Washington is moving to seize the initiative in the Gulf after Iran’s latest attacks, with the US government preparing to channel Iranian assets toward rebuilding damage in Gulf states, a source familiar with the matter said, as Tehran followed a wave of strikes on Kuwait and Bahrain with additional drone launches.
According to the source, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has instructed a team to calculate the costs of destruction already suffered by America’s Gulf allies from Iranian attacks. The effort would also examine how Iranian assets could be used to cover repairs for any further damage that may occur.
The development surfaced a day after Mohsen Rezaei, an adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, told CNN that ending the three-month war would depend on the release of $24 billion in Iranian assets frozen by the United States.
The source did not identify which assets the Treasury is reviewing, and the wording used to describe the contemplated measures did not appear to be confined to frozen holdings.
Redirecting Iranian assets toward Gulf reconstruction could become a fresh point of tension for a fragile US-Iran ceasefire — one that came under renewed strain this weekend as both sides carried out strikes.
Diplomatic efforts also appear to be stuck, though Pakistan — acting as mediator — sent a senior official to Tehran on Saturday. Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency reported that a minister arrived with a letter addressed to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei.
Sources said Scott Bessent has directed a team to assess costs for damages already inflicted on Gulf allies by Iran
Early Saturday, US forces struck Iranian coastal radar sites in Goruk and on Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz, after intercepting drones launched by Iran that US Central Command said threatened maritime traffic. Late Saturday, the US military said it shot down two more Iranian attack drones that were menacing shipping in the strait.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it answered with attacks on US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain. Kuwait’s army said Saturday it engaged seven ballistic missiles that passed over residential areas, causing material damage but no casualties.
In Bahrain, sirens sounded and residents were urged to seek shelter.
Pakistani minister lands in Tehran
Iran later said it struck US bases in both countries with ballistic missiles, while the US military said six missiles were intercepted and a seventh failed to reach its target.
The US and Iran have been in mostly indirect talks aimed at an interim agreement to pause the three-month-old war, with contentious issues — including Iran’s nuclear programme — deferred to later negotiations.
Even so, an agreement has remained out of reach as both sides have continued periodic clashes.
Tehran is seeking access to billions of dollars in oil revenue, waivers on sanctions tied to crude exports, an end to a US blockade on its ports, and leverage over the Strait of Hormuz.
A man raises a pole bearing the Iranian flag at Enghelab Square in Tehran
Iran has effectively blocked the waterway, where about a fifth of global oil traffic transited before the war.
Iranian state media reported that Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi arrived in Tehran on Saturday for meetings with Iranian officials, including Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi. Naqvi said he carried a “special letter” from Pakistan’s army chief and prime minister to Mr Khamenei, ISNA reported.
Mr Trump is facing mounting domestic political pressure due to rising gas prices to bring the unpopular war to an end.
He told NBC that while most of Iran’s drone and missile manufacturing facilities had been destroyed, the Iranians still had access to about a fifth of their missiles.
“They have some missiles, they have some drones. I would say percentage wise, maybe 21% to 22% of their missiles. It’s a lot of missiles, but it’s not what it was when we first attacked,” Mr Trump told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” program, according to excerpts released by the network.
The conflict has driven up oil prices and disrupted supply chains for other goods, including humanitarian aid.
Fighting flares across region despite ceasefires
In a parallel conflict in Lebanon, two Lebanese army officers and a soldier were killed in an Israeli strike on a military vehicle in south Lebanon, the Lebanese army said.
The Israeli military said it was investigating the incident.
Iran has made a ceasefire in Lebanon between Israel and Iran-aligned Hezbollah a condition for any peace deal with Washington.
Smoke rises from Israeli bombardment near the village of Mayfadoun in southern Lebanon
Lebanon’s army said on Saturday its commander, General Rudolf Haykal, left for Pakistan at the invitation of his Pakistani counterpart, without giving further details.
The unexpected trip drew attention because Washington — and Lebanese leaders, including the president — have insisted that Lebanon ceasefire negotiations remain separate from the US-Iran talks being mediated by Pakistan.
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem this week rejected a US-brokered pact between Israel and the Lebanese government to halt the fighting in Lebanon.
The deal did not provide for an Israeli withdrawal and Hezbollah had not been party to the negotiations.
Israel has said its forces would not withdraw or halt operations in the country amid increasing friction with the US.
