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Hello, I'm Martin Croxell. This is the Iran War today, our daily briefing bringing you up to date with all you need to know on day 87 of the USIsrael war with Iran. Let's start with some of today's key developments. Iran says there's been progress in talks with the United States, but a deal is not imminent. America's top diplomat is still hopeful it will happen. We're still a work in progress. As I said, you know, uh we thought we might have some news last night, maybe today. I wouldn't read too much into it. Takes a little while to hear back. President Trump calls critics of the potential deal losers as he urges Saudi Arabia and other Arab states to normalize relations
with Israel as part of efforts to achieve peace. Oil prices fell sharply and Asian stock markets rose on hopes of an agreement between Iran and the US. The annual Muslim pilgrimage, the Haj, begins in Saudi Arabia against the background of a region deeply shaken by the war. President Trump has described critics of the potential deal between the US and Iran as losers. Meanwhile, Iranian officials have played down the prospect of an imminent agreement. Taking to his truth social account, President Trump
attacked critics as fools who knew nothing about the potential agreement, adding, "The deal with Iran will either be a great and meaningful one or there will be no deal." Iran's foreign ministry spokesman told journalists in Thyan that a framework had been reached, but that key sticking points remained. It is true that we have reached a conclusion regarding a large part of the topics under discussion. But to say that this means the signing of an agreement is imminent, no one can make such a claim for the same reasons you mentioned yourself because policym and decisionmaking in America have become caught in a kind of institutionalized instability.
Well, we haven't had any official word from either the US or Iran of exactly what's in this potential deal, but it reportedly includes a 60-day ceasefire extension, the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz without tolls, an end to the US blockade of Iranian ports, negotiations about the lifting of US sanctions, and a commitment to hold talks on Iran's nuclear ambitions. America's top diplomat, Marco Rubio, who is on a trip to India, spoke to reporters about a possible deal. We have a what I think is a pretty solid thing on the table in terms of their ability to open up the straits, get the
straits open, enter into a very real, significant, timelmited negotiation on the nuclear matters and hopefully we can pull it off. It has a lot of support in the Gulf, has a lot of support globally. Every country that we've walked through it understands it's very not just very reasonable, but it's the right thing for the world to get done. As the president said, he's not in a hurry. He's not going to make a bad deal. I mean, the president's not going to make a bad agreement. So, let's see what happens. We're going to give diplomacy every chance to succeed before we explore the alternatives.
What's the hold up right now? Is there something that needs to be done? It's just a response. I mean, when you get down to some of these things, you got to hear back and it takes the Iranian system a little while longer to get back. Marco Rubio. Well, picking up on that point about communications with Iran, the BBC's US partner CBS has reported that US intelligence believes Iran's Supreme Leader Moshtam Kame is holed up in an undisclosed location, making communication with his envoys difficult and therefore delaying the pace of talks. He was injured in an Israeli strike on the first day of the war.
Bman Kalbasi is our correspondent from BBC Persian. and he joins us now from New York. Banan, what do we know about Iran's sticking points? Other than the obvious ones, uh the enrichment, whether Iran agrees to halt it for uh a decade or longer, even though the reality on the ground is there is no enrichment happening now given the bombings that h that occurred back in June. uh but also the fate of the enriched uranium the 400 kilo or so 60% enriched uranium will they be sent out of the country will they be diluted inside the country or maybe split uh the difference some goes to a third party uh but there's also
another issue which is important to the Iranian side and that is because of the lack of trust remember United States and Israel attacked Iran twice in the middle of negotiations s they want real sanctioned relief at the beginning of any deal and not to be uh delayed to a later point and therefore we're hearing these numbers like 12 billion possibly released of Iran's own funds in different countries which have been blocked and can't access them. So the Iranians seem to want a tangible financial uh step by the United States in terms of their access to their own funds or release of or reduction of some of these sanctions so they could sell oil a at the very beginning of any deal so they can be sure that later on there
won't be reneggging on sanction relief. Iran's top negotiator has arrived in Qatar for talks. How much should we read into that? We should read into it as these negotiations haven't stopped and they're actively both sides pursuing it. Despite what the foreign minister's spokesperson said that nothing is imminent and we're we have closed some gaps, but there are issues remaining. But at the same time, this trip shows how they have gotten down to the very practical issues of possibly transferring some of Iran's money in Qatari banks and what role Qatar will play in facilitating that.
The head of Iran's central bank went on this trip as well, which indicates the importance of this. But of course, Qatar is playing a important mediating role alongside Pakistan. So all of this shows that the ball is rolling but whether they can close the gap quickly or will it take a few more days or will we see a reversal especially given that Donald Trump here in US is facing criticism from his own party people that are known as being the Iran hawks who don't want the negotiation to succeed they want war to resume and therefore those forces are also at play uh and Iranians and clearly the White House want an end to this because going back to the war is not going to benefit either one and not going to get them
closer to where they are now which is uh at the cusp of some sort of an understanding. Bman, thank you very much. Bman Kabasi from BBC Persian. Well, as we heard earlier, President Trump has attacked those critical of his potential deal as losers, but some of his own Republicans have expressed concern. Senator Ted Cruz posted, "I'm deeply concerned about what we're hearing about an Iran deal," adding, "If the result of all that is to be an Iranian regime still run by Islamists who chant death to America, then that outcome would be a disastrous mistake." Roger Wicker, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, posted, "The rumored 60-day ceasefire with the belief that Iran will ever engage in
good faith would be a disaster. Everything accomplished by Operation Epic Fury would be for Nort. Let's go to uh Washington now and speak to our correspondent Tom Simons. Tom, it seems that both sides want a deal, but there are hurdles and of course Donald Trump, as we were just saying, has got his critics. Absolutely. I mean, let's just look at the hurdles first. The key thing for Donald Trump at this stage is to get the straits open. And that's partly because the world's markets need that to happen. The oil price has come down since he started talking about a possible deal, but also because he's got the midterm elections coming up and he's already been uh criticized for seeming to put uh that deal in front of the well-being and
the cost of living of uh Americans who are going to be voting in the midterm election. So getting the streets open is the priority for him. And that's why I think this is looking like it might be some sort of a staged deal so that first of all you have the straits open and in return he gives the Iranians uh probably the ability to sell their oil again and the hope of sanctions and frozen assets sanctions being lifted and assets being unfrozen and then we get into the nuclear part of the deal at a later stage. But opening the straits does seem to be the biggest hurdle mainly because that was the thing that he didn't expect to happen, the straits being closed when he went into this
conflict and he has to put right before he can move on. So I think that's that's the main thing and then later on he's going to have to get into these very complicated negotiations. And the other thing I should say is that one of the uh areas of negotiation he's going to have to take account of is Israel. Israel not really part of this at the moment, but Donald Trump has in the last 24 hours started talking about the Abraham Accords, which was the deal he did in 2020 to bring um some Middle Eastern countries closer to Israel. He's now saying that many more countries should be signing up to that agreement as part of this whole Iranian situation. Now, that I think is a sign of him trying to
look at Israel and give them something out of all of this. Tom, thank you very much. Tom Simons in Washington. The people of Lebanon will be waiting to see what impact any potential deal has on them. Israel has continued to strike targets in the south of the country despite a ceasefire. The Israeli military say that they're hitting Hezbollah. Our correspondent John Sudwith sent this update from Beirut. As discussions continue about a possible peace deal between America and Iran, the question of what happens here in Lebanon is a crucial and parallel part of those discussions. And it's a question that remains as intractable and as thorny as ever. There is one certainty though for many people living here in Lebanon and
that is that whatever happens, their suffering is likely to continue. What you can see here is a displaced people's camp. The war in this country reignited after America and Israel launched their attack on Iran a few months ago. In response, Hezbollah, the Iranianbacked militant group, very strong in the south of Lebanon, launched its attack on Israel. And what followed was Israel's devastating response. The bombardments and the ground invasion that has forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes and claimed the lives of more than 3,100. So far, there are some reports that there are indications of growing fatigue in the Shia communities where Hezbollah has found its traditional support. The idea that its strategy is constantly
dragging this country back into war. But it's also possible to find plenty of people from those communities who are still steadfast in their support. You know that we are withah. We are not against them. uh we are with them. We left our homes in order to let them uh fight uh to get us the great victory. You don't think it was a mistake to strike Israel? No. Every person should defend himself. These are cycles that we have seen over and over again over the past years and decades as once again big outside powers decide the fate of this country.
John Sudworth in Beirut. Oil prices fell sharply and Asian stock markets rose on hopes of a deal between the US and Iran. Business correspondent Megan Owen is uh with us. So the price of oil has gone down but still volatile. Yeah, I mean I think the best way to describe oil prices at the moment is somewhat of a pendulum, you know, swinging back and forth in response to any uh potential talk of peace deals. And that is happening because any mention that the straight of hormones might open might be close to opening uh is important because it carries around a fifth of the world's natural gas and oil
and therefore it is going to be reflected in the oil markets. What we've seen today is that prices have fallen to a two-week low. They're now at under $100 per barrel according to the world's leading oil benchmark. In terms of what we've seen in the markets, well, the US and UK uh stock market markets were closed today because of public holidays. Uh but we did see stocks rally in Europe and in Asia with Japan's index uh up 3% at the end of trading. But whilst on the surface this might all seem like a good thing, a hint of optimism, it's important to remember that oil prices are still significantly higher than before the war. And it's going to take a while even with a deal tomorrow before
the closure of the straight of Hormuse is going to be mitigated against. It's going to get back to normal. Yeah, I think any imminent deal would not prove a quick fix for a number of reasons. I mean, first of all, you've got maritime traffic remaining heavily congested. It's going to be difficult to get those tankers through again. Uh oil uh infrastructure has been damaged and you've got uh global oil stock depleted. Now, what that means for us and our finances, it's not necessarily a good thing in the short term because prices for things like jet fuel, uh, petrol, diesel, and even food are not going to drop significantly in the next few months. This is going to take time, but I think this does beg the question
of how much we rely on the straight horm future global energy security. Megan, thank you very much, Megan Arin. The annual Muslim pilgrimage, the Haj, has begun in Saudi Arabia against the background of a region deeply shaken by the Iran war. Saudi officials say more than one and a half million pilgrims have arrived from outside the country. They say that's the higher a higher number than last year. To reassure pilgrims, a Saudi Defense Ministry has posted a video showing air defense batteries on the outskirts of the holy city of Mecca. BBC Arabic correspondent Sally Nabil has more. Haj this year comes in a very tense atmosphere in the Middle East. The war between the US and Iran had its toll on the oil rich Gulf monarchies including
Saudi Arabia. So the Saudis want to send a message of reassurance this year to the world and to over a million and a half pilgrims coming from across the globe that the harsh season is going to be smooth. They have deployed sophisticated air defense systems near key pilgrimage sites and they have also deployed missile batteries. We've seen a massive military and security parade that includes uh emergency teams and rapid response teams. So it is mainly about sending this message that nothing is going to go wrong. Since the US decided to bombard Iran back in late February, the Iranians have responded by launching intense air strikes on the Gulf countries, targeting basically
everything. Airports, oil facilities, civilian and military infrastructure, US diplomatic missions. Although a ceasefire has been announced between the US and Iran back in April, concerns are still going on. The past few weeks, yes, have been quite calm. But around a week ago, the Saudis announced intercepting three drones being fired from Iraq, where a lot of Iranbacked militant groups are still operating. However, a lot of commentators say that it is quite unlikely that Iran or any of its proxies in the region might step in to disrupt the Haj season simply because Haj is a ritual that is sacred to all Muslims regardless of sects. Both Sunnis and Shia alike go to Saudi Arabia to perform
Haj. This year, we know that around 30,000 Iranians are in Saudi Arabia to perform this ritual. According to Iran's official uh news agency, Haj is believed to be one of the largest annual religious gatherings in the world. It's one of Islam's main five pillars. Any Muslim who is both physically and financially capable is required to perform Hajj once in a lifetime. It is believed to cleanse the soul of all sins and enhance values like tolerance and equality among all Muslims regardless of sex, race, color, or language. Sally Nibel, whether you're joining us on YouTube, Tik Tok, BBC sounds, radio, or television, thank you for your time.
We'll be back again tomorrow at the same time with the Iran War today.
