IRGC announces capture of US underwater vehicle: state media

Iran’s state media reported on Tuesday that the Iranian Navy had captured an unmanned US Navy submersible at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz.

“One of the US military’s most advanced unmanned underwater vehicles was seized by Iranian armed forces at the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz during a complex intelligence and field operation and brought into Iran,” IRIB said.

Tasnim News Agency identified the captured system as a Dive-LD, an autonomous unmanned underwater vehicle developed by US defence technology company Anduril Industries and first delivered to the US Navy’s Unmanned Undersea Vehicle Group 1 in 2025.

According to Press TV, the “unmanned submersible incorporates some of the world’s most advanced underwater technology and was delivered to the US terrorist military in 2025”.

Press TV further reported that the IRGC announced that “photographic evidence and detailed footage” of the captured US asset would be released in the coming hours.

Iran’s army claims shooting down US MQ-1 drone over Strait of Hormuz: Press TV

Separately, the Iranian army claimed it had shot down a US MQ-1 drone over the Strait of Hormuz, according to state broadcaster Press TV.

In a statement, the army said its air defence forces “detected, tracked and targeted the drone in southeastern Iran before striking and destroying it”, Press TV reported. It further added that the drone was downed by “a new advanced air defence system … under the control of the country’s integrated air defence network”.

Trump says Iran ‘punished greatly’ by US blockade

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday claimed that Iran has been “punished greatly” by the naval blockade, describing the blockade as “so powerful, so effective.”

“Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. And they’ve been punished greatly,” Trump said at the Steel Across America event outside the White House, where a 21-foot steel beam recovered from the World Trade Centre’s South Tower will be displayed ahead of the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks.

Hailing the US military for its attacks on Iran, he said: “The job they do is unbelievable.”

“The blockade has been so powerful, so effective. Nobody thought it could go so well,” he added.

US sanctions 36 Iran-linked targets under ‘Economic D-Day’ campaign

The US Treasury Department announced on Tuesday that it had imposed sanctions on 36 targets linked to Iran’s aviation sector, including 27 airlines, accusing the sector of facilitating the movement of weapons, personnel and illicit cargo.

The action, carried out under the Treasury’s “Operation Economic Outcast,” included sanctions against Iran’s remaining active airlines, as well as companies and intermediaries accused of helping Tehran acquire US-origin aircraft and aviation technology.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the measures were intended to cut financial lifelines supporting the government and warned companies doing business with sanctioned Iranian airlines that they could face exclusion from the global financial system.

The Treasury said the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) was also targeting third-country firms involved in activities supporting sanctioned Iranian aviation operations.

Iran says US return to Islamabad pact would pave way for de-escalation

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday that a US return to its commitments under the Islamabad memorandum of understanding would pave the way for easing current regional tensions.

Araghchi made the remarks during a phone conversation with his Japanese counterpart Toshimitsu Motegi, according to a statement by the Iranian Foreign Ministry.

The two ministers discussed bilateral relations as well as the latest regional and international developments.

Araghchi blamed the current tensions in the region on what he called Washington’s violation of its commitments under the Islamabad memorandum.

“The solution is simple. The US side’s return to and compliance with its commitments and signature under the Islamabad memorandum will pave the way for a return to normal conditions,” he said.

The Iranian minister also briefed Motegi on the latest negotiations between Iran and Oman over the Strait of Hormuz.

Araghchi said the two countries had made “significant progress” in talks aimed at establishing a temporary transit route through the strait, adding that consultations would continue on mechanisms for its future management.

Tokyo calls for ‘maximum restraint’

Motegi, for his part, expressed “deep concern” over the resumption of attacks between the US and Iran, according to a statement by Japan’s Foreign Ministry.

“It is important to achieve an early de-escalation of the situation and resume talks between the US and Iran as soon as possible,” he said, requesting Iran to “show maximum flexibility to avoid a prolonged continuation of the current impasse.”

Motegi expressed “concern over Iran’s continued attacks on civilian vessels and strongly requested Iran to exercise maximum restraint,” said the statement.

Reiterating Japan’s position that it “is of utmost importance to restore free and safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz without additional costs at the earliest possible date,” Motegi said the future of the strait should be discussed, in accordance with international law, by the international community as a whole, including the littoral states, the states using the waterway, and the International Maritime Organisation.

He called on Iran to urge the Houthi group in Yemen to “exercise restraint,” and underscored the “importance of ensuring stability in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait,” explaining that Japan “would work together with the Government of Yemen to this end.”

The Islamabad memorandum was signed in June following mediation by Pakistan and Qatar, providing for an end to hostilities and a framework for negotiations between Tehran and Washington.

Iran has accused the US of failing to implement key provisions of the understanding, including measures related to sanctions and the naval blockade, while Washington and Gulf countries have called for free and unrestricted navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran and Oman have since been holding talks on a temporary transit route through the strategic waterway, with Tehran saying the arrangement would be temporary while discussions continue on a permanent mechanism.

Iran to ‘defend against aggression’ until aggressors ‘brought to complete regret’: Pezeshkian

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in an X post on Tuesday that Iran has “always opposed war” yet would not hesitate to “defend against aggression”, and resist with “full strength” against enemy forces.

He said that Iran has considered “the preservation of the people’s interests and regional security to lie in refraining from igniting conflict,” but would remain the guardian of the rights of the great Iranian nation.”

His comments come as Tehran announced new measures to seal off the strait, saying it will soon unveil details of a “maritime exclusion zone” that will extend from the perimeter of the US blockade, through the strait and into the Gulf itself.

Read: Houthi attacks wound 73, disrupt Saudi energy facilities as group warns of more strikes inside kingdom

Washington fired at Iranian tankers over the weekend in retaliation for Iranian fire at US ​warships. Iran said it had used new, more ​capable ballistic missiles to attack American ships.

“In ⁠recent days, Washington has received a clear warning from Iran’s new missiles,” Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council said on X. “Economic warfare will be met by a maritime exclusion zone across the Persian Gulf to the blockade perimeter. The operational posture toward US warships and ​bases has been fundamentally recalibrated.”

Iran still possesses missiles and ​drones that can threaten oil ⁠tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz and have been used to attack US military bases scattered throughout the region.

In a separate message, acting Defence Minister Brigadier General Seyyed Majid Ibn al-Reza said the country is capable of targeting US warships involved in enforcing economic blockades, according to IRNA.

In remarks on Monday, Ibn‑al‑Reza said the ministry is pursuing the four‑year program prepared by martyr Major General Pilot Aziz Nasirzadeh and submitted to Parliament with the same approach.

The military official noted that Iran possesses the capability to strike US warships involved in economic pressure and that the results will become evident.