Day 89 | Iran accuses US of breaking truce after new strikes
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Iran accused the United States of breaching their ceasefire Tuesday and warned it was ready to retaliate after overnight US strikes targeting Iranian missile sites and mine-laying boats threatened a deal to end the war.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced Monday the new wave of bombings, and China urged both sides to respect the truce and to resolve their dispute peacefully.
Iranian state media reported overnight blasts in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, near the Strait of Hormuz, and the country's Revolutionary Guards said its forces had downed a US drone entering its airspace and had fired at an F-35 fighter jet.
"The US terrorist army, continuing its illegal and unjustified actions since the ceasefire ... has, in the past 48 hours, committed a gross violation of the ceasefire in the Hormozgan region," the Iranian foreign ministry said.
It added that Tehran "will not leave any evil unanswered and will not hesitate to defend the Iranian nation," without elaborating.
In a statement marking the start of the Eid al-Adha holiday, Tehran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei declared that Washington was losing its influence in the Middle East and warned countries in the region to stop hosting bases from which the US could launch attacks.
The United States, he said in a written statement, "in addition to no longer having any safe haven in the region for aggression and the establishment of military bases, is moving further and further away from its former position with each passing day".
Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for US Central Command, said: "US forces conducted self-defence strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces."
Despite the strikes, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that a deal remained within reach.
But he remained firm on the Strait of Hormuz, the key oil and gas shipping route which Iran is seeking to control.
“There were some talks going on in Qatar today, so we'll see if we can make progress. I think it's a lot of talking back and forth going on about specific language in the initial document, so it'll take a few days," Rubio told reporters, during a visit to India.
He said the strait was "going to be open one way or the other," adding: "What's happening there is unlawful, it's illegal, it's unsustainable for the world, it's unacceptable."
Day 90 of the US-‘Israeli’ war on Iran
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Read more: Day 90 | Trump says he won’t rush Iran deal because ‘I don’t care about the midterms’
Sirens blast in Kiryat Shmona, Manara
The 'Israeli' Home Front Command has activated emergency sirens across the northern border towns of Kiryat Shmona and Manara in the eastern sector, warning residents of a hostile drone infiltration launched from southern Lebanon.
Iranian TV reports draft agreement on US withdrawal, maritime traffic control
Iranian state television reported details of a draft memorandum of understanding that would reportedly include the withdrawal of US military forces from areas surrounding Iran and the lifting of the blockade, as indirect talks between Tehran and Washington continue.
According to the report, Iran would in return restore commercial shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz to pre-war levels within a month, while military vessels would not be covered under the proposed agreement.
The draft also states that Tehran would oversee maritime traffic through the strategic waterway in coordination with Oman.
Iranian TV said the framework could be adopted through a UN Security Council resolution if a final agreement is reached within 60 days. However, it added that the general framework of the memorandum, being mediated by Islamabad, has not yet been finalized.
Iran says US, 'Israel' goal still to overthrow Islamic republic
Iran's intelligence ministry said on Wednesday that the goal of the United States and 'Israel' remained to overthrow the Islamic republic and break up the country.
"The enemy is now pursuing through other means the objective of overthrowing and partitioning the country, which it openly declared at the beginning of the recent war but failed to achieve through military attack," the ministry said in a statement carried by Iranian media.
Iran Guards official says 'low' possibility of renewed war with US
An Iranian Revolutionary Guards official said on Wednesday that renewed war with the United States was unlikely but warned that Iran stood ready against any attack.
"The possibility of war is low because of the enemy's weakness, the armed forces are lying in wait with full magazines," said Mohammad Akbarzadeh, deputy political chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, was quoted by Tasnim news agency as saying.
"Do not doubt that we will turn the area from Chabahar to Mahshahr into a graveyard for aggressors," he said, naming places at each end of Iran's lengthy southern coast.
Iran's Tabriz International Airport set to reopen today
Tabriz International Airport is expected to resume operations today, joining other Iranian airports reopened after disruptions during the US-'Israeli' war.
VIDEO - Four ‘Israeli’ soldiers struck by one Hezbollah drone
Footage released by Hezbollah showing ‘Israeli’ soldiers scrambling for cover near a military vehicle while being chased by a drone in the area of Bint Jbeil in Southern Lebanon.
Lebanon says ‘Israeli’ strikes kill 31 on Tuesday
Lebanon said ‘Israeli’ strikes on the country's south killed 31 people on Tuesday, as ‘Israel’ said it was intensifying attacks despite a truce in its war with Hezbollah.
In a statement, the health ministry said 31 people, including at least four children and three women, were killed in attacks and 40 wounded.
Fourteen were killed in Burj al-Shamali near Tyre.
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Read more: Day 88 | US hits Iran with new strikes, despite ceasefire
