Middle East war update: Qeshm Island strike raises tensions; talks continue

US President Donald Trump said the US military on Friday carried out new limited strikes on Iran, targeting an Iranian air defence system.

Iranian state media reported the sound of two explosions in the Suza area of Qeshm Island, which is in the crucial waterway for oil shipments.

Trump in an exchange with reporters described the military action as “minor.”

“They knocked out — they built a little bit of an anti-aircraft device and we knocked it out in about 15 minutes, maybe five,” Trump told reporters shortly after arriving in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Friday evening.

Trump did not offer further details about the target.

Iran is reviewing proposals presented by chief mediator Qatar aimed at addressing differences with the United States about Tehran’s nuclear programme, two Middle East government officials said Friday.

The development is raising hopes that the two sides could be inching toward indirect talks on one of the thorniest issues that President Donald Trump says must be resolved as part of any deal meant to end the more than 8-month-old war.

But one of the officials stressed that the Iranians, at least at the moment, remain unwilling to engage in negotiations with the Trump administration over its atomic activities until the US agrees to several core conditions that Iran has been demanding be part of any ceasefire agreement.

Both officials were not authorised to comment publicly on the delicate negotiations and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Iran's military is “stronger” and more motivated than it was when the United States and Israel started the war in February, Iranian state media reported on Saturday, citing an army spokesman.

“Today, the Islamic Republic's armed forces... having gained experience from direct confrontation with the United States and the Israeli regime, are on higher alert and are stronger than they were at the beginning of the war. They now possess greater motivation, commitment, and self-confidence,” Mohammad Akraminia said, according to the state news agency IRNA.

The United States is offering a $20 million reward “and possible relocation” for information about Iran's nuclear programme, the military said on Friday, despite President Donald Trump's repeated claims that it has been obliterated.

A State Department program, Rewards for Justice, “is offering a reward of up to $20 million and possible relocation for information about Iran's nuclear programme, including its facilities, equipment, and associated personnel, such as those in the scientific community,” US Central Command said in a statement posted on X.

Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis are effectively policing maritime transit of the Red Sea through a system under which vessels can request safe passage via email, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

The Houthis — who control swaths of Yemen — declared a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia earlier this year, after which some ships began contacting them before transiting the Red Sea, the Journal reported.

If the Houthis reply, they typically do so within 24 hours, the newspaper said, citing crew member accounts and emails it reviewed.