Iran

LOS ANGELES — A U.S. deportation flight of Iranian nationals bound for Iran by way of Pakistan was abruptly canceled Sunday morning, according to an attorney who spoke to some of the detainees scheduled for repatriation.

At least eight Iranians were loaded onto a plane Sunday morning in Mesa, Ariz., for a deportation flight headed to the Caucasus nation of Georgia, then on to Pakistan, according to Ali Rahnama, an attorney with the Iranian American Legal Defense Fund who filed emergency motions on behalf of some of the Iranian detainees. The flight was canceled without explanation, he said.

Court documents unsealed days ago in a civil lawsuit filed by the fund showed the Trump administration as recently as mid-October said it had plans to deport the Iranians to Iran, even as the war there drags on, via an unnamed third country. The lawsuit was filed in July and alleges that the U.S. government illegally shared confidential information with Iranian officials about Iranians seeking asylum in the U.S.

There were three deportation flights to Iran between September 2025 and January 2026, with more than 100 Iranian nationals deported. But the administration’s confirmation of the new plans amid the war that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February highlights its resolve in carrying out its hard-line immigration crackdown, which has involved ramping up removals, including to places that critics say could endanger the lives of the returnees.

Homeland Security response

In response to questions Sunday from the Associated Press, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that Immigration and Customs Enforcement does not comment on “prospective removal operations, including flight schedules, passenger manifests, destinations, or individual case details,” nor would the agency confirm future removal operations.

“As promised, the Trump Administration is employing all lawful options to carry out the largest deportation operation in history,” the statement said.

The administration did not specify in the October court records when the deportations would be carried out. But in the last week, roughly a dozen Iranian nationals in immigration detention said they were notified that they were scheduled for an upcoming deportation flight to Pakistan and then to Iran, according to numerous attorneys who have since confirmed those plans with Homeland Security.

Iranian government contacts reported

According to Rahnama, the eight detainees who boarded the flight on Sunday were visited by a senior official with the Iranian Interests Section — an Iranian representative office in the Pakistani Embassy in Washington that handles consular affairs — and were told that the Iranian government would transport them from Pakistan to Iran.

In the litigation brought by the Iranian immigrant advocacy group, at least a dozen Iranian detainees have said they’ve been contacted by Iranian officials who had knowledge of sensitive information on their asylum claims.

U.S. District Judge Ana C. Reyes, a nominee of President Biden, has not ruled on the claims but ordered the U.S. government to give the court 24-hour notice of any finalized plans to deport Iranians to Iran or to any other country, and five days’ written notice before any such deportation is carried out.

In a court filing Sunday, the defense fund laid out what it had learned about plans for a removal flight Sunday and argued that the administration may have violated the judge’s directive to give advance notice of deportation plans.

Later Sunday, the government filed court documents in the case, but they were sealed and inaccessible to the public.

Group says individuals could face persecution

The Iranian American Legal Defense Fund has called for a halt to the removal flights, saying in a news release that they would “reportedly mark the first deportation of Iranians to Iran since the U.S.-Iran war began.”

The group’s executive director, Yasmine Chubin, said in a statement Sunday that it was difficult to comprehend why the U.S. would forcibly deport Iranians, including asylum seekers, to Iran, amid ongoing military hostilities.

The consequences of removal, Chubin said, “could be irreversible and individuals may face persecution, torture, or death.”

At least one person who had been part of the scuttled flight volunteered to go back to Iran after nearly two years of detention, Rahnama said, out of desperation to leave what he described as inhumane imprisonment. It’s not clear how many other of the deportees may have volunteered to leave.

Riddle writes for the Associated Press. AP reporter Sarah Rankin in Richmond, Va., contributed to this report.

Trump says Washington’s land blockade on Iran is now in effect, as Tehran threatens to ‘rain down hell’ if US resumes attacks.

The strike leaves more than 70 percent of northern Iraq’s Kurdish region without power.

A drone attack on the Khor Mor gasfield in the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of northern Iraq has caused a fire at the facility and cut power to the region, according to Iraqi and Kurdish officials.

The Sunday night attack left more than 70 percent of the Kurdish region without power.

It was not clear who was responsible for the attack or whether it was related to the United States and Israel’s war on Iran.

Al Jazeera’s fact-checking agency Sanad has verified footage of smoke and flames rising from the vicinity of the gasfield in the Sulaimaniyah governorate.

Omid Ahmed, spokesperson for the Kurdistan Regional Government’s Ministry of Electricity, said the attack suspended gas supply to power plants in the cities of Erbil, Sulaimaniyah, Bazian, Chamchamal and Duhok, the official Iraqi News Agency (INA) reported.

The strike knocked between 2,500 and 2,800 megawatts of electricity generation off the grid, he said.

He added that the ministry would provide electricity to critical facilities, such as hospitals and water treatment plants, by operating hydroelectric power stations and other plants that run on alternative fuel.

Al Jazeera’s Peter Smith, reporting from Baghdad, cited security sources as saying the explosive-laden drone struck the Khor Mor gas storage facility, reducing the energy grid’s capacity by 70 to 80 percent.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi said there were no casualties as a result of the attack, based on an initial assessment, the INA reported.

Al-Zaidi also directed that a joint investigative committee be formed with the relevant authorities in the Kurdish region to investigate the circumstances surrounding the attack, INA reported.

The attack comes amid heightened regional tensions. A drone strike hit the same facility last year, with no group having claimed responsibility.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed skepticism Sunday about prospects for a diplomatic breakthrough with Iran, even as President Donald Trump suggested additional U.S. military strikes could be avoided if negotiations produce an agreement.

Speaking to reporters in Florida before

US President Donald Trump warns that United States forces are ‘locked and loaded’ and ready to strike if necessary.

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, has warned that Tehran will “rain down hell” if the United States resumes attacks, serving Washington with an ultimatum in an attempt to end the two countries’ eight-month war.

“Our 2-day proposal stands: meet the requirements, including end to war on all fronts, and you will see results,” Araghchi wrote in a post on X on Sunday.

“Or choose war, and see our alert and battle-hardened warriors rain down hell,” he said.

US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that renewed strikes on Iran are “highly unlikely” if negotiations progress over Tehran’s nuclear programme and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

‘Locked and loaded’

“It depends on whether or not they sign a very strong agreement,” Trump said when asked about continued US strikes on Iran during a phone interview reported by CNN. “I would [continue], if necessary, but we hit them really hard,” he added.

Trump warned that US forces have three aircraft carriers stationed in the region “fully locked and loaded”, ready to continue strikes if need be. He also said that the US has 38 bridges in Iran’s crosshairs that US forces “can knock down in literally one hour”.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry also quoted Araghchi in an earlier statement on Sunday that said Iran would “not go easy on American targets” in the region.

Araghchi’s statements came after reports by state media that an oil tanker caught fire earlier that morning after hitting a naval mine east of the Strait of Hormuz, citing Iran’s navy.

The navy claimed the ship’s identification systems were turned off and it was travelling in the no-go zone of the strait.

‘Devastating and severe’ response

An adviser to Iran’s commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Aerospace Force made threats that echoed those of the Iranian foreign minister and said that weapons have been “secured for years to come”.

“The armed forces are at the ready, and if the enemy makes a mistake, Iran’s response will be devastating and severe,” warned IRGC Brigadier-General Ali Belali in a statement on Telegram.

“As senior commanders of the armed forces have pointed out, we have upgraded our capabilities in the post-Ramadan War period,” Belali said.

The back-and-fourth between Iranian and US leaders comes following US midterm elections in which the Democratic Party won control of both chambers of Congress, soundly defeating Trump’s Republican Party.

Araghchi alleged that negotiations have been delayed as a result of the elections, but he awaits the path forward, Iranian state media reported.

“It will take some time for things to settle down and for the atmosphere to become conducive to the mediators resuming their visits,” the foreign minister said. “We have to wait.”

WASHINGTON — House Democratic leaders are placing an early emphasis on healthcare as they discuss their immediate priorities upon the swearing-in of the new Congress on Jan. 3.

Early votes in the House next year are expected to focus on boosting Medicaid and restoring an enhanced tax subsidy that is designed to lower the cost of Affordable Care Act health plans for millions of enrollees.

Democrats are also promising swift action on legislation to stop the war with Iran and to reverse some of President Trump’s tariffs.

“We’re going to get out of the gate fast,” said New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic leader who is in line to become the next House speaker.

The legislative flurry carries enormous stakes for Democrats as they seek to translate their sweeping victories in the midterms — their numbers will exceed 250 in the 435-member House — into achievements that deliver on their promises to lower the cost of living.

Obstacles for the Democratic agenda

Passing those bills should not be a problem with such a large Democratic House majority. Getting them signed into law most certainly could be.

A 60-vote threshold in the Senate looms for the legislation, as does a potential presidential veto. Trump on election night posted a photo on his social media site of a red hat with a simple message on it: “Veto.”

Following those early votes, Jeffries said five working groups are developing plans to put forward bills that would lower costs in areas such as housing, energy, groceries and caregiving.

Rep. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) said Democrats will at some point take up legislation dealing with artificial intelligence and data centers. He is part of a group of lawmakers working on a document that will lay out some of the priorities for Jeffries to consider.

“House Republicans last year made a conscious decision to let the AI industry run wild, and that was a bad decision politically and a bad decision on policy,” Lieu said. “Two things will change next term. We will hold public hearings on AI. We will pass legislation, reasonable guardrails on AI, and specifically data centers.”

A return to past political fights

Democrats are trying to reverse Medicaid changes that are expected to cut more than $900 billion from the program over a decade. The Republican-approved cuts helped offset some of the costs of Trump’s big tax and spending cut bill that was signed into law last year. The Medicaid changes in the bill imposed new administrative requirements and added conditions for eligibility, including work requirements.

Some of the most substantial changes have yet to take effect. Still, enrollment in Medicaid has dropped by about 5 million, or about 7%, since July 2025, when the bill was signed into law, according to KFF, a health policy research and news organization.

Reversing those cuts would probably require Trump and the Republicans to abandon the hard-fought changes they made to cut entitlement spending in their signature tax bill. It’s an unlikely proposition.

The effort to extend enhanced tax subsidies for certain enrollees in ACA plans has also been debated and voted on in the current Congress. The measure passed the House with some Republican support but stalled in the Senate.

There also have been numerous war powers votes regarding Iran — 14 in the Senate and six in the House.

Gridlock may be on the horizon

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said going into the election that a Democratic majority in the next Congress would amount to “two years of paralysis.”

“I don’t think that’s good for anybody,” Thune said.

But Democratic leader Chuck Schumer of New York is insisting that his party will push its agenda with or without the Republican president’s help.

“If he vetoes it, it will show the divisions. As much as we didn’t want to shut down, when we shut down the government for a month over healthcare, people knew we were on their side,” Schumer said in an interview with the New York Times’ podcast “The Daily.”

Schumer said he believes Democrats can gain some Republican votes on restoring the enhanced subsidies for ACA plans. When asked if he was hearing from Republicans expressing a willingness to work with him on legislation, he replied: “They’re never so definitive but, yes, I am getting initial signs that way on certain issues, not on every issue.”

While the prospects for getting any of the early priority bills over the finish line are uncertain, the votes in Congress will help frame the choices voters will face during a presidential election in 2028.

Tensions within the new majority

Progressive groups call the agenda outlined by Jeffries a good early start, but they have much greater expectations for Democrats this Congress.

“It’s perfectly fine if the Senate and the House are unified and Donald Trump is standing in the way because that sets up another tidal wave election in 2028,” said Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, a Democratic-aligned group that backs progressive candidates and policies.

At the same time, he said Schumer cannot be content to let bills die in the Senate because of the 60-vote threshold.

“It will require the Democrats to get rid of the filibuster,” Green said. “There’s no doubt about it.”

He said there’s a disparity because Republicans’ top priorities — tax cuts and Supreme Court justices — can get through with simple majorities. But the Democratic Party’s top priorities require 60 votes to overcome a filibuster.

“The only question is will the American public trust Democrats enough to keep giving us more power or will this week’s gains whittle away because we do nothing? That’s why the filibuster is a threshold question,” Green said last week.

Schumer, in an interview with the Associated Press last week, would not say whether he would try to eliminate the filibuster.

“The focus has got to be on getting things done,” Schumer said. “That’s all I am saying.”

In a memo to fellow members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) said Democrats also need to target what he called “powerful forces outside of government.” Examples he cited were corporations using Americans’ private data to adjust their pricing based on a consumer’s personal data and AI companies that he says are putting jobs and lives at risk.

“By focusing not just on the Trump administration but also on big corporations and billionaires, we will show the American people we are not just anti-Trump but also pro-worker and pro-consumer,” Casar said.

Freking writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Mary Clare Jalonick contributed to this report.

As the threat of renewed war grows, Washington is expanding efforts to choke Tehran’s military supply networks, including through Task Force Iron Gate – a unit targeting land routes and the Caspian Sea.

With it, the US military ⁠⁠⁠⁠is trying to prevent Iran from using ground routes to transport advanced weapons and other materials, the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced on Saturday.

The same day, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced ambitious plans for underground complexes capable of sustaining missile and drone production under bombardment. That announcement came amid reports of ongoing construction near Iranian missile bases, based on satellite imagery and previous claims by Tehran that US strikes failed to destroy its underground facilities.

Here’s what we know about the US task force:

What is the purpose of the task force?

Task Force Iron Gate will aim to find out where “weapons systems are coming in, how they could potentially be cut off” and how “Iran is transporting its energy”, Michael Mulroy, a former US deputy assistant defence secretary for the Middle East, told Al Jazeera.

It expands on the US blockade of Iranian ports to cover Iran’s land borders and the Caspian Sea and will reportedly be run by 20 civilian and military personnel.

Iran shares borders with seven countries – Afghanistan, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iraq, Pakistan Turkiye and Turkmenistan.

Based in Tampa, Florida, the unit will coordinate with other US government agencies “on preventing the movement of advanced weapons systems, dual-use technologies, sanctioned materials and illegal revenue streams across Iran’s land borders and the Caspian Sea”, CENTCOM said. Task Force Iron Gate will reinforce “the success of our ironclad blockade against Iran at sea”, CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper said.

If US President Donald Trump ramps up the war, there will likely be attacks on this “series of targets”, said Mulroy.

“Unlike Operation Epic Fury, which primarily (focused) on military targets, I think these targets will be focused on economic and infrastructure targets, as part of this comprehensive plan to cut the regime off from its ability to fight and ability to fund itself,” Mulroy said. “It’s primarily a coordination body that’s looking for how the US can increase its economic strangulation strategy by going after the ground routes as they’ve already covered a majority of the maritime routes.”

The IRGC dismissed the US military plan as “just a play on words”.

“The Americans cannot achieve their goal through this, which is to apply severe economic pressure to collapse and disintegrate the Iranian economy,” said IRGC spokesman Sardar Mohebi, as reported by the Fars news agency.

Washington previously “claimed that Iran will suffer an economic collapse within two weeks, but we witnessed that this did not happen”, he added.

Is the task force a response to reports of Russia-Iran weapons ties?

While CENTCOM’s announcement did not explicitly identify Iran’s weapons trade with Russia, analysts say the unit could be seen as an attempt to disrupt supply networks that include Russian connections.

US media have reported that Russia has sent drone components and explosives to Iran via the Caspian Sea. There are also claims that Russian technology could be helping Iran develop advanced supersonic cruise missiles.

Mahjoob Zweiri, a professor of contemporary history and politics at Qatar University, told Al Jazeera that reports of military equipment imported via Russia are a “real concern” for the United States.

The task force therefore could “cause a confrontation with Russia”, he said.

Rami Khouri, a public policy fellow at the American University of Beirut and a non-resident senior fellow at the Arab Center in Washington, said of the new unit: “The US really doesn’t quite know what to do about Iran as we’ve seen, and it’s doing things off the cuff” – a strategy that has led to little success.

Can the US really choke off Iran’s supply lines?

Khouri pointed to Iran’s history as a trading nation for thousands of years as evidence that the US mission is near impossible.

“There’s an enormous web of contacts that Iran has had for thousands of years with traders and partners and allies all over the region, especially in Asia –  it’s virtually impossible for the US to seal off every one,” he said.

While the US can impose a blockade or sanctions on Iran, it cannot control the behaviour of everyone from the Russians, to the Chinese, to the Emiratis and beyond, said the analyst.

“There are people all over the region who have links with Iran, some very close, some just commercial,” he said.

A lot of the materials that go into Iran’s weapons systems are bought from some other countries, – some even from the US or Europeans – and then they are channelled through companies in Asia, Khouri added.

Could this change the course of the war?

Former Trump aide and top counterterrorism official Joe Kent, who resigned in March due to the US’s war on Iran, said the new task force is an attempt by CENTCOM to subvert ongoing diplomatic efforts.

“This is CENTCOM inviting Iran to escalate while the vice president is attempting to negotiate with the Iranians,” Kent posted on X. “This is, as CENTCOM calls it, ‘policy by CONOP’, when the military finds a way to subvert the White House without blatantly disobeying the President, by taking actions that will ensure a war escalates or perpetuates.”

According to The Wall Street Journal, CENTCOM chief Cooper is among the many officials, alongside Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, pressing Trump to renew attacks on Iran.

The task force may also just be symbolic because the US has no military presence on the Caspian Sea, said Zweiri.

“America has no access to the sea, unless some of the neighbouring countries like Azerbaijan or Armenia or others collaborate [with them] … And they’re not collaborating on this because they don’t want to upset Russia,” he said. “It will require … troops on the ground, and this is unlikely to happen.”

Zweiri also said that the Caspian Sea’s contribution to Iran’s economy is just 11 percent, so the task force’s actions won’t have much negative impact on Tehran.

Al Jazeera could not independently verify this figure but the Caspian Sea accounts for only a fraction of Iran’s overall maritime trade, according to the Soufan Center based in New York City.

The interceptions come as the Houthis report 33 people killed in a coalition air attack on a village near Sanaa.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis says its air defences have destroyed three ballistic missiles launched by the Iran-aligned armed group towards the kingdom.

Two of the missiles were launched towards the kingdom’s capital, Riyadh, Major-General Turki al-Maliki, the coalition’s spokesperson, said in a post on X on Sunday.

Later, the coalition said it intercepted and destroyed two cruise missiles in Riyadh and the southern region.

Earlier, al-Maliki also confirmed another interception of a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis towards the kingdom’s Eastern province.

The attacks come as fighting intensifies across Yemen between the Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah (Arabic for Supporters of God), and government forces, who launched the Dawn of Yemen operation aimed at retaking Houthi-held territory, including the capital, Sanaa, last month.

The Houthi-run Health Ministry spokesperson, Anees al-Asbahi, said on Saturday that 33 people, including eight women and 13 children, were killed after Saudi-led coalition air attacks on the village of al-Shariyah, near Sanaa.

In a post on X, al-Asbahi said at least 39 others were wounded in the attacks on Saturday, which targeted homes, roads, paramedics and civil defence teams in the village, located in the Bani Hushaish district east of Sanaa.

There was no immediate comment from the Saudi-led coalition on the reported strikes. Al Jazeera could not independently verify the reports.

Media outlets affiliated with the Houthis reported on Sunday that various areas of the Shada border district in Saada province have also been subjected to artillery shelling.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree earlier claimed that the coalition had carried out 105 air strikes and missile attacks over 24 hours targeting Sanaa and seven other governorates, taking the total number of strikes since the escalation began to 4,369.

The Houthis, meanwhile, carried out six operations targeting Aramco oil facilities, Riyadh airport and Saudi military positions on both sides of the border, Saree claimed in a post on X.

On Friday, an attack on a market in Taiz province killed 30 people. The Houthis blamed it on Saudi air strikes, while Yemeni government forces accused the Iran-aligned group of firing a ballistic missile at the site.

According to the United Nations, more than 1,600 people have been killed and almost 300,000 displaced since a 2022 ceasefire collapsed in July after the Houthis announced a blockade of Saudi ports.

In September, the Houthis seized much of Yemen’s Red Sea coast in a lightning offensive, while government forces launched a campaign to reclaim Houthi-held territory in October.

The operation is to prevent Iran from using ground routes to transport weapons and other materials, US Central Command says.

The United States military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) has announced a plan to block Iran’s land-based supply routes, expanding its months-long naval blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz.

CENTCOM, which oversees US military operations in the Middle East, announced on Saturday that it had established a new task force “to prevent Iran from using ground routes to transport advanced weapons and other materials”.

Task Force Iron Gate will reinforce “the success of our ironclad blockade against Iran at sea”, CENTCOM Commander Admiral Brad Cooper said.

Based in Tampa, Florida, the task force will coordinate with other US government agencies “on preventing the movement of advanced weapons systems, dual-use technologies, sanctioned materials, and illegal revenue streams across Iran’s land borders and the Caspian Sea”, CENTCOM said.

Michael Mulroy, a former US deputy assistant defence secretary for the Middle East, told Al Jazeera the task force’s role will be to find out where “weapons systems are coming in, how they could potentially be cut off”, and how “Iran is transporting its energy”.

He added that if US President Donald Trump orders an escalation to the war, it will likely be attacks on this “series of targets”.

“Unlike Operation Epic Fury, which primarily focuses on military targets, I think these targets will be focused on economic and infrastructure targets, as part of this comprehensive plan to cut the regime off from its ability to fight and ability to fund itself,” Mulroy told Al Jazeera.

CENTCOM separately said on Saturday that it had disabled a commercial cargo vessel in the Gulf of Oman as part of its blockade of Iranian ports.

A US “military aircraft fired precision munitions at the stern of St. Kitts-flagged M/V Huda, disabling the ship after CENTCOM forces directed the crew to abandon targeted spaces”, it said in a statement.

“Enforcement actions since July have resulted in U.S. forces redirecting 147 commercial vessels that complied”, and disabling “five merchant ships that refused to comply”, it added.

Explosions reported

On Saturday, Iran’s official news agency IRNA reported the sound of two explosions on Qeshm Island, located in the Strait of Hormuz.

IRNA also reported the sound of “several explosions” in the cities of Jask, Sirik and Bandar Abbas.

Trump confirmed new strikes on Qeshm Island a day earlier, but downplayed them as “minor”. He added that Tehran still wants a deal as Qatari-mediated talks continue.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy reported that two oil tankers struck mines near the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday.

Iranian state television, citing the navy, said the tankers had passed through an “unsafe” part of the strait with their navigation systems off. They “suffered severe damage and stopped after hitting sea mines”.

Iranian state media report blasts in Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz and the cities of Jask, Sirik and Bandar Abbas.

IRGC says underground military complexes allow missile production to continue even under heavy bombardment.

Iran is building underground military complexes able to sustain weapons production and storage even under heavy bombardment, according to the country’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

IRGC spokesperson Hossein Mohebbi made a series of announcements on Saturday about the military’s capabilities during a news conference in Tehran, Iranian media reported.

Among the achievements listed were an “underground missile city” set to be unveiled, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported.

Mohebbi said the IRGC had rapidly transferred its missile and drone production lines from the surface to underground facilities. This allows Iran to continue producing missiles while its adversaries assumed its stockpiles were dwindling, he explained.

The spokesperson also outlined advances in stealth technology. He maintained that such improvements had allowed Iran’s missiles and drones to pierce air defence systems and accurately strike targets during previous rounds of fighting with the United States and Israel.

“Today, every weapon used by the IRGC Aerospace Force is manufactured using homegrown knowledge and expertise. Moreover, our products are not even derived from reverse-engineering captured enemy war material,” Iran’s IRNA news agency quoted Mohebbi as saying.

A recent report by US newspaper, The Wall Street Journal, shows that Iran caused billions of dollars in damage to US bases throughout the Middle East during previous rounds of fighting.

Meanwhile, a separate report by the Reuters news agency found that Iran had successfully targeted Gulf infrastructure on at least 135 occasions during the same period, causing billions of dollars in damage and lost revenues.

Mohebbi also warned on Saturday that restrictions on the range of Iranian missiles had been lifted. The warning follows a statement from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, who said that there would be “no geographical limits” to Iran’s response if it were attacked again by the US and Israel.

The US-Israeli war on Iran was launched on February 28, prompting Tehran to close the Strait of Hormuz and triggering a global energy crisis. Mediation efforts have stepped up recently, as regional countries hope to bring the war to an end.

On Friday, President Donald Trump said the US military launched limited strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island, while also claiming Washington had made “a lot of progress” in talks with Iran.

Tehran has repeatedly warned that it will target Gulf energy infrastructure if the fighting resumes. Such attacks would likely push energy prices even higher.

Meanwhile, Washington has also imposed additional sanctions on Iran as it seeks to force Tehran to concede to its demands. The restrictions have further strained the country’s economy, forcing Iran to adopt new trade routes.

On Saturday, US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced it was establishing a new task force that will support ongoing US efforts to prevent Iran from using land routes to transport advanced weapons and other materials.

The US has also imposed a naval blockade on Iran to prevent it from exporting oil.

Iraqi foreign minister warns of potential regional war, says Baghdad seeking to resolve disagreements with Saudi Arabia.

Iraq has evidence that external parties have been using its territory to launch attacks on neighbouring countries, its foreign minister told Al Jazeera in an exclusive interview on Saturday.

Baghdad is investigating attacks launched from Iraqi territory against Gulf states and is seeking to resolve disagreements with Saudi Arabia through dialogue, Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said.

Saudi Arabia has accused Iran-aligned groups operating in Iraq of attacking its oil infrastructure. In September, Baghdad confirmed that drone attacks on the kingdom’s East-West pipeline originated from Iraqi territory.

Hussein told Al Jazeera that Baghdad was negotiating with Iran-aligned armed factions to bring their weapons under state control and the process must be pursued through dialogue rather than force.

He also said they were in contact with Tehran regarding the issue of weapons held by Iraqi factions.

Hussein said Washington had formally requested the closure of all but two border crossings with Iran. He said that while Iraq welcomed friendship and an alliance with Tehran, it rejected interference in its internal affairs.

Hussein also said Iraq had lost about $60bn from the suspension of oil exports through the Strait of Hormuz, but that shipments have resumed after understandings were reached with Washington and Tehran.

On the issue of combatting ISIL (ISIS), Hussein said that Iraq, Syria, Jordan and Turkiye have formed a committee to fight the group’s presence in Syria.

The full interview will air at 18:00 GMT on Sunday on Al Jazeera.

WASHINGTON — Just days ago, a resumption of war with Iran appeared inevitable, regardless of the outcome of the midterm elections. U.S. diplomats urged their Arab counterparts to prepare for an intense period of fighting. Nonessential foreign service and intelligence personnel across the Middle East were ordered home, while senior officials at the Pentagon debated the strategic objectives renewed hostilities could realistically achieve, two U.S. officials told The Times.

Now, the sharpest electoral rebuke in half a century is forcing a reckoning for President Trump, who insisted the day after the vote that his war against Tehran was worth the political cost. Renewed strikes on Iran remain a distinct possibility, the officials said.

But a sudden bipartisan push to oust Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over his handling of the conflict, coupled with a statement of brazen defiance from his own vice president, JD Vance, opposing the war, could constrain Trump’s ability to resume the fight before Democrats take control of Congress next year.

A Republican lawmaker from Kentucky, Thomas Massie, plans to present impeachment articles against Hegseth next week over his role overseeing the war effort — a measure expected to gain enough support from Republicans to pass.

While maintaining public support for the Defense secretary, Trump has begun surveying advisors and confidants over Hegseth’s performance, according to multiple reports, a frequent tactic of the president before he proceeds with a firing.

Hegseth faces intense scrutiny for allegedly misleading Trump about the war’s risks, specifically regarding the safety of commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. And he orchestrated a highly controversial wartime purge of top military brass, including the Army secretary and chief of staff, when combat was at its fiercest.

U.S. supplies of critical munitions also remain a top Pentagon concern after eight months of conflict, and renewed fighting would further strain stockpiles. Defense officials told The Times that the campaign has already consumed multiple munitions per target to ensure successful strikes, raising internal questions over the conduct of the war under Hegseth’s leadership.

Vice President JD Vance approaches members of the media outside Air Force Two on Nov. 2, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md.

(Tom Brenner / Getty Images)

“The reason we lost is the war. The president himself said so last night,” Vance wrote on social media the day after the election. “If you’d like to argue it was worth it, that losing the Senate for the next 6 years was worth it, then do so. Argue it was a worthwhile cost to pay. Agree or disagree, that’s at least honest.

“But everyone knows why we lost,” he added, “and any honest conversation about where we go from here must start there.”

Responding to the vice president’s remarks, Trump said he agreed with him on the merits but stood by his initial decision to go to war — and would continue the fight if necessary.

“I think it’s largely true,” Trump said, “because it drove the gasoline up a little bit short term. But at the same time, if I had it to do again, I’d have to do it again. Because long term, it’s the only answer. You can’t let Iran have a nuclear weapon.

“The Iran thing, we had to do,” Trump continued, “and we continue to do it.”

If Trump chooses to proceed with renewed strikes, he will have roughly two months to do so before the new Congress is sworn in on Jan. 3.

Once Democrats take the gavels of the House and Senate, the new majority will be able to withhold defense funding unless the Trump administration ends the conflict. And a split Republican Party will give them a substantial boost in votes to demand a new direction in the war effort.

Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed greets supporters during a midterm election night watch party in Detroit. El-Sayed ended up winning his race.

(Salwan Georges / Getty Images)

“Certainly, the funding of the war is going to be a huge issue,” said Howard Wolfson, a Democratic political strategist and advisor to former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg. “I imagine the Democrats will be willing to shut the government down over it, rather than hand the president money for the continuation of the war.”

In recent months, the conflict with Iran has settled into a war of attrition. The two sides continue to exchange sporadic strikes, while the United States maintains its naval blockade of Iranian ports and Tehran restricts access to the Strait of Hormuz. No ceasefire or peace agreement is in place, and negotiations remain stalled.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, a Democrat from Maryland poised to become chair of the House Judiciary Committee, told reporters Thursday that he expected a robust debate over war funding when the new Congress is seated.

“When we get back together, we are going to be able to discuss precisely that question,” Raskin said. “But I can tell you that there is tremendous sentiment within the majority caucus, just like there’s tremendous sentiment in the country, that this war has been an absolute folly and a disaster, and we have to try to reverse Donald Trump’s mistake the best we can.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth gives a State of the Force address at Marine Corps Base Quantico on Sept. 30, 2026, in Virginia.

(Alex Wong / Getty Images)

Hegseth has pushed back against the coming impeachment effort as a “sham,” likening himself to Trump, who was impeached twice by the House in his first term.

“Their obsession with political theater, disguised as power, drives them to try to destroy their opponent. It’s all about the politics of personal destruction,” Hegseth said in a video on the steps of the Defense Department, which he and Trump have attempted to rebrand as the Department of War. “It didn’t work against President Trump, and it won’t work with me. You can rest assured of that.”

The midterm elections results were also watched closely in Tehran, where Iran’s chief negotiator and parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, issued a warning Wednesday.

“Americans said NO TO WAR, and we endorse this message,” Qalibaf wrote on social media.

Pete Hegseth speaks during a National POW/MIA Recognition Day Ceremony on the Pentagon River Terrace Parade Field on Sept. 18, 2026, in Arlington, Va.

(Andrew Harnik / Getty Images)

If the U.S. government “betrays their public will to serve international paymasters and blackmailers,” he added, “it will learn our NO comes with a Nightmare.”

Times staff writer Justine McDaniel contributed to this report.

It was the most expensive election in American history: nearly $12bn spent, much of it on advertisements, with the majority of that money going to Republican candidates. But most voters weren’t buying it. The result: a Democratic sweep on a scale not seen in half a century.

In the aftermath of the vote, United States President Donald Trump – who has long revelled in his ability to turn controversy and crisis into spectacle – appeared to lose control of the narrative. The scale of the Republican defeat amounts to a repudiation of Trump’s politics and the US-Israel war on Iran. Meenakshi Ravi and Richard Gizbert examine the political and media fallout.

Contributors: 
Alex Shephard – Senior editor, The New Republic
Rob Arlett – former Trump state campaign chair & Republican strategist
Maya Berry – Executive director, Arab American Institute

On our radar

Serbia’s new political leadership has yet to form a government, but the country’s media institutions are already being purged of voices who gave former president, Aleksandar Vucic, years of favourable coverage. Tariq Nafi looks at the news outlets being held to account.

Equator: a magazine for a post-American world

Equator magazine is the brainchild of a group of writers and editors – some of them ex-mainstream media – who came together during a “moment of moral despair” as they witnessed Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza unfold. One year after its launch, Equator has produced some quality stories and essays on global politics, culture and art – all presented with an eye for design. We speak to cofounder and former Guardian editor, Jonathan Shainin, about the magazine’s vision and how it’s going.

Featuring:
Jonathan Shainin – Founding Editor, Equator magazine

Iran has stepped up diplomatic efforts amid suggestions by United States President Donald Trump that the US could resume full-scale strikes on the Islamic republic.

The US news website Axios quoted a US official saying that US Central Command (CENTCOM) was preparing for the resumption of major military operations in Iran, and that it was just waiting on orders from Washington. On Thursday, Trump told reporters the US may have to “destroy” the rest of Iran, adding that people will “know soon enough” if he acts.

Tehran’s intensified diplomatic push comes after Iran downed two US reconnaissance drones near Qeshm island in the Strait of Hormuz, which the US struck earlier this week. Iran says it will retaliate if the US resumes larger strikes.

What diplomatic efforts is Iran engaging in?

On Thursday, Iran offered the US a new nuclear and peace proposal via Qatari mediators, to be discussed only after Washington meets Tehran’s seven demands, a senior Iranian official told Reuters. The US is examining the proposal, Reuters reported.

Iran has made meeting its seven demands a condition for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and restarting peace talks, including on its nuclear programme. The demands include the lifting of sanctions on Iran, the unfreezing of Iranian assets and the end to the US naval blockade of its ports in and around the Strait of Hormuz, among other things.

It has also stepped up ties with Russia, with its top security official, Mohsen Rezaei, travelling to Moscow for talks on Thursday. During that visit, Rezaei said: “On the issue of diplomacy, we have announced seven conditions ⁠to the Americans. As long as they do ⁠not execute our seven conditions, we will neither open the Strait of Hormuz nor have negotiations.”

Meanwhile, the US has insisted a deal on Iran’s nuclear capacity must be part of any ceasefire agreement before wider peace talks can restart.

How is Iran deepening ties with Russia?

On Thursday, Rezaei met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin to deliver a message from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. Iranian state media did not elaborate on ⁠the contents of the message.

Rezaei called it “an extremely important exchange” according to remarks reported by the Iranian embassy, but also did not give further details.

However, The Financial Times reported that Russia previously agreed to supply Iran with 90 helicopter-mounted launchers for precision-guided missiles, despite needing its own weapons for the Ukraine war. The newspaper cited a Russian defence manufacturer’s production schedule for 2024 and 2025, which it has examined, showing an order for helicopter-mounted launchers being assigned a code used to refer to Iran in Russian defence documents.

Relations between Russia and Iran have deepened since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and during the US-Israeli war on Iran that saw the two countries become the most heavily sanctioned in the world. Iran has provided Shahed drones, which Russia has modified and used heavily against Ukraine.

In return, Russia has also reportedly helped Iran develop supersonic cruise missiles, sold it Verba shoulder-launched anti-air missiles and shared information with Tehran potentially relevant to nuclear weapons.

“It is indicative of Russia’s willingness to continue supplying Iran despite its own wartime demands and with far less concern about Western objections than in the past,” Nicole Grajewski, a non-resident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told the FT.

In early October, Putin said Russia was prepared to take part in mediation to bring an end to the war.

Images released by the Kremlin showed its foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov and chief of the Russian military intelligence, Igor Kostyukov, attending a meeting with Iran’s security chief alongside Putin.

The meeting also strengthened Iran’s economic ties with Russia.

“During the meeting with Mr Vladimir Putin, discussions were held regarding the construction of gas pipelines from Russia to Iran,” said Rezaei, Iranian state TV reported.

He said the gas pipelines would address Iran’s gas shortages and facilitate the sale of Russian energy to neighbouring countries.

Tehran said Iran’s natural gas refineries had been hit during the most intense phase of US-Israeli strikes on Iran earlier this year, which lasted 40 days.

Separately, Russia’s Foreign Ministry advised citizens against travel to Iran “In light of the remaining risks of a new escalation around Iran”.

How is Iran negotiating with regional leaders?

During the most intense fighting of the war, Iran struck bases in Gulf countries hosting US military assets, as well as civil and energy facilities and infrastructure.

Senior Iranian officials have repeatedly warned that any state helping the US to target the Islamic republic will be a “legitimate target” should US attacks resume.

On Thursday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held phone calls with several Gulf leaders, including the foreign minister of the UAE, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

They discussed regional developments as well as diplomatic efforts for stability in the region, according to Araghchi’s Telegram channel.

Araghchi spoke with Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud about efforts to improve security and stability in the region, according to the Saudi foreign ministry.

Araghchi also discussed de-escalation efforts with the foreign ministers of Kuwait and Turkiye.

In a separate call, Araghchi talked with Qatar’s Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani about coordinating to reduce tensions, the Qatari foreign ministry said.

Sheikh Mohammed stressed support for efforts to secure freedom of maritime navigation.

In a statement, Oman’s foreign ministry said the safety of passage through the Strait of Hormuz was a main topic of discussions, in a call between Araghchi and Oman’s foreign minister.

Iran continues to tightly control shipping lanes through the strait, where several ships have been damaged in recent days. It has granted exemptions to shipping restrictions to Iraq and Qatar, in the Gulf region, as well as to India and China.

What is Trump saying?

Despite his Republican Party suffering a drubbing in this week’s US midterm elections – largely because of public anger over the war on Iran and the resulting rise in energy prices – US President Donald Trump has refused to rule out further strikes on Iran.

On Thursday, Trump told reporters at the Oval Office that he may have to “destroy the rest” of Iran.

Former Iranian diplomat Hadi Afghahi told Al Jazeera that Tehran can ease the path to a settlement if the US also shows flexibility. He argued that Trump “really does not want to go to war, because war again will cost him more”. However, the US president’s next move is unpredictable, observers say.

Afghahi cautioned that Trump “is still surrounded by a group of hawks”, including the energy and treasury secretaries.

Trump has shown willingness to engage in diplomacy, however. Qatar’s ⁠Emir ⁠Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad ⁠Al Thani discussed diplomatic ⁠efforts to ease regional tensions in a ‌phone call with Trump on Friday, according to the Qatari Emiri Diwan.

The leaders reviewed international diplomatic efforts, including the Doha-led mediation efforts to support negotiations in recent weeks, in a bid to reach “a comprehensive agreement that puts an end to the crisis”, the Diwan said in a statement.

How has Iran responded to Trump’s rhetoric?

Tehran warned it will retaliate on a wider scale than it has done so far if the US resumes the war. It has also said talks will become unfeasible.

Iranian officials said Iran has the capacity to strike further than the Gulf using weapons manufactured in Iran.

On Thursday, a spokesman for the Supreme Advisor to the Commander of the Aerospace Force of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said: “In the event of a new aggression, any country or force that helps America attack Iran can be a legitimate target of the Islamic Republic.”

Iran’s state media outlet Tasnim News reported: “Our missile bases have a suitable range to target the Zionist regime and American bases,” adding “Iran’s response to the possible new aggression of the enemies will not be geographically limited.”

Iran has also previously warned that cables, data centres and artificial intelligence (AI) facilities across the Gulf region could be attacked if war with the US erupts again.

What strikes have there been in recent days?

In the run-up to the midterm elections, the US said it had conducted “defensive strikes” on Iran’s Qeshm island and Bandar Lengeh in the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps navy says at least seven tankers have caught fire after sailing into mines while attempting to transit through the Strait of Hormuz using “unauthorised routes” near Oman this week.

Two oil ‌tankers caught fire and were brought to a stop after hitting ⁠mines on Friday, the IRGC said. They had been trying to cross the waterway “with the support of the aggressor and terrorist American military”, the IRGC added.

Control over the Strait of Hormuz has been a main stumbling block in negotiations to end the Iran war since it began in February.

Tehran has sought to limit traffic through the strategic waterway, which normally carries about one-fifth of global oil supplies.

The US has also imposed a blockade on Iranian ports and escorted tankers through the strait.

Maritime organisations have not confirmed the latest incidents.

Iran has exempted ships from India, China, Iraq and Qatar from its Strait of Hormuz restrictions, a senior Iranian lawmaker said on Tuesday.

“Ships from these countries pass freely, and the Americans do not intercept them either,” Amir Hayat Moqaddam, deputy chairman of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, told the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA).

Iran effectively shut the strait early in the US-Israel war on Iran, which began on February 28, and the United States reimposed a naval blockade on Iran’s southern ports in July.

So why have these four countries been granted passage through the critical strait, and can their ships really sail freely while the blockade remains in place?

What does Iran get in return for letting ships pass?

It will receive medicine from India and political backing from China, according to Hayat Moqaddam. Iran already receives diplomatic support from Qatar, which is leading mediation efforts to end the US-Israel war on Iran.

Hayat Moqaddam said Tehran will also collect transit fees from Indian and Chinese ships, while Qatari vessels pass free. He did not say whether Iraqi ships will pay a toll.

“Whatever the lawmaker says is the rationale – the big question is if it works and, if yes, to what extent?” Rouzbeh Parsi, an Iran analyst and affiliated researcher at Lund University’s Department of History and Human Rights Studies, told Al Jazeera.

“Iran has been under sanctions for a very long time, so bartering and quid pro quos in trade are nothing new,” he said. The difference now, he added, is that “it’s about poking holes in an embargo and getting crucial goods/services in and out”.

Nader Hashemi, an associate professor of Middle East politics at Georgetown University, said that “most likely Iran is charging a transit fee or a percentage of the cargo value to allow those ships to go through without being harassed”.

“It’s a clever move by Tehran for several reasons,” Wolfgang Pusztai, a security and defence analyst and Austria’s former defence attache to Libya, told Al Jazeera.

“If successful, this move will generate significant revenue for Iran, as China is by far the largest purchaser of Iranian crude oil, buying nearly 90 percent of Iran’s total oil exports,” he said.

By including Qatar, with its many liquefied natural gas (LNG) buyers, and India, Iran is also “trying to undermine acceptance” of Washington’s strategy in the conflict, especially as it charges Qatar no tolls, he added.

Why does it matter to these four countries?

All four are highly dependent on the Strait of Hormuz for exports.

Of the 10.23 million barrels a day of Gulf crude that passed through the strait in October, about 42 percent went to China and 13 percent to India, Muyu Xu, a senior crude oil analyst at the analytics firm Kpler, told Al Jazeera.

“China is the country most able to cross US interests. The question is whether Beijing considers it worth the potential political cost,” Parsi said.

Asia is particularly reliant on Gulf oil and gas usually shipped out via Hormuz. Countries there have much to offer in return for allowing ships to pass.

“For India, the shutdown of oil from the Gulf has been a great loss – and it is a big producer of the pharmaceuticals that Iran cannot manufacture itself,” he said.

Qatar, which is mediating between Washington and Tehran, shipped no LNG through the strait in August, but managed 1.8 million tonnes in October, Xu said.

Its crude transits fell over the same period, from 517,000 barrels a day to 193,000, while Iraq’s rose from 1.69 million to 2.65 million.

Kpler has been unable to trace the origin of up to two million barrels a day of Middle Eastern crude, so both countries’ flows may be higher, Xu said.

“India and Qatar have closer relationships with DC they need to maintain – while both of them also feel let down by Trump,” Parsi said, adding, “For Qatar, maintaining a relationship with Iran is also vital since it’s an unavoidable neighbour.”

“So for all of them, there are upsides for these exemptions from Iranian restrictions but also political dangers,” he said.

Is this announcement new?

Not entirely.

Iran began letting some vessels from countries it considers friendly pass within weeks of the war starting. And in April, its military command said “brotherly” Iraq was exempt.

With the Iraqi exemption, Iran “probably intends to support the economic recovery” of its western neighbour, a fellow Shia-majority country, Pusztai said.

Will ships be able to get past the US blockade?

That depends on Washington.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) has said the blockade applies to “all vessels of all nations entering or leaving coastal areas or ports in Iran”, while vessels avoiding Iranian ports are not affected.

It has also said humanitarian shipments, including “food and medical supplies essential for the survival of the civilian populations”, can pass after inspection.

But Hayat Moqaddam did not appear to limit the exemptions to ships trading with other Gulf states, Pusztai noted. “If this is really the case, this would also have a significant impact on the other Gulf states, including Saudi Arabia,” he said.

“This could make the continuation of the American naval blockade more difficult and less effective, assuming Washington accepts this Iranian move,” he said. The main change, he added, is that the exemption “would also cover Chinese/Indian ships from/to Iran”, if the US accepts it.

It is also unclear whether “ships of these countries” means the flag a vessel flies, its owner, its operator or some other link, Pusztai said.

Ending the blockade is one of Tehran’s demands before it will commit to broader peace talks with the US, which will include discussions about Iran’s nuclear programme. Qatar-mediated talks currently centre on an Iranian proposal to reopen the strait if the US meets seven conditions, including this and lifting sanctions.

“It seems to be that Iran tries to separate the questions of free passage through the Strait of Hormuz and oil exports from the nuclear question,” Pusztai said, adding, “The American reaction will show if this is successful.”

Will this make a difference to oil markets?

Not much, for now.

“I think they make only limited difference at present,” Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG Group, told Al Jazeera.

“Markets are back to pricing in a peace deal, but if conflict flares up at full tilt, then Iranian commanders may not have time to distinguish their targets,” he said, adding: “At present, the focus remains squarely on the prospects of a broader deal.”

An exemption has not guaranteed safety. On October 30, the Qatari LNG carrier Al Mayeda was struck by “unidentified objects” in the Gulf, said its owner, Qatar Gas Transport Company.

More than 120 commercial ships have been hit in the region since the war began, with October being the worst month, according to data from the International Maritime Organization and United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations.

Call comes as Iraq’s foreign minister urges armed groups not to join any Iranian retaliation, warning it would be disastrous for Iraq.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has told the United States that Baghdad will not let its territory be used to attack neighbouring countries, as his foreign minister warned that a new war on Iran would be a “disaster” for Iraq.

Al-Zaidi spoke to US President Donald Trump over the phone on Thursday, according to his office, as diplomatic efforts intensify to avert renewed US attacks on Iran.

The two men “discussed the evolving situation in the region, security developments, and prospects for the next phase”, al-Zaidi’s office said.

The prime minister reaffirmed Iraq’s call “for respect for the sovereignty of states and for Iraqi territory not to be used as a launching point for attacks against neighbouring countries”, it added.

He also stressed the need for diplomacy and dialogue to safeguard the region’s security and stability, it said.

Iraq, which neighbours Iran, has struggled to maintain a balancing act between US and Iranian interests since Trump launched the war on Iran in February.

Since taking office in May, al-Zaidi has prioritised the disarmament of all fighter groups in the country, including several powerful pro-Iran groups that have launched attacks in support of Iran across the region during the war.

Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein told Dijlah TV on Thursday that the potential of renewed US military attacks against Iran is “not a secret” and warned Iraqi armed groups against joining in any Iranian retaliation.

“Pushing Iraqi society into the war will lead to a disaster,” he said. “We are not prepared for war. Neither Iraqi society nor the armed forces are prepared for war.”

Hussein said Iraq had been turned into a battlefield after the US struck Iran, with the country coming under attack from both the US and Iran, as well as from armed groups inside Iraq.

“We are not part of any axis, and we do not want to let the Iraqi arena be turned into a battlefield,” he said. “We have good relations with the US and with our neighbour Iran… We need a clear policy that we are not a part of the war, and we do not want to be a part of the war.”

Since the war began, Iraq has lost more than $60bn in oil revenues, as about 90 percent of its oil exports normally pass through the Strait of Hormuz and were largely cut off when Tehran closed the waterway.

Oil accounts for about 90 percent of Iraq’s federal budget.

Since then, Iraq has been one of the few countries that have been granted exemption by Iran to pass freely through the Strait of Hormuz.

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has met Iran’s security chief Mohsen Rezaei in Moscow to discuss regional security as diplomatic efforts gather pace to end the United States and Israel’s war on Iran.

During the meeting on Thursday, Rezaei also delivered a letter to Putin from Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, according to the Iranian state broadcaster Press TV.

Speaking after the meeting, Rezaei said the talks had focused on security arrangements in the region, as well as Russia’s support for ending what he called the US’s “aggression” against Iran.

“Important regional issues were discussed with Putin and significant conversations took place regarding the post-war period and regional security arrangements,” he said.

Other topics, he said, included plans to deepen energy cooperation, including building gas pipelines from Russia to Iran.

Rezaei, the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said Khamenei had wanted him to deliver the message to Putin as soon as possible. The trip to Moscow had been planned nearly a month earlier, he said, but was postponed due to “daily discussions about the military situation in the region”.

He did not say what the message contained.

Khamenei said in a written statement on Wednesday that there should not be “even the slightest inclination towards submission” to the US. He also called for an “ever stronger” Iran to reach a “point of absolute deterrence”.

Seven conditions

Rezaei’s meeting with Putin came as Qatar steps up diplomatic efforts to end the war on Iran amid fears the US could renew attacks following its midterm elections.

In Tuesday’s vote, US President Donald Trump’s Republican Party lost control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate amid widespread anger over rising prices that many blame on the war on Iran.

Efforts to end the conflict have centred on the future status of the strategic Strait of Hormuz, a US blockade of Iranian ports, sanctions against Iran, and a resumption of negotiations over the country’s nuclear programme.

Rezaei said on Thursday that Tehran would not hold talks with the US on ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz until Washington meets its seven demands.

“On the issue of diplomacy, we have announced seven conditions to the Americans. As long as they do not execute our seven conditions, we will neither open the Strait of Hormuz nor have negotiations,” he said.

According to Rezaei, Putin reiterated that Russia is ready to provide support to end the war. Last month, Putin told Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian that Russia was prepared to “do everything” it could towards that end, Russian news agencies reported.

Rezaei said the discussion at the Kremlin also focused on the construction of a gas pipeline from Russia to Iran, aimed at addressing Iran’s gas shortages and enabling Russia to sell its gas to countries neighbouring Iran.

He added that he had briefed Putin on a meeting held in Tehran in late October among Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan, and that the Russian leader had welcomed it.

“Like our Chinese friends, we believe that there should be regional arrangements and that foreign countries should not interfere in the security of the region,” he said.

The Kremlin did not immediately release its own account of the meeting, which took place in the Senate Palace, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

Separately, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held phone calls with his counterparts in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Turkiye and Jordan.

His calls focused on regional developments and ongoing diplomatic efforts to promote peace, Iranian state media reported.

Russia and Iran, both under heavy Western sanctions, have strengthened their diplomatic and military ties in recent years.

In January 2025, they signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty covering trade, military cooperation, science, culture and education.

The treaty took effect that October, but unlike Russia’s pact with North Korea, it does not include a mutual defence clause.

On Saturday, Iranian army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia said Iran had bought Russian Su-35 fighter jets and expected to receive them after the war ends.

The planes were originally supposed to arrive before the fighting began, he told the Iranian news site Tabnak, and the necessary preparations and pilot training were complete.

Iranian forces say five oil tankers and a tugboat have caught fire in several incidents in the Strait of Hormuz.

At least five tankers have been damaged in the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian forces said, making clear that shipping would remain in peril as long as the United States and Israel’s war on the country is unresolved.

Since the war on Iran began in late February, Tehran has severely restricted traffic through the strategic waterway, which normally carries about one-fifth of global oil consumption.

“Last night … a large oil tanker attempting to pass through the illegal passageway south of the Strait of Hormuz suffered a fire after striking a mine and was brought to a halt,” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) told the Fars news agency on Thursday.

“Another supertanker was halted by a massive fire while exiting the eastern Strait of Hormuz. A tugboat that had approached the supertanker to extinguish the fire also caught fire,” the IRGC added.

The Iranian army later said three more tankers were hit by naval mines and caught fire.

“Early this morning, a violating oil tanker – navigating through an unsafe area east of the Strait of Hormuz – caught fire and came to a halt after striking a naval mine,” the army said, according to the official IRNA news agency.

“Today at around noon, two more oil tankers struck naval mines and caught fire in the unsafe waters east of the Strait of Hormuz,” said another army statement carried by IRNA.

Separately, the British military said a tanker was struck by two projectiles off Qatar’s coast.

The vessel was hit about 50 nautical miles (about 93 kilometres) north of Qatar’s ⁠Madinat ash-Shamal on Wednesday at 23:20 GMT, the ⁠United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said on Thursday.

UKMTO did not identify the tanker or which country’s flag it was sailing under. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

In an incident last week, a Qatari tanker was hit by “unidentified objects” while sailing in the Gulf.

The liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier Al Mayeda was hit on October 30, the Qatar Gas Transport Company (Nakilat) said on Sunday.

No crew members were injured, and there ‌was no environmental impact, the company said, adding that the vessel remained ‌safe and ‌operational while the impact was being assessed.

Attacks on tankers in the Gulf are still running close to a record pace.

UKMTO said in a report last month that it was “struggling to accurately report” the true number of attacks as the majority of ships now refuse to report them.

Qatar has stepped up mediation efforts to resume talks on ending the war in recent days.

Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ spokesperson said on Tuesday that ⁠both sides were reviewing proposals ⁠put forward by mediators, with talks continuing.

But unnamed Pentagon officials and military commanders told The New York Times on Wednesday that thousands of US air and naval forces on more than a dozen ships and at bases around the Middle East and in the US are poised to resume major combat operations against Iran on President Donald Trump’s orders.

Iranian government and military leaders, however, have warned of repercussions if the US or Israel pursue further military action.

On Wednesday, Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said there should not be “even the slightest inclination towards submission” to the US, which he said would remain hostile towards Iran no matter which party was in power.

IRGC Ground Force commander Brigadier General Mohammad Karami said on Wednesday that the continuation of “hostile and brutal actions by Iran’s enemies” would lead to “further Iranian victories and greater national pride”, while accelerating the expulsion of foreign powers from the region and the collapse of Israel.

Nov. 5, 2026 10 AM PT

WASHINGTON — President Trump’s administration held secret talks with Iran on deporting Iranians even as the war there dragged on, court documents obtained by The Associated Press show.

The court documents unsealed Thursday show the Republican administration as recently as mid-October said it had plans to deport the Iranians through an unnamed third country, although it was unclear when it intended to do so. The judge in the case ordered the government to give the court 24-hour notice of any finalized plans to deport Iranians to Iran or to any other country and five days’ written notice before any such deportation is carried out.

The documents show that the administration maintained contacts with Iranian officials during the war over the removals, specifically for submitting travel documents and figuring out “possible avenues for removal.”

“We are at war with a country where the President of the United States has said, as recently as two or three days ago, if not yesterday, that it is essentially lawless … A country that is an enemy of the United States, according to the current president. A country that, according to our president, murdered tens of thousands of protestors,” Judge Ana Reyes said according to the Oct. 15 transcript.

“And what you’re telling me is that the United States of America is going to send individuals back to that region, facing what you and I and everyone who would ever look at this would know would be, at a minimum, a serious threat of certain death.”

“Yes, your honor,” Justice Department attorney Dimitar Georgiev-Remmel said. “The government is executing lawful orders of removal.”

The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The development emerged from an ongoing lawsuit that alleges the Trump administration’s immigration agencies have been sharing confidential information about Iranian asylum seekers with the Iranian government, violating national immigration regulations and endangering countless Iranians, court filings argue.

The new court documents show the coordination continued during the war.

The lawsuit depicts a coordinated campaign between the U.S. and Iranian governments to identify Iranians in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody and pressure them to return to Iran — a marked departure from decades of diplomatic hostility between the two governments and an ongoing war. DHS has denied that it is sharing asylum application records with the Iranian government.

Hundreds of emails exchanged between U.S. immigration officials exposed how the two countries worked together to arrange for more than 100 Iranians to be flown back to Iran on three immigration flights in September and December 2025 and January 2026.

Deportations of Iranians back to their home country are historically rare, owing to the lack of diplomatic relations between the U.S. and Iran and the possible persecution they could face if they were sent to Iran.

But under the Trump administration, ICE has aggressively pushed to deport people even from countries that have typically been reluctant to take people back or with whom the U.S. has had icy or no diplomatic relations.

Sometimes that has meant sending people back to their home country but it has also meant deporting people to other countries that they have no connection with.

The Trump administration has deported people, including Iranians, to countries other than their own in an attempt to circumvent diplomatic hurdles with governments that won’t take their people back. During Trump’s second term, countries including El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama and across Africa have accepted noncitizens from the U.S.

In June, an Iranian woman was among the two dozen migrants the U.S. deported to the Central African Republic.

Activists abroad have expressed concern about deportees returning to Iran, whose theocracy has been cracking down on intellectuals and where the government vociferously cracks down on any dissent.

Kunzelman and Santana write for the Associated Press.