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

What the report says

Al Jazeera, citing its staff and Reuters, reported that Iran has sharply criticized US President Donald Trump after he said frozen Iranian assets could be used to cover damage to ships and cargo in the Strait of Hormuz. Trump wrote on Truth Social on Thursday that compensation would come from Iranian money held and controlled by the United States, describing such payments as fair despite potentially large costs.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded Friday on X, calling the idea of taking another state’s assets for future, unrelated claims a dangerous and inflammatory precedent. He warned that normalizing confiscation of sovereign assets could have broader consequences. Al Jazeera reported that the issue of frozen Iranian money had been part of a now-collapsed memorandum of understanding signed by Tehran and Washington in June as a possible route to ending the war.

The dispute comes amid intensifying US-Iran hostilities. According to the report, Washington carried out its 13th consecutive night of strikes on Iran late Thursday, while Trump said he was considering a larger attack and also threatened major punishment for Iran and Yemen’s Houthi allies after attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea. Iran’s army, in a statement carried by Mehr News Agency, said it launched a new wave of 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 funds after the 1979 US embassy hostage crisis in Tehran. The exact amount remains unclear, though some estimates put it near $100bn. Reuters ship-tracking data cited in the report showed tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz dropped to one vessel on Thursday, underscoring concerns over a key global energy route.