Here's the latest
• Trump touts progress: President Donald Trump said the US has “ended the war with Iran,” after announcing a “great settlement” that he said would resolve the conflict and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Trump also said Vice President JD Vance may attend a signing ceremony in Europe within days.
• No confirmation from Iran: Trump suggested Iran’s supreme leader was on board, but the foreign ministry spokesperson said reports of a deal were “merely speculation” and that his country has not yet reached a final decision on any agreement, according to state media.
• Recent escalations: Before announcing the breakthrough, Trump had vowed to take Kharg Island, which handles roughly 90% of Iran’s crude exports, and assume total control of the country’s oil and gas markets, “much like we have with Venezuela.”
Deaths of Indian seafarers in US strike test countries’ diplomatic relations
The deaths of three Indian seafarers in a US strike on a commercial oil tanker has prompted public fury in India, and added new friction to an already strained phase between New Delhi and Washington.
On Wednesday morning, the M/T Settebello was transiting the Sea of Oman, laden with Iranian oil, when a US aircraft fired precision munitions into its engine room.
The three men found dead following the attack on the Palau-flagged vessel are the first seafarers confirmed to have been killed in a US strike as part of Washington’s operation to blockade Iranian ports, raising concerns in India that its nationals are becoming collateral damage in a war that isn’t their own.
New Delhi, which has become increasingly worried about the safety of its seafarers during the US-Israeli war with Iran, has now urged Washington to halt strikes on shipping vessels.
Over the past year, the once-robust ties between India and the US have deteriorated as political and economic strains have begun to overshadow their strategic partnership. Tensions were further compounded by steep US tariffs on many Indian exports.
Washington has recently tried to repair ties with Delhi by appointing an ambassador to India and with a visit by Secretary of State Marco Rubio last month.
But New Delhi may now be looking for another gesture from the US, as it tries to contain the pressure at home over the deaths of the seafarers.
Professor who war-gamed Iran conflict doesn't buy Trump's deal claim
US President Donald Trump has said a breakthrough deal with Iran, but political science professor Robert Pape does not believe the pronouncement. He told CNN’s Laura Coates the US is “not at an endgame, we’re in the middle game.”
For subscribers: Trump has proclaimed an agreement with Iran was imminent nearly 40 times. He’s also repeatedly claimed Iran has caved to his demands even as Tehran’s defiance has demonstrated the opposite. Read CNN’s analysis of his latest assertion.
World Bank projects war will slow global economic growth to weakest pace since pandemic
The Iran war is projected to slow global economic growth to its weakest pace since the Covid-19 pandemic and renewed hostilities could cause it to slump further, according to a report released by the World Bank on Thursday.
Global economic growth is forecast at 2.5% this year, down from 2.9% in 2025, it said.
“If energy supply disruptions prove more severe than assumed and are accompanied by substantial financial stress, global growth could fall to just 1.3% in 2026,” the World Bank added.
Oil, gas and fertilizer prices have spiked as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively blocked.
Because of the Iran war, growth for all developing economies is forecast to be weaker than in 2025. Per capita income across developing countries except China and India is not expected to return to the pre-pandemic level until after 2028, it said.
Footage of simulated nuclear explosion was "editing error," Iranian state media says
Iranian state-run broadcaster IRIB aired footage early Friday which appeared to show a simulated nuclear explosion over a city during a news segment. It later said it was an internal mistake.
The 3D graphic shows a bright flash appearing over an unidentified city, before a mushroom cloud rises up amid plumes of smoke. It rattled nerves inside Iran and sparked speculation online that the channel may have been hacked.
IRIB said afterward that “the airing of footage showing a nuclear explosion was the result of an editing error.” The outlet had not been hacked, an IRIB anchor said on air.
Trump says the war is over but Iran has not confirmed a deal. Here's the latest
President Donald Trump said Thursday that the US had “ended the war” with Iran and that the two sides had agreed to a “very strong memorandum of understanding” to stop the fighting.
His comment to came after he canceled further strikes on Iran and suggested an agreement had been reached without detailing its terms. He also said he’d spoken to a number of leaders, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Gulf nation heads.
But Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei told Iranian state media that reports of an agreement with the US were “merely speculation” and said Tehran had not yet made a final decision on any deal.
Here’s what else Trump said:
- Trump trumpeted a “great settlement,” suggesting it would be finalized in the coming days. He said he anticipated a signing ceremony soon, potentially in Europe, to be attended by Vice President JD Vance.
- Trump said it is a “very strong memorandum of understanding,” and called the deal a “little conceptual.”
- US military action pushed Tehran to agree to a deal this time, he said. He also said the US blockade of Iranian ports would continue “until this Transaction is finalized.”
- The US, Israel, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Egypt are nations involved in the approvals, according to Trump.
What Iran said:
- Trump suggested Iran’s supreme leader supports the settlement and has agreed “conceptually” to allow the US to secure nuclear materials and to top pursing a nuclear weapon.
- But Baghaei said “Iran has not reached a final decision regarding any agreement” and that “US actions are affecting the diplomatic process.”
- Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) cast doubt on Trump’s remarks, saying Iranian officials had not confirmed any such deal. Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency, which is closely linked to the IRGC, said Trump’s statements should not be taken at face value unless Iran officially announces an agreement.
- A hardline senior lawmaker in Iran warned that Trump may be acting deceptively in announcing a “great settlement” to end the war, instead urging Iran to continue its attacks. “The probability of deception by Trump is high,” said lawmaker Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesperson for the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee.
And what Israel said:
- Trump’s announcement surprised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — who was in the midst of a security discussion about Iran, according to an Israeli source. Israel was not aware of any impending agreement with Iran, the source told CNN, or of any approval to an agreement, appearing to contradict Trump’s claim that the final points were “approved by all parties involved.”
- Netanyahu later spoke with Trump, and “expressed his appreciation” for Trump’s commitment that a deal would remove Iran’s enriched uranium, dismantle its nuclear infrastructure, limit its missile production and halt its support for regional proxies.
What we know about negotiations: A Qatari delegation had been in Tehran this week for discussions, even as the US and Iran were trading strikes. US officials believe meetings between Iranian and Qatari officials helped resolve some of the remaining sticking points, a source said. Those mediators “hit some breakthroughs,” another source said.
CNN’s Kit Maher, Kevin Liptak, John Towfighi, Tal Shalev, Mohammed Tawfeeq, Aida Karimi, Kit Maher, Donald Judd and Jeremy Diamond contributed reporting.
Hours before claiming the US “ended the war,” Trump threatened Iran’s key oil hub
Hours before President Donald Trump said the US “ended the war with Iran,” he threatened to take over Kharg Island, an economic lifeline for Tehran.
The US has conducted multiple major air strikes on military installations on Kharg Island — which typically handles roughly 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports — but the attacks have deliberately avoided striking critical energy infrastructure.
Trump conceded he was not sure Americans had “the appetite” for the major operation that would be required to take the island, telling Fox News: “I don’t know that America has the stomach, I think they’d like to see us come home.”
Dangerous offensive: Plans for the military to try to capture the island have been drawn up for months, but repeatedly shelved because the operation was considered too risky, a senior Pentagon official and two administration officials told CNN. Wiping out the island’s energy infrastructure would effectively bankrupt Iran and diminish its capabilities to the point of being unable to continue in the war, administration officials said.
Officials have told Trump that such an operation would likely require a significant number of ground troops and could potentially result in heavy US casualties.
Due to those calculations, the Pentagon and White House considered any moves to take Kharg Island as an “endgame” option — a last resort that could shift the balance of the war, but at a high cost, the officials said.
How Iran is building up defenses: Iran has been preparing for months for a US operation to take control of Kharg Island. Iran laid traps and moved more military personnel and air defenses to Kharg, sources previously told CNN.
After Trump’s threats on Thursday, Iranian officials vowed a severe response. Iran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said: “Explode energy infrastructure and markets and create an endless quagmire that you will be stuck in for years. You will see a different Iran.”
CNN’s Alayna Treene, Natasha Bertrand, Aida Karimi, Sophie Tanno, Billy Stockwell contributed reporting.
"What comes next is higher prices": Energy execs warn of dwindling oil reserves
Energy executives have warned the White House that key oil reserves being used to limit the Iran war’s impact on prices are running dangerously low, adding further urgency to President Donald Trump’s search for a way out of the conflict.
The concerns conveyed to Cabinet officials and White House aides have centered on industry stockpiles that are projected to reach critical lows perhaps in a matter of weeks, three sources told CNN.
The government’s own emergency oil stockpile is also being rapidly depleted and will likely force the administration to slow its pace of withdrawals as soon as next month.
“We are getting closer to the bottom,” another industry source said.
The private alarm that industry officials have regularly communicated to Trump aides has been reflected in recent public statements made by major companies like Exxon, which said last month that it was approaching “unheard of inventory levels.”
The industry has relied on those stockpiles to mitigate fallout from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has effectively choked off a key source of the global oil supply.
US gas prices have still risen sharply throughout the war. But should the conflict drag into another month, executives have cautioned the White House, those price increases will likely become even more volatile. “July is likely the pain point when the market turns,” said another of the sources.
In response to questions about the industry’s warnings, White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers reiterated Trump’s assurances that oil prices will drop once the war is over.
