US-Iran War Latest News: US Carries Out New Strikes In Iran, Intercepts Iranian Drones, Strait Of Hormuz

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said it struck two "senior" Hamas operatives in northern Gaza a short while ago, adding that further details will be shared later, Times of Israel reported.

Meanwhile, Al Jazeera, citing the Palestine Red Crescent Society, reported that at least four Palestinians were killed and 15 others injured in an Israeli airstrike on a residential house in central Gaza City.

Oman is a key US ally which has tried to mediate the Middle East war and has itself come under attack from Tehran.

Hamas's armed wing confirmed on Wednesday that its chief, Mohammed Odeh, was killed a day earlier in an Israeli strike in Gaza, after Israel had earlier announced his death.

In a statement naming him as the "Chief of Staff of the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades", Hamas's armed wing said Odeh died "on Tuesday evening... in a cowardly assassination operation that resulted in the martyrdom of him, his wife and his children".

Iran on Wednesday said a return to war with the United States was unlikely, as growing hopes for a peace deal that would reopen the crucial Strait of Hormuz trade route sent oil prices tumbling.

With fighting paused since an April 8 ceasefire, negotiations to bring an end to the conflict and resume trade through the blockaded waterway have stalled, leaving the global economy shaken by the tumult.

"The possibility of war is low because of the enemy's weakness, the armed forces are lying in wait with full magazines," said senior Iranian Revolutionary Guards official Mohammad Akbarzadeh.

The Middle East war erupted in late February with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, spreading swiftly across multiple fronts and engulfing the region.

(AFP)

Trump says he would not be comfortable with Russia or China taking Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium.

South Korea's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that an attack on a cargo ship operated by local shipper HMM in the Strait of Hormuz earlier this month likely involved an Iranian anti-ship missile.

The Iranian embassy in Seoul did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The ministry made the assessment at a briefing to announce the outcome of a government investigation into the May 4 attack on the bulk carrier, which caused a fire and damaged the lower stern hull.

The probe looked at debris from unidentified objects that were found inside the ship after the attack on the vessel.

The analysis showed that the ship, named Namu, was attacked twice and while the first warhead did not explode, a second did.

(Reuters)

An Iranian Revolutionary Guards official said on Wednesday that renewed war with the United States was unlikely but warned that Iran stood ready against any attack. 

"The possibility of war is low because of the enemy's weakness, the armed forces are lying in wait with full magazines," said Mohammad Akbarzadeh, deputy political chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy, was quoted by Tasnim news agency as saying. 

"Do not doubt that we will turn the area from Chabahar to Mahshahr into a graveyard for aggressors," he said, naming places at each end of Iran's lengthy southern coast.

(AFP)

Asian shares rose while oil prices remained elevated on Wednesday as markets looked for signals that a shaky truce between the United States and Iran will be extended.

Brent crude traded near $100 per barrel, and the greenback held gains from the previous session after Iran said the US had violated a ceasefire. New Zealand's dollar remained lower ahead of an expected hold by the central bank.

Japan's Nikkei share gauge jumped to a record level, following all-time highs on Wall Street on AI optimism as the US reopened after a holiday. Sentiment remains vulnerable, however, as talks continue to reach a lasting halt to the three-month-long conflict that has rocked energy markets, and central banker comments will be watched for how the crisis is impacting the picture for inflation and interest rates.

(Reuters)

China's top diplomat reiterated calls for parties involved in a fragile Middle East ceasefire to respect the truce, expressing hope that the United States and Iran would each make concessions, state media said Wednesday.

Foreign minister Wang Yi during an open debate session of the UN Security Council came as Iran accused the United States of breaching the ceasefire and warning of retaliation.

"We hope that the parties concerned can stay committed to pursuing a ceasefire and continue to meet each other halfway, so that peace can return to the Middle East as early as possible," Wang said, according to state news agency Xinhua.

"We support the active mediation by Pakistan and other countries, and also support efforts made by the United States and Iran, respectively," Wang said.

He added that he hoped involved parties will "continue to meet each other halfway".

(AFP)

Tehran on Tuesday accused Washington of breaching their ceasefire and warned it was ready to retaliate after overnight US strikes, while Israeli bombardment in Lebanon left dozens dead, threatening an increasingly fragile truce there.

The Brent benchmark oil price jumped up by more than three percent after US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced the new wave of bombings targeting Iranian missile sites and mine-laying boats, while China urged both sides to respect the truce and to resolve their dispute peacefully.

Iranian state media reported overnight blasts in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, near the Strait of Hormuz, and the country's Revolutionary Guards said its forces had downed a US drone entering its airspace and had fired at an F-35 fighter jet.

"The US terrorist army, continuing its illegal and unjustified actions since the ceasefire...has, in the past 48 hours, committed a gross violation of the ceasefire in the Hormozgan region," the Iranian foreign ministry said.

(AFP)

The United Nations Security Council on Tuesday condemned the attack on Barakah Nuclear Plant in the United Arab Emirates, according to a statement, adding that the attack constituted a violation of international law.

The council did not attribute blame for the attack. 

The UAE said last week that six drones had been launched against it from Iraq, including one that caused a fire at the nuclear power plant in the Gulf state. Iraq is home to powerful Iranian-backed militia groups which have claimed attacks against "enemy bases in Iraq and the region" during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Lebanon said Israeli strikes on the country's south killed 31 people on Tuesday, as Israel said it was intensifying attacks despite a truce in its war with Hezbollah.

In a statement, the health ministry said 31 people, including at least four children and three women, were killed in attacks and 40 wounded. Fourteen were killed in Burj al-Shamali near Tyre.

Gaza's civil defence agency, which operates as a rescue service under Hamas, meanwhile said at least three people were killed and 20 wounded in an Israeli airstrike in the Rimal neighbourhood in western Gaza City.

The Israeli military issued two new evacuation warnings on Tuesday for residents of 19 villages across southern Lebanon, as it expanded its ground operations deeper inside Lebanese territory.

"For your safety, you must evacuate your homes immediately and move north of the Zahrani River," the military's Arabic-language spokesman, Colonel Avichay Adraee, wrote on X, listing 14 villages.

Minutes later, he issued another warning calling on residents of five more villages to evacuate.

Iran vice president says first steps taken to restore internet after shutdown

(AFP)

Iran on Tuesday denounced U.S. strikes a day earlier as a sign of “bad faith and unreliability” as negotiations continue toward a possible deal to end the war.

The U.S. military has characterized Monday's strikes in southern Iran as defensive, saying targets included missile launch sites and boats placing mines, and said the U.S. acted with “restraint" in light of the weekslong ceasefire.

Iran's foreign ministry called the strikes a ceasefire violation and warned that Washington would bear responsibility for “all consequences,” without details.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran will leave no act of aggression unanswered,” it added in a statement.

(AP)

Iran accuses US of violating ceasefire over past 48 hours

(AFP)

Standing amid collapsed walls, broken prayer halls and damaged homes, Israel International Police Spokesperson Dean Elsdunne, in an exclusive interview with NDTV's Aishvarya Jain, accused Iran of deliberately targeting civilians.

An explosion close to the waterline damaged a tanker off Oman, a marine monitor said on Tuesday, as tensions remain high around the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.

"The crew and vessel are safe, although the master reports some bunker fuel has discharged into the sea," UK Maritime Trade Operations said.

(AFP)

Iranian media said Tuesday that Tehran's negotiators were seeking the release of around $24 billion in frozen assets abroad as part of a process aimed at ending the war with the United States.

The report by Tasnim news agency came as a top Iranian delegation was in Qatar, and after Tehran said it was finalising a 14-point framework for a deal on ending the war, which began with US-Israeli airstrikes against Iran on February 28.

"Iran's frozen assets are to be released during the course of the negotiations, and this amount is estimated at $24 billion in accordance with the 14-point memorandum of understanding," Tasnim quoted an unnamed source close to the negotiating team as saying. 

Around half of that sum "should be made available at the start of the announcement of the memorandum," it added.

(AFP)

US forces launched overnight strikes on missile sites in Iran and boats they said were trying to lay mines in Gulf waters, sending oil prices higher Tuesday while diplomats sought a deal to end the war.

The international benchmark Brent crude jumped up by almost three percent after the US Central Command announced the new wave of bombings, and China urged both sides to respect their truce and resolve their dispute peacefully.

Iran did not immediately confirm the reported strikes, but state media reported blasts in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, and the Revolutionary Guards Corps said its forces had downed a US drone entering its airspace and fired at an F-35 fighter jet.

(AFP)

Iran's judiciary on Tuesday suspended a presidential body that had ordered the restoration of internet access after months of near-total blackout since the war with the United States and Israel. 

The judiciary's Mizan Online website said the ruling suspending the presidential body followed the "filing of complaints", though it was not immediately clear who had submitted them.

The decision targeted the Special Headquarters for Organising and Governing the Country's Cyberspace, a body formed on May 12 by President Masoud Pezeshkian. 

(AFP)

Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei said on Tuesday that regional countries would no longer be shields for US bases, in a written statement carried by state television. 

"What is certain in this regard is that the hands of time will not turn backwards, and the nations and lands of the region will no longer serve as shields for American bases," said Khamenei, who has not appeared in public since he took office in March, in a message marking the Eid al-Adha holiday.

He said the United States "in addition to no longer having any safe haven in the region for aggression and the establishment of military bases, is moving further and further away from its former position with each passing day".

The remarks come as Iran and the United States continued exchanges aimed at reaching a deal to end the war which began on February 28 and spread across the region. 

(AFP)

The Iranian government announced plans to restore international internet access in the "coming days", following a decision by a special cyberspace task force formed to review restrictions imposed on connectivity.

According to Iran's ISNA news agency report on Tuesday, the government spokesperson, Fatemeh Mohajerani, said during a weekly press conference that President Masoud Pezeshkian had already issued the order to reopen internet access.

"The President has issued the decree to reopen international internet access. We hope to be able to restore this rightful right of the people to them within the coming days," Mohajerani said.

Speaking at the Sacred Defense Museum garden during the press briefing, she said the government had moved to address concerns surrounding internet restrictions.

(ANI)

Iranian hackers were responsible for a disruptive computer breach in March that forced Los Angeles' transit system to shut down parts of its network, Israeli researchers say.

The saboteurs stole at least 700 gigabytes of emails, backups, and other files from the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA), according to Gambit Security, a Tel Aviv-based cybersecurity firm that said it discovered the misappropriated data after it was inadvertently exposed online.

In a report published on Tuesday, the company said a digital trail of evidence tied the server where the data was discovered to a previously known hacking operation that Israeli officials and researchers attributed to Tehran.

(Reuters)

Highlighting a unified stance among Quad partners on maintaining global maritime stability, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Tuesday stated that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio updated members on the progress of crucial diplomatic negotiations with Iran over the volatile Strait of Hormuz.

Addressing reporters in the national capital after deliberations of the foreign ministers of the four members of the Quadrilateral grouping of countries, Wong underlined the strategic necessity of keeping the vital trade chokepoint secure, pointing to a shared consensus within the four-nation grouping to avert a wider economic fallout.

Responding to a question from ANI regarding the escalating situation in the Strait of Hormuz, the Australian Minister detailed the high-level diplomatic briefings that took place during their interactions.

(ANI)

Farmers across Sudan say the hike in global fuel and fertilizer costs resulting from the Iran conflict will force them to cut back on planting this summer, restricting food production in a country where war has caused acute hunger.

Eight farmers from different parts of Sudan, as well as experts working in the sector, told Reuters that fuel and fertilizer price increases would compound problems caused by a civil war, hitting staple domestic crops such as sorghum and millet as well as exports like sesame.

Sudan is particularly vulnerable to the fallout from the Iran crisis as it relies on the Gulf for more than half of its fertilizer needs, according to U.N. data, while the war between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces has left it entirely dependent on fuel imports.

The country is also already at the forefront of a looming global food crisis at a time of shrinking aid budgets. About 19.5 million people, more than 40% of the population, are facing crisis levels of hunger, with some areas at risk of famine, according to a U.N.-backed monitor.   

Sudan's agricultural potential has drawn interest from Gulf investors but the sector has been hampered by decades of mismanagement and war. About two-thirds of the population depend on farming for their livelihoods.

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Artificial Intelligence rather than war fronts is what matters most in West Asia in the coming years according to Israel which expects India to crack down on Iran’s IRGC.

Speaking exclusively to NDTV, senior Israeli government officials have revealed how initiatives like India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) and the I2U2 grouping are being seen by Tel Aviv in an entirely different light today.

The officials say the future strategic equations in West Asia will have less to do with ports, railways or shipping lanes and more to do with controlling communication systems, artificial intelligence, semiconductors and other advanced technologies.

“It will not be boots on the ground, but big tech which will determine things,” a senior official told NDTV.

Technology and communications infrastructure are seen as the “real backbone” of the strategic corridors that are coming up in West Asia, Israeli officials explained.

Highlighting Israel’s growing ties with global tech giants who are setting up their research centers in Israel like Nvidia, Israeli officials said that Israel wants to emerge as the innovation gateway between India, Gulf countries and the west.

The Guard's forces also claimed they "fired upon an RQ-4 drone and an intruding F-35 fighter jet", without specifying when the incidents took place.

Consulate General of Iran in Hyderabad stated that if Marco Rubio "knew the history or architecture, he wouldn't have posed for a picture here"

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has claimed that it has shot down a US MQ-9 drone and fired at a fighter jet that entered Iranian airspace, according to Al Jazeera report.

Khawaja Asif is among the politicians who vehemently oppose any idea of normalisation of ties with the Jewish state. Last month, he called Israel a "curse for humanity", while accusing it of carrying out genocide in the region.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the talks with Iran on an peace agreement are being held up by disputes over the wording of the deal.

“It’s going to take a couple of days to settle … down to the disagreements over a word, a sentence,” Rubio told reporters on his plane during a trip to India, echoing earlier comments from US officials. “We’re going to have to work through that.”

Rubio’s comments came hours after the US military carried out what it called "self-defence strikes” targeting Iranian missile launch sites and boats around the Strait of Hormuz.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday sharply criticised the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, calling for unrestricted maritime passage. On his flight to New Delhi ahead of the QUAD Foreign Ministers' Meeting, Rubio said that the Strait of Hormuz should be "open without tolls" and "no country in the world is accepting of a tolling system except Iran."

He said, "The strait needs to be open without tolls. What is happening there is unlawful, illegal, unsustainable and unacceptable. No country in the world is accepting of a tolling system except Iran."

Speaking on the prospects of a diplomatic agreement with Iran, he said, "The President (Donald Trump) had a historic call with a number of leaders from the region, and I think there is a strong alignment and agreement on what a preliminary draft should look like. It will take a couple of days to settle on."

He futher emphasised, "Either there is going to be a good deal, or there isn't going to be one."

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived at the Delhi Airport on Tuesday to attend the Quad Foreign Ministers' Meeting. He was also accompanied by the US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he and Trump had agreed that "any final agreement with Iran must eliminate the nuclear threat entirely".

Pakistan's unlikely role as broker of peace in the Gulf has put it back on institutional investors' radar.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmail Baghaei on Tuesday accused the US of committing a "despicable war crime" following a missile strike on a sports hall in Lamerd, Fars Province, that Tehran says killed 24 civilians, including teenage volleyball players and a two-year-old child, while injuring more than 130 people.

In a post on X, Baghaei said he was briefed by the Iranian member of Parliament for Mehr, Mousa Mousavi, about a " devastating American missile strike" on a residential area and sports hall in the city of Lamerd.

"On the afternoon of Saturday, 9 Esfand 1404 (28 February 2026) the same day students at the Shajareh_Tayyibeh_School in Minab were massacred by Tomahawk missiles--a residential area in Lamerd, including a sports hall, was struck by U.S. Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM)," Baghaei said.

According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, the strike "slaughtered 24 persons, including a 2-year-old girl, several teenage volleyball players", while "more than 130 persons were injured, many of whom now face permanent disabilities."

Baghaei further alleged that the missiles used " detonated in the air before impact, unleashing 180000 of high-velocity tungsten pellets that tore through the area in every direction with devastating force."

Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said that he was not in favour of Islamabad joining the Abraham Accords to normalise relations with Israel.

His comments came after US President Donald Trump asked countries involved in the peace talks with Iran to sign on to the Abraham Accords, which deal with establishing diplomatic, economic and security ties between Israel and Arab nations.

"Personally, I don’t think we should join any such accord which clashes with our fundamental ideologies,” Asif said during an interview on a talk show with Samaa TV on Monday night.  Among the negotiators, the UAE and Bahrain are already members of the Accords, and Trump expects Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkiye, Egypt and Jordan to sign up.

Pakistan's defence minister also talked about his country's long-standing position to not accept Israel until the Palestinian state on the pre-1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital is established.

“We have a very clear stance that it is not acceptable to us,” he said.

The minister also highlighted the question of credibility. “How will you sit with those people whose word cannot be trusted for even a single day?” he asked. 

Most Arab states had long maintained that they could not establish ties with Tel Aviv until a separate Palestinian state was created.

In a lengthy statement posted on Truth Social, Trump said negotiations with Iran were "proceeding nicely" and framed the moment as a potential turning point.

The strikes came as top Iranian negotiators arrived in Doha for the latest round of talks to end the months-long conflict, which had prompted Iran to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial artery for global energy exports.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that a deal with Iran was still possible despite new American strikes that cast doubt on their fragile ceasefire.

"There were some talks going on in Qatar today, so we'll see if we can make progress. I think it's a lot of talking back and forth going on about specific language in the initial document, so it'll take a few days," Rubio told reporters in Jaipur during a visit to India. 

"The president's expressed his desire to make it. He's either going to make a good deal or no deal," he said.

The strikes came as top Iranian negotiators arrived in Doha for the latest round of talks to end the months-long conflict, which had prompted Iran to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial artery for global energy exports.

Rubio told reporters that "the straits have to be open".

"They're going to be open one way or the other, so they need to be open. What's happening there is unlawful, it's illegal, it's unsustainable for the world, it's unacceptable." (AFP)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday negotiating a deal with Iran could "take a few days," quashing hopes for an imminent end to the conflict a day after US forces conducted what Washington called defensive strikes in southern Iran. Describing the strikes against targets including boats attempting to lay mines and missile launch sites, Rubio said the Strait of Hormuz has to be open "one way or the other."

"The straits have to be open, they're going to be open one way or the other, so they need to be open," Rubio told reporters on his plane in India's Jaipur.

Despite a ceasefire in place since early April, US Central Command said in a statement on Monday it had carried out fresh strikes designed "to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces."

Rubio told reporters in New Delhi earlier that the US would give diplomacy every chance to succeed before considering whether to deal with Iran in "another way".

He said there was a "pretty solid thing on the table," referring to talks over reopening the strait and a "very real, significant, time-limited negotiation on the nuclear matter."

The U.S. and Iran are discussing a plan to open the Strait of Hormuz about 30 days after the two countries reach a deal to end hostilities, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday citing a Middle East diplomatic source.

In a lengthy statement posted on Truth Social, Trump said negotiations with Iran were "proceeding nicely" and framed the moment as a potential turning point.

US President Donald Trump said Iran's enriched uranium can be turned and destroyed in the US, but his preference is for it to be destroyed "in place" or at "another acceptable location," under the supervision of the IAEA.

Trump's comment marks a shift in his repeated statements that Iran hand over its enriched uranium to the US as a sticking point of any potential deal.

"The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location, with the Atomic Energy Commission, or its equivalent, being witness to this process and event," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

On Monday, Trump said negotiations with Iran to end the war were progressing "nicely" and urged countries involved in the peace talks to sign on to the Abraham Accords, which deal with establishing diplomatic, economic and security ties between Israel and Arab nations.  He said it would be an honour to have Iran as a signatory to the Accords.

India's equity benchmarks are likely to open little changed on Tuesday, on caution over fresh US strikes in southern Iran against targets including boats attempting to lay mines and missile launch sites. The US called the strikes, which come at a time when the two sides are in talks to end the three-month-old war, as defensive action.

GIFT Nifty futures were at 24,035, as of 7:17 a.m. IST, indicating the benchmark Nifty 50 would open near Monday's close of 24,031.7.

Brent futures rose to over $98 per barrel, while stocks were mixed globally as investor optimism over an imminent U.S.-Iran peace deal was tempered by the new strikes.

The war has roiled energy markets, triggering concerns over its impact on inflation and growth in India - the world's third-biggest crude importer.

Indian benchmark indexes had hit a two-week high on Monday on hopes that U.S. and Iran were close to a peace deal. Foreign investors bought shares worth 8.22 billion rupees ($86.32 million), snapping a four-session selling streak, per provisional data.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that the Strait of Hormuz has to be open, "one way or the other", when referring to US strikes on Iran on Monday.

"The straits have to be open, they're going to be open one way or the other, so they need to be open," Rubio told reporters on his plane in India's Jaipur.

He said the negotiating language of the deal with Iran could "take a few days".

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued an order to reopen international internet access, Iranian state media reported on Monday, citing an official.

The two sides have remained at odds on difficult issues including Iran's nuclear ambitions, Israel's war in Lebanon with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia and Tehran's demands for the lifting of sanctions and the release of frozen assets.

Both sides say they have made progress on a memorandum of understanding that would halt the war and give negotiators 60 days to reach a final deal.

Senior Iranian diplomat Hossein Nooshabadi told ISNA news agency on Monday that the possible framework deal included the end of the war on all fronts including Lebanon, the release of blocked Iranian assets, the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade and opening of the Strait of Hormuz, the withdrawal of U.S. forces from the vicinity of Iran and freedom to sell Iranian oil. (Reuters)

HORMUZ AND GULF BLOCKADE - Tehran sees its control of Hormuz and Washington views its blockade of Iranian ports as their chief points of leverage.

NUCLEAR - The United States believes Iran wants to build a nuclear bomb. Iran has always denied this, saying its atomic programme is for peaceful purposes only. The focus is on its enrichment of uranium, which generates fuel for nuclear power but can also make material for a warhead. An agreement may eventually be possible including a lengthy moratorium on enrichment and the export or dilution of the stockpile.

BALLISTIC MISSILES - A main U.S. demand before the war was that Iran limit the range of its ballistic missiles so that they could not reach Israel. Iran has always refused to discuss its ballistic missiles, saying its right to conventional weapons cannot be on the table and that it still has a large arsenal. 

SANCTIONS AND FROZEN ASSETS - Iran's economy has been hurt by sanctions for years, contributing to the nationwide unrest in January. Tehran badly needs them to be lifted and tens of billions of dollars of Iranian oil revenues frozen in foreign banks to be released. It also wants reparations for war damage. (Reuters)

Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday that conclusions have been reached on many topics discussed in a potential 14-point memorandum of understanding, but this does not mean a deal to end the Middle East war is imminent.

The framework is focused on an end to the war and a U.S. naval blockade in exchange for Tehran taking steps to ensure safe transit in the Strait of Hormuz, said the spokesperson, Esmaeil Baghaei.

If Iran's Supreme National Security Council approves the memorandum of understanding, it will then be sent to the country's supreme leader for final approval.

The U.S. understood Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei had endorsed the broad template of the deal, the senior U.S. official said.

If the first phase of the agreement progressed, the nuclear issue could be reviewed and negotiated during the 60-day period, Baghaei and Nooshabadi said.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke of entering into a "very real, significant, ​time-limited negotiation on the nuclear matter" during the 60 days.

The last deal over the nuclear programme - struck in 2015 and torn up by U.S. President Donald Trump in 2018 - took years of negotiations between large teams of technical experts. (Reuters)

Tehran is yet to respond to the latest US strikes, and it remains unclear if the new American agression will have any impact on a potential peace agreement between the two warring nations.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he and Trump had agreed that "any final agreement with Iran must eliminate the nuclear threat entirely".

Oil prices have risen after the US conducted new strikes on Iran, threatening an already fragile ceasefire that began April 8.

Brent futures increased by more than 1% in early Asian trade to $97.32 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate crude was up slightly from Monday's last traded price but down 5.5% from Friday's close.

Donald Trump has said he expected Iran to hand over its enriched uranium to the United States to be destroyed or have it destroyed in Iran with an international witness as the American forces conducted "self-defence" strikes on Iranian boats and missile launch facilities.

"The Enriched Uranium (Nuclear Dust!) will either be immediately turned over to the United States to be brought home and destroyed or, preferably, in conjunction and coordination with the Islamic Republic of Iran, destroyed in place or, at another acceptable location, with the Atomic Energy Commission, or its equivalent, being witness to this process and event," he said in a social media post.

Iran's top negotiator and its foreign minister were in Doha for talks with Qatar's prime minister on a potential deal with the U.S. to end the three-month-old war, an official briefed on the visit said on Monday, after Washington and Tehran played down hopes for an imminent breakthrough.

The official briefed on the Iranians' Doha visit told Reuters the discussions focused primarily on the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium while Iran's central bank governor attended to discuss the potential release of frozen Iranian funds as part of a final deal.

Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said earlier that nuclear issues would only be negotiated on if the framework accord is agreed first.

American forces have launched new strikes on missile sites in southern Iran and boats trying to lay mines, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said, as top Iranian negotiators arrived in Doha for talks to end the three-month-old war. "US forces conducted self-defence strikes in southern Iran today to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces," Tim Hawkins, a CENTCOM spokesman, said in a statement.

It gave no details of the attacks and said only that the targets included missile launch sites and boats trying to "emplace mines."

The strikes threatened an already fragile ceasefire that began April 8 as the United States and Iran struggle to reach an accord to end a war that has rattled the global economy with a severe disruption of energy flows.