US F-35 patrols near Strait of Hormuz, CENTCOM says

The head of the Iranian parliament's national security and foreign policy committee said on Wednesday a plan for managing the Strait of Hormuz had been finalized and submitted to parliament for review.

"A plan for managing the Strait of Hormuz has reached a final conclusion in the commission and has been uploaded to parliament's system for review and approval," committee chairman Ebrahim Azizi said, according to state media.

Azizi did not provide details of the proposal but said Iran aimed to use the strategic waterway "as a power-building lever."

"The Islamic Republic of Iran wants to use this geographic capacity as a source of leverage," he said.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the government would not allow people to exploit wartime conditions to put pressure on livelihoods, state media reported on Wednesday.

"We will not allow some people to exploit wartime conditions to target people's livelihoods, create economic disruption and seek illegitimate gains through illegal actions," Pezeshkian said at a meeting on market conditions and supply chains, according to IRNA.

He said one of the main aims of Iran's enemies was to disrupt the economy and increase pressure on living conditions, adding that authorities needed to ensure supplies while protecting both producers and consumers.

Pezeshkian also called for tighter oversight of supply and distribution chains to prevent hoarding and uncontrolled price increases and said boosting exports and trade with neighboring countries was key to strengthening economic resilience.

A commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards in Tehran said on Wednesday forces were ready to carry out operations "in the shortest possible time" following military drills involving the Basij militia and Guard units.

"We are ready to carry out any operation, at any point and in any time frame, in the shortest possible time," Hassan Hassanzadeh, commander of the Mohammad Rasoulollah Corps of Greater Tehran, was quoted as saying by state media.

Hassanzadeh said a five-day Basij exercise had met all objectives and included previously rehearsed scenarios, tactics and techniques aimed at confronting enemies "in any territory."

Mossad chief David Barnea secretly visited the United Arab Emirates at least twice during the Iran war to coordinate on the conflict, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday, citing Arab officials and a person familiar with the matter.

Barnea visited the UAE in March and April, the report said.

Israel and the UAE had showed close security coordination during the war, with Israel sending Iron Dome batteries and military personnel to the UAE to defend against Iran’s projectiles, according to the report.

The UAE had also carried out strikes in Iran, including an attack on a refinery on Iran’s Lavan Island in the Persian Gulf, it added.

Italy is moving two minesweepers closer to the Persian Gulf but will only deploy them as part of an international mission if a stable truce takes hold in the region, Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said on Wednesday.

Speaking to parliament, Crosetto said the vessels would be “pre-positioned” first in the eastern Mediterranean and then the Red Sea as a precaution, adding that any deployment to the Strait of Hormuz would require parliamentary approval.

He said Italy would act only in the event of a “real, credible and stable truce,” as talks led by Britain and France continue on a possible naval mission to protect shipping in the region.