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US President Donald Trump said that negotiations with Iran will begin Monday after he decided to hold off on new strikes against the Islamic Republic to pursue a deal.
US President Donald Trump had announced on Saturday night that he had decided to cancel an attack on Iran, subject to being able to rapidly make a DEAL", adding that Tehran and other regional countries had asked him to suspend any strikes.
Meanwhile, the spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry said on Sunday that Tehran and Muscat were close to reaching a deal on a new maritime route through the Strait of Hormuz, separate from the existing corridors.
Two tankers laden with Saudi oil crossed the Bab el-Mandeb strait over the weekend, while traffic in the Strait of Hormuz slowed following reports of vessel attacks, shipping data showed on Monday.
The number of commodity vessels that passed through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait fell to 18 on Sunday, from 27 on Saturday and 28 on Friday, the Kpler data showed.
Oil prices fell sharply Sunday after President Donald Trump said he would order U.S. forces to hold off on new strikes against Iran, claiming that a deal to end the fighting in the Middle East was near.
A resolution to the conflict, which has lasted more than five months, could give oil shippers the ability to send vessels out of the Persian Gulf, where tankers of oil and other products have been trapped during the fighting.
The price of U.S. crude oil fell 5% to $80.79 per barrel Sunday night. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, fell 5% to $83.87 per barrel.
Oil prices have been swinging widely since the U.S. and Israel launched attacks on Iran in late February, pushing past $100 per barrel multiple times during the spring.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Monday it received a report of an incident involving a tanker 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman's port city of Khasab.
The master of a tanker reported hearing an explosion in close proximity to the vessel, UKMTO said, adding that the vessel and its crew were reported to be safe.
US President Donald Trump said that negotiations with Iran will begin Monday after he decided to hold off on new strikes against the Islamic republic to pursue a deal.
"Obviously, they don't want to be attacked. They knew the extent of the attack because they saw it forming," Trump told reporters on Sunday aboard Air Force One. "Now what we're doing is we're talking to them in the form of a negotiation. It begins tomorrow afternoon."
Israeli settlers have attacked an Armenian church in occupied East Jerusalem's Old City, according to Palestinian news agency Wafa, throwing stones and spitting on the entrance.
Nickolay Mladenov, the high representative for Gaza on Trump's 'Board of Peace', issued a statement on X following airstrikes on Gaza over the weekend, saying that Israeli strikes on Gaza come amid "intense efforts" to get Palestinian factions in Gaza to agree to a roadmap to disarm.
"Both parties carry obligations under the Comprehensive Plan and the Sharm El Sheikh deal that secured the release of all hostages," he said, adding, "my team and I are working around the clock with the parties, the mediators and regional partners to de-escalate and create the space for the full implementation of the President's plan.
Two days of strikes across Gaza have killed civilians and destroyed medical supplies that people depend on. This comes after intense efforts by the @BoardOfPeace and the mediators (Egypt, Turkiye, Qatar and the US) to bring the Palestinian factions in Gaza to agree to a Roadmap…
— Nickolay E. MLADENOV (@nmladenov) August 2, 2026
The crew of an Iranian commercial ship that was hit in a Ukrainian attack and the body of a sailor killed in the incident have returned to Iran, according to Iran's semi-official ISNA news agency in a report on Sunday.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the US "will be the centre of gravity" for Iran's "foreign relations in the future", according to Al Jazeera, citing a post of his on X.
"We must strive to compel the enemy to remain committed to what it has signed," he said, adding that "the security of the country, the region and our allies will be enhanced by this memorandum."
Saudi Arabia's foreign minister received a call from his Iranian counterpart on Sunday, according to Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry in a post on X.
According to the statement, the two "discussed the latest developments in light of the current regional situation, as well as ongoing diplomatic efforts aimed at de-escalation."
Saudi Arabia's FM "reaffirmed the Kingdom's commitment to continuing its regional role in promoting security and stability in a manner that serves the shared interests of all countries and peoples in the region," the statement added.
🇸🇦📞🇮🇷 | Foreign Minister HH Prince @FaisalbinFarhan received a phone call from Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. pic.twitter.com/7Syj82wwIj
— Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) August 2, 2026
Iran's foreign ministry has said that the UK, Bulgaria, and Ukraine have called to say they won't take part in the US war on Iran, according to Al Jazeera, citing Iran's SNN.
Iran had made threats against the UK and Bulgaria over the US use of airbases in the countries, while media reports this week said that Iran was considering striking Ukraine after it struck a ship in the Caspian that killed an Iranian.
Israel was meant to be part of Trump's cancelled strikes, according to a CENTCOM (US Central Command) official speaking with Israel's Channel 12, who was quoted as saying that "Israel was supposed to be part of the plan."
The attack would have seen strikes against Iran's energy infrastructure, long advocated for by Israel's political leadership.
Donald Trump on Saturday again pulled back from the brink from a devastating bombing campaign in Iran.
In an announcement on his Truth Social platform, the US president said he had cancelled attack plans having just hours earlier threatened a major escalation in the five-month conflict.
Trump has over the past week repeatedly threatened to launch a massive round of bombing in an attempt to force Iran to re-open the Strait of Hormuz.
Multiple US news outlets said over the weekend that the president had authorised a fresh attack. CBS News reported that the US and Israel were planning a joint operation to destroy Iranian power plants and oil refineries.
"We'll be hitting them very hard," Trump said on Friday. "At some point, they're going to say, 'We just can't take it anymore.'"
Israel will continue to attack Gaza despite Hamas agreeing to surrender its weapons, Energy Minister Eli Cohen said Sunday.
In an interview with Israel Army Radio, Cohen denied claims that Israel had agreed to end its assault and backed a full military takeover of Gaza.
Exiled Palestinian official Mohammad Dahlan had earlier claimed that the US would ensure Israel ends its assault on Gaza following Hamas's agreement to disarm.
In a post on Saturday, the former Fatah official said he had received assurances from Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner that Israel would from Sunday observe the ceasefire and end its attacks.
"Mr. Jared Kushner has assured us that he has reached an agreement with the Israeli side to cease the assaults on Gaza starting tomorrow morning," he wrote on social media on Saturday evening.
But he edited the post a few hours later, writing instead that Kushner "informed us that he is working with the Israeli side to halt the attacks on Gaza".
The spokesman for Iran's foreign ministry said on Sunday that Tehran and Muscat were close to reaching a deal on a new maritime route through the Strait of Hormuz, separate from the existing corridors.
"We are now going to reach an understanding on a route acceptable to both sides - neither the northern route nor the southern route - but one that respects the sovereign rights of both sides and safeguards our national interests and security," Esmaeil Baqaei said in an interview with state television.
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