US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Sunday, 4 October, that the United States controls the Strait of Hormuz and that the Islamic Republic will never obtain a nuclear weapon. At the same time, Ali Fadavi, an IRGC commander, claimed that no US vessel remains in the Persian Gulf or the Gulf of Oman.
The UK Maritime Trade Operations centre (UKMTO) said on Sunday, 4 October, that a tanker about 60 nautical miles south of the port of Mocha in Yemen had reported several explosions nearby; at the same time, the Yemeni government has launched a large-scale operation against the Houthis.
In a directive to banks, the Central Bank of the Islamic Republic has said that granting any direct or indirect credit, even through digital platforms, for buying gold, foreign currency or cryptocurrency is prohibited, and that managers who break the rule will be referred to the judiciary.
According to human rights sources, psychotherapist Shohreh Mohammadi has been sentenced to 12 years in prison over several Instagram stories, and teacher Farzaneh Kamkar to two years on charges of giving three masks to protesters during the December–January uprising. In Dehdasht, a young man with a disability was also arrested.
Residents of Qeshm Island and Sirik county heard several explosions from the direction of the sea on Sunday evening, 4 October. No official cause has been given. Meanwhile, the UK Maritime Trade Operations centre reported that an unidentified projectile had struck the engine room of a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz.
Sarina Zaeri, Barbod Sepehri and Arshia Jaberi, three young Baha'is arrested in Shiraz on 14 September, are still denied access to a lawyer and phone calls with their families after 21 days, according to Iran International. Behzad Yazdani has also been in prison for more than 180 days without trial.
As the academic year begins, the Islamic Republic has stepped up pressure on universities: K. N. Toosi students staged a sit-in on Sunday, 4 October, in protest at disciplinary rulings, and 10 students at Ferdowsi University of Mashhad were punished for taking part in the December–January uprising.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi ordered an investigation after images emerged of Hashd al-Shaabi vehicles driving over US and Israeli flags during a “Sovereignty Day” parade in Baghdad, and Iraqi officials announced that those responsible had been arrested.
The first flight by an Iranian airline landed at Najaf airport on Sunday, 4 October; the United States has allowed Iraq to receive 40 Iranian flights a day to the city, with the exception of Mahan Air.
Sanandaj's Revolutionary Court has sentenced Marzieh Moradveisi, a dismissed teacher and former political prisoner, and civil activist Sohrab Bahrami to suspended prison terms and fines. Meanwhile, Bayan Salehian, a medical specialist and Kurdish woman activist, has been transferred to Urmia Central Prison after her arrest in the city.
Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesman for the Islamic Republic's Foreign Ministry, said on Sunday, 4 October, that the US proposals remain focused on the nuclear file, but that Tehran's focus at this stage is the Strait of Hormuz and it has not entered nuclear talks with Washington.
Groups of retirees and pensioners rallied in several Iranian cities on Sunday, 4 October, in protest against rising prices and low pensions, and some of them called for the release of political prisoners and jailed protesters.
Two Iranian men in Britain have been charged with preparing an act of terrorism. According to the prosecutor, acting on the orders of a person believed to be in Iran, they had scouted Heaton Park synagogue and the Manchester Jewish Museum for an attack with a homemade chlorine bomb.
Mohammad Akraminia, spokesman for the Islamic Republic's Army, said on Sunday, 4 October, that the army is increasing the range and speed of all its missiles. He cited as the reason the deployment of US forces up to 1,000 kilometres from Iran's coast.
Mohammad Sharifi-Moghaddam, secretary-general of the Nurses' House, says that at the current dollar rate nurses' average pay has fallen to about $100 a month, around 70,000 nurses are staying at home and a wave of resignations in the profession is continuing.
The US State Department said two members of the Islamic Republic's delegation who had stayed in New York after the end of the UN General Assembly have been expelled from the country. The Islamic Republic's mission to the UN has denied the expulsion claim.
Exchange rates on Tehran's open market broke records again on Sunday, 4 October: the dollar passed 272,000 tomans and the euro 307,000 tomans, and the Emami gold coin reached about 275 million tomans, while Iran's oil exports have effectively come to a standstill.
The speaker of the Islamic Republic's parliament said on Sunday that the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until Tehran's seven conditions are met, and claimed that Washington has sent proposals through a mediator. Donald Trump, for his part, said Iran's fate will be decided either the easy way or the hard way.
The Islamic Republic's Ministry of Intelligence claims to have dismantled four sabotage networks in Sirjan and arrested 31 people. It has accused those arrested of taking part in the January uprising and preparing for new unrest.
As the war in Yemen widens, the Islamic Republic-backed Houthis said they had carried out a missile and drone attack on Aramco facilities in Riyadh. The United Arab Emirates also cancelled all flights by Iranian airlines until further notice.
