Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf. PHOTO: Ghalibaf on X <\/p>\n
Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on Saturday that\u00a0Tehran\u00a0received messages from neighbouring nations about \u201cshaping new security commitments and economic cooperation in the region\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe United States put the security of every single one of its allies at such risk through bullying and pure disregard for their interests for the sake of Israel that they briefly saw their entire existence on the line,\u201d he said on X.<\/p>\n
1\/2 We\u2019ve received numerous messages from neighboring countries about shaping new security arrangements and economic cooperation in the region.<\/p>\n
The United States put the security of every single one of its allies at such risk\u2026<\/p>\n
\u2014 \u0645\u062d\u0645\u062f\u0628\u0627\u0642\u0631 \u0642\u0627\u0644\u06cc\u0628\u0627\u0641 | MB Ghalibaf (@mb_ghalibaf) August 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Ghalibaf added\u00a0that a \u201chomegrown, independent\u201d security order is “what will actually deliver peace and security” in the Middle East.<\/p>\n Iranian army says its military doctrine shifting from ‘defensive to offensive’\u00a0<\/p>\n The Iranian army said Saturday that its military doctrine is shifting from a \u201cdefensive to an offensive\u201d posture, citing lessons from the country\u2019s recent wars.<\/p>\n Brigadier\u00a0General Mohammad Akraminia, spokesman for the Iranian army, told state news agency IRNA that the shift had gradually taken place during what he described as the 12-day and 40-day wars.<\/p>\n \u201cOur country\u2019s military doctrine was defensive in the past, but gradually during these two wars, we witnessed the military doctrine moving from a defensive posture toward an offensive one,\u201d Akraminia said.<\/p>\n He said the shift was reflected in rapid and broader responses to attacks as well as preemptive operations.<\/p>\n Akraminia said the army had devised a plan offering rewards for killing or capturing US troops in the event of a ground incursion into Iranian territory.<\/p>\n Under the plan, members of the armed forces or civilians legally possessing hunting weapons would receive 5 billion tomans (about $26,000) for killing or capturing US troops entering Iran, he said.<\/p>\n Read: Iran weighs strikes on US military targets in Europe if war escalates: Financial Times<\/a><\/p>\n The reward would be doubled to 10 billion tomans (about $53,000) if the action were carried out by a woman, Akraminia added.<\/p>\n He said the army would also purchase the weapon used for twice its value, preserve it in a military museum under the owner\u2019s name and provide the individual with a similar replacement weapon.<\/p>\n Akraminia also claimed that US influence in the region had declined sharply, pointing to the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement<\/a>.<\/p>\n He said that regardless of its future effectiveness, the mechanism demonstrated what he called the decline of the US position in the region and described it as the first regional defence and security mechanism without US participation.<\/p>\n Iraqi president says some oil tankers being facilitated through Strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n Iraq\u2019s President Nizar Amidi said Saturday that some vessels carrying Iraqi oil are being facilitated through the Strait of Hormuz, stressing that developments in the strategic waterway affect not only Iraq but the entire world.<\/p>\n Speaking during the eighth Baghdad Dialogue conference in the Iraqi capital, Amidi said Iraq faces difficulties transporting its oil due to the absence of a national tanker fleet, according to the Iraqi News Agency (INA).<\/p>\n \u201cThere is facilitation for some ships carrying Iraqi oil in the Strait of Hormuz,\u201d he said, without elaborating.<\/p>\n Amidi stressed that developments in the strait have repercussions beyond Iraq.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Strait of Hormuz has an impact on the entire world, not just Iraq,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The Iraqi president said Baghdad is determined to avoid becoming involved in the ongoing war between Iran and the US, noting that the country is among those most affected by the conflict.<\/p>\n Amidi also said he believes the US wants an agreement with Iran to end the war.<\/p>\n On domestic security, the president said Iraq\u2019s constitution requires that weapons be restricted to state control, adding that the religious authority in Najaf also supports that position.<\/p>\n He called for dialogue and understanding with armed groups to bring weapons under state authority through what he described as an Iraqi national solution.<\/p>\n Amidi stressed that Baghdad would not accept Iraqi territory being used to attack any other country.<\/p>\n He also said he had spoken with the Iranian parliament speaker and conveyed messages to Tehran regarding a review of relations between the two countries.<\/p>\n On the US-led international coalition against Daesh\/ISIS, Amidi said the force originally entered Iraq at Baghdad\u2019s request to fight the terrorist group but is no longer needed, adding that its withdrawal is scheduled for Sept. 30.<\/p>\n The president said Iraq makes its regional decisions according to its national interests, stressing that \u201cIraq comes first.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere is no security in the region without Iraq\u2019s security and stability,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Iranian army spokesperson promises reward for capturing, killing US forces in a ground invasion<\/p>\n An Iranian army spokesperson said on Saturday that any member of the armed forces or civilian “who kills or captures US soldiers during a ground invasion will be rewarded with 5 billion tomans.”<\/p>\n Army Spox: Any member of the armed forces or civilian in possession of a licensed hunting weapon who kills or captures US soldiers during a ground invasion will be rewarded with 5 billion tomans. If the act is carried out by women, the reward will be doubled to 10b tomans. pic.twitter.com\/BDRWbl4bq4<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 IRNA News Agency \u262b (@IrnaEnglish) August 22, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n He said that the reward would be doubled if a woman killed or captured any US soldier.<\/p>\n Iran grants permission for Iraqi oil tankers to pass through Strait of Hormuz<\/p>\n Iran has granted permission for some Iraqi oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz following repeated requests from Baghdad through various channels, Reuters reported, according to Iranian state news agency IRNA.<\/p>\n The report said obtaining special permission for Iraqi tankers was one of Baghdad\u2019s main requests during Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf\u2019s visit to Iraq.<\/p>\n Trump says Iran not ready to make the ‘right deal’<\/p>\n US President Donald Trump said on Friday he thought Tehran was not ready to make the “right deal” and that Washington was observing “what happens” in the US-Israel war on Iran.<\/p>\n Trump, who has warned of economic consequences against any country that provides “any type of lifeline to Iran,” said on Friday that Washington was observing “what happens” in the conflict.<\/p>\n “They would love to make a deal, but they’re not ready to make the right deal, in my opinion,” Trump said of Iran.<\/p>\n As the war neared six months old, the two sides were not exchanging fire but also not pursuing peace talks. All the while, oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz have virtually halted as Tehran clings to its leverage by threatening to strike any unauthorised oil tankers that attempt to transit the narrow waterway.<\/p>\n US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will hold a press conference at 2pm EDT (2300 PKT) on Monday amid promises to reveal “the toughest sanctions in history” on Iran while also urging China to cooperate with Washington.<\/p>\n China buys more than 80% of Iran’s shipped oil, according to 2025 data from analytics firm Kpler. Beijing urged diplomacy.<\/p>\n Read more: Trump warns of economic consequences for any country that supports Iran<\/a><\/p>\n Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Saturday that the imminent US announcement of new economic sanctions on Iran was an “assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent member state of the United Nations.”<\/p>\n “Such secondary sanctions find no foundation in international law,” he said in a post on X.<\/p>\n The United States\u2019 declaration of new economic sanctions on Iran is far more than continued unlawful \u201ceconomic warfare\u201d against a single country. It is an assertion of extraterritorial sovereignty over every independent Member State of the United Nations.<\/p>\n No State may lawfully\u2026<\/p>\n