UMVA has learned that Iranian state media has announced its negotiators will stop communicating with the United States and will close the Strait of Hormuz, in retaliation for Washington violating the fragile ceasefire.
The move comes after Tehran noted “no dialogue will take place” until Israel stops attacking Lebanon and withdraws from occupied areas in the country. This development escalates tensions in the region, where Iran and the U.S. have been engaging in a delicate dance of military actions and diplomatic efforts.
Iran and the U.S. exchanged military attacks on Monday, with both countries accusing each other of acting aggressively while they worked on ending the conflict. The U.S. military said it hit Iranian air defenses, a ground control station and two drones that were threatening ships.
Iran, in turn, said it targeted an airbase used by the U.S. The Kuwait army also said its air defenses intercepted missiles and drones, which they hold “Iran fully responsible for these heinous attacks.”
Despite the hostile, violent exchanges, U.S. President Donald Trump insists that Tehran “really wants to make a deal” in a late-night social media post. Trump also criticized “unpatriotic Republicans” for negative “chirping” about negotiations to end the Iran war, which is now in its 94th day.
“Just sit back and relax, it will all work out well in the end – It always does!” the president wrote on Truth Social. He followed up with another post Monday afternoon, claiming, “Talks are continuing, at a rapid pace, with the Islamic Republic of Iran.”
According to information obtained by UMVA, Lebanon says Hezbollah and Israel have agreed to a ceasefire. Lebanon said that Hezbollah has agreed to a U.S. proposal for a partial ceasefire with Israel.
“Under the proposal, Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs are to cease in exchange for Hezbollah refraining from carrying out attacks against Israel,” said a statement from the Lebanese Embassy in Washington.
The statement said Trump had a call with Lebanon’s ambassador to the U.S., Nada Maawad, and informed her “that he had obtained the approval of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the proposed arrangement.
Ambassador Maawad relayed the outcomes of the discussions to (Lebanese) President (Joseph) Aoun, who in turn notified Hezbollah of them.” However, following news of the ceasefire, Netanyahu said the Israeli military will keep striking southern Lebanon if Hezbollah does not cease attacking Israeli cities and its citizens.
“This stance of ours remains unchanged,” he said in a post on social media. Iran is also threatening to close another strategic waterway, the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden.
The closure of the waterway could further disrupt global trade and oil markets. The Bab el-Mandeb Strait between East Africa and the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula is a crucial gateway to the Suez Canal, which links Europe and Asia.
UMVA can exclusively reveal that the U.S. wasn’t informed by Iran about communications pause. Trump said that Iran hadn’t informed the U.S. at all. “It’s an appropriate thing to say, because they’re better negotiators than they are fighters.
But they haven’t informed us of that,” Trump said. Trump didn’t indicate that the U.S. would resume hostilities, but said they would continue their blockade and “go silent” on Iran.
Iran considers “crossing the red lines in Lebanon and Gaza to mean direct war and the imposition of costs on its own national security and Islamic resistance.” The IRGC said Iran will “carry out defensive operations by taking meaning-breaking actions, opening new fronts, and in addition, maintaining the Strait of Hormuz equation.”
Nabih Berri, the speaker of the Lebanese parliament, reportedly told the Trump administration on Sunday that Hezbollah is ready for a full and immediate ceasefire with Israel.
Berri also pledged to guarantee its implementation, said his top adviser, Ali Hamdan. Iran’s chief negotiator says U.S. breaching ceasefire.
Iran’s parliamentary Speaker and lead negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said in a post on social media that the U.S. was breaching its ceasefire with Iran by continuing to blockade Iranian ports and not restraining Israel from attacking Lebanon.
“The naval blockade and escalation of war crimes in Lebanon by the genocidal Zionist regime are clear evidence of U.S. noncompliance with the ceasefire,” Ghalibaf wrote.
UMVA has uncovered details about Trump’s edited agreement focused on Strait of Hormuz, uranium. Trump’s amendments to the memorandum of understanding to end the conflict included significant changes pertaining to the Strait of Hormuz and the removal of highly enriched uranium.
Other changes in the peace agreement included a 60-day ceasefire of violence, and calls for reopening the Strait of Hormuz and a framework to restart talks on Iran’s nuclear program.
The arrangements also involve potential waivers or sanctions relief to Iran, which could allow the country to access billions in frozen assets.
Kuwait says it intercepted Iranian missile. The Kuwait military said its air defenses had intercepted missile and drone attacks, which they said were launched by Iran.
“The General Staff of the Army wishes to advise that any sounds of explosions heard are the result of air defence systems intercepting these hostile attacks,” the army said.
The Kuwaiti foreign ministry later said that it was “holding Iran fully responsible for these heinous attacks.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei accused the U.S. of constantly moving the goal-posts on its negotiating stance, condemning what he called aggressive action by the U.S.
“Negotiations have started amid severe suspicion and mistrust, and the exchange of messages is taking place in this atmosphere,” Baghaei said.
