Iran has a 2-day plan to reopen strait, resume nuclear talks with US, and other Mideast news

Iran said Monday it had a two-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume nuclear talks with the United States, shortening a process originally expected to take seven days.

The U.N. migration agency said more than 300,000 people in Yemen had fled renewed fighting. Israel’s military said it was wrapping up a sweeping operation that began after a shooting in Hebron killed two soldiers.

China, meanwhile, is sending a special envoy to Iran, Saudi Arabia and Oman.

Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Monday. Read our full coverage here.

Iran’s 2-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, resume nuclear talks

Iran said it had a two-day plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and resume nuclear talks with the U.S. if Washington meets its demands.

The announcement came as the region braces for possible renewed fighting, even as Iran’s top diplomat said Sunday that he hoped the U.S. would choose “diplomacy over other paths.”

Iran previously said the plan could be implemented within a week if the U.S. met seven conditions, including lifting its blockade of Iranian ports. Iran now says ships passing through the reopened strait would have to follow a route agreed upon by Iran and Oman and travel under Iranian supervision. Separately, Iranian officials have said the U.S. must lift sanctions on Iranian oil sales and agree to a ceasefire that would include Lebanon.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said the plan remained the basis for negotiations with Washington through mediators, despite the shorter implementation timeline. “This once again demonstrates Iran’s good-faith approach,” he added.

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Baghaei gave no indication that Tehran had changed its demands or that Washington had accepted its proposal.

President Donald Trump has alternated between pursuing diplomacy and threatening heavy bombing of Iran in his public comments.

Blast reported in Yemen as more flee fighting

The Houthi-run health ministry said Monday that explosives hit a bustling market in southwestern Yemen, killing two children and one other person as fighting between the Iran-backed rebel group and Saudi-backed government forces continued.

Ministry spokesperson Anees al-Asbahi on X blamed Saudi Arabia for the attack in Taiz province that he said injured eight others. The Associated Press couldn’t independently verify these claims.

The latest attacks are part of the Houthis’ ongoing battles with the Yemeni military forces and their allies, which have broken a four-year truce and exacerbated an already dire humanitarian situation in the country.

The U.N. migration agency said more than 300,000 Yemenis have fled the fighting as people are struggling to find shelter and life essentials. Aid groups say they face limited access to those in need.

Taiz province, in southwestern Yemen, continues to take in displaced families, but many are fleeing south to Aden, according to the International Organization for Migration.

“After years of conflict, families in Yemen are being forced to flee yet again, often with little more than the clothes on their backs,” said Abdusattor Esoev, head of the IOM’s mission in Yemen.

China to send special envoy to Iran and the Gulf

China said Monday it plans to send a special envoy to Iran, Oman and Saudi Arabia in early to mid-November. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters the envoy would focus on easing tensions and promoting regional stability.

The Gulf region “should not become an arena for great-power rivalry and geopolitical conflict,” Chinese President Xi Jinping told Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said on Monday, according to a readout of their meeting.

The move comes as China seeks to expand its influence in the rapidly changing region, which it depends on for a large share of its oil.

Some Israeli forces withdraw from Hebron after massive response to deadly shooting

The Israeli military said Monday that it had concluded an operation in Hebron in the occupied West Bank that began last month after two Palestinian gunmen killed two Israeli soldiers. It said it demolished the gunmen’s residences and confiscated weapons and illegal vehicles.

The operation, focused on the area where the shooting took place, displaced hundreds of Palestinians. They began returning home Monday as some Israeli forces withdrew from one of the most tense cities in the territory.

In Deir Bahha, the suspected gunmen’s neighborhood, explosives experts checked for any unexploded devices left behind by soldiers. Some residents found their homes were damaged in military raids. “I came back expecting everything to be normal, but I was shocked to find the door broken and the glass shattered,” said one resident, Wael Shawar.

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Another returning resident said she feared bringing her children home. “We are afraid,” said Tamara Obei. “We don’t know what’s happening or whether there are explosives or anything else in the house. The children are already psychologically exhausted.”

Strikes on Gaza kill 2

Two Israeli airstrikes killed two men in southern Gaza early Monday, according to Nasser Hospital, where their bodies were taken. One strike killed a man in his home; the other killed a man in a tent.

The Israeli military did not respond to a request for comment.

Major fighting between Israel and Hamas largely halted under the October 2025 ceasefire. Israel continues to launch near-daily strikes on Gaza that it says target militants, though the strikes regularly kill or injure women and children. Israel says Hamas uses civilians as human shields.

About 1,580 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire began, bringing the overall death toll to more than 74,500, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The ministry, part of the Hamas-run government, does not distinguish between civilians and militants.

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This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.