Diplomacy needed to keep Hormuz open, Kallas says

Iran's oil production and exports are continuing without interruption, parliamentary energy commission spokesperson Esmaeil Hosseini said on Tuesday.

Hosseini said daily life on Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export hub, was proceeding as usual despite recent strikes on military assets there.

He reiterated Iran’s warning that any foreign attack on the island would trigger what he described as a stronger response than actions taken in the Strait of Hormuz, where Tehran has restricted vessels it says are linked to the United States, Israel and their allies.

Israeli media reported on Tuesday that the military had targeted Iran’s top security chief Ali Larijani.

Larijani serves as secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.

Israeli media said the military was checking whether he had been killed, but there was no confirmation from Iran.

Israel’s military chief indicated the strike may have hit a senior figure, in comments that appeared to refer to Larijani, the Times of Israel reported.

Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said “significant elimination achievements” had been recorded overnight that could affect the course of the campaign, according to the report.

Zamir also said Israeli forces had targeted operatives linked to Palestinian groups, including Islamic Jihad, and that militants from Gaza and the West Bank were struck in a safe house in Tehran, the Times of Israel said.

Iran’s nationwide internet blackout entered its 18th day on Tuesday, with public access to the global internet still largely cut off, according to NetBlocks.

The monitoring group said the disruption had passed 408 hours, leaving most users without international connectivity while a small number of approved users retained limited access.

"Chosen users are granted privileged access, while the remainder are left with a limited domestic intranet under increasingly tight control," NetBlocks said.

Oil loadings at the UAE’s key Fujairah port have been suspended following a series of war-related strikes, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing a shipping agent and a person familiar with the matter.

Loading berths at the Fujairah Oil Tanker Terminals were halted as of Tuesday morning, while an offshore mooring point operated with Dutch firm Koninklijke Vopak also stopped operations, according to the report.

Crude loadings by Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. at the port remained suspended, Bloomberg said.

Fujairah, a major hub for crude and fuel exports located outside the Strait of Hormuz, has become increasingly important as the waterway has been largely disrupted by the conflict.

Separately, a Kuwait-flagged LPG tanker suffered minor damage after being hit by drone debris off Fujairah, a person familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

Iraq’s oil minister said on Tuesday that Baghdad was in contact with Iran to allow some oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the state news agency reported.

Iraq is also working to resume exports through the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline to Turkey as it seeks to offset shipping disruptions caused by the Hormuz crisis.

The effort followed attacks on some vessels off Iraq’s coast during transfer operations.