Day 164 | Trump stresses economic pressure on Iran as strikes pause
The Pentagon has asked US defense companies to ramp up weapons production as stockpiles of key munitions run low during the Iran war, according to sources cited by CNN. The shortage has reportedly frustrated President Donald Trump as Washington seeks to maintain military leverage over Tehran while strikes remain paused.
The Trump administration is also signaling a greater focus on economic pressure against Iran. Trump said in an interview Sunday that Washington is currently “low-keying” negotiations with Tehran, indicating that direct diplomatic engagement is not the immediate priority.
In Tehran, Iranian officials have said direct talks with Washington cannot begin until the US honors agreements reached under an interim deal signed in June. Iran’s national security chief has also outlined a list of conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a key global shipping route that has remained at the center of tensions between the two countries.
Meanwhile, the conflict continues to risk spreading across the region. The Houthi group claimed new attacks targeting Saudi forces in Yemen as well as a major oil refinery. The latest strikes have renewed concerns that groups aligned with Iran could further widen the war and threaten regional security and energy infrastructure.
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Read more: Day 165 | Trump extends shipping waiver, with limits, to aid energy flow
Trump alleges US cleared mines from entire Strait of Hormuz
- Trump says US cleared mines from Hormuz.
- Claims US Navy controls strategic waterway.
- Says Strait is open to shipping.
- Warns US can escalate against Iran.
Speaking to reporters on Monday while signing an executive order reducing recommended childhood vaccines, US President Donald Trump addressed ongoing maritime and security tensions, declaring that the US has cleared all mines from the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump stated that the vital maritime passage is fully operational and heavily monitored under exclusive US naval authority.
"We cleared the mines from the entire Strait of Hormuz," Trump told reporters during the signing event.
Naval control
Elaborating on the status of maritime traffic through the region, Trump emphasized that shipping operations have resumed under the direct control of the US military.
"The Strait of Hormuz is open now and many ships are passing through, and our Navy is the only one controlling it," Trump stated.
Potential for further escalation
Despite reporting open passage through the waterway, Trump delivered a firm warning regarding future conflict dynamics with Tehran, reiterating that Washington retains operational options should circumstances demand further action.
"We still have the capability to escalate regarding Iran," Trump added.
"He is in good health," says Iran's president about supreme leader
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is in full physical health, following a meeting between the two where they discussed various issues.
Iran's Pezeshkian says he held a 'very good' seven-hour meeting with Mojtaba Khamenei
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the country will open new routes despite the blockade, adding that officials are working continuously to address ongoing challenges.
Pezeshkian said he held a “very good” seven-hour meeting with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, during which they discussed issues facing the country.
Pezeshkian said Khamenei urged national unity and cohesion, arguing that the enemy is currently focused on creating divisions inside Iran.
“Despite the enemy’s blockade, we will open new routes, and our officials are working nonstop to resolve the existing problems,” Pezeshkian said.
Hormuz ‘not going to return to its pre-war condition’: Iranian official
Iran’s Deputy Speaker of Parliament Ali Nikzad said the Strait of Hormuz will not return to the conditions that existed before the war, according to Iran’s Mehr news agency.
Addressing parliament on the latest regional developments, Nikzad said Iran had repeatedly warned its “aggressor” enemies during the war that the strategic waterway would not return to its previous status.
Iran signals new regional order
Nikzad said the US and ‘Israel’ had come to realize that reopening the Strait of Hormuz could not be achieved through military means and would require accepting what he described as a “new order” in the region.
He added that Iran’s main priority at present is reducing the country’s economic challenges.
Six people injured in 'Israeli' attacks in Gaza in past 24 hours
‘Israel’ has injured at least six Palestinians in the Gaza Strip over the past 24 hours, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
The ministry said ‘Israeli’ forces have killed 1,258 Palestinians and injured 4,145 others since last year’s ceasefire.
Gaza death toll rises
Since October 2023, when ‘Israel’ began its genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, at least 73,386 Palestinians have been killed and 174,256 injured, the ministry said.
The figures include Palestinians whose deaths and injuries were recorded by Gaza’s health authorities, with the ministry continuing to document casualties amid ongoing ‘Israeli’ attacks.
Iran says Hormuz talks with Oman are ‘positive’
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Monday that talks with Oman are focused on determining a temporary navigation route through the Strait of Hormuz.
Baghaei described the discussions as "constructive and positive," saying Tehran and Muscat have agreed on a navigation map and are working through several technical issues.
He said the proposed route would temporarily replace the northern and southern routes currently used in the strait.
Baghaei described the southern route as "illegal and unsafe" and said it violates the memorandum of understanding between the parties.
Baghaei said Iran is not currently holding direct negotiations with Washington, but is exchanging messages with the US through intermediaries.
He said Tehran is not discussing the possibility of imposing fees on vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz at this stage.
However, he said Iran would establish mechanisms to monitor maritime traffic and provide navigation services, adding that charging fees for such services would be "natural."
Baghaei also said the Strait of Hormuz would not be a safe passage as long as what he described as US policy and the naval blockade continue.
On mine clearance, Baghaei said the issue is being handled between Iran and Oman as the two countries bordering the Strait of Hormuz.
He described the US naval blockade as a continuation of the war against Iran.
Separately, Baghaei said Pakistan has invited Iran's parliamentary speaker and foreign minister to visit the country, adding that the visits would take place under appropriate circumstances.
US cause of insecurity in Middle East, Iran says
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the US is a major source of insecurity in the Middle East, arguing that regional countries should not rely on Washington for security.
“This region doesn’t need players from outside,” Baghaei said, adding that the issue should draw the attention of regional countries.
Baghaei said the region “must not be left under the illusion of achieving security through America,” arguing that the US is itself “part of the lack of security in the region.”
He accused Washington of providing political and security support to ‘Israel’, saying this enables it to wage war without accountability.
“The Americans are supporting the Zionist entity politically and on the security level,” Baghaei said, adding that without US support, ‘Israel’ would not be able to carry out what he described as ongoing crimes.
He also said those responsible cannot be held accountable or taken to court.
Iran's Baghaei pays tribute to journalists killed in Iran, Lebanon, Palestine
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei paid tribute Monday to journalists killed while carrying out their work in Iran, Lebanon and Palestine over the past two years.
“During the last two years, we have lost so many of your colleagues in Iran, Lebanon and Palestine. They have lost their lives for the sake of doing their jobs,” Baghaei said during a news conference.
Tribute to journalists
Baghaei expressed condolences to the families of the journalists killed, saying Iran had also lost many loved ones.
“We send a big salute to all of our martyrs who have lost their lives for the sake of our country and for the sake of the mission of journalism,” he added.
US envoy says economic pressure will force Iran to make concessions
US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz said Washington’s economic pressure on Iran will eventually force Tehran to make concessions, as negotiations remain stalled.
Speaking to Fox News, Waltz said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s economic campaign is “devastating the Iranian economy,” claiming Iranian negotiators repeatedly seek access to cash and frozen assets.
Economic pressure
“When Iran is coming to the table with our negotiators, they are talking about cash, cash, cash,” Waltz said.
He claimed Iranian officials are more concerned about the country’s currency and inflation than military losses or the impact of the war on the population.
Waltz said the combination of financial pressure and the US naval blockade would eventually force Tehran to change its position.
“The squeeze, coupled with the blockade, that’s what’s going to eventually get the Iranians to move,” he said.
US senator Murphy says Trump has ‘lost’ war on Iran
Democratic Senator Chris Murphy said US President Donald Trump has “lost this war” with Iran, arguing that continued fighting is weakening Washington while strengthening Tehran.
Speaking to NBC News, Murphy said he would support even a “bad deal” to end the war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, warning that the cost of keeping the strategic waterway closed is increasing.
Calls for an end to the war
“The war needs to end because every day that the war continues, America gets weaker, Iran gets stronger, and people here in the United States get screwed as prices go up and up and up,” Murphy said.
Murphy said he would oppose further funding for the war but support replenishing US military stockpiles after the fighting ends.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Sunday that there are no direct talks between Tehran and Washington. He also insisted that the Strait of Hormuz would not reopen until the US meets Iran’s demands, including lifting its naval blockade.
Trump says US ‘low-keying it’ with Iran, playing down urgency over Hormuz
US President Donald Trump signaled Sunday that he is prepared to let economic pressure on Iran intensify rather than order additional military strikes, as Tehran maintains tough demands over the Strait of Hormuz.
“We are low-keying it,” Trump told Axios in a brief phone call, according to the outlet. He said the US was only “semi-negotiating” with Iran while watching its inflation and financial difficulties.
Trump did not express frustration over Iran’s delay in reaching an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, according to Axios. Tehran has demanded that Washington end its blockade of Iranian ports and lift oil sanctions before reopening the waterway.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran is only “exchanging messages” with Washington through intermediaries.
Meanwhile, Iran and Oman are working toward a temporary arrangement to reopen the strait. Araghchi said talks with Oman on managing the waterway are approaching their final stage.
The disruption has sharply reduced maritime traffic through Hormuz, with attacks on vessels contributing to higher fuel prices and renewed pressure on the global economy.
CENTCOM says total 55 vessels redirected to enforce Iran blockade
The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) said it has redirected 55 commercial vessels as part of its naval blockade on Iran.
The figure is up from 53 vessels reported the previous day, marking an increase of two.
CENTCOM said more than 20 US warships are now deployed across the Middle East, supporting military missions including enforcement of the blockade.
WATCH: 'Israeli’ troops demolish houses near 'Pilot Zone' in south Lebanon
‘Israeli’ troops move as excavators demolish houses in Zawtar al-Sharkiyeh, southern Lebanon, seen from the neighbouring "pilot zone" of Zawtar al-Gharbiya, where the Lebanese army was to take over as part of a US-sponsored framework agreement signed with ‘Israel’.
Trump scolds Iran in social media post
US President Donald Trump said Iran has shown “51 years of bad behaviour” in a post on Truth Social.
Trump also shared a chart depicting the decline in the value of Iran’s rial from 2025 to the present. The chart was titled “Iran has no money” and included the phrase “currency is trash.”
'Israel' committed 108 attacks on Palestinian journalists in July, syndicate says
‘Israeli’ forces committed 108 attacks against Palestinian journalists and media workers in July, according to the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate’s Liberties Committee, as reported by Wafa.
The violations included arrests, detentions, beatings and restrictions on journalists’ work, as well as settler attacks, raids on homes and media institutions, and the seizure or destruction of equipment.
Detentions top violations
Detention and obstruction of journalistic coverage accounted for 58 cases, followed by 12 cases involving sound and gas bombs, 11 settler attacks and six beatings.
Four journalists suffered bloody injuries, including shrapnel wounds, while covering events in Gaza, the syndicate said.
The syndicate called for greater protection for journalists and accountability for those responsible for attacks against media workers.
Day 163 of the US-‘Israeli’ war on Iran
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Read more: Day 154 | Iran targets US bases across Middle East; deadly strikes escalate tensions
