Iranian official meets Pakistan mediators as US-Iran attacks enter 10th day
An Iranian official began meetings Tuesday with mediators in Pakistan as diplomats sought to salvage the collapsed interim deal between Iran and the United States, even as both countries continued to launch attacks for a 10th day of renewed fighting.
The visit by Iran's Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni comes as Pakistan has intensified diplomatic efforts in recent days to resuscitate the deal. However, it remains unclear what new arrangement could be reached to end the fighting.
Iran attacked a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz early Tuesday, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, while the United States conducted another round of airstrikes targeting the Islamic Republic. The 10 consecutive nights of U.S. airstrikes have not compelled Tehran to loosen its grip on the strait, through which about a fifth of all crude oil and natural gas traded once passed in peacetime.
The interim deal signed last month that was meant to end the fighting has crumbled. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has largely stalled. As fighting intensifies, both sides have targeted civilian infrastructure relied on by millions of people.
“Iran and groups supportive of Iran may target other U.S. interests overseas or at locations associated with the United States and Americans throughout the world,” the U.S. State Department said in a new warning to Americans.
The escalation has pushed oil prices higher in recent weeks. Benchmark Brent crude traded Tuesday at nearly USD 90 a barrel, and regular gasoline in the U.S. climbed to an average of $4 a gallon, keeping pressure on American wallets ahead of midterm elections this fall. President Donald Trump took to social media on Monday to warn that “Every time Iran kills an American Soldier they will pay for that killing many times over!”
Momeni met Pakistan's army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door negotiations. Momeni later met Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. Pakistan's political leadership and Munir, who serves as both the chief of army staff and defence forces, have played a key role in brokering last month's interim agreement between the United States and Iran. Islamabad has been working to persuade both sides to return to the negotiating table to resolve outstanding issues under the June memorandum of understanding.
Authorities did not immediately release details of the meeting, which came as Tehran continued its attacks on Gulf Arab allies of the U.S. On Sunday, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that the U.S. is still open to negotiating with Iran but that “it has to be real.” It remains unclear whether Tehran will offer anything that Trump would consider “real.”
The U.S. military's Central Command said Tuesday it targeted “Iranian military command centres, maritime capabilities, missile and drone launch sites and air defence systems.” It released footage of bombings that targeted sites in Iran. “American forces remain postured and prepared to hold Iran accountable for unwarranted aggression toward civilian mariners seeking to freely and openly transit the strait,” the command said.
Iranian state media reported that explosions were heard in Fars, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman and Sistan and Baluchistan provinces. Traffic through the strait has slowed to a crawl during the latest violence. Lloyd's List Intelligence said only three ships transited the strait on Sunday. The British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said a tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the strait off Oman, forcing the crew to abandon the vessel. Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claimed the attack, as well as two other attacks on ships Monday in the waterway.
