Israel conducts strikes in Iran, IDF says

U.S. Central Command disabled an oil tanker that it said failed to comply with the U.S. naval blockade in the Arabian Gulf on Tuesday.

"A U.S. aircraft ultimately disabled the vessel by firing a Hellfire missile into the ship's engine room, preventing the tanker from reaching Iran," CENTCOM said in a social media post that included a video of the strike.

CENTCOM said the oil tanker was attempting to sail toward an Iranian port. It is the sixth commercial vessel disabled since the blockade took effect, the military said.

President Donald Trump said talks with Iran continued Tuesday, but that "one never knows" where those talks will go.

"The conversations between us have been going on continuously, including four days ago, three days ago, two days ago, one day ago, and today," Trump posted on Truth Social. "Where they lead, one never knows, but as I told Iran, 'It’s time, one way or another, for you to make a Deal.'"

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that although the new Supreme Leader of Iran Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen or heard from publicly, "there are indications out there that he is increasingly engaging at some level” in negotiations with the U.S.

Rubio added that all of his communications have been through writing and intermediaries.

Rubio said Iranian negotiators would often need “three to five days to get a response” from Iranian leadership.

"Now, some of it is logistical,” Rubio said. ‘They’re operating--probably using couriers and things of this nature. Part of it is internal fissures on exactly what they should agree to or not agree to.”

Rubio said there were also "communications issues within the regime as well,” saying that many tactical decisions were being made at the commander-level.

“You ultimately are negotiating with people who then have to negotiate within their own system to see what they're allowed to give and what they're allowed to agree to,” he said.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio provided more information on what the administration wants Iran to commit to in an initial agreement before moving into detailed nuclear negotiations while testifying before Congress on Tuesday.

“They have to commit to very specific negotiations on the disposition of the highly enriched uranium that still is buried deep in a mountain somewhere,” he said. “They have to agree on negotiating severe and long-term limitations and/or cancelation of enrichment activity in their country.”

Rubio said the details on these matters would need to be worked out in future talks, but to enter that phase Iran would “have to commit to their willingness to do that.”

"For example, they have to commit to say 'we will dispose of the enriched uranium.' And the question now is what are the mechanisms by which we do so? That can be negotiated,” he said.