US-Iran talks set to resume after Tehran reportedly admitted firing on Strait of Hormuz ships was a ‘mistake’
Vessels at the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, July 8, 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS
Qatari officials are taking part in talks between Iran and Oman in Muscat over at least partially opening the critical Strait of Hormuz, Axios reported Saturday, citing a diplomat with knowledge of the matter.
The parties are reportedly discussing a potential statement on fully opening the “median lane” in the Strait of Hormuz, which is in international waters, for full and free movement.
On Friday, ABC News reported that negotiations between the US and Iran are set to resume after Iranian officials privately acknowledged that firing on ships in the Strait of Hormuz was a “mistake.”
US negotiations with Iran set to resume
Negotiations between the US and Iran are set to resume after Iranian officials privately acknowledged firing on ships in the Strait of Hormuz was a “mistake,” ABC News reported Friday, citing US officials.
“They have come back to us and asked for further talks to try to settle some of the issues,” one US official said. “We are hoping to get to a place where they publicly say that they will stop shooting at ships and sort of explicitly or at least implicitly acknowledge that they screwed up. We’re working on that now.”
According to the report, the senior US official later added: “So they came back to the table and said: ‘We screwed up. We made a mistake. Let’s keep talking.'”
Earlier this week, US President Donald Trump said the Iranians had said they wanted to return to talks, but later Iran denied this. Trump also said that even if the talks resume, the ceasefire was “over.”
The US official added that Trump “has directed” teams to talk but added that if Iran keeps on “shooting at ships or if they engage in any other hostile act, then we’re going to hit them back.”
US points to ‘fractured’ Iranian leadership
The other US official also offered insight into recent strikes on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, saying it came from “an errant part” of the Iranian system that “was trying to undermine the deal” the two countries reached last month.
Another official said the strikes illustrated the fractured Iranian political system, split between what the US termed “hardliners” and “rational people.”
“We have a lot of options if the hardliners get the upper hand. But we continue to have some confidence that the rational people in their system will be able to rein in those hardliners. You never know. You can’t predict the future,” the official said.
Despite those increased hostilities, a different senior US official said that they think that “Iran is showing a lot of signs of wanting to make this deal.”
Senior US officials also said that the US is demanding that Iran issue a public statement that “acknowledges all channels of the Strait of Hormuz are open and they’re not shooting at ships anymore.”
One US official reportedly said that one of the key results they’re expecting is that Iran will agree that the Strait of Hormuz will be open in the same way it was before the conflict.
According to the report, a US official said that the question of nuclear dust “still very much is on the table,” adding that the nuclear materials are key to the deal.
Iran FM arrives in Oman for Hormuz talks
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi arrived in Oman on Saturday to discuss arrangements for the safe passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz, with Washington seeking a public pledge of free, secure transit.
US President Donald Trump said on Friday the US and Iran had agreed to continue talks despite an escalation of hostilities this week, while also declaring an end to the ceasefire reached between the two sides.
No attacks were reported on Friday or early Saturday; however, a senior Iranian source told Reuters a call between Iran, the US, Qatar, and Pakistan had been agreed, and mediators were trying to arrange it for Saturday while Araqchi is in Oman.
Oman is helping to mediate an end to a war that has spread insecurity in the Gulf and raised prices around the world since the US and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran on February 28.
CBS News and its UK partner, the BBC, both reported that US Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were expected to lead negotiations on Saturday with Araqchi. Iran’s Fars news agency later cited a source saying no negotiations would take place until the US retreated from its positions.
Qatari mediators held talks in Tehran on Friday
Three Qatari and Saudi commercial tankers came under fire earlier in the week, prompting the US to hit Iranian sites, and Iran to respond with strikes on US military sites in Gulf states.
Araqchi accused the United States of violating the ceasefire agreement; the US revoked the license authorizing the sale of Iranian crude on Tuesday after the vessels were hit.
“There can only be mutual compliance,” he wrote on X.
Iran has so far kept its word, unlike the so-called U.S. Treasury Secretary who is violating Para 9 of the MoU.
That violation follows other violations and missteps by the United States.
Reality check: There can only be mutual compliance.
— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) July 11, 2026
While Iran has not claimed responsibility for the ship attacks, analysts say Tehran uses such actions to gain leverage in negotiations.
Senior US officials told reporters on Friday that Iran had informed US officials that recent attacks on shipping in the strait were from an “errant part of their system”, comments that appeared to be aimed at calming tensions.
The flare-up cast further doubt over the future of an interim agreement aimed at ending the conflict. It pushed oil prices higher, a politically sensitive issue for Trump ahead of November congressional elections.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has asked us to continue ‘talks.’ We have agreed to do so, but the United States has stated to them, in no uncertain terms, that the Cease Fire is OVER!” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Friday.
Qatari negotiators met officials in Iran on Friday to de-escalate tensions and discuss the Strait of Hormuz, a person with knowledge of the situation told Reuters.
Iran threatens to avenge supreme leader’s killing
A written statement from Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, on Saturday threatened vengeance for the death of his predecessor and father, who was killed on February 28.
Released to mark funeral ceremonies for former leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, which the new leader did not attend, it said the vengeance would take place, whatever happened to Iran.
“We pledge to avenge the blood of the martyred leader and all the martyrs,” the message said.
Trump had posted on Friday that he had ordered the US military to be prepared to launch thousands of missiles against Iran if Tehran attempted to assassinate him.
The Wall Street Journal and other US media reported this week that Israel had shared intelligence with Washington that Iran had recently devised a plan to assassinate Trump. There was no immediate comment from Iran on Trump’s latest remarks.
At the funeral ceremonies on Thursday, a huge crowd of mourners packed a courtyard, some bearing banners reading, “We Will Kill Trump.”
US officials report productive conversations with Iran
Last month’s interim deal was meant to pave the way to the end of a conflict now in its fifth month, which has killed thousands, throttled worldwide energy supplies, and raised fears of a global economic downturn.
During the war, Tehran has largely taken control of the Strait of Hormuz, forcing a stalemate.
The United States is demanding that Iran publicly state it will stop attacks on ships in the strait — and that all lanes will be open with no tolls through the waterway that carried one-fifth of global oil supplies before the war, the senior US officials told reporters on Friday.
At least 17 people were killed in US strikes on six cities in Iran on Wednesday and Thursday, the head of the public relations and information center at Iran’s Health Ministry said. He said 115 people were wounded.
Even so, US officials said conversations between the two countries had been productive in recent days. Tehran said any breach of commitments by Washington would be met with “reciprocal action”.
Renewed fighting in the Gulf has increased the pain for US consumers. After weeks of steady declines, crude oil prices posted their biggest weekly rise in eight weeks.
Iran judiciary chief vows legal action against US, Israel over ‘war crimes’
Iran’s Judiciary Chief Hojjatoleslam Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said the United States and Israel must be held accountable for what he described as war crimes committed against Iran, stating that judicial authorities were determined to pursue legal action against those responsible.
According to ISNA, speaking at a meeting with international lawyers and legal experts in Tehran, Ejei said, “War crimes have been committed against our country and our people by the United States and the Zionist regime.” He added, “We are determined to prosecute and punish war criminals. Criminals must be punished and compensated in proportion to the crime they have committed.”
ISNA reported that the meeting brought together Iranian judicial officials and foreign legal experts to discuss documenting alleged violations committed during the recent conflict and exploring legal avenues in international courts.
Ejei said Iranian institutions, including the Attorney General’s Office and the Judiciary’s international affairs bodies, were committed to pursuing the cases, adding: “Let us start a new chapter in the prosecution and punishment of war criminals.” He also called on international lawyers to cooperate in seeking accountability, arguing that “the voice of truth and seeking the truth will not be silenced.”
According to ISNA, Ejei also accused the United States and Israel of committing crimes beyond Iran, saying that “International criminals, led by the leaders of the American and Zionist regimes, have committed crimes in every corner of the world,” and urged that such actions be documented for future generations.
“We will not forget the bloodlust of our martyred Imam and we will pursue and punish international criminals with strength and strength, and the perpetrators should be sure that we will recover the damages inflicted on the Iranian nation from them,” he said.
Trump warns 1,000 missiles ‘locked and loaded’ if Iran tries to assassinate him
US President Donald Trump threatened to launch thousands of missiles at Iran on Friday should it try to assassinate him.
Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that “1000 Missiles are Locked and Loaded and aimed at the Islamic Republic of Iran, with thousands of more to immediately follow, should the Iranian Government act on its threat, pronounced in many corners of the Globe, to assassinate, or attempt to assassinate, the sitting President of the United States of America, in this case, ME!”
He added that “orders have already been given” and claimed that the US military is “ready, willing, and able” for a one-year period, subject to extension, “to completely decimate and destroy all areas of Iran.”
Trump earlier declared that a ceasefire with Iran was “over,” but Washington agreed to continue talks that, according to the US, were requested by Tehran.
Read: Iran has asked to continue talks and the US agreed, Trump says
Israel recently shared intelligence with the US indicating Iran had developed a new plan to assassinate Trump, according to a Wall Street Journal report.
In June, Iran and the US signed a memorandum of understanding under Pakistani mediation aimed at ending their war that began in late February and reaching a lasting peace agreement.
The MoU called for an immediate end to fighting on all fronts, the lifting of the US naval blockade on Iran and the re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz.
But both sides traded attacks this week over the passage of commercial traffic in the strait. The US hit targets in Iran, which then retaliated by targeting US assets across the region.
US military team to visit Lebanon to support ceasefire implementation
A US military delegation is expected to travel to Lebanon in the coming days to help implement a framework agreement aimed at ending the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, a media report said Friday.
Citing two senior Lebanese officials, the Financial Times reported a delegation from the US military Central Command (CENTCOM) is expected to arrive in Beirut ahead of technical talks between Lebanon and Israel scheduled in Rome next week.
The discussions will focus on implementing a US-sponsored framework agreement reached on June 26, providing for a phased Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory, according to the report.
A State Department spokesperson confirmed to Anadolu that CENTCOM is “coordinating closely” with both countries at the technical and logistical levels but did not comment on the reported visit.
“We have moved to the implementation stage of the Framework. The first pilot zone will launch in a matter of days, and further pilot zones are being mapped out and planned,” the spokesperson said on condition of anonymity.
“We will soon begin outreach to international partners to help the Lebanese Government effectively restore sovereignty in these zones and across their country more broadly,” the spokesperson added.
CENTCOM did not comment on the report.
The Lebanese Health Ministry said Wednesday that the death toll from Israel’s assault had risen to 4,321, with 12,204 injured since March 2.
Israeli forces continue to occupy areas in southern Lebanon, some held for decades and others seized during the 2023-2024 war. During the latest offensive, Israeli troops advanced more than 10 kilometres (6.2 miles) into Lebanese territory.
UAE must answer for role in US aggression against Iran: Deputy FM
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said on Friday that a newly published US government document amounts to an official acknowledgement of the United Arab Emirates’ active role in the US military aggression against Iran.
Kazem Gharibabadi wrote on X that the US Department of Commerce had issued a document easing export control regulations and upgrading the UAE’s export status in recognition of its support for the military aggression against Iran.
وزارت بازرگانی آمریکا سند جدیدی را منتشر کرده: تسهیل مقررات کنترل صادرات و ارتقای جایگاه صادراتی به امارات به پاس حمایت آن از تجاوز نظامی علیه ایران. این اعتراف رسمی واشنگتن و سند رسوایی ابوظبی، مسئولیت بینالمللی و آثار حقوقی مستقیمی دارد. امارات باید پاسخگو باشد. pic.twitter.com/ODYdzcIXS4
— Gharibabadi (@Gharibabadi) July 10, 2026
He described the move as Washington’s official admission and a document for Abu Dhabi carrying “direct international responsibility and legal consequences.”
The UAE must be held accountable, Gharibabadi said.
Saudi crown prince, US president discuss Iran talks
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held a call Friday with US President Donald Trump, during which they discussed regional developments, including talks between Washington and Tehran, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
The SPA reported that the call covered “relations of cooperation between the Kingdom and the United States of America and ways to support them in several fields.”
The two sides also “discussed a number of regional and international issues and exchanged views on them,” it said.
The call included a review of “current developments in the region, including the talks between the US and Iran.”
“Emphasis was placed on the importance of the security of navigation and maritime passages, and support for everything that contributes to achieving security and stability in the region,” it added.
