Strait of Hormuz deal gets closer as Trump says waterway free of mines

HEADLINES IN BRIEF - Iran and Oman are still working on the details of an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz, a senior Iranian source said - READ MORE - Donald Trump says the US has cleared the Strait of Hormuz of all mines - READ MORE - Israel strikes tent for displaced people in Gaza, killing one, health officials say - Traffic at Dubai's airport has dropped sharply since start of Iran war - Germany ends military mission in Iraq's Kurdish region IN DETAIL Iran, Oman continue Strait of Hormuz talks Iran and Oman are still working on the details of an agreement on the Strait of Hormuz, a senior Iranian source said on Wednesday, after Iran's Revolutionary Guards said the two countries had agreed how to share the waterway and its revenues.

The elite force's spokesperson, echoing Tehran's official stance, also said the strait would not open unless the US met Tehran's conditions under an interim ceasefire agreement that was struck in June before unravelling.

Those conditions include an end to the US blockade on Iranian ports, compensation and removal of sanctions.

Iran and Oman have held on-and-off talks for weeks about controlling traffic through the strait, which handled one-fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas shipments before the war began in February.

Most shipping has since been shut down, driving global energy prices higher, as Tehran and Washington have tried to assert control over the channel, imposing separate blockades.

"An agreement with Oman over the Strait of Hormuz has not been finalised," the senior Iranian source told Reuters, adding that the talks were continuing on the details of an accord.

A spokesperson for Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Iran and Oman had reached an agreement on their shares of the territory and revenues.

"The Strait of Hormuz belongs to Iran and the country of Oman...

We have been in negotiations with Oman for about a month, and we have reached results that are acceptable to both sides," Hossein Mohebbi said in comments published by Iranian state media.

"In these negotiations, agreements have been reached regarding the share of each country in the waters of the Strait and the share of Iran and Oman in its revenues," he added.

It was not immediately clear at what stage of the negotiations the agreements had been reached.

Iran had said earlier this month that a deal on the strait was close.

Following talks on Tuesday between Iran and Oman, Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said he was "hopeful we will soon announce a temporary corridor for the Strait of Hormuz and practical arrangements to restore safe navigation".