TOP STORIES
Iranian Oil Exports Fall to Lowest Level in Six Years, Data Shows | Reuters
“Iranian exports of crude oil and condensate fell to their lowest level in at least six years in May, falling well below 300,000 barrels per day, mainly due to the U.S. naval blockade, according to shipping data and analysts.”
Trump Says If Iran Kills US Troops “It Would Be a Good Reason” to Restart the War | CNN
“President Donald Trump, asked today if Iran killing US troops that would cross a redline, said that it would be a good reason to restart the war.”
“In a recorded phone call from inside Iran's Evin Prison, Iranian-American journalist Reza Valizadeh made a plea to the U.S. government to obtain medical help for him and other Americans detained in Tehran's notorious prison. ‘Even if treating our diseases is a big demand, it would have at least asked the Iranian authorities to reduce not all the physical pressure and mental torture against us in captivity, but at least some of it,’ Valizadeh said . . . In the two-minute recording, Valizadeh referred to three other Americans also held at Evin Prison. He said the four are suffering from ‘various diseases and are deprived from real medical services.’” . . . CBS News has learned the State Department believes six Americans are detained in Iran. Multiple sources familiar with the ongoing diplomacy said that none of the detained Americans will be released as part of the truce that’s currently being negotiated by the U.S. and Iran. The strategy is to first broker a deal to end the fighting and start nuclear talks then handle the hostage issue in a separate track.”
UANI IN THE NEWS
Interview with UANI Director of IRGC Research Kasra Aarabi | The Sun
“[The IRGC’s] believes that two aspects worked well: Closing the Strait of Hormuz [and] attacks on Gulf states. That’s what gave it leverage, it believes . . . [F]or them, this means they’re going to double down on those two aspects . . . regardless of whether there’s an agreement or not.”
MILITARY MATTERS & STRAIT OF HORMUZ CRISIS
Ships Stranded in Persian Gulf Quietly Coordinate with U.S. Navy to Exit Hormuz | CNBC
“Nearly 40 ships previously stranded in the Persian Gulf have exited through the Strait of Hormuz over the past three weeks as vessels quietly coordinate with the U.S. Navy, according to Lloyd’s List Intelligence. . . . U.S. forces are not escorting commercial ships through Hormuz, a defense official told CNBC. They are communicating and coordinating with ships that seek to freely and safely transit the strait, the official said.”
Iran Turns to Iraq’s Umm Qasr as New Hub to Bypass US Blockade | Iran International
“More than 50 days into the US blockade of Iran’s southern ports, Iraq’s Umm Qasr has emerged as a new hub for Iran-bound cargo, trade sources say, as Tehran’s first major workaround through Oman’s Khasab grows slower, busier and more expensive. The Iraqi port is now being used to move some Iran-bound cargo, including cars, after shipments are first transferred from ports in the United Arab Emirates on vessels flying non-Iranian flags, sources with knowledge of the matter Iran International.”
“Israel secretly deployed elite military and intelligence units to Azerbaijan during the war with Iran as part of a network of covert sites across the Middle East to facilitate operations against Iran, four sources familiar with the matter said. . . . The locations in Azerbaijan were among numerous covert military sites and bases in multiple countries, the sources told CNN, including in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, and Somaliland. The forces, initially planned as potential rescue teams in the event of an emergency, expanded in scope to become military and intelligence gathering positions.”
Trump Says He Does Not Need Deal with Iran to Get Enriched Uranium | Reuters
“U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said that Washington did not need a deal with Iran to get enriched uranium from the country. ‘We could get it right now. I don't think they could stop us if we wanted, but there’s no reason to. It’s entombed,’ he told reporters . . . Trump also said that he did not want to meet with Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. But he added that if Washington and Tehran reached a deal, it was possible that the two would meet and added: ‘If it happened . . . I’d be respectful.’”
UK and France Finalize Postwar Hormuz Mine-Clearing Mission | Bloomberg
“The UK and France have finalized plans to lead a multinational mine-clearing mission in the Strait of Hormuz within days of an agreement between the US and Iran to reopen the waterway, according to people familiar with the matter. . . . Three of the people familiar with the demining mission said it will involve a coalition of 15 countries, which have already committed military personnel and assets.”
Donald Trump Defines Iran ‘Ceasefire’ as “Shooting in Moderate Manner” | NDTV
“[President] Trump was asked how he would define a ceasefire just hours after the US and Iranian military exchanged fire, marking one of the most significant escalations in recent weeks. ‘Pretty much the way it is,’ he said. ‘That’s a different part of the world. You know, I’d say in that part of the world, a ceasefire is when you’re shooting in a more moderate manner.’”
NUCLEAR PROGRAM
IAEA Flags ‘Proliferation Concern’ over Lack of Access in Iran | Deutsche Welle
“The UN's nuclear watchdog said a lack of access to verify nuclear material in Iran posed a ‘proliferation concern.’ In a confidential report . . . the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) urged Iran to inform the agency of the fate of its enriched uranium. The IAEA has not had access to nuclear facilities in Iran since Israel and the US struck its nuclear sites last June.”
Iran Allows Bushehr Nuclear Inspection, Stonewalls Over Uranium | Bloomberg
“Iran permitted monitors at the United Nations atomic watchdog this week to visit its Bushehr nuclear power plant while stonewalling inspectors’ demands to verify the condition and location of its enriched uranium stockpile.”
DIPLOMACY
Rubio, in Meeting with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister, Condemns Iran’s Attacks on Kuwait | CNN
“US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, during a meeting Thursday with the Kuwaiti foreign minister, ‘condemned Iran’s outrageous and unacceptable attacks targeting Kuwait International Airport and other parts of the country,’ a readout from the US State Department said. Rubio ‘expressed condolences for those killed and injured in that attack,’ the readout said, noting that the US stands ‘with the Kuwaiti people during this difficult time.’ . . . Rubio reiterated to his counterpart that the US is committed ‘to Kuwait’s security, to ensuring that Iran never acquires a nuclear weapon, and restoration of freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.”
INTELLIGENCE
The Teenagers Enlisted as Agents of Mayhem by Russia and Iran | Financial Times
“Russia and Iran have long enlisted proxies to perform hostile acts on European soil, but targeting minors represents a new twist on their subversive gig economy. . . . Yet the states view the teens they employ as disposable. There is little risk for them if the operations fail, and only upside if they succeed. Any connection to Russia or Iran is hard for European intelligence agencies to prove, and for the aggressor states, entirely deniable. The jeopardy lies with the recruits , . . whose lives will be irrevocably changed if they convert online tasking into an actual mission. The result, according to police and intelligence officials, is that Russia and Iran are exploiting a generation of digital natives to further their aims in so-called hybrid warfare—the no man’s land between peace and armed conflict.”
HUMAN RIGHTS
Iranian Supreme Court Upholds Death Sentence for Teacher | IranWire
“The Supreme Court has upheld the death sentences of Alireza Mordasi, an imprisoned teacher held in Ahvaz’s Sheiban Prison. . . . the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teacher Trade Associations wrote that Alireza Mordasi . . . had previously been sentenced alongside two other co-defendants by Branch 1 of the Ahvaz Revolutionary Court, presided over by Judge Adibimehr, to two death sentences and one year in prison on charges of ‘corruption on Earth,’ ‘membership in armed rebel groups,’ and ‘propaganda against the regime.’”
Green Movement Leader Mousavi Hospitalized with Heart Problems | Iran International
“Mir Hossein Mousavi, a leader of Iran’s Green Movement who has been under house arrest since 2011, has been hospitalized due to severe heart problems and a deteriorating physical condition, Iranian media reported.”
SANCTIONS, BUSINESS RISKS & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
Iran Says It Will Charge Service Fees, Not Tolls, in Strait of Hormuz | CNN
“Iran says it will seek to impose service fees for ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for ensuring the vessels’ security, as opposed to transit tolls. Iran ‘is not seeking to collect passage fees, transit duties, or transit rights payments,’ the country’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said in an interview with the semi-official Iranian outlet Mehr on Thursday. Instead, the country will seek compensation for services carried out alongside Oman, including navigation assistance, search and rescue, security and safety services, and environmental cleanup services in the event of pollution, the official said.”
HEZBOLLAH, LEBANON, ISRAEL & IRAN
Iran Declares Support for Hezbollah with Wider Peace Deal in Doubt | Reuters
“Iran has reaffirmed support for its Lebanese ally Hezbollah and demanded Israel withdraw from southern Lebanon, underscoring complications facing an interim deal to end the broader conflict between the U.S. and Iran. . . . ‘This war will end only when it ends in Lebanon as well,’ Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi [said] . . . ‘The end of the war on Lebanon must be accompanied by the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territories they have occupied,’ he said.”
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
Iran Sidelines Ultra-Hardliners from Pro-Government Nightly Rallies | Iran International
“Supporters of the ultra-hardline Paydari Front were removed earlier this week from nightly state-organized rallies backing the Islamic Republic, in an apparent effort to contain hardline pressure as talks with the United States continue, Iran International has learned. According to the information obtained by Iran International, the order to keep Paydari supporters away from the gatherings was issued after requests by President Masoud Pezeshkian and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who also heads Tehran’s negotiating team. Protesters carrying placards opposing concessions on the nuclear issue have also been removed from the state-backed rallies, according to the same information.”
RUSSIA, UKRAINE & IRAN
Putin Says US Focus Has Shifted from Ukraine to Iran | Deutsche Welle
“Russian President Vladimir Putin said the United States has shifted its focus away from Russia's war against Ukraine after launching a war of its own against Iran. ‘Naturally, we can all see and understand that the US administration is being forced to shift its attention and deal with this issue above all others,’ Putin told journalists in St. Petersburg. He also claimed Russia maintains a trusting relationship with Iran, adding that Moscow could play a role in helping to bring an end to the conflict.”