Iran War News Highlights: No US-Iran talks underway, ‘all options’ remain on table, says White House

Iran has executed at least 511 people so far in 2026, including dozens linked to anti-government protests, according to Norway-based rights group Iran Human Rights (IHR), which warned that executions have intensified in recent days despite calls from US President Donald Trump for Tehran to halt the practice.

The rights group said at least 29 people were executed in connection with the January 2026 protests, while at least 16 women and 13 people it described as political prisoners affiliated with banned opposition groups were also among those put to death.

Activists have accused Iranian authorities of using the death penalty to intimidate the population following months of protests and the war involving Iran, the United States and Israel that began on February 28.

Oil prices rose on Thursday as traders assessed global supply risks amid the ongoing Iran war and uncertainty over US-Iran diplomacy.

Brent crude futures gained $1.16, or 1.32%, to $89 a barrel, while WTI crude rose 52 cents, or 0.63%, to $82.75 at 1332 GMT.

Oil prices had fallen for three straight sessions as markets weighed the possibility that a US-Iran deal could increase oil flows from the Middle East Gulf.

The White House said no negotiations are currently taking place between the US and Iran, although Washington said all options remain on the table.

There are currently no negotiations taking place between the United States and Iran, but Washington continues to keep all options open, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News.

Leavitt’s remarks come amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran, with diplomatic efforts to resolve differences between the two countries remaining uncertain.

Iran’s oil sales and deliveries in “distant waters” are continuing despite a reduction in volumes, Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said, according to state media.

Qatar and Iran discussed a proposed phased framework that includes establishing a temporary joint shipping corridor with Oman through the Strait of Hormuz, Qatar's foreign ministry said during a visit to Tehran by Qatar's prime minister.

— Reuters

Qatar's prime minister visited Tehran on Thursday in a bid to relaunch diplomacy after the U.S. and Iran traded recriminations over Washington's promise to increase economic pressure, a move one Iranian official described as "all-out economic war".

A Gulf neighbour of Iran and a U.S. ally, Qatar has served as a back-channel negotiator for the warring parties and played a direct role in securing a June ceasefire that briefly led to a cessation of hostilities.

Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who is also his country's foreign minister, met Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, according to Iran's foreign ministry channel on Telegram.

— Reuters

Qatar’s Foreign Minister has held meetings with his Iranian counterpart and other senior officials during a visit to Tehran, Iran’s Foreign Ministry confirmed.

“Petrol production is insufficient, and because of the US naval blockade, we cannot import it,” the official IRNA news agency quoted Vice President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah as saying.

Iran’s nuclear programme remains comparable to those of the world’s most advanced countries despite US sanctions and military attacks, the country’s nuclear chief Mohammad Eslami said, as per Al Jazeera.

“Today, Iran’s nuclear industry is moving alongside and on a par with the leading countries in this field,” Eslami, who heads the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, said on Wednesday.

He further claimed that Tehran’s adversaries accuse Iran of pursuing non-peaceful nuclear activities as part of efforts to undermine the country.

Kuwait and Qatar — two of the Persian Gulf’s smaller oil producers — are sending more crude through the Strait of Hormuz, adding to an increase in shipments that are keeping global prices in check.

The two countries, which exported a combined 2 million barrels a day of oil before the outbreak of the Iran war, have managed to get shipments back to 70% of pre-conflict levels, according to traders, who asked not to be named as they’re not allowed to speak to media.

The United Arab Emirates was the first gulf producer to export large volumes of oil through Hormuz, using ship transfers in the Gulf of Oman in a tactic known as shuttling. It has since been joined by Saudi Arabia, which has been forced to rely more on exporting through the waterway after Houthi militants started targeting tankers in the Red Sea.

A total of around 7 to 8 million barrels of oil a day is now exiting Hormuz, up from around 4 million barrels a day in mid-July, the traders said. That’s around three-quarters of pre-war levels. Vortexa said on Monday that the seven-day average of oil flows through the waterway was close to 10 million barrels a day.

The increasing volumes come as Washington and Tehran remain in a stalemate over the Iran war, with control of Hormuz the main point of contention. Global benchmark Brent oil is trading near $87 a barrel, down from above $120 in late April.

— Bloomberg

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry rejected reports that its army chief Asim Munir had traveled to Iran as an envoy for US President Donald Trump or the United States.

“Claims by certain quarters that the Chief of Army Staff and the Chief of Defence Forces visited Iran as envoy of President Trump or the US are misleading and factually incorrect,” the spokesperson said, adding that the visit was undertaken “purely in the context and backdrop of Pakistan's ongoing role as a mediator.”

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that military chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir's talks in Tehran focused on regional de-escalation, breaking the military stalemate and exploring a negotiated settlement to the US-Iran conflict.

“The discussions during the visit focused on regional de-escalation, breaking the military stalemate and exploring a negotiated settlement, restoring regional peace and stability,” the ministry's spokesperson said.

The USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier and its crew of about 5,000 sailors are expected to deploy to the Middle East for at least seven months, as the US Navy faces continued operational demands from the Iran war, CNN reported on Wednesday.

Shipping traffic at the Strait of Hormuz rose slightly even as a geopolitical standoff persisted between the United States and Iran, while the market also monitored Iran-Oman talks about the waterway, data showed on Thursday, as per Reuters.

Visible commodity vessel transits at Hormuz totalled 10 on Wednesday, up slightly from eight on Tuesday, data from Kpler showed. This remained below a 10-day moving average of about 15 vessels.

Two medium-range fuel tankers, a liquefied petroleum gas carrier, a Panamax-sized tanker, and three handymax-sized tankers entered the strait from the Gulf of Oman.

A tanker was hit by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, causing a fire that was later extinguished, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said on Wednesday.

All crew members were reported safe and accounted for, with no environmental impact reported, UKMTO said. Authorities are investigating the incident and vessels have been advised to transit the strait with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO.

An Indian tanker attempting to use the southern route of the Strait of Hormuz turned back after an Iranian warning, while Fars reported no traffic on that route over the previous 24 hours.

Iran is expanding its defense capabilities, an Iranian army commander told CNN Wednesday.

“We gained valuable experience during the third imposed war that proved useful in terms of tactics, the production of systems, and their deployment and positioning, and we have made changes accordingly,” Commander of the Army’s Air Defense Force Brigadier General Alireza Elhami was cited as saying by Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB.

Global oil prices have fallen for a third consecutive day after Iran and Oman said they had discussed a framework to establish a temporary shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz. Experts say this is unlikely to be a straighforward task.

US President Trump told Al Jazeera that economic warfare and military strikes are both effective against Iran and that he is “not in a hurry” regarding negotiations because he has “no time schedule”.

The White House said there are no talks or conversations underway or scheduled with Iran, Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said on Wednesday in response to a question about whether Qatar’s prime minister was carrying a message from the US administration to Tehran, Asharq reported.