Tehran executes alleged Israeli spy and warns Washington over American airstrikes TEHRAN, IRAN: Iranian authorities executed a man convicted of espionage for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency on Tuesday, May 26, hours after Tehran officially threatened to leave no act of aggression unanswered following recent American airstrikes. The swift judicial execution, coupled with direct military threats against the United States, has dramatically escalated regional tensions and complicated fragile backdoor ceasefire negotiations aimed at freezing the three-month-old war. Iran's state-run Mizan News Agency confirmed the hanging of Gholamreza Khani Shakarab after his sentence was upheld by the Supreme Court. Intelligence officials claimed Shakarab was an operational asset who sought to recruit domestic operatives inside the country to conduct anti-security operations. By linking the high-profile execution of an alleged Israeli agent with broader warnings to Washington, the clerical regime signaled it remains willing to deploy hardline security measures to project structural strength. Central Command conducts defensive air operations The domestic execution follows a wave of targeted US Central Command (CENTCOM) air operations in southern Iran. Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a CENTCOM spokesperson, confirmed that American forces conducted self-defense strikes to protect forward-deployed troops from imminent threats. Hawkins stated that the operations successfully targeted active missile launch sites and Iranian boats attempting to emplace naval mines across trade lanes. The military spokesperson emphasized that while CENTCOM took immediate defensive action to neutralize tactical positions, command units continue to exercise operational restraint during the nominal ceasefire window. Foreign ministry brands strikes a ceasefire violation Iran’s foreign ministry responded by denouncing the American strikes as a blatant violation of the active truce layout, branding the defense operation a clear sign of bad faith and unreliability. Government officials warned that Washington would bear full responsibility for all consequences stemming from the incident. The sharp escalation directly threatens ongoing diplomatic talks mediated by regional partners in Qatar. Observers warn that the combined weight of espionage executions and public threats of retaliation could completely collapse the fragile peace memorandum, renewing wide-scale hostilities.
Tehran executes alleged Israeli spy and warns Washington over American airstrikes TEHRAN, IRAN: Iranian authorities executed a man convicted of espionage for Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency on Tuesday, May 26, hours after Tehran officially threatened to leave no act of aggres…
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A tanker identified as the Kaifan was struck by an unknown projectile northeast of Oman’s Limah in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a July 21 report from UK Maritime Trade Operations. No ships were observed transiting the strait that day. Attribution of the strike and links to prior incidents have not been confirmed by the vessel’s owner.
Goldman Sachs has projected Brent crude averaging $80 per barrel in the fourth quarter and $75 in the following year, conditional on reduced Middle East tensions, while noting upside risks from potential shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz or Red Sea.
Brent prices rose above $91 per barrel amid recent U.S.-Iran exchanges and Houthi threats to Saudi shipments before edging lower on Tuesday. A senior Iranian official told Reuters that mediators had proposed a 10-day ceasefire to preserve an interim agreement.
Opening summary: Iran claims attacks on strait of Hormuz ships amid fresh US strikes Welcome to our live coverage of the latest developments in the Middle East crisis. Iran attacked a tanker in the strait of Hormuz early on Tuesday, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis announced they were imposing an immediate maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea after the two sides traded fire last week for the first time in years.
A Houthi official said the Bab al-Mandeb strait – at the southern end of the Red Sea, through which about 12% of the world’s trade usually passes – would be closed to the Saudis in response to the kingdom’s “unjust blockade on Yemenis for over 10 years”.
Saudi Arabia said it would take “all necessary measures to protect its vessels in accordance with international law”. A 10 consecutive night of US airstrikes has not compelled Tehran to loosen its grip on the strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global energy supplies.
But even as Iran’s president said the country had returned “full-scale war”, the Iranian interior minister travelled to Pakistan – a key mediator in the conflict – for talks. In key developments: The latest US strikes came hours after Donald Trump said Iran would pay “many times over” for killing US soldiers after multiple service members were killed in action over the weekend.
A tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the Hormuz strait off Oman, forcing the crew to abandon the vessel, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre said. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed the attack as well as two other attacks on ships in the waterway on Monday.
The US military’s Central Command said its latest airstrikes were to “degrade” Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping in the strait and included hitting military command centres and missile and drone launch sites. Iranian media reported strikes in parts of the country including Bandar Abbas, Tabriz and Bushehr, home to the country’s only operational civilian nuclear power.
Iran’s launched attacks in response against Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, which all host US forces. Oil prices softened after hitting their highest levels in more than a month in the previous session. Brent crude futures eased 0.4% to $88.87 a barrel by 0052 GMT on Tuesday while US West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was steady at $82.
47 a barrel. Democrats have seized on the deaths of three US troops killed in Iranian strikes to urge Trump to urgently reverse his resumption of the war with Iran amid widespread anxiety over climbing casualties. The Lebanese army began taking charge of security in three southern villages, the US said, as a deal to secure an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah faced its first test on the ground.
US forces struck the tanker Settebello in the Gulf of Oman on June 10, killing three Indian crew members when munitions hit the engine room and adjacent areas. Maritime tracking data indicate the vessel had transported Iranian oil under US sanctions for several years and conducted offshore transfers prior to the strike.
The US military described the action as a precision operation, while reports note the ship was stationary at the time.