Iran’s Intelligence Ministry said it arrested 21 people in the southeastern province of Kerman over allegations that they were linked to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency. The report, published by Amar Desh Online on August 6, 2026, said the arrests followed a series of intelligence operations in the province.

According to a ministry statement, the detainees allegedly collected information from sensitive and confidential military and defense sites and sent it to Mossad. Iranian authorities described Mossad as a terrorist organization. The source did not include comments from the detainees or independent verification of the allegations.

Mehr News Agency, described in the report as an Iranian semi-official and private news agency, also said intelligence forces identified and arrested four armed criminals in the province. Authorities said they recovered and seized several weapons, ammunition for combat purposes, and hunting ammunition from those arrested. The report cited Al Jazeera and Mehr News as its sources.

Iran is nearing an agreement with Oman over the Strait of Hormuz, according to an Al Jazeera report cited by Amar Desh Online. The report said an announcement could be made by the end of Thursday. Amar Desh Online published the report on August 6, 2026, at 4:04 p.m.

Citing sources, Al Jazeera said talks had made good progress and both sides were close to announcing an agreement. One or two issues still need to be resolved, but the source said they were not particularly complicated.

The report said a central issue is likely to be the route used by ships and vessels crossing the Strait of Hormuz. On Wednesday, Iran's Foreign Ministry said the sides had agreed on that matter and were working toward agreement on the geographical coordinates of new routes for maritime traffic. Other disputed issues concerning Hormuz include tolls that Iran had initially proposed imposing.

Iran’s army is fully prepared to confront any type of threat, according to its spokesperson, Brigadier General Amir Akraminia. In remarks reported on August 6, 2026, he said the military was working regularly to increase its capabilities amid regional tensions and various security threats facing the country.

Akraminia said the effort includes modernising damaged military systems, adding new equipment and increasing reliance on Iran’s domestic capabilities. He said the army is continuously seeking to improve its operational capacity and readiness, while modern technology and new equipment are being incorporated to strengthen military systems.

The spokesperson said combat equipment and other military materials were being reorganised after new equipment reached different army units. He said the equipment was being arranged in line with daily needs and operations. The report noted that Iran’s armed forces had previously said they were increasing their defence capabilities.

US President Donald Trump is growing frustrated after repeatedly failing to reach an agreement with Iran, according to a report published on August 6, 2026. The report says he has used hard-line pressure, maximum pressure and offers of talks without achieving the desired result. On Monday, Trump accused Tehran of showing “incredible duplicity” in its dealings with Washington, a remark analysts view as reflecting limits in his understanding of Iran’s leadership and power structure.

Trump administration officials have expressed hope that an agreement over the Strait of Hormuz could be reached at any time. Iran, however, remains firm on its position of collecting tolls from vessels using the waterway, which Trump has called unacceptable. Former CIA analyst Kenneth Pollack, who has studied Iran for decades, said Trump may be the US president who has understood Iran’s leaders the least.

The report says failure to secure a meaningful agreement could disappoint Trump’s anti-war voters and contribute to higher oil prices if energy transport through Hormuz remains disrupted. After Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an airstrike on February 28, Trump urged Iranians to remove their government, but no popular uprising occurred and Iran’s existing power structure remained intact.

An analysis published by Amar Desh, drawing on Middle East Eye, questions the credibility of a July New York Times investigative report alleging that Israel’s Mossad sought to cultivate former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as an intelligence asset. The report allegedly described secret meetings in Budapest, payments, and Ahmadinejad’s removal from his Tehran residence after a February 28 bombing, with the aim of installing him in a post-Islamic Republic Iran.

The analysis argues that Ahmadinejad would be an implausible choice because Iran’s supreme leader and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps hold the country’s central power and sensitive knowledge. Former Unit 8200 commander Hanan Gefen reportedly challenged the alleged sequence of events, saying a Mossad chief personally meeting an unreliable, high-risk target would violate normal operational practice. The article also questions using a climate conference in Budapest as cover.

Ahmadinejad’s office rejected the account as a “Hollywood-like claim” and accused the New York Times of publishing fabricated information. The analysis says the report relies on unnamed US and Iranian officials, while Mossad did not respond and no documents or identifiable intelligence sources were presented. It urges readers and policy analysts to treat the allegations as a contested narrative rather than established fact.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said maintaining contact with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is very difficult, but described his presence as a major source of strength for the country. In an interview broadcast on state television on Wednesday, Pezeshkian called Khamenei an extraordinary figure and praised his morality, humility and reasoning.

Pezeshkian said mutual understanding becomes easier when officials openly raise different issues before the supreme leader. He accused some people of using the supreme leader's message on the US-Iran memorandum of understanding as a pretext to create domestic divisions. On June 17, US President Donald Trump and Pezeshkian signed a 14-point memorandum aimed at implementing a ceasefire, lifting a naval blockade and ending ongoing military operations.

Although he initially had some reservations, Mojtaba Khamenei later publicly supported the memorandum. Pezeshkian said Iran's adversaries were trying to fuel public dissatisfaction and protests by increasing sanctions and military pressure. He described the present period as Iran's most difficult since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The memorandum was signed in June through Pakistani mediation after the United States and Iran agreed to a ceasefire in April.

US Vice President JD Vance said ongoing negotiations with Iran are exceptionally difficult, describing the process as one step forward and two steps back. In a Fox News interview cited in a report published on August 6, 2026, Vance addressed questions over how the Trump administration is approaching talks with Tehran. He said he was prepared to take responsibility for trying to end the war successfully and was making every effort to bring it to a close.

Vance said progress in such negotiations does not follow a straight line. At times, he said, parties may move forward one step and retreat two, or advance three steps before falling back one. As a result, Americans may sometimes believe talks are progressing, only to conclude shortly afterward that no progress is being made.

He identified divisions within Iran's political system as a major reason the talks are difficult. Vance said some people inside Iran want the war to end, while others he described as hardliners want it to continue. He said the US task is to navigate those internal divisions and secure the best outcome for the American people and the US president.

Former Austrian defence attaché and security policy analyst Wolfgang Pusztai said a “very weak memorandum of understanding” is contributing to the risk of renewed violence in the Iran war situation. Speaking to Al Jazeera on August 5, he said an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz could emerge on Wednesday or Thursday, though he said nothing could yet be confirmed.

Pusztai said mediators were working to clarify elements of the weak memorandum, which he described as a factor behind the renewed spread of violence. He said the United States could accept an Iran-Oman arrangement that recognizes no obligation to collect tolls and permits only fees for maritime services. But he said Washington would reject high tolls or large fees that would clearly conflict with the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

He said the issue extends beyond the Strait of Hormuz because such an arrangement could become a precedent for other key waterways worldwide. Pusztai also characterized differing messages from US President Donald Trump as part of an American information war against Iran. Reopening the strait would be important, he said, but would not resolve the broader conflict.

Iranian parliament national security committee member Esmail Kowsari described US President Donald Trump’s position on talks involving Iran as contradictory and unreliable. He made the remarks in an interview with Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB on Wednesday, according to Al Jazeera.

Kowsari said Trump had claimed 75 times that the Strait of Hormuz had been reopened, while it remained closed in practice. He also said Trump had made 106 comments about Iran’s defeat while separately asserting 88 times that an agreement with Tehran was imminent.

On Tuesday night, Trump said an understanding with Iran could be reached within hours. Tehran, however, has repeatedly said that no direct talks are underway with Washington. The source did not provide further details about any proposed agreement or the status of indirect contacts.

Iran says it is strengthening, rebuilding and modernizing its military capabilities despite a ceasefire with the United States, according to a report published on August 5. Iranian military authorities said Tehran is prepared for renewed conflict with Washington if negotiations fail. Iran also said military expansion has continued while talks proceed through Oman and other mediators.

Army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia said every moment of the ceasefire under a memorandum of understanding signed in June, now suspended, had been used fully. He said Iran is adding existing and new equipment, repairing damaged weapons systems and developing new defenses. Acting Defense Minister Majid Ebne Reza said missile and drone production had not stopped and claimed drone output had tripled, without providing figures.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said missile production and targeting accuracy had improved during the ceasefire but released no information on stockpiles, losses or production capacity. Some U.S. media reports in June said about 70 percent of Iran's missile stockpile and 40 percent of its drone inventory remained intact. The United States has indicated a possible Oman-mediated arrangement over the Strait of Hormuz, while regional tensions remain high.

Reuters and CBS News reported that the United States has used nearly all of its global stockpile of long-range precision missiles in the ongoing war with Iran. The reports, published on August 5, 2026, said the weapons involved include Army Tactical Missile Systems, or ATACMS, and Precision Strike Missiles.

Reuters cited three sources saying that “almost all” of the stockpiles of those missile types had been used. CBS News published similar information, reporting that the United States had nearly exhausted its global inventory of the long-range precision weapons.

The Pentagon disagreed with the assessment. Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell told CBS News that the US military, described as the world’s most powerful force, has everything it needs to conduct operations wherever and whenever the president directs. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had earlier dismissed concerns published about declining ammunition stocks and did not give weight to such fears.

US President Donald Trump said ongoing talks with Iran are progressing “very well” and indicated that a possible agreement between the two countries could be known within 48 hours. Speaking to reporters on August 5, 2026, Trump said, “We will find out. We will know within 48 hours.” He did not provide details about the potential agreement.

Trump’s remarks came amid continuing tensions between Iran and the United States, with reports of discussions concerning shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and regional security. In an earlier Fox News interview, Trump said Iran would never obtain nuclear weapons and that the matter would be formally confirmed.

Trump also warned that the Strait of Hormuz would be reopened soon or Iran would face a “very hard hit,” after which the passage would reopen. He said the United States had prepared for what he described as the largest attack since World War II before Iran called to seek talks. Trump added that Iran would be hit very hard if it withdrew from negotiations again.

US President Donald Trump warned that Iran would face a “severe strike” if talks fail and the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. He made the remarks in an interview with Fox News, published on August 5, 2026, amid continuing tensions between the United States and Iran and concerns over the strait’s status.

Trump said Iran would never obtain a nuclear weapon and that this would be formally confirmed. He said the Strait of Hormuz would be reopened very soon, or Iran would face a severe strike after which the passage would reopen. He also claimed Iran would not have come to negotiations without US actions.

The president said the United States had prepared for what he described as the largest attack since World War II, but Iran then called to ask for talks. Trump said he agreed to negotiate in order to resolve the matter. He added that Iran would be struck very hard if it withdrew from talks again, while expressing hope that a larger strike would not be necessary.

US President Donald Trump said Washington is holding “very good talks” with Iran, despite repeated denials by Iranian officials that such direct discussions are taking place. In an interview with Fox News reported on August 5, 2026, Trump said Iran did not want to acknowledge the contacts and described the situation as somewhat frustrating.

Trump said the only important matter was effective action and asserted that Iran wanted to make a deal. He added that it remained to be seen what would happen. His remarks came amid continuing tensions between Iran and the United States, while Iranian officials have previously rejected claims that direct talks with Washington are underway.

The report does not provide details about the format of the alleged discussions, their participants, or any specific meetings. Trump said failure to reach an agreement would be very bad, but did not outline the possible terms of a deal, a timetable, or any formal next steps.

Former Pentagon official David Des Roches said Iran must formally declare an end to attacks on neutral civilian vessels before normal maritime trade can resume through the Strait of Hormuz. In remarks published on August 5, 2026, the former Pentagon director for Arabian Peninsula affairs said such a commitment should be part of any credible agreement involving Iran.

Des Roches said Iran has the capability to disrupt sea traffic because of its geographic position and could use that capability if it chooses. He argued that the immediate priority is restoring neutral civilian ships’ right to safe passage. Any agreement, he said, should ensure vessels can travel through other countries’ sovereign waters without fear of Iranian attack.

He said Iran should formally state that it will not attack neutral civilian ships either in Omani waters or in international waters. Des Roches described the issue as one of commercial insurance rather than a military problem. Insurers need assurance that Iran will no longer attack civilian ships, he said, before normal trade can restart, benefiting Iran, Gulf coastal states and their commercial partners.