2026 Iran War: 2026-09-04

Diplomatic sources told Reuters that Washington, London, Paris and Berlin are pressing other IAEA member states to adopt a resolution next week referring Iran to the UN Security Council, which would be the first such IAEA referral in about 20 years. The draft would build on a June 2025 finding that Iran breached non-proliferation obligations. Iran has not allowed IAEA inspectors to visit sites bombed in the US-Israel conflict or account for enriched uranium stocks, including material enriched to 60 percent.

AAA said the US national average diesel price reached a record $5.85 per gallon on Friday, topping the June 2022 peak after Russia invaded Ukraine. Al Jazeera reported gasoline at $4.14, a Labor Day weekend high, with crude in the $90 range. Washington says tanker escorts have restored most Hormuz flows; Tehran says it still controls the waterway and continues ship attacks.

Weapons experts who reviewed verified footage for Reuters said damage at a Sept. 1 wedding in Kuhestak, southern Iran, points to a direct roof strike rather than fragments from a nearby telecom tower hit during US raids on IRGC air defenses. Analyst Trevor Ball identified debris consistent with a US JSOW standoff weapon; retired UK Brig. Gareth Collett estimated a roughly 225 kg US bomb. Washington says it is investigating and does not target civilians; Iran calls the strike a war crime.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the European Union has joined Operation Economic Outcast, a US-led campaign aimed at cutting Iran remaining financial lifelines. Bessent said Washington appreciates the EU early stance and framed the move as pressure against funding for nuclear ambitions, weapons programs and proxy groups. Iran has condemned the campaign.

Iran First Vice President Mohammad Reza Aref said US strikes have changed Tehran calculations and warned Iran response will be asymmetrical and multi-layered. Al Jazeera live coverage listed the warning alongside Vance remarks ruling out talks until commercial shipping attacks in Hormuz stop.

US Vice President JD Vance said all options remain on the table against Iran and ruled out talks unless Tehran halts commercial shipping attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. At a White House briefing he declined to give an end timeline, saying he would not call the conflict a war while also acknowledging recent flare-ups. He said major combat operations lasted about six weeks and argued US escorts are reducing the energy-market impact of Iranian ship attacks.