US Issues Saturday Deadline for Iran to Publicly Commit to Hormuz Shipping Safety

US President Donald Trump administration is demanding that Iran issue a public statement by Saturday committing to halt all attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, warning of “severe consequences” if Tehran refuses to comply with the ultimatum.

According to Axios citing three US officials, the immediate deadline centers around a scheduled Saturday meeting in Muscat between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Omani Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi.

The US asserts that Iran violated a Memorandum of Understanding signed three weeks ago by repeatedly targeting commercial shipping in the strategic waterway. After launching two rounds of retaliatory strikes, the US halted military operations to allow space for diplomatic negotiations. Now, Washington is demanding concrete public assurances following the Saturday talks in Oman.

“We want them to state publicly that they will stop shooting at ships and to explicitly, or at least implicitly, acknowledge that they messed up. We are working on that right now,” one US official stated. “We expect the Iranians to say... that all channels in the strait will be open and that passage through them will be free.”

Another US official warned that failure to issue the statement immediately following the Muscat meeting would carry “severe consequences.”

While Iranian representatives reached out to the administration earlier this week expressing a desire to resolve the maritime dispute, Iranian negotiators and officials from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have maintained a hardline stance, demanding Tehran retain control over the Strait.

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Despite the recent hostilities, officials indicated that the US and Iran had made progress toward a broader nuclear agreement during recent backdoor negotiations. “We are negotiating with influential people in Iran who say they want a deal,” an official said. However, the Hormuz crisis has raised serious doubts in Washington about Iran’s willingness to abide by any treaty. Contingency plans are actively being developed should the talks collapse.

New intelligence alleges assassination plot

Israel recently shared intelligence with the US regarding a specific, new Iranian plot to assassinate Donald Trump. According to sources familiar with the matter, the warning was delivered earlier this week.

While US intelligence agencies had already been monitoring general discussions about potential assassination attempts against Trump, the Israeli intelligence reportedly detailed a specific operational plot. US agencies have not yet independently verified the Israeli intelligence or tracked this particular threat previously.

Some US officials cautioned that the intelligence report might be part of a broader Israeli effort to influence President Trump’s decision on whether to escalate military action against Iran in the wake of the Hormuz crisis.

The White House declined to comment directly on the intelligence. However, referring to the threats on Wednesday, Trump told reporters: “They want to take out the US leader – me. I’m on every single one of their lists... These are evil, sick people. We have to root out that cancer.”