Iran official says support for new sanctions would be an 'act of war,'
and other Middle East news
[August 24, 2026]
The new head of Iran's top security body warned Sunday that Tehran will
see any country's support for new U.S. economic measures against the
Islamic Republic as an “act of war,” while Iran's president defended a
memorandum of understanding with the United States as the best way out
of the stalled conflict.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday is expected to announce the
new measures after the U.S. vowed to impose an “unprecedented” level of
economic warfare and isolation on a country that has lived for decades
under sanctions. Also Monday, Pakistan’s army chief is expected to visit
Iran as mediators try to revive talks.
Meanwhile, attacks calmed on the Strait of Hormuz but posturing did not,
as a recently created Iranian authority listed dozens of vessels it said
will face restrictions on future transits.
Here’s a look at the latest developments in the Iran war and the wider
Middle East on Sunday. Full coverage can be found here.
Iran’s security chief sharpens warning to neighbors
The hard-line leader of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen
Rezaei, issued his latest warning on X, with the comments quickly shared
by Iranian state media.
It came a day after Rezaei's most extensive public comments since being
named to the post this month.
“If (Trump) wants to do something, we will retaliate in a seismic
manner,” he had told the state broadcaster in an interview that aired
late Saturday. He said Iran would target other oil-shipping routes from
the Persian Gulf — alternatives to the Strait of Hormuz.
Rezaei, a former Revolutionary Guard commander and military adviser to
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, was part of senior
appointments widely seen as hardening Tehran’s political and military
stance.
Iranian president wants to move past ‘neither war nor peace’
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian earlier Sunday said the memorandum
of understanding signed in mid-June was the best way to move beyond a
situation of “neither war nor peace," adding that Tehran can’t attract
investment nearly six months after the war began.
“There is not a single provision in this agreement that amounts to
capitulation,” Pezeshkian said in a speech published by state-run IRNA.
“The supreme leader sets the policies, and we will follow that path.”
The interim deal opened a 60-day period for talks aimed at ending the
war and reaching an accord on Iran's nuclear program. That period ended
last week with no signs of compromise or extension.
No attacks confirmed on the strait, but new restrictions
There were no confirmed attacks in the Strait of Hormuz over the past 48
hours, a multinational coalition overseen by the U.S. Navy said Sunday,
with shipping traffic still at reduced levels. The U.S. military said
its blockade of Iranian ports had redirected 70 commercial ships and
disabled three as of Sunday.
Iran's recently created Persian Gulf Strait Authority, sanctioned by the
U.S., published a list of dozens of ships it said had violated
arrangements for transiting the strait and would face future
restrictions like fines or seizures. The strait had been considered an
international waterway before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb.
28.
Iran and Oman, on the strait's other side, are now discussing management
of it, which likely will include ships paying fees.
Pakistan's army chief will visit Tehran
Pakistani Field Marshal Asim Munir will lead a delegation to Tehran on
Monday, Iranian state television reported, citing Iran's Foreign
Ministry spokesperson, Esmail Baghaei.
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Smoke and flames rise as Israeli forces demolish homes in Zawtar al-Sharqiyah,
southern Lebanon, Sunday, Aug. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)
Two regional officials said the visit was part of Islamabad’s efforts to
de-escalate tensions between the United States and Iran and urge them to
return to the negotiating table. The officials spoke on condition of
anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter
publicly.
— By Munir Ahmed in Islamabad
Iran executes man arrested during January protests
The Iranian judiciary’s Mizan news agency reported the latest execution
connected to nationwide protests early this year, saying Majid Adineh
was arrested Jan. 9 in Mohammadshahr, west of Tehran.
The judiciary said forensic examinations indicated the handgun found on
him had been fired on Jan. 8 and 9. Mizan said Adineh had joined the
unrest following calls by groups opposed to Iran’s government and
alleged that he had received training from groups outside the country.
He was convicted under Iran’s law imposing harsher penalties for
espionage and cooperation with hostile states.
Israeli settler arrested in beating of Palestinian amputee
Police arrested a 16-year-old boy from the Israeli settlement of
Avigayil in the beating of a 61-year-old Palestinian, Saeed Muhammad
Ibrahim Rabah, outside his home in the occupied West Bank, a year after
he lost a leg after being shot by a settler.
Rabah told The Associated Press that the violence at his home in Khirbet
al-Rakeez on Saturday was an effort to make families leave, but “we will
remain, no matter what happens.”
Separately, the West Bank Health Ministry said a 14-year-old in the
Askar refugee camp in Nablus was shot dead by Israeli forces, who did
not immediately comment. The uncle of Islam Maher Ajouri, Nehad Ajouri,
called the shooting indiscriminate.
And Israel's military said it detained a suspect in a stabbing attack
that wounded a 24-year-old Israeli man in the area of al-Auja in the
West Bank. Israel's emergency services said the man was in moderate
condition.
Airstrike in Gaza kills a 4-year-old child
Four-year-old Mohammed Taha died after an Israeli airstrike hit a
central Gaza house on Sunday and wounded at least five others, according
to the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, which received the casualties.
Israel's military later said it struck and killed a Hamas commander in
central Gaza. The hospital confirmed that the man named, Ismail Abu Ful,
was killed.
An Israeli strike in southern Gaza wounded at least seven people,
including three children, according to health officials at Nasser
Hospital. The military did not immediately comment.
And Defense Minister Israel Katz in a statement said he instructed the
military to “act immediately and forcefully” to prevent launches of
balloons, kites or drones from Gaza toward nearby Israeli communities.
Before the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas-led militants on Israel — when
1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage — burning kites and
balloons were sent from Gaza into southern Israel, causing fires and
other damage.
Hamas in a statement Sunday accused Israel of “using children’s toys as
a pretext” for attacks and further displacement of Gaza residents.
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