Iran refused direct Doha talks with US - Axios

President Donald Trump said he directed the US military last month to carry out a secret mission to support oil tankers and other commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the effort had resulted in more than 100 million barrels of oil reaching the open market and more than 200 commercial ships safely traveling through the strait.

"The UNITED STATES of AMERICA CONTROLS the Strait of Hormuz — NOT Iran. Their military is defeated, and their economy is lost. It’s over for Iran!" Trump added.

Three Indian mariners were missing after an attack on the commercial vessel Settebello off the coast of Oman, India’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday.

Twenty-one crew members were rescued after the attack, foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X.

He said India’s embassy in Oman was closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with Omani authorities in the ongoing search and rescue operation.

The ministry called the attack “deeply worrisome” and said “the targeting of commercial shipping and civilian infrastructure in the region must end.”

Two maritime security sources told Reuters the vessel was likely hit by a US missile.

US strikes on Iran on Tuesday evening were intended to restore Washington’s leverage while avoiding casualties and keeping open the possibility of a deal, Axios reported, citing a senior US official.

The United States had not determined whether Iran had intentionally brought down a US Apache helicopter when President Donald Trump ordered a military response, the report said.

“If we didn’t respond, it would have made us look weak and also negatively influenced our position in the negotiations with Iran,” Axios quoted a senior White House official as saying.

Axios cited officials as saying the strikes were seen by the United States as “proportionate and surgical” and targeted radar and drone control systems while avoiding Iranian casualties.

The report said the White House told Iran as US fighter jets were on their way that the strikes would only target military facilities.

The Trump administration issued a fresh round of Iran-related sanctions targeting six individuals and four entities, including some tied to China, according to a notice posted on the US Treasury Department’s website.

“Through Economic Fury, the Treasury Department is disrupting the foreign procurement networks that support the Iranian military’s efforts to acquire weapons,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.

“Treasury has frozen the Iranian regime’s assets, severely disrupted its economy, and dismantled the Iranian war machine. Treasury will not tolerate any support of the Iranian military,” Bessent added.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran would stand firm against any pressure or threat after President Donald Trump threatened to target the country’s infrastructure.

“Critical infrastructure is the lifeblood of people’s lives. Threatening to target it, from transportation networks to the electricity and water industries, is not a show of strength but a sign of desperation in the face of a nation’s will,” Pezeshkian wrote on X.

“Iran, relying on the knowledge and capabilities of its specialists, national unity and solidarity, will stand firm against any pressure and threat,” he added.