Mohsen Rezaei, a military aide to Iran's supreme leader, told CNN any US-Iran peace deal depends on Washington releasing $24 billion in frozen Iranian assets, warning that renewed fighting would push the United States into a “dark corridor.”
Access by IAEA inspectors to Iran's nuclear facilities remains limited and Tehran continues to determine which sites inspectors can visit, IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said on Friday.
Iran’s crude exports fell 84% in May from the previous month, Lloyd’s List reported, as US pressure on Tehran’s oil network and shipping disruption intensified.
President Donald Trump said Thursday he considered sending US special operations forces to retrieve Iran’s highly enriched uranium stockpile, but rejected the idea because the mission would require weeks inside a war zone and risk becoming a “Jimmy Carter” moment.
US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Friday increasing oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz to help lower gasoline and diesel prices would ultimately require a resolution with Iran, according to remarks reported by Reuters.
The UN nuclear watchdog repeated its calls on Iran to urgently inform the agency of the fate of its enriched uranium since its atomic sites were bombed a year ago and let inspections resume fully.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected Lebanese President Joseph Aoun’s claim that Tehran was using Lebanon as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the United States.
Aoun said Friday that Iran was using Lebanon in its talks with Washington and that the Lebanese people were paying the price for Tehran’s interests.
“Had Lebanon been bargaining chip for Iran, we’d have a deal long ago,” Araghchi wrote on X on Saturday. “Save Lebanon from your real foe, Mr. President.”
His remarks came as Lebanon has become one of the disputed issues around the US-Iran talks, with Iranian officials and hardliners insisting that any understanding with Washington must address the conflict involving Hezbollah.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it targeted and stopped one of four oil tankers that had been attempting to leave the Strait of Hormuz after receiving an IRGC warning at 1:30 a.m. Saturday.
In a statement, the IRGC said the other vessels turned back after the warning.
The Guards also said US drones struck a communications tower on Qeshm Island and another tower in Sirik at around 2:30 a.m. using two projectiles.
The IRGC said its aerospace forces responded by launching ballistic missiles at the US Ali Al Salem air base in Kuwait and facilities belonging to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
US Central Command said US forces intercepted multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones launched toward the Strait of Hormuz and that there were currently no reports of injuries to US personnel and denied IRGC claims that the Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain had been damaged.
The Defense Intelligence Agency raised its counterintelligence threat assessment for Israel to “critical,” NBC News reported on Friday, citing current and former US officials.
According to the report, the move reflects concerns within the Pentagon that Israeli intelligence services are seeking information on the Trump administration’s internal deliberations on the war with Iran and other Middle East issues.
Israel’s embassy in Washington rejected the report, calling it “completely false” and denying that it spies on US government officials. A White House official also disputed the account, according to NBC.
The Pentagon declined to comment. NBC said the reported assessment comes amid tensions between US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the war with Iran.
US Central Command (CENTCOM) said US forces intercepted multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones launched toward the Strait of Hormuz and neighboring Persian Gulf countries on Friday.
According to CENTCOM, Iran fired seven ballistic missiles toward Kuwait and Bahrain hours after US forces shot down four Iranian one-way attack drones headed toward the Strait of Hormuz. The US military said the drones posed an immediate threat to maritime traffic.
CENTCOM said US forces subsequently struck Iranian coastal surveillance radar sites in Goruk and on Qeshm Island to prevent further attacks.
"Initial assessments indicate six of the missiles launched by Iran were intercepted and a seventh did not reach its intended target. There are currently no reports of harm to US personnel, and Iranian claims of damaging U.S. 5th fleet headquarters in Bahrain are false. CENTCOM forces remain vigilant and postured to continue responding to unwarranted Iranian aggression in self-defense," CENTCOM said.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Friday it had targeted US bases in the region with missiles in response to what it described as US attacks on Sirik and Qeshm Island.
In a statement carried by official media, the IRGC said the missile launches were retaliation for recent US military action against the two locations.
Bahrain’s Interior Ministry has activated air raid sirens, according to state media reports on Friday.
Reports of missing funds from Iranian bank accounts are fueling growing distrust in the financial system, with customers reporting unexplained losses and conflicting explanations from banks.
An investigation by Alhurra reported on Friday multiple cases in which account holders said funds disappeared from banks including Bank Melli and Bank Sepah, with some told the losses were due to hacking or cyberattacks attributed to hostile actors, while others received no clear explanation.
Iran’s Central Bank has previously acknowledged that some banking institutions were targeted in cyber and physical attacks, according to state media, but authorities have not confirmed any systemic theft of deposits or widespread account losses.
The report also cited activists and opposition figures who say authorities have expanded the use of legal and security mechanisms to freeze or confiscate assets of individuals accused of cooperation with foreign adversaries. These claims could not be independently verified.
Iran’s IRGC-affiliated Tasnim news agency reported that several explosions were heard in the coastal city of Sirik in southern Iran on Friday.
US President Donald Trump on Friday posted a video on Truth Social titled “Iranian Navy” that appears to show multiple naval vessels destroyed at sea, accompanied by dramatic background music commonly used in film end credits.
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