President Donald Trump on Thursday said the United States and Iran could sign a peace deal as soon as this weekend that ​would reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping, but Iran countered that it had not reached a final decision on an agreement.

The deal, if confirmed, would be ‌the most significant diplomatic breakthrough yet to end the three-month-old war, which has killed thousands and sent global energy prices sharply higher.

Iranian media reported Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei as saying that large parts of the text under negotiation have been finalized but Iran would not compromise on its red lines.

“We have not reached a final conclusion on this matter,” he said. “This is a very important issue that is currently being reviewed by the relevant decision-making bodies.”

Trump, ​meanwhile, told reporters at the White House: “We just made a great settlement of the war with Iran.”

“The strait will officially open as soon as we sign, which could be soon, ​very soon, maybe over the weekend in Europe,” Trump said, adding Vice President JD Vance could sign for the United States.

When asked if Iran’s ⁠Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei approved the deal, Trump said: “I understand the answer is yes.”

Trump’s announcement came after he called off planned military strikes on Iran, citing progress in talks. U.S. stocks rose ​and oil prices fell on the news.

Since mid-March, Trump has repeatedly claimed that a deal with Iran to end the war was close. The two sides have traded strikes this week, straining a ​ceasefire announced in April.

“It’s a very strong memorandum of understanding that is a little conceptual,” Trump told reporters.

Trump has repeatedly said that any peace deal must ensure Iran cannot develop a nuclear weapon. Iran denies it is seeking such a weapon.

Iran’s demands include the lifting of international sanctions, the release of billions of dollars in frozen assets and recognition of its control of the Strait of Hormuz.

“The big thing is there will be no nuclear weapons in ​Iran. That means not developed and not purchased,” Trump later said during a campaign event held by telephone.

TIT-FOR-TAT STRIKES

The war has killed thousands of people, mainly in Iran and Lebanon, and ​hit the world economy by pushing up energy prices since the U.S. and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran on February 28.

In recent days, the conflict has intensified despite a tenuous ceasefire that took effect in early ‌April.

After ⁠a U.S. Apache helicopter was downed, Trump this week ordered new strikes around the Strait of Hormuz over two days.

At the same time, Iran launched missile and drone attacks on U.S. bases in the region.

Bahrain’s interior ministry said on Thursday an 11-year-old girl suffered minor injuries and homes were damaged after debris fell from Iranian drones that were intercepted and destroyed.

Trump had said earlier Thursday that the United States would hit Iran “very hard tonight” and wanted eventually to take Iran’s oil infrastructure hub Kharg Island.

The island handles 90% of Iran’s oil exports and seizing it would give the United ​States the ability to severely disrupt Iran’s energy ​trade, placing enormous pressure on Tehran’s economy.

Iranian ⁠state media said early on Friday that the country’s forces prevented a tanker from transiting the Strait of Hormuz without coordination. One-fifth of the world’s energy shipments normally travel through the narrow waterway, but it has been largely shut since the war began.

DOMESTIC PRESSURES

The conflict has become a political headache ​for the White House, with polls showing Trump’s approval ratings sinking amid voter anger over high gasoline prices.

Some Republicans have openly worried that ​the war’s unpopularity could cost ⁠them control of Congress in November’s midterm elections.

But Trump’s political considerations also include satisfying Iran hawks within his Republican Party, who scuttled a prior effort, that any agreement closes Tehran’s path to developing a nuclear weapon.

The reaction of other Middle East powers will also be crucial.

Trump said on social media that the agreement had been approved by countries including Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ⁠office said in ​a statement after the Israeli leader and Trump spoke that Israel was not a party to the memorandum of ​understanding with Iran.

Netanyahu expressed his appreciation for Trump’s commitment to securing a deal that includes removing enriched material, dismantling enrichment infrastructure, limiting missile output and ending support for regional proxies, according to the readout.

Tehran has been demanding an end to Israeli ​attacks in Lebanon, where fighting has continued in a parallel war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants.

 Thomson Reuters

President Donald Trump said on Thursday he wants to take over Kharg Island, Iran’s oil infrastructure hub. Analysts say the U.S. military could seize the island quickly, but the move could leave U.S. troops ​in great peril and prolong rather than shorten the war.

WHERE IS KHARG ISLAND AND WHY IS IT ‌IMPORTANT?

Kharg Island sits 16 miles (26 km) from Iran’s coast in the northern end of the Gulf, about 300 miles (483 km) northwest of the Strait of Hormuz. It lies in waters deep enough to enable the docking of tankers that are too large to approach the Iranian mainland’s ​shallow coastal waters.

The island handled 90% of Iran’s oil exports before the war started on February 28. Seizing it ​would severely disrupt Iran’s energy trade and place enormous pressure on Tehran’s economy. Iran is the ⁠third largest producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

WHAT IS THE STATE OF PLAY?

U.S. forces carried out strikes ​against Kharg in March and April, and Trump said they “totally obliterated” all military targets there and said they could next target ​oil infrastructure. U.S. officials told Reuters at the time the administration was weighing whether to send ground forces to the island, opens new tab.

Kharg has not been attacked since then, though the United States has targeted oil tankers near the island as it maintains a blockade on Iranian ports.

Trump on Thursday ​said he would like to seize the oil hub, though he did not indicate clear plans to do so.

“My preference has always ​been – take Kharg Island … my preference would be that. I don’t know that America has the stomach for it,” he told Fox News.

Seizing ‌the ⁠island might not have an immediate impact on Iran’s economy, as the country’s oil exports have already been severely curtailed by the war.

CAMERA-WIELDING DRONES

U.S. troops could likely seize the island relatively quickly, but that would not necessarily lead to a quick and decisive end to the war, experts said.

“A seizure and occupation of Kharg Island is more likely to expand and extend the ​war than it is to ​deliver any sort of decisive ⁠victory,” Ryan Brobst and Cameron McMillan of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies wrote, opens new tab in March.

They said U.S. troops would be exposed to missile and drone attacks, including, potentially, camera-wielding “first-person view drones” ​that are already used by the millions in Ukraine.

“Upon any successful strikes, the Iranian regime ​would be expected ⁠to release videos of those attacks online, using the graphic deaths of American service members as propaganda,” they said.

TROOPS NEED BACKUP

A former commander of the U.S. Central Command, Joseph Votel, told TWZ.com, opens new tab in March that while only 800 to 1,000 troops would be needed to ⁠hold Kharg ​Island, they would require logistical backup that would need protection as well.

Votel ​said the troops would be very vulnerable and doubted that taking the island would provide any particular tactical advantage. He said it would be an “odd” thing ​to do, although the U.S. could do so if it had to.

 The Thomson Reuters

Bahrain destroys Iranian aerial attacks, official says

Bahrain’s air defenses have intercepted and destroyed Iranian aerial attacks, the media adviser to Bahrain’s king has said in a post on X.

Iran says it has struck US air base in Jordan

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has released a statement saying it has hit a U.S. air base in Jordan with missiles.

The IRGC said the strike was in response to U.S. attacks on its territory.

The Revolutionary Guards said the Al-Azraq air base was targeted with 12 ballistic missiles “in order to punish the aggressor”.

It said the attack “destroyed those installations and a large number of fighter jets. The operations of the warriors of Islam will continue as long as the evils of the enemy continue.”

The U.S. military had no immediate response to the Iranian statement.

The U.S. attacks earlier were in response to Iran shooting down an American helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz.

Oil prices jump as hostilities escalate

Oil prices jumped by more than $1 a barrel as Tehran said it had closed the Strait of Hormuz after the U.S. launched strikes on Iran and vowed further attacks if no peace deal is secured.

Brent futures rose $1.48, to $94.58 a barrel as of 0243 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude climbed $1.71 to $91.74. U.S. crude futures gained more than $3 earlier in the day.

Kuwait temporarily closes airspace

Kuwait’s airspace has been temporarily closed and flights diverted due to Iranian attacks, the civil aviation authority has said.

Israel issues alert after launches from Lebanon

The Israeli military has said on Thursday that its home front command issued a precautionary directive after identification of launches from Lebanon toward northern Israel.

It is urging the public to enter protected spaces upon alert activation.

Bahrain says warning siren has been sounded again

The new sirens reported by the country’s Interior Ministry come hours after earlier reports of sirens and Iran saying it was attacking the headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet, located in Bahrain.

Kuwaiti army says it is engaging hostile aerial targets

We’ll bring you more updates as they come in.

The Iranian cities where explosions have been reported

Iranian news agencies reported explosions in several cities, including Sirik, Kargan, Bandar Abbas, Minab, Varamin and Karaj.

US military says strikes were response to Iranian threat

In a statement on X, the U.S. Central Command said its forces launched additional strikes on Iranian military surveillance capabilities, communication systems and air defense sites across Iran.

It added that the U.S. military fired at Iranian targets that posed a threat to U.S. forces and international commercial ships.

“The strikes are in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression. U.S. forces remain vigilant, lethal, and ready,” the statement said.

It called the attacks”self-defense strikes” as it did for previous strikes on Iran.

Sirens in Bahrain as Iran says it is attacking US Fifth Fleet

We are now getting word that sirens are sounding in Bahrain, according to the country’s interior ministry.

This comes shortly after Iranian state media said its military targeted the U.S. Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain in response to the earlier American military attacks on Iran.

US denies Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz

Earlier, we reported that Iran has announced the Strait of Hormuz is closed to all vessels.

Now, the U.S. military has contradicted that statement.

U.S. Central Command also said on its social media account that no U.S. warships have been hit by Iran’s military.

Iran had earlier said that two “violating ships” were hit by its military, but it did not identify them as American warships.

Iran’s media says Trump has not spoken to its officials

Iran’s state media has now issued a report denying Trump’s comment that he has spoken directly to Iranian officials who asked him to stop the new U.S. attacks.

It cited an unnamed senior Iranian official as saying: “Trump’s false claim that Iranian officials contacted him is a cover to evade war with Iran.”

Trump has now told Fox News that he has spoken directly with Iranian officials, and they asked him to stop the U.S. bombing.

He said U.S. fighter jets were operating over Iran.

Trump told Fox that the bombing would stop shortly, but he said he would leave open the option for more strikes.

Two ships attempting passage through Hormuz hit, Iranian media says

Two “violating ships” attempting passage through the Strait of Hormuz were hit, Iranian media reported, citing Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Navy.

The announcement came shortly after Iran announced the closure of the strategic strait through which 20% of the world’s oil passed before the war began in late February.

Reuters