News and Analysis 6/26/26

“The body set up by Iran to manage the strait said vessels passing outside designated routes would not be guaranteed safe passage” and the UN evacuation effort has been suspended, although the the attacked vessel “did not transit under IMO’s evacuation framework” …

• UN Pauses Strait of Hormuz Evacuation Plan After Cargo Ship Attacked (BBC)

… yet traffic continues to flow …

• Hormuz Traffic Flows Despite Ship Attack as Iran Fights to Keep Its Grip on Key Trade Route (NBC News)
• 8 More South Korean Ships Exit Strait of Hormuz After US-Iran Deal (Andalu Ajansi)

… “Whether the parties can bridge these differences during the 60-day implementation period will be a key indicator of whether the memorandum can evolve from a ceasefire into a durable regional agreement”:

• After Lebanon, the Strait of Hormuz Tests Iran-U.S. Memorandum (NIAC)

“Hezbollah’s leader, Naim Kassem, said in a speech Friday that Ashoura is being repeated again by the U.S. and Israel, adding that his group and its supporters were subjected to a ‘war of elimination’”:

• Massive Shiite Crowds Mark Ashoura amid Fresh Iran-Israel-US War Fallout (AP / Southeast Missourian)

“The regime is examining international models, including Turkey’s Dardanelles arrangement and the Malacca Straits Patrol, to justify the arrangement”:

• Iran Pushes Plan to Charge Billions for Strait of Hormuz Management as Trump Denies Fee Scheme – Report (i24)

Israeli ware crimes continue:

• Israel Bombs Palestinians in Beach Tents in Gaza (Drop Site)
• Israeli Forces Shoot and Kill Palestinians in Occupied West Bank, Gaza (Aljazeera)

“Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Arab Gulf leaders to reassure them that U.S. isn’t cutting them out of negotiations with Tehran” …

• Rubio’s New Job? Selling Trump’s Iran Deal to a Worried Gulf (Washington Post)

… and Iran condemned their “joint statement … describing it as “interventionist, irresponsible and provocative”:

• Iran Slams US-GCC Statement as ‘Provocative,’ Urges Regional Policy Rethink (Andalu Ajansi)

“WSJ says Iran’s retaliatory strikes did greater damage to the Middle East’s only US Navy base, in Bahrain, than the Pentagon has acknowledged”:

• US Considering Moving Gulf Bases Hit by Iran Westward, Including to Israel — Report (Times of Israel)

“Iran coach says he and his team are focused on football”:

• FIFA Confirms Rainbow Flags to Be Allowed at Egypt v Iran World Cup ‘Pride Match’ (The Guardian)

“There is an agreement and to comply with that agreement, the IAEA will have to have access and inspect”:

• US-Iran Deal Grants UN Inspectors Access to Nuclear Sites, IAEA Chief Says (Times of Israel)

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