Day 170 of the WarSunday, August 16, 2026
Day 170 — UKMTO Rates Hormuz Threat 'Very High' After Three Attacks; Axios Reveals a Secret Barzani Channel to the IRGC
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Strait of HormuzTehran
'Defenders Who Will Break Your Legs' — Threats From Tehran
Iran- Army chief Maj. Gen. Hatami answered Trump's plan to declare Hormuz U.S. territory: 'Even joking about such a statement is unacceptable, because this is Iran, and it has defenders who will break your legs,' per Open Source Intel.source
- IRGC political deputy Yadollah Javani told state TV the enemy 'must await our strategic surprises,' describing the armed forces' actions so far as 'defensive' but warning they may become 'offensive' in future, Iran International reports.source
- MP Amirhossein Sabeti said the rulers of Gulf states hosting U.S. bases — from the Al Khalifa to the Al Nahyan and the Al Saud — 'should be placed as targets for revenge' alongside Israeli and American officials, claiming a role in Khamenei's killing.source
- Basij operations deputy Esmaeil Faraji announced an 'Iran's Self-Sacrificers' campaign to train volunteers with the IRGC Ground Forces, with some prepared for rear support alongside the Red Crescent and fire services, per LiveIranNews and Iran International.source
Remembering the Victims — and Policing Bodies, Words and the Internet
- LiveIranNews remembers Dr. Anahita Shiravand, her husband Siavash and their two-year-old daughter Hana, killed on January 8, 2026, in Khorramabad when IRGC forces opened fire on their car during the Lion and Sun Revolution.source
- Mahsa (Zhina) Amini's parents said MP Ahmad Aryaeinejad insulted 'our daughter, our family, and all the people of Kurdistan and Iran' with his remark about her killing by morality police; the Malayer MP later apologized, Iran International reports.source
- Former deputy speaker Ali Motahhari wrote to Pezeshkian urging 'supervision and verbal reminders' over street attire — including women's short sleeves and leggings and men's shorts — and a public pledge that dress oversight will continue.source
- Pezeshkian's executive deputy Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah told IRNA that security officials say VPN use eases enemy infiltration and spying, claiming 75 percent of people oppose VPNs and that their sale yields 7,000–12,000 billion tomans, per Iran International.source
Threat Level 'Very High' — Three Ships Hit in 72 Hours
Gulf & Naval- UKMTO says three ships were targeted in the Strait of Hormuz over 72 hours — two oil tankers on August 14 and a cargo ship entering the strait on August 15 — and rates the regional threat level 'very high,' without naming perpetrators, per Iran International.source
- CNN reports that many ships have switched off their tracking systems and ship-to-ship transfers obscure how much oil reaches markets; detected daily transits hover around 12 vessels, not all of them tankers, Iran International notes.source
- CENTCOM released images of a U.S. Air Force F-35A stealth fighter refueling from a KC-135 Stratotanker while patrolling regional waters over the Middle East, per Open Source Intel.source
A Secret Channel via Erbil — and a Memorandum Running Out of Time
- Axios reports that in mid-May, unsure whether Iran's negotiators spoke for the IRGC, the Trump administration had Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani open a secret channel to IRGC chief Ahmad Vahidi, who signaled support for a negotiated solution, per Iran International.source
- Fox News reports the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding technically expires 60 days after signing, with little progress so far on a new diplomatic solution for reopening Hormuz or on Iran's nuclear program, Iran International says.source
- Republican Congressman Don Bacon told CBS that Iran must not get a nuclear weapon but the war will be 'a hard fight,' criticizing Trump's repeated deal promises and calling his reported unawareness of cruise-missile and Patriot shortages 'issue number one.'source
- Iraq's Finance Minister told Sky News Arabia that the closure of Hormuz has directly hit Iraq's economy and that Baghdad is working to boost non-oil revenues to cope, per Iran International.source