Al Jazeera

By Caolán Magee and Edna Mohamed

    Iranian security chief Mohsen Rezaei has said that Tehran is drafting a list of conditions to open the Strait of Hormuz in response to mediator requests, adding that the US must first take practical steps to fulfill these demands before the waterway reopens.

    Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani held meetings in Tehran to discuss key issues, including the future of the Strait of Hormuz, amid international hopes that dialogue between the US and Iran on ending the war will resume.

    A US government source told Al Jazeera that Iran-Oman agreements do not concern the US, reiterating that the Strait of Hormuz is open, mines are cleared, no talks are scheduled and the naval blockade remains.

New Israeli roadblocks set up around Palestinian homes in Qusra as siege continues

By Nida Ibrahim

Reporting from Qusra, occupied West Bank

    When Israeli authorities set up three new roadblocks at the Ras al-Ain hill in the northern occupied West Bank village of Qusra on Wednesday, Abdel Hakim Wadi knew he was about to lose access to his land below once and for all.

    The roadblocks’ gates – large yellow and orange metal bars placed on two large concrete blocks – are infamous in the West Bank. They’re placed at the entrances of many, if not most, villages and have multiplied since Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza began in October 2023. The only ones holding the keys are the Israeli forces.

    Israeli soldiers had already placed a gate at the main entrance of Qusra itself, forcing Palestinians travelling into the village to take alternative routes – but often to find those closed as well.

Iran says it has changed regional ‘power equations’

    Iran’s acting Defence Minister Majid Ibn al-Reza says the country has “changed the regional power equations” and demonstrated that the era of “hit-and-run” attacks and threats against Iran is over.

    In a post on X, later cited by Iran’s state-run IRNA news agency, Ibn al-Reza said a “ridiculous media show does not change the reality on the ground and the victorious side”.

    He also urged Iran’s adversaries to read the country’s “several-thousand-year history”, adding that they would then understand that “one must speak to the Iranian nation in the language of respect”.

Iran’s FM says returning to diplomacy ‘isn’t impossible’ but depends on US

    Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says diplomacy can get back on track if the US recognises that “pressure doesn’t work.”

    In a post on X, Araghchi said, “the US should build trust, speak respectfully, acknowledge our rights, and uphold commitments.”

    Araghchi also said he had held what he described as “creative discussions” with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani.

    Israeli settlers have surrounded the houses since August 9, leaving Palestinian families trapped inside.

    The new roadblocks have further restricted access to the homes and surrounding area.

    Watch Al Jazeera’s Nida Ibrahim report from Qusra, where tensions remain high amid continued Israeli settler activity:

US congresswoman condemns ongoing genocide in Gaza, demands arms embargo

    US Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib has condemned the ongoing military actions by Israel in Gaza, accusing the government of committing human rights violations using US-made weapons.

    “The genocide never ended. The Israeli apartheid government is carrying out an ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people, using bombs that say ‘Made in the USA’,” she wrote on X.

    “It’s unconscionable. Our government must stop funding genocide. Arms Embargo NOW!” she added.

Six months of war between Iran, US leave Arab states facing tough questions

By Simon Speakman Cordall

    Analysts broadly agree the United States and Israel’s war on Iran will not see regime collapse in Tehran or a definite victory for Washington, but rather a dragged-out affair of stagnation and attrition.

    The hope among the US leadership at the start of the war, which began after surprise Israeli and US attacks on February 28, was that mounting economic and military pressure on Iran would force a structural shift in Tehran. Six months on, it is clear this vision will not come about, and instead many are preparing for a protracted war and managed fallout.

    Oil-dependent economies are still absorbing supply shocks after traffic in the Strait of Hormuz slowed to a trickle of pre-war levels following Iran’s attacks on shipping and a US blockade on Iranian ports.

Iran continues supply of goods, energy despite pressures: Deputy speaker

    Iran has continued supplies of basic goods, fuel and energy despite economic and security pressures, according to Deputy Parliament Speaker, Ali Nikzad, cited by IRNA news agency.

    Nikzad said measures taken by the government had prevented disruption and instability in vital sectors as the country faces security threats and economic pressure.

    His comments come after the United States this week announced a new campaign to intensify economic pressure on Iran, imposing further sanctions and threatening secondary sanctions against countries that continue doing business with Tehran.

Israeli forces continue attacks on southern Lebanon

    Israeli forces have carried out a massive bombing in the town of al-Mansouri in southern Lebanon at dawn, according to the country’s National News Agency.

    NNA added that Israeli artillery shelling and machine-gun fire targeted the town of Houla and the Wadi al-Salouqi valley this morning.

Israeli settlers storm West Bank village and perform rituals at dawn

    Hundreds of Israeli settlers have stormed the village of Awarta, south of Nablus, under the protection of the army at dawn, reports the Palestinian Wafa news agency.

    The settlers also performed Talmudic rituals at Islamic sites in the village, while Israeli soldiers seized one of the houses, turning it into a military barracks, Wafa said.

    Meanwhile, troops stormed the town of Tammun, south of Tubas, at dawn this morning with several military vehicles. Citing local sources, Wafa reported that Israeli forces stormed the town, spread out in several places, and raided a house, without reporting any arrests.

    Additionally, Israeli forces arrested a Palestinian from the village of Tal, southwest of Nablus, at dawn today.

    Security sources told Wafa that forces stormed the village, raided and searched several homes, ransacked their contents, arrested a Palestinian, and seized his vehicle.

Number of ships sailing through Hormuz remains low since Iran war began

    Traffic through the strait, which normally carries about one-fifth of global oil supplies, has plunged since the US-Israel war on Iran began on February 28, according to ship traffic trackers.

If you’re just joining us

    Here’s what happened overnight:

    The Israeli army fired two shells between the town of Beit Jinn and the Red Hills in the western Damascus countryside on Friday.

    Several Palestinians suffered from tear gas inhalation late on Thursday when Israeli forces raided the occupied West Bank village of al-Lubban Asharqiya, south of Nablus.

    The US military said that no ships have entered or exited any Iranian port without US permission since the renewal of the naval blockade, and that it has assisted nearly 1,500 commercial vessels carrying close to 750 million barrels of crude oil.

    Strait of Hormuz shipping traffic remained low, with preliminary data showing only five commodity vessels transiting the waterway on Thursday – down from 17 the day before and below the 10-day average of 15.

    US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US naval blockade of Iranian ports would further weaken Iran’s economy.

    Crude oil benchmarks trended downwards on Friday, heading towards consecutive weekly losses despite a brief rebound in the previous session.

US Treasury Secretary says naval blockade will crush Iranian economy

    US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the US naval blockade of Iranian ports will further weaken Iran’s economy, claiming Washington had helped move 130 million barrels of oil through the Gulf over the past 14 days.

    In a post on X, Bessent wrote: “The Blockade and Operation Economic Outcast will crush the failing Iranian economy.”

    “The USA has guided 130 million barrels out over the past 14 days. Iran: 0,” he added.

US senator says Trump is struggling to find exit from Iran conflict

    US Senator Mark Kelly says President Trump is struggling to find an exit from the conflict with Iran, telling ABC News that Americans are paying the price through higher petrol and food costs.

    The former Navy combat pilot argued the president faces a narrow set of options: escalating with ground troops, which he warned could cost thousands and thousands of American lives; walking away entirely; or applying economic pressure while trying to rebuild coalitions with European allies that he said have eroded over the past year and a half.

    “This is a crisis of his own making,” Kelly said, adding that the president’s insistence he “knows more about everything than everyone” has left him with limited good options.

    Kelly said dropping bombs that, in some cases, killed “innocent Iranian kids” was “not a good plan”. Still, Kelly said, “an economic approach and rebuilding our alliances” is a better way than just “escalating a kinetic action and certainly better than putting troops on the ground”.

Strait of Hormuz ship traffic drops as regional tensions persist

    Strait of Hormuz shipping traffic remained low on Thursday amid ongoing tensions between Washington and Tehran, according to preliminary shipping data cited by Reuters.

    Data from Kpler showed that only five commodity vessels transited the waterway, down from 17 a day earlier and below the 10-day average of 15.

    Among the five vessels that transited were two medium-range tankers and one very large gas carrier, initial data from Kpler showed at 02:25 GMT.

    The figures could change as some ships typically switch off transponders during the voyage.

Israel is not heading for civil war

By Ori Goldberg

    On August 24, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stood outside the Etzel Museum on Tel Aviv’s seafront after the wreck of the Altalena was discovered. The ship, which belonged to the right-wing Zionist paramilitary organisation Etzel, was shelled by the newly formed Israeli military in 1948. Netanyahu promised to raise it from the seabed and turn it into a symbol for future generations, centred on the message: “Civil war, never again.”

    For the Israeli right, the Altalena became a symbol of the left’s willingness to use force against fellow Jews to impose its political authority. The episode endured as a historical grievance, but it never became a constant feature of Israeli political life.

    Its rediscovery in the middle of an election campaign has abruptly revived that symbolism.

    Still, is Israel really headed for a civil war  This seems highly unlikely. The reason is simple: Israelis ultimately agree with each other. There is no deep ideological divide within Israeli public opinion. Instead, there is a broad and deep consensus.

    The primary purpose of the Israeli state is to keep Jews alive, preferably by establishing their supremacy over their neighbours, first and foremost the Palestinians, with whom they are competing for control of the same resources.

Crude slips towards weekly losses as oil benchmarks retreat

    Crude benchmarks trended downwards on Friday, heading towards consecutive weekly losses despite a brief rebound in the previous session.

    Brent crude futures shed 25 cents, or 0.3 percent, to trade at $89.45 a barrel as of 00:35 GMT. Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) contracts dropped 22 cents, also 0.3 percent, reaching $83.31.

    The downwards movement places both benchmarks on track to close the week lower, with Brent declining 5.3 percent and WTI falling 4.3 percent overall.

    In Bandar Abbas, on the Strait of Hormuz, fishermen face multiple threats: US and Israeli bombing, sea mines and a US naval blockade. Fish market workers say fishermen are afraid to go out due to security concerns, while equipment such as nets and boat gear has become much more expensive.

    Less fuel is reaching the boats, making matters worse, resulting in fewer fish being caught and driving up prices. Until the dispute over the Strait of Hormuz is resolved, there is much on the line for many in Iran’s southern coastal communities.

ANALYSIS

Six months of the Iran war – as told through Trump’s social media posts

By Mohammed Haddad

    This week marks six months since the United States and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran.

    In that time, US President Donald Trump has published at least 319 posts mentioning Iran on Truth Social, his social media platform – roughly one every 14 hours.

    Between February 28 and August 25, Trump posted at least 4,189 times on Truth Social, an average of 24 posts a day, or one every hour. One in every 13 mentioned Iran – 319 posts in total, or one every 14 hours.