US President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Oman if the Gulf state interferes with efforts to reach an agreement with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz, speaking in a Fox News interview on Monday as a 60-day diplomatic window for a US-Iran settlement expired without a breakthrough.
Trump said Iran should "raise the white flag of surrender" and confirmed for the first time that Washington had opened a direct backchannel to Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. The two countries signed a memorandum of understanding at the Palace of Versailles on 17 June, committing both sides to negotiate a comprehensive deal within two months following a spring war and subsequent ceasefire. The Strait of Hormuz has been largely closed since the US and Israel launched their campaign against Iran in February.
Iran's foreign ministry said on Monday that talks with Oman on a joint transit management plan for the strait were continuing, with a spokesperson saying an understanding had been reached on the transit route map. Trump also said Israel should stop attacking Gaza because Hamas had agreed to lay down its weapons, adding that the US had a separate communication channel with Hamas.