to health officials in Gaza. But it does not offer a breakdown of civilians and militants. fired at the United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defense said that two ballistic missiles were launched from Iran towards the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday. One landed outside the country’s waters and the other landed within them, the UAE’s Defense Ministry said. Post on social media, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Dubai’s accusations were “detrimental to ongoing efforts to strengthen trust between countries in the region and prevent further deterioration of security.” He called on regional nations not to make “baseless accusations” against Iran. In the weeks after the United States and Israel launched a war against Iran on February 28, the United Arab Emirates was frequently attacked by missiles and drones. Iranians, but the attack reported Tuesday was the first in weeks.
