2026 Iran War: 2026-08-10

Expediency Council chief Amoli Larijani said Iran will not retreat from the Strait of Hormuz or restore it to previous conditions, according to Iranian state-linked reporting carried by ABNA and ISNA on Monday. The remarks harden Tehran's public line that any future shipping regime will not simply return to the pre-war status quo, even as Oman-mediated transit talks continue and Washington signals a preference for economic pressure over new military strikes.

Iranian state media and National Security Council messaging, reported by OSINT channels and Euronews, list six conditions for reopening the Strait of Hormuz: an end to hostilities; a US guarantee not to threaten Iran or its allies; lifting the naval blockade of Iranian ports; US force withdrawal from the region; full war-damage compensation; and removal of sanctions plus restrictions on frozen assets. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said Monday it is up to Washington to stop and make amends for what Tehran calls illegal and destructive actions. Iran is also talking with Oman about possible transit arrangements, but says any reopening still depends on US steps.

The Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials, that President Donald Trump has privately told senior aides he may be willing to declare victory and wind down the Iran war without a nuclear agreement if Tehran fully reopens the Strait of Hormuz and its nuclear program remains constrained. Officials said the White House also expects the naval blockade on Iranian ports could be lifted if the strait reopens, while Tehran continues to tie reopening to broader US concessions.

US Central Command said that as of August 9 it had redirected 55 commercial vessels while enforcing the Strait of Hormuz blockade, disabling two ships and boarding two others. The figures were reported by the Jerusalem Post from a CENTCOM post on X early Monday and show continued US naval control over shipping near the waterway.

Iranian presidential office communications deputy Mehdi Tabatabaei said President Masoud Pezeshkian appointed former IRGC commander Mohsen Rezaei secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, replacing Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr. Iranian media also reported that Mojtaba Khamenei named Rezaei as one of the supreme leader's SNSC representatives and appointed Zolqadr as a political adviser, consolidating a hardline security reshuffle.

President Donald Trump said Washington is only "semi-negotiating" with Tehran and is "low-keying" military action while waiting for economic pressure to mount. In an Axios interview reported by Al Jazeera, he pointed to sanctions and the naval blockade, saying Iran is in "very bad shape" financially. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said there are no direct talks with the US and that the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until Washington meets Tehran's conditions, including lifting the blockade.

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said there are no direct negotiations with the United States and that the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until Washington meets Tehran's demands. Those include lifting the naval blockade, according to Al Jazeera's Iran war live coverage. The comments come as Oman-mediated talks on shipping coordinates have been described as near a possible technical agreement, without a full political settlement.