Tehran slams Trump’s threat to use frozen Iranian assets as ‘incendiary’

What the report says

Al Jazeera, citing its staff and Reuters, reported on July 24, 2026, that Iran has condemned US President Donald Trump’s pledge to use frozen Iranian assets to cover any damage to ships and cargo in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump wrote on Truth Social that compensation would come from Iranian funds held and controlled by the United States, saying potential costs could be large but that such a step would be “fair and equitable.”

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected the idea in a post on X, warning that taking one country’s assets to satisfy future claims would set what he called an inflammatory precedent. He argued that normalizing confiscation could endanger state assets more broadly and lead to instability. The dispute comes after a June memorandum of understanding between Tehran and Washington, described by Al Jazeera as a possible route to ending the war, collapsed; the question of frozen Iranian funds had reportedly been part of those talks.

The report said tensions have risen sharply since early July, with both countries trading attacks and Iran targeting US military bases in the region. Washington carried out its 13th straight night of strikes on Iran late Thursday, while Trump said he was weighing an even larger attack. On Friday, Iran’s army said, through the state Mehr News Agency, that it had launched new drone attacks on US military sites in Bahrain and Jordan.

Al Jazeera noted that Iranian assets have been frozen by the US and other governments for decades, with Washington first freezing Iranian funds after the 1979 US embassy hostage crisis. Reuters ship-tracking data cited in the article showed tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell to one vessel on Thursday, underscoring the economic stakes around a waterway central to global energy shipments.