Cairo, Aug 05: Iran and Oman are inching toward a deal to reopen the disputed Strait of Hormuz and potentially help bring an end to the war.
The emerging agreement calls for ships to enter the Persian Gulf through an Iranian-controlled route and exit through a route controlled by Oman, two regional officials told The Associated Press.
Any deal, though, appears contingent on the United States lifting its blockade on Iran’s ports. The Trump administration has previously ruled out any deal that would give Iran control over the strait.
Elsewhere, a mass funeral was held in Gaza City for more than 100 people killed in an Israeli strike early in the conflict. A memorial service was also held in Beirut, for victims of a 2020 port explosion, and Yemen’s Houthis claimed they fired at a Saudi Arabian airport.
Here is a look at the most important developments in the Middle East on Tuesday:
US officials suggest strait deal imminent
Senior US officials struck an optimistic tone on Tuesday, suggesting a deal to reopen the strait could be reached soon.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed there has been progress made in talks between Iran and Oman, “but not finality yet”.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that “there is a chance we may have a deal today or tomorrow to open the strait and move towards a more normalised position in this conflict”.
The Strait of Hormuz is the crucial waterway at the mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas passed before the war. It has been effectively shut by Iran’s attacks on shipping since the start of the war in February.
Qatar’s emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, said he also spoke to US President Donald Trump on Tuesday as the Arab country tries to broker a resolution to the war.
Al Thani’s office said in a statement that on the phone call, the two discussed ways to bridge the divide “in a way that enhances the prospects of reaching a sustainable diplomatic settlement to the crisis”.
Ships attacked in Strait of Hormuz and in Red Sea
A cargo ship reported being “hit by an unknown projectile” while traversing the Strait of Hormuz, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre.
The centre said the reported strike damaged the vessel at around 2 am local time while it was about 37 kilometres (23 miles) northeast of Al Khasab, a port city in Oman.
It is unclear what flag the ship was sailing under or whether it was carrying cargo, but the British maritime security firm Ambrey said the ship sustained damage.
On the Red Sea, meanwhile, an Indian-flagged commercial ship sank off Yemen after being struck by an explosive-laden boat, Yemeni and Indian authorities said.
Yemen’s coast guard rescued the crew, which included 13 Indians and a Yemeni.
India’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attack, though no one immediately claimed responsibility. Iran-backed Houthi militants have repeatedly struck ships traversing the Red Sea near Yemen.
Gaza residents killed in 2023 airstrike laid to rest
Hundreds of people gathered on Tuesday as bodies wrapped in Palestinian flags were laid in rows near flattened buildings in Gaza City.
The 112 victims were then carried off on stretchers through a narrow street, destined for burial in a nearby cemetery. They were among more than 300 killed during an attack on November 22, 2023, in the city’s Sabra neighbourhood.
First responders recovered the bodies, including 40 children and 30 women, over the weekend, according to the Civil Defence, a rescue agency operated under Gaza’s Hamas-run Interior Ministry.
The Gaza war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage.
Israel’s military offensive in Gaza has since killed 73,375 people, including civilians and combatants, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
Around 7,400 people are still missing and presumed buried under the rubble from the war, according to Zaher al-Waheidi, head of the Gaza Health Ministry’s records department.
Israel discusses withdrawal from Lebanon
Israeli and Lebanese officials met in Rome on Tuesday to continue talks on implementing a US-mediated deal to drawdown the Israeli military from southern Lebanon and disarm the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group.
A diplomat familiar with the negotiations said Lebanon had asked for the next “pilot zone” — where Israeli forces would withdraw and the Lebanese army would take control — to be either in the town of Khiam or Bint Jbeil. Both areas saw heavy fighting in the latest Israel-Hezbollah war and are currently occupied by Israeli forces.
But US Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa suggested ahead of the three-day talks that no new pilot zones would be immediately implemented, saying that “moving too quickly risks jeopardizing the very civilians this process is meant to protect”.
Implementation of the June 26 agreement began last month with an initial pilot zone in an area that was not occupied by Israeli forces but had previously sustained Israeli fire.
Yemen’s Houthis fire at airport in Saudi Arabia
In Yemen, Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a military spokesman for the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, said a drone hit a “sensitive target” at the airport in the southwestern city of Najran, without providing evidence.
He said the attack was in response to what he described as Saudi breaching of Yemen’s airspace over the provinces of Saada and Hajjah. There was no immediate comment from Saudi Arabia.
The Houthis recently announced a blockade on Saudi-linked shipping passing through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait that leads to the Red Sea.
Saudi Arabia led an international coalition and imposed an air and sea blockade against the rebels after they seized the capital, Sanaa, and much of northern Yemen in a civil war that began in 2014. Major fighting ended in a truce in 2022.
Memorial marks Beirut port explosion anniversary
Families of the more than 200 people killed in the massive explosion at the port in Beirut in 2020 gathered at the blast site to mark six years since tons of improperly-stored ammonium nitrate exploded, devastating large parts of the Lebanese capital.
No one has been convicted in a long-stalled judicial investigation into the incident, but some families expressed renewed hope after government officials promised indictments would be issued by the end of the year.
The tragedy has been overshadowed by recent events, including two wars between Israel and the Hezbollah militant group and an Israeli military occupation of much of the country’s south.
