TOP STORIES
“That Sucker Is Open”: U.S. Gains the Upper Hand in the Battle for Hormuz | Axios
“The Strait of Hormuz has been Iran’s most powerful card since the start of the war in late February. But over the past two months, U.S. officials say the American military has steadily eroded Iran’s leverage over the crucial waterway. . . . While the number of ships that cross the strait—and the amount of oil exported from it—remain well below pre-war levels, the reality on the ground has improved. Iran has lost much of its control over the strait and the U.S. military is effectively controlling most of it, U.S. officials said. Iran is still firing at ships but its ability to target them accurately is limited. Only 2% of the ships that transited through the strait over the last month were hit, a U.S. official said.”
Iran Fuel Reserves May Run Dry Within Weeks, Sources Say | Iran International
“Iran's drawdown of strategic fuel reserves has reached a ‘red alert’ level and could exhaust remaining stocks within weeks, fueling disagreement between President Masoud Pezeshkian and the Revolutionary Guards, informed sources told Iran International on Wednesday.”
Iran Talks Sputter as Trump Spurns a Return to His June Deal | Wall Street Journal
“The Trump administration has repeatedly told mediators it has no interest in going back to the terms of the memorandum of understanding it reached with Iran in June, complicating this week’s flurry of efforts to restart the diplomatic process, people familiar with the matter said. . . . Trump has . . . settled on a policy of squeezing Iran economically and is willing to wait to see if the strategy bears fruit, the people said. They said the president in particular is no longer interested in the memorandum of understanding, which was heavily criticized in the U.S. as soft on Iran.”
UANI IN THE NEWS
US Blockade Pushes Iranian Tankers Toward Asian Waters—UANI | Iran International
“The US naval blockade is forcing Iranian-flagged oil tankers to remain away from Iranian ports, with at least 20 empty vessels now anchored off Sri Lanka after completing ship-to-ship transfers of Iranian crude in Southeast Asia, United Against Nuclear Iran said on Tuesday.”
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
“Iranian crude oil exports have plunged in August as the U.S. relies on economic pressure through its naval blockade, rather than military strikes, to coerce Tehran into a deal to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran has loaded about 260,000 barrels per day for export at its ports so far this month, a decline of more than 80% compared with 1.7 million bpd in August 2025, according to data shared Thursday by the trade intelligence firm Kpler.”
A Walk Around Dubai Shows No Signs of Trump’s ‘D-Day’ for Iran | Wall Street Journal
“Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made it clear as he announced ‘Economic D-Day’ that the U.S. would no longer turn a blind eye when countries support Iranian economic activity. A spin around Dubai shows it is all happening in plain sight. Iranian business activity has deep, mutually lucrative roots in the commercial capital of the United Arab Emirates and continues to thrive despite the American warnings. Iranian banks dotted around Dubai remained open this week. They include a multistory branch of Bank Melli Iran along the creek in the city’s old town.”
“Two years ago the editor of Iran’s most hardline newspaper said management of the country's biggest online retailer would ‘fortunately’ pass to those who serve the state. It is now chaired by a former spokesman for the supreme leader’s business empire. Hojjat Niki-Maleki identifies himself on LinkedIn as chairman of Digikala Group, having joined the board as a representative of Harakat Aval, the investment arm of the mobile operator MCI.”
MILITARY MATTERS & SHIPPING
Centcom Says Iranian Sea Mines Cleared from Strait of Hormuz Transit Routes | The Hill
“The U.S. military said Thursday that it has cleared all Iranian sea mines along internationally recognized transit routes in the Strait of Hormuz.”
Trump Says Russia Has ‘Behaved Quite Well’ over Strait of Hormuz | Iran International
“‘So far, I think Russia has behaved quite well, having to do with the Strait of Hormuz,’ Trump told reporters. He said the waterway was open and that ‘millions of barrels of oil are coming out of the strait every day.’ Asked which world leaders he had spoken to about cutting off ties with Iran, Trump said: ‘There is not a lot to speak to. We don’t want to speak to them.’ Asked separately why the United States had not sanctioned Chinese banks doing business with Iran, Trump said: ‘Who said I’m not? You don’t know if I’m doing it. I don’t have to announce everything, do I?’”
DIPLOMACY & INTEL
Trump Says the U.S. Is Not Talking with Iran as Economic War in Focus | Reuters
“President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the United States is not talking with Iran as Washington focuses on punishing Tehran economically, vowing to penalize countries that do business with the Islamic Republic. ‘We don't want to speak to them. We’re not looking to meet or anything,’ Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.”
CIA Chief Asked Russia Not to Share Intelligence with Iran, Sources Say | NBC News
“When CIA Director John Ratcliffe met with Russia’s top spy chief this week, he asked that Moscow not share intelligence with Iran, according to a U.S. official and an adviser to the Kremlin.”
Putin Sees U.S. As Weakened by Iran War, Intelligence Reports Say | Washington Post
“CIA Director John Ratcliffe’s mysterious trip to Moscow this week was preceded by fresh U.S. intelligence indicating that the Kremlin sees the United States as weakened by the Iran war, offering Russia an opportunity to escalate action against American interests and allies in Europe, according to two people familiar with the matter.”
US to Prioritize Economic Pressure on Iran at G20 Finance Meeting | Kyodo News
“The United States will place a high priority on discussing the need to isolate Iran further economically when it hosts a meeting of Group of 20 finance chiefs next week, a senior Treasury official said Thursday. . . . [Treasury Secretary Scott] Bessent will also likely raise the issue in bilateral meetings he plans to hold on the margins of the G20 gathering, the official said, without hinting whether they include one with his counterpart from China, a key economic partner for Iran.”
Iran Sets Conditions for Reopening Strait of Hormuz, Top Security Official Rezaei Says | Reuters
“Iran is preparing a list of conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz after mediators asked Tehran to set them out, said Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, adding that ending the regional war was among them. Rezaei said Iran had agreed with Oman on a shipping corridor through the strait, with parts of the route in Omani waters and parts in Iranian waters. Ships would use a designated central channel if the U.S. met Iran’s conditions, he said through an interpreter in an Al Manar TV interview.”
White House Silent on Iran-Oman Hormuz Plan Tehran Says Would Ban US Warships | Fox News
“The Trump administration spent months insisting Iran did not control passage through the Strait of Hormuz. But after Iran and Oman unveiled a proposed framework that Tehran says would exclude military vessels if finalized, the White House would not say whether President Donald Trump would accept any restriction on U.S. warships under the arrangement. U.S. Central Command, meanwhile, rejected Iran’s underlying claim of authority.”
Trump Says Iran Is ‘Begging’ for US Deal | i24 News
“US President Trump said Thursday that Iran is in ‘deep trouble,’ claiming the country cannot pay its soldiers and has little military capability remaining. In a Truth Social post, Trump described Iran as a ‘failing nation’ and said its leaders are ‘begging to make a deal’ with the United States.”
TERRORISM
British-Iranian Man Accused of Seeking to Aid IRGC Quds Force Faces 2027 Trial | Iran International
“A British-Iranian man accused of seeking to assist Iran’s IRGC Quds Force will stand trial next year after prosecutors said he offered his services to Iranian authorities and later took part in an undercover police operation involving a bag he believed contained a drone. Vahid Aberi, 39, from Liverpool, is accused under Britain’s National Security Act of carrying out acts intended to provide material assistance to a foreign intelligence service.”
ASSASSINATION THREATS & PLOTS
Iran’s Security Chief Denies Report About a Potential Plot Against Trump’s Son | Reuters
“Iran's Security Chief Mohsen Rezaei said a report about a potential plot to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump’s youngest son is a lie, in an interview broadcast by Lebanon’s Al Manar TV on Thursday.”
PROTESTS & HUMAN RIGHTS
Iran Sentences Woman Detained During January Protests to Death | Iran International
“A court in Iran has sentenced Leila Abolhassani, a 43-year-old mother of two teenage daughters detained during the January protests in the central city of Shahin Shahr, to death on charges of ‘waging war against God,’ a source familiar with her case told Iran International. The source said Abolhassani was only filming a supermarket fire when she was arrested on the evening of January 8. Branch 5 of Isfahan’s Revolutionary Court nevertheless sentenced her to death on charges of participating in setting fire to the store.”
“Iranian lawmakers are debating the details of a bill meant to curb ‘foreign influence,’ including provisions that would criminalize contact with reporters for international outlets deemed hostile to the Islamic Republic—imposing penalties of up to two years in prison.”
Baha’i International Community: Iran Is Stealing Personal Property of Baha’is | IranWire
“In a statement provided to IranWire, the Baha’i International Community reported that, in the latest action against Baha’is in Iran, ‘government agents raided the homes of Baha’i citizens across seven provinces, confiscating and seizing their personal belongings.’ The statement reads: ‘They scaled home walls, arrested parents in front of their two-year-old child, confiscated musical instruments, and turned flowerpots and rice bags upside down.’”
CYBER WARFARE
Meta Disrupts Iran-Linked AI Operation Targeting Politicians, Journalists | Axios
“Meta removed a network of Facebook and Instagram accounts tied to an Iran-based operation that used AI to target U.S. audiences with posts about American politics, the company first shared with Axios. . . . The operation attracted thousands of followers and included accounts posing as everyday Americans to appear more authentic.”
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
Iran’s Disfigured Supreme Leader Remains Invisible Six Months Into an Existential War | Reuters
“Six months after the airstrikes that began the war and propelled a badly wounded Mojtaba Khamenei into the role of Iran's supreme leader, he remains entirely unseen and unheard by Iranians—a vacuum at the heart of his country's leadership.”