Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
- Israeli PM Netanyahu and US envoy Kushner meet in Jerusalem
- Israeli minister calls for more “targeted killings” of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip
- Iran says it “finalizing” a deal with Oman regarding the Strait of Hormuz
Welcome to DW’s coverage of developments in the Middle East on Monday, 17 August, 2026.
Skip next section Iran blames US for Gulf pollution after oil spills08/17/2026August 17, 2026
Iran blames US for Gulf pollution after oil spills
Iran‘s Foreign Ministry has blamed United States military operations for pollution in Gulf waters after several oil spills were reported.
“This environmental damage stems from the US military presence and the wars it has waged in the region over the past five decades,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei told reporters in Tehran.
He estimated environmental damage at “trillions of dollars” and called for the United States to be held accountable, but also admitted: “The damage caused to the environment of the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman is not solely linked to this war.”
Last week, Iran called for compensation after an oil slick in the Strait of Hormuz reached the island of Qeshm, affecting beaches and an environmentally sensitive mangrove forest.
At the time, Baqaei identified “a foreign bulk carrier” as the source of the spill, which Iranian officials later said had been “completely cleaned up.”
Before that, Omani state media reported that oil from a tanker that ran aground off Oman had reached the coastline.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IxkUSkip next section Trump threatens to bomb Oman if it hampers Iran deal08/17/2026August 17, 2026
Trump threatens to bomb Oman if it hampers Iran deal
US President Donald Trump has threatened to attack Oman if its talks with Iran hamper US attempts to secure a deal on the Strait of Hormuz.
“If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the s*** out of them,” Trump told Fox News, referring to ongoing talks between Oman and Iran on control of the waterway, while Washington is also unsuccessfully pursuing its own talks.
Iranian and Omani officials have been talking for weeks about future maritime navigation arrangements through the key shipping route, and Iran’s Foreign Ministry said earlier on Monday that the two sides were working on a joint declaration (see below).
However, Trump has repeatedly insisted that the strait – which Tehran effectively closed at the start of the Middle East war on February 28 – is under US control despite traffic remaining restricted. On Friday, he went as far as claiming he would declare it part of US territory.
Trump also reportedly told Fox that his administration was in communication with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) via a direct back-channel.
“They’re good poker players, but they’re dying,” he was quoted as saying, while calling on Iran to “put up the white flag and surrender.”
https://p.dw.com/p/5IxXOSkip next section Yemen’s Houthis claim attack on Saudi vessels08/17/2026August 17, 2026
Yemen’s Houthis claim attack on Saudi vessels
Yemen‘s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels claimed to have attacked a Saudi military ship and four accompanying vessels in the Red Sea on Monday.
Yahya Saree, military spokesperson for the group, said they had “succeeded in targeting a military landing ship belonging to the Saudi enemy, accompanied by four military patrol boats, in the Red Sea off the coast of Mocha, using several ballistic missiles.”
Mocha is a Red Sea port near the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a strategic chokepoint connecting the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden and an important international shipping route – especially given the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
The Houthis said the attack formed part of a blockade imposed on Saudi ports since July in response to what they describe as a Saudi siege on Yemen.
Riyadh denies such allegations and has not commented on Monday’s attack.
The Houthis also attacked a ship in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait last Tuesday, the Houthi-run news agency Saba reported. Yemen’s transport ministry said four crew members were killed.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IxTQSkip next section Iran working to finalize Hormuz agreement with Oman08/17/2026August 17, 2026
Iran working to finalize Hormuz agreement with Oman
Iran‘s Foreign Ministry said Monday that it was working to finalize a joint statement with Oman on a plan to manage the passage of ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
“An understanding has been reached regarding the map of the transit route,” said foreign affairs spokesman Esmail Baghaei, conceding that talks with Oman had progressed slowly.
“We had planned, and still plan, to finalize the understanding in the form of a package: the map plus a joint statement,” he told reporters in Tehran.
Although Baghaei did not elaborate on the plan, previous details have suggested that ships could be expected to enter the key waterway through a route closer to Iran before exiting on a route closer to Oman. It is not expected that ships would have to pay fees or tolls.
The announcement came as a 60-day negotiating period to agree a permanent peace deal between the United States and Iran expired, with no word of an extension and both sides seemingly as far apart as they were two months ago.
The US has sought an acceptable deal on reopening the strait before ending its blockade of Iranian ports and it was not immediately clear whether the new Iran-Oman deal would meet Washington’s expectations.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Ix8uSkip next section Israeli minister calls for more ‘targeted killings’ in Gaza08/17/2026August 17, 2026
Israeli minister calls for more ‘targeted killings’ in Gaza
Monday’s meeting between Benjamin Netanyahu and US envoy Jared Kushner comes after Israel‘s national security minister called for dozens more Palestinians to be killed “every night” in “targeted killings” in the Gaza Strip.
Far-right hardliner Itamar Ben-Gvir made the remarks in a podcast with a former Gaza hostage which went live on Saturday evening.
“I think that targeted killings should be carried out in Gaza, removing 30, 40 people every night,” he said, specifying that he was not only referring to members of militant groups.
“Not just those who pose an immediate threat; there are people there who are not worthy of life. They shouldn’t live. They’re not even people.”
Ben-Gvir is the chairman of the “Otzma Yehudit” (“Jewish Power”) party and a member of Netanyahu’s government, but he said he disagrees with the prime minister’s plans for post-war Gaza.
Meanwhile, Iran‘s deputy foreign minister condemned the comments in a post on social media on Monday morning.
“This Zionist criminal speaks at the same time of expelling Palestinians and of settlement construction across the entire Gaza Strip,” wrote Kazem Gharibabadi. “These confessions must be recorded and preserved for the day of reckoning and for the trial of these criminals.”
In the past, similar statements by Ben-Gvir and other Israeli officials have been presented to the UN’s world court as evidence of genocidal intent. Israel denies that its actions in Gaza constitute genocide.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IwjqSkip next section Kushner meets Netanyahu in Jerusalem08/17/2026August 17, 2026
Kushner meets Netanyahu in Jerusalem
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hosted US President Donald Trump‘s envoy and son-in-law Jared Kushner in Jerusalem on Monday as a US-backed plan for the governance of the Gaza Strip remained stalled.
The meeting, which comes a day after Kushner met with Hamas leader Khalil Al-Hayya in Cairo, Egypt, was also attended by Trump’s Board of Peace envoy for Gaza, Nickolay Mladenov, and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, according to media reports.
Earlier this month, Netanyahu publicly rejected a Trump proposal which would have seen the militant group Hamas disarm and Israeli troops withdraw from the Gaza Strip.
Trump had said the agreement would be carried out in phases, with Israeli forces gradually replaced in the devastated Palestinian territory by an “International Stabilization Force” which would work alongside a new Palestinian police force.
Hamas has said it agreed to the plan but the deal has stalled, with Netanyahu insisting that Israel’s military will only withdraw once Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza have been completely disarmed.
Israeli troops continue to occupy about 60% of the enclave and Netanyahu has previously threatened to advance further.
Netanyahu is struggling in the polls ahead of an October 27 general election, with some surveys putting him behind centrist challenger Gadi Eisenkot.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IweDSkip next section Welcome to our coverage08/17/2026August 17, 2026
Welcome to our coverage
Hello and welcome to DW’s coverage of developments in the Middle East on Monday, 17 August, 2026.
US President Donald Trump‘s son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday as plans for post-war Gaza remain stalled.
The meeting came after Israel‘s national security minister called on more “targeted killings” of Palestinians in a podcast interview.
Meanwhile, Iran says it is working to finalize an agreement with Oman over the management of the Strait of Hormuz.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IwemShow more posts
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