Iran intercepts US MQ-1 drone east of Strait of Hormuz

Countries in the region are capable of ensuring their own security through cooperation without US involvement, said Iran’s president on Thursday.

Speaking at an event marking a local holiday, Masoud Pezeshkian addressed regional issues and called for closer cooperation among neighboring countries, according to a statement from the Iranian presidency.

“We are brothers with all the countries around us, and we are all Muslims. Therefore, we can help one another and ensure the security of our region,” he said.

“Regional countries do not need the US to come from the other side of the world under the pretext of providing security,” Pezeshkian said.

He also criticized Washington’s military spending and accused the US of committing violations while presenting its presence as necessary for regional security.

The remarks come amid continued tensions between Tehran and Washington following the start of the current conflict on Feb. 28, when the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran and Tehran responded by targeting Israel and what it said were US positions in Arab countries.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Tasnim news agency said Tehran had received a letter from US Vice President JD Vance but had not responded to it.

Tasnim said Tehran insisted that its seven conditions be met by the US, adding that “any position that contradicts this framework is unacceptable.”

Washington and Tehran on June 18 signed a framework agreement and subsequently began negotiations, but the talks later collapsed over differences concerning freedom and security of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global energy and goods shipments.

Earlier, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) navy said on Thursday that three oil tankers “exploded” after striking naval mines “while using an unauthorised route south of the Hormuz Strait,” according to a statement carried by Iranian news agency IRNA.

According to Press TV, the IRGC said the vessels had “switched off their radar and navigation systems and ignored its warnings before being abandoned along the Strait’s southern coast.”

US vice president contacted top Iran security official to revive peace talks: report

US Vice President JD Vance has contacted Iran’s security chief in a bid to revive peace talks that could head off a renewed American assault on the country, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

Vance sent a letter to Mohsen Rezaei, head of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, the Journal reported, in a move one of the newspaper’s sources said US President Donald Trump directed.

The letter – as well as subsequent talks between US and Iranian officials – focused on a possible framework for negotiations rather than specifics of a peace proposal, the Journal said.

Asked whether he had directed Vance to speak with Iran, Trump said: “No, what it is is that they need help with medical supplies and various things.”

“He asked me what I thought. I said, if you want to do that, that’s okay. Basically, it’s getting supplies in to help people that are not well,” he added.

Iran captures US MQM-170 spy drone

Iran’s Navy electronic warfare unit intercepted and captured a US MQM-170 spy drone intact in the western Strait of Hormuz, according to IRIB.

The Iranian news agency said that “the drone had taken off from a southern Persian Gulf littoral state.”

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it intercepted a US MQ-1 drone with its air defence system east of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Press TV on Thursday.

The report comes as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Wednesday that Iran was in “close and ongoing contact” with intermediaries to review ideas that could ensure the implementation of Tehran’s seven-day peace plan amid the current conflict with the United States.

“While our brave armed forces are fully prepared to defend the homeland, Iran continues to give diplomacy a chance to succeed. We remain in close and ongoing contact with intermediaries to review ideas that can ensure implementation of our seven-day plan in even less than a week,” he said in a post on X.

Fire reported on vessel in Strait of Hormuz: UKMTO

A fire was reported aboard a vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, 9 nautical miles north of Khasab, Oman, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency said Thursday.

According to the UKMTO, the master of a third-party vessel reported seeing another vessel on fire.

Read: Iran says Trump’s Islamabad MoU remarks expose ‘hollowness’ of US commitments

The status of the crew remains unknown, and no damage assessment or environmental impact report was available at the time of the statement.

UKMTO advised vessels to transit the area with caution and report any suspicious activity as authorities investigate.

The incident comes amid rising tensions between Iran and the US over navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global energy and commodity supplies.

Qatar-led mediators push for US-Iran deal to avert new strikes: report

Regional mediators led by Qatar are working to restart negotiations between the US and Iran to prevent a resumption of the war, the Axios news site reported on Wednesday.

They are urging Tehran to allow UN inspectors to visit bombed nuclear sites in return for some relief from US sanctions, according to the report, which cited US, Israeli and regional sources.

Read more: US warns Gulf states of possible ‘short, intense’ Iran war after midterms: report

Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Turkiye are supporting the effort, it said.

US President Donald Trump told Axios that talks with Iran are taking place through mediators but said he does not know whether they will succeed.

“We need to finish the job — either through a deal or another way — we will find out if negotiations can succeed,” he said.

The report comes as Trump has threatened for weeks to launch large-scale strikes against Iran.