U.N. nuclear agency chief says Iran inspections will happen, at some point
U.N. nuclear agency chief says Iran inspections will happen, at some point
Duarte DiasWed, June 24, 2026 at 1:33 PM UTC
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What to know about the Iran war today:The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency said Wednesday that the U.N. agency will return to inspect Iran's nuclear sites, as agreed, but he indicated there's no rush after conflicting messages from Washington and Tehran. The Senate approved a House-passed resolution Tuesday that directs President Trump to "remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran," in a rare but likely symbolic rebuke of the president's war with Tehran.Secretary of State Marco Rubio is visiting Persian Gulf nations this week on a diplomatic mission to discuss the U.S. memorandum of understanding with Iran. He was to meet the United Arab Emirates' leader on Wednesday for closed-door talks. Price of oil falls under $75 for first time since Iran war started
The price of Brent North Sea crude, the international benchmark for oil, continued falling Wednesday, trading under $75 a barrel for the first time since the start of the Middle East war.
Brent slid 3.1 percent to $74.73, extending its fall since the United States and Iran last week signed the memorandum of understanding and began the process of re-opening the Strait of Hormuz.
Israel says 2 Hezbollah fighters "posing an immediate threat" struck as southern Lebanon fighting simmers
The Israeli military said it struck two Hezbollah fighters Wednesday in southern Lebanon, as low-level fighting between the two sides continues, testing a fragile ceasefire.
In a statement, Israeli Defense Forces said soldiers "identified two armed Hezbollah terrorists near the Security Zone, posing an immediate threat to them. Following the identification, the Israeli Air Force and the soldiers struck the terrorists in order to remove the threat."
Israeli forces currently occupy an area that spans the country's northern border with Lebanon and extends around six miles into Lebanese territory. Israeli leaders say the "security zone" will be held, and expelled residents not permitted to return to their homes, until the threat posed by Iranian-backed Hezbollah is removed.
The fighting has threatened to derail the negotiations between the U.S. and Iran as the memorandum of understanding signed by both parties calls for a cessation fighting on all fronts in the region, including in Lebanon.
Trump says Iran not charging fees "of any kind" in Strait of Hormuz, as Tehran makes plans for the future
President Trump declared defiantly Wednesday that Iran is not charging fees for transiting the Strait of Hormuz. He did not mention, however, Iran's plans to manage traffic through the vital shipping route in conjunction with Oman in the future - which Tehran and Muscat have said could involve "costs" for shippers.
"Iran has informed the U.S. that, despite troublemaking Fake News reporting to the contrary, there are 'NO TOLLS, NO INSURANCE COSTS, & NO OTHER CHARGES OF ANY KIND BEING SOUGHT OR RECEIVED BY IRAN ON SHIPS TRAVELING THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ," Mr. Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social platform, adding: "If this is false information, negotiations would end, immediately!"
Under the memorandum of understanding signed by Mr. Trump and his Iranian counterpart last week, Tehran agreed to allow ships to transit the strait with no charge during the 60-day negotiation period currently underway.
The memorandum of understanding calls for Iran to "conduct dialogue with the sultanate of Oman to define the future administration and maritime services in the Strait of Hormuz," and specifies that any new system must be in line with applicable international laws. It does not explicitly bar Iran from charging fees for passage in the future, however, which Tehran has said for weeks that it will do, though not during the current 60 days of negotiations with the U.S.
On Tuesday, Iran and Oman reiterated that the two nations were hashing out plans to jointly manage commercial shipping in the strait going forward, and they said services they provide to vessels would have "costs associated."
Iran says nuclear inspections will only be decided in final agreement with U.S.
Iran's deputy foreign minister said Wednesday that the question of nuclear inspections would only be settled in a final agreement with the U.S.
In a social media post, Kazeem Gharibabadi, one of Iran's top negotiators and the country's deputy foreign minister, said Iranian officials had not met with the head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog agency, the IAEA, in Switzerland over the weekend during the first round of talks with the U.S.
Gharibabadi also reiterated Iran officials' statements from Tuesday, saying there were no plans to allow IAEA inspectors to visit sensitive nuclear sites bombed in June 2025 by the U.S. and Israel.
"These issues will only be examined and settled within the framework of a final agreement, and as a result of the other party's practical action to terminate all sanctions," he said.
The memorandum of understanding signed last week does not set a timeframe for renewed IAEA inspections of Iran's nuclear facilities, saying only that all matters relating to the Iranian enrichment program will be agreed as part of a final deal.
Iranian negotiator calls deal struck with U.S. a "declaration of America's defeat"
Iran's chief negotiator called the deal it struck with the U.S. "a declaration of America's defeat" on Wednesday.
"The Islamabad understanding was not the result of pressure and coercion, but rather the result of the resistance and authority of the brave Iranian nation," Iran's top negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Wednesday of the agreement signed last week.
"That is why, the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding became a declaration of America's defeat," he said, adding that security in the Middle East must be ensured by the countries of the region.
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President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed the agreement last week, launching a designated 60-day negotiating period during which Pakistani and other mediators hope to bring the two sides to a permanent settlement to end the war.
IAEA chief says nuclear inspection of Iranian sites will happen, but timing "not essential"
The head of the U.N.'s nuclear agency signaled Wednesday that Iranian nuclear enrichment sites would be visited by his inspectors, a key component in the interim deal between the United States and Iran to reach an end to the war.
The comment by International Atomic Energy Agency head Rafael Mariano Grossi was the firmest yet from the United Nations agency, which is viewed as key in determining the status of Iran's nuclear stockpile.
The U.S. and Iran offered contradictory remarks Tuesday about whether those sites would be inspected.
"I can understand political statements, they are part of the reality, but the fundamental thing I would like to remind you (of) and draw your attention to is that there has been a Memorandum of Understanding, signed by both presidents," Grossi told journalists at a news conference from the tsunami-hit Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan.
The accord "explicitly states that the nuclear activities that are going to be carried out with the regards of the nuclear material facilities will be supervised by the IAEA — in all letters," he said.
This handout picture provided by the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran on Nov. 15, 2024, shows the organization's spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi (L) and Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharib Abadi (R), posing for a picture with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi (2nd-L), in front of the gate of the Fordow nuclear enrichment plant, in Fordow, near the city of Qom, Iran. / Credit: -/Atomic Energy Organization of Iran/AFP/Getty
Grossi added: "Obviously, to do that, we have to inspect. Whether this happens the day after tomorrow or in one week or in ten days, it's important, but not essential. This is going to happen."
Those inspections are key for the deal, which calls for Iran's stockpile of uranium to be "downblended" from highly enriched levels.
Rubio visits gulf states to discuss memorandum of understanding
Rubio arrived in the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday and was scheduled to hold closed-door talks with its leader, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, before flying to Kuwait and then Bahrain, where he will attend a Gulf Cooperation Council meeting.
Rubio said he intended to discuss the US-Iran memorandum of understanding with gulf leaders, which does not address Iran's missile programme and proxies.
He insisted that no country is allowed to impose tolls on the Strait of Hormuz after Oman and Iran, which border the waterway, said they were considering charging "costs" for navigating the key exit route for oil and gas.
"It's an international waterway," he said as he arrived in Abu Dhabi, repeating a position the US has stated throughout the war.
"No country is allowed to charge tolls or fees on an international waterway. That's existing international law."
Senate adopts House-passed Iran resolution in symbolic rebuke of Trump
The Senate on Tuesday approved a House-passed war powers resolution on Iran, marking the first time such a measure has made it through both chambers and signifying a rare rebuke of President Trump's handling of the conflict.
In a 50 to 48 vote, four Republicans — Sens. Susan Collins of Maine, Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Rand Paul of Kentucky — joined the bulk of Senate Democrats in support of the measure. One Democrat, Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, opposed. Two Republicans — Mitch McConnell and Dave McCormick — did not vote.
The resolution directs the president to "remove United States Armed Forces from hostilities against the Islamic Republic of Iran," unless Congress declares war or authorizes the use of military force. But the measure is a concurrent resolution, which doesn't carry the force of law and doesn't require the president's signature, meaning it is largely symbolic.
Read more here.
Trump pressures oil companies over gas prices, orders DOJ probe
President Trump said early Wednesday that consumers are being "gouged" because gas prices haven't been falling as fast as crude oil prices have on world markets — so he's told the Department of Justice to begin an investigation.
He said on his Truth Social platform that, "The big Oil Companies are not dropping their price at the pump commensurate with the sharply lower prices they are paying for Oil. Those prices are dropping like a rock! In other words, customers are being 'gouged.' I have instructed the DOJ to immediately start looking into this. Gasoline prices better start going down a lot faster than what I'm seeing!"
Oil prices increased sharply when the Iran war began and gas prices followed. But while crude prices have dropped significantly since an interim agreement was reached to end the fighting, the decline in gas prices hasn't been as rapid. Gas prices generally tend to dip more slowly than they rise with respect to oil costs.
Source: “AOL Breaking”
