The United States is still willing to negotiate an end to the Iran crisis, but Tehran is not serious about talks, as the widening conflict disrupted two of the world's most critical energy chokepoints, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday. Rubio made his comments in a meeting of Southeast Asian foreign ministers a day after three oil tankers carrying Saudi crude to Asia reversed course in the Red Sea, apparently in response to threats from Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis. The Houthis, who control the coast at the mouth of the Red Sea, announced a naval blockade on Saudi Arabia on Monday, opening a potential new front in the war which has killed thousands of people across the Gulf since it began on February 28 with US and Israeli attacks on Iran. With Iran already threatening shipping through the Strait of Hormuz leading out of the Gulf, the Red Sea has served as the main alternate route out for millions of barrels of Saudi oil per day. A senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday that Tehran had received a proposal from mediators for a 10-day ceasefire in efforts to salvage the interim ceasefire agreement signed by the US and Iran in June, which replaced an earlier April ceasefire. Rubio doubts Tehran's commitment to diplomacy In another sign that diplomacy remains alive, Iran's Interior Minister, Eskandar Momeni, has visited the mediating Pakistan and asked Islamabad to continue its efforts. Rubio said Washington was "always committed to diplomacy" but doubted whether Tehran was equally committed to negotiations. "The problem we're having right now is that they're not serious about talks. If they're serious, we're serious. If they're not, then we will do what's necessary to protect our interests, and also the interests of our allies," Rubio said in Manila. He stressed that Iran could not be allowed to control the Strait of Hormuz, arguing it would create a dangerous precedent for the world, including Southeast Asian countries, many of which have territorial disputes in the South China Sea with China. "If we create a precedent in the Middle East where a nation state can decide that they are going to control an international waterway, charge a toll, and if you don't pay them, blow up your ships, we have created a very dangerous precedent, which will repeat itself in other parts of the world, including in this region," Rubio said. With no diplomatic breakthrough in sight, the US military bombed targets across Iran for an 11th straight night on Tuesday. Tehran residents reported hearing explosions in the early hours of Wednesday as Iran activated its air defenses over the capital, Iran's semi-official Fars news agency said. Explosions were also reported in the southeastern coastal cities of Chabahar and Konarak, and two blasts were heard in Bushehr, home to Iran's only nuclear power plant, Iran's official IRNA news agency reported. Earlier, Iran targeted US military sites in Bahrain, Kuwait, and Jordan, and a tanker was hit in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran said it had struck infrastructure belonging to Amazon in Bahrain, where the US tech company operates a regional data center. Amazon did not comment, and Reuters could not verify the report. US service members killed in escalations with Iran US President Donald Trump confirmed that 18 US service members had been killed so far in the war, including four in Iranian attacks on US military bases in Jordan and Iraq over the last few days. Oil prices rose further in Asian trade on Wednesday after climbing more than 2% on Tuesday following the Houthi threats, with Brent crude hovering above $91 a barrel and US gasoline back over $4 a gallon. In a letter to shippers, the Houthis on Tuesday threatened to attack any ships that load or discharge Saudi oil. Trump said the Houthis had not yet shut the Bab el-Mandeb, the "Gate of Tears" strait leading into the Red Sea, and threatened to act against them if they did. "So far it hasn't happened," Trump said. "If something like that happens, we take care of it." Three oil tankers loaded with Saudi crude for China and India made U-turns in the Red Sea on Tuesday, heading towards the Suez Canal rather than braving the Yemeni coast at the sea's mouth. Throughout the war, Saudi Arabia partially escaped the shipping disruption by piping oil to Yanbu on the Red Sea instead. But a full closure of that alternative route by the Houthis could reduce global oil supply as it would leave most Saudi oil exports trapped. On Tuesday, Trump renewed his threats to again attack Iran's nuclear facilities at Natanz "pretty soon", which he said in June 2025 had been "totally obliterated" after the US military bombed the facility, buried in a mountain range, that month. Iran promised it would retaliate. Fifty civilians have been killed and 500 wounded in the recent US strikes on Iran, a health ministry official said.
The United States is still willing to negotiate an end to the Iran crisis, but Tehran is not serious about talks, as the widening conflict disrupted two of the world's most critical energy chokepoints, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday. Rubio made his comments i…
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US President Donald Trump stated on July 13 and July 22 that the United States was considering strikes on an Iranian underground facility referred to as Pickaxe Mountain. These remarks were made during an ongoing US-Iran conflict that began February 28, involving reported US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites and Iranian actions in the Strait of Hormuz.
Some details, including specific targets and outcomes, remain unverified.
Oil prices rose to a near six-week high on Wednesday, with Brent crude surpassing $95 a barrel, on mounting concerns about disruptions to Middle Eastern supply routes because of escalating hostilities between the U.S. and Iran and threats to shipping by the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen.
Brent crude futures were up $3.82, or 4.2%, at $94.83 a barrel at 0938 GMT after hitting a session high of $95.24. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude climbed $3.65, or 4.33%, to $87.99. Both benchmarks touched their highest levels since June 11. The U.
S. military said it carried out an 11th consecutive night of attacks on Iran. The U.S. attacks came a short while after the Kuwaiti army said its air defences were intercepting Iranian drones. As well as the renewed conflict over control of the Strait of Hormuz, the Iran-aligned Houthis have opened a new front in the war by threatening to target vessels carrying Saudi oil in the Bab el-Mandeb strait and announced a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia.
"The energy market now has the dual-strait worry, with the Bab el-Mandeb Strait looking like it could join the Strait of Hormuz as a hot spot, as traders closely watch shipping numbers in the Red Sea," said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade.
Bab el-Mandeb at the southern entrance to the Red Sea has become an increasingly important route for Saudi Arabian crude exports as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply again since a ceasefire between the United States and Iran collapsed earlier this month.
Three oil tankers loaded with Saudi crude for China and India made U-turns in the Red Sea on Tuesday, heading towards the Suez Canal rather than braving the Yemeni coast. "The (Houthi) threat has led tankers to divert which could further pressure the physical market and Saudi exports, contributing to push prices to the upside," said Frank Walbaum, market analyst at trading platform Naga.
com. In response to the Houthi warnings, Asian refiners are seeking to ship crude oil from Saudi Arabia's Red Sea port of Yanbu through the Suez Canal and around Africa. While global oil stockpiles have drawn amid the conflict, the latest U.S. data is showing some building of inventories.
Data from the American Petroleum Institute showed that U.S. crude and distillate inventories rose last week, while gasoline stockpiles fell, market sources said. The inventory data comes ahead of official figures from the U.S. Energy Information Administration on Wednesday.
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Iran's Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters stated that any US strike on Iranian nuclear facilities would be treated as an escalation, resulting in attacks on US and allied interests across the region. The statement references a June 18 memorandum of understanding that ended an earlier conflict and notes subsequent US strikes beginning July 8, which the US Central Command attributed to Iranian interference with shipping in the Strait of Hormuz while Iran described them as violations prompting its own responses.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has advised air operators to avoid Gulf airspace until at least July 29, 2026. Travelers were directed to consult insurance providers on policy conditions, including potential exclusions tied to government advisories or conflict, and to confirm flight status with operators.
Reports cited US strikes in multiple Iranian locations including Bushehr, Bandar Abbas, Chabahar, Konarak, Kurdistan, Sirik, Tabriz, and Hamadan, while an advisory stated that Iran had targeted US interests and issued warnings regarding civilian infrastructure such as airports and desalination facilities.