Tensions remain high between Iran and the United States. Iranian air defenses reportedly intercepted and destroyed a “hostile aircraft” in the coastal province of Bushehr, Iranian media including state broadcaster IRIB reported. A military source cited by the Iranian agency Tasnim confirmed that “a U.S. drone was intercepted near Bushehr.”

Meanwhile, missiles were reportedly launched by Iranian armed forces from the south of the country toward the Strait of Hormuz. The Iranian news agency Fars reported this without specifying a target. The agency Tasnim said the missiles were fired toward ships as warning shots in the Strait of Hormuz.

Sabereen News, an outlet linked to Iran-backed Iraqi militias cited by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, reported an exchange of fire in the Strait of Hormuz. According to Sabereen, Iran opened fire on four U.S. vessels, including commercial ships, after they violated Iranian transit rules for the strait.

The Iranian news agency Mehr also reported that Iranian armed forces fired warning shots at four ships near the Strait of Hormuz. Mehr, quoted by Al Jazeera in a Telegram post, said the vessels “were attempting to transit the strait without coordination.”

Tehran: U.S. threats to Oman a blackmail attempt and an illegal act

The threats from the Trump administration against Oman are “an attempt to blackmail an independent United Nations member state and further proof of the moral failure of the U.S. political and governing system,” said Esmaeil Baghaei, the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, according to Al Jazeera. Baghaei criticized the United States over the recent threats to Oman. Earlier, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had warned Oman to avoid any attempt to introduce a toll system in the Strait of Hormuz, threatening sanctions against those involved.

Baghaei called the U.S. threats an “illegal act” and urged the “international community to respond responsibly to this approach, preventing the growing normalization of violations of international law.”

U.S. Treasury Department: new sanctions on Tehran over oil

The U.S. Treasury Department meanwhile announced new sanctions related to Iran, targeting oil sales that allow Tehran to rebuild its armed forces and continue to pose a threat to the United States and its regional partners, the Treasury said in a statement. The Iranian armed forces generate revenue through oil sales via a network of front companies, contributing to their rearmament and threat to neighboring countries.

“The Treasury Department will continue to increase pressure on Iranian oil sales to deprive the Iranian regime and its military of the financial resources needed to threaten U.S. allies and partners in the Middle East,” said Scott Bessent, U.S. Treasury Secretary. “We will not allow the Iranian government to increase its oil revenues to rebuild its armed forces and military capabilities.”

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