Iran cannot charge Hormuz tolls under final deal, Rubio says

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said upon arrival in Abu Dhabi that hostilities in the Middle East cannot end as long as Iranian proxies fire missiles and drones from Iraq and take part in terrorism, citing Hamas and Hezbollah.

"You can't have the end of hostilities and conflicts in the region. As long as Iranian proxies are launching missiles and drones from Iraq and are participating in terrorism like Hamas didn't like Hezbollah did," Rubio told reporters.

"That most certainly will come up in these conversations. And there are items outside the MOU that ultimately certainly going to be covered, but that's one that will have to be covered. It will be discussed."

"I do think it's covered by the MoU. And it is an issue that will be gotten to at the appropriate time in these negotiations," he added.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in Islamabad that Tehran and Islamabad had entered a new phase of “historic trust,” praising Pakistan’s role in supporting dialogue, easing tensions and strengthening regional stability.

Speaking during a meeting with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Pezeshkian said he had held constructive talks with Pakistani officials during his visit to Islamabad.

“We deeply believe that regional peace and stability can only be achieved through honest dialogue and intra-regional cooperation,” he said.

Pezeshkian described Pakistan as “not only a neighbor, but a brother and sincere companion,” saying recent developments had once again shown the strength of mutual trust between the two countries.

He added that relations between Iran and Pakistan were rooted in shared ideals, concerns and destiny, referring to the historic cultural ties between the two countries and the poetry of Allama Iqbal Lahori.

The UN shipping agency said Tuesday it has begun an operation to move hundreds of ships and about 11,000 stranded seafarers out of the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz after the United States and Iran reached a memorandum of understanding.

The International Maritime Organization said it had obtained safety guarantees and verified conditions for safe navigation. “We have now started contacting the ships to start the evacuation,” an IMO spokesperson said, without giving a timeline.

IMO chief Arsenio Dominguez said the operation would be carried out “in close cooperation with Iran, Oman, all other coastal states in the region, the United States and the maritime industry.”

Oman’s defense ministry said the phased plan was necessary because of the “elevated risk of collision,” adding that the regular Traffic Separation Scheme was “not safe for use at this time.” Floating mines remain a major risk around Hormuz.

Vessel crossings through the Strait of Hormuz nearly tripled week-on-week, MarineTraffic said in a post on X, citing its own data and figures from Kpler.

Confirmed crossings through one of the world’s most critical maritime chokepoints rose from 32 vessels on June 12–14 to 93 vessels on June 19–21, an increase of 61 crossings compared with the previous weekend.

The sharpest rise came on Saturday, when crossings jumped from just 3 vessels to 42 week-on-week.

MarineTraffic said the rebound followed recent diplomatic developments and a temporary OFAC general license, which has eased immediate compliance uncertainty around approved Hormuz transits until August 21.

A US F-15 pilot shot down over Iran in April told intelligence officials he saw multiple Iranian drones hovering and moving together in a “jellyfish” formation before ejecting, CNN reported, citing four sources familiar with his debriefing.

One source said the pilot described “multiple drones interconnected and moving as one with smaller drones below the bigger drones like legs,” calling it “real alien sh*t.” Another said he reported seeing a “minefield of drones” in the air.

The account triggered debate inside the US intelligence community over whether Iran had demonstrated an advanced drone capability known as “one-to-many meshed networking,” or whether the pilot’s concussion, crash trauma or battlefield conditions may have distorted his recollection.

Debriefers reportedly asked, “Are you sure you saw what you are saying you saw?” CNN said the exact cause of the F-15 downing remains under investigation.