US strikes 'on a hold,' as talks, battle for Strait of Hormuz control loom with Iran

President Donald Trump is giving Iran talks "some space," U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz told "Fox News Sunday."

"He's giving talks some space, he's giving it a little bit of room," Waltz said.

Waltz did not provide further detail on the nature of the talks, but there has been a weekend lull in the fighting between Iran and the United States.

The Pentagon paused bombing operations after 13 nights of escalating strikes and there were no weekend reports of attacks by Iran on its neighbors.

Asked about the pause, a senior official in ​Trump's administration said Saturday that the president "has always been clear that his preference is diplomacy, but he has shown Iran what will happen if they fail to come ​to the table in a serious way."

Reuters contributed to this report.

Iran is halting its attacks as long as the U.S. maintains its latest pause in strikes, a senior Iranian source told Reuters on Sunday.

The source cautioned there was “more skepticism than optimism” following the U.S. decision to pause attacks, underscoring uncertainty over whether the lull could lead to a broader diplomatic breakthrough.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz said President Donald Trump is allowing negotiations more time.

“He’s giving talks some space, he’s giving it a little bit of room,” Waltz told "Fox News Sunday."

Reuters contributed to this report.

Any U.S. operation targeting Iran’s fortified nuclear facilities would carry major risks because Tehran would likely know an attack was coming and has prepared defenses, retired CIA station chief Dan Hoffman warned Sunday morning.

“There’s no element of surprise here,” Hoffman told Fox News' "Fox & Friends Weekend." “Iran would know we’re coming, and presumably they’ve got a plan to defend that site with booby-trapped explosives, among other things.”

Hoffman said intelligence on the location of Iran’s centrifuges, enriched uranium and nuclear scientists would shape the military options presented to President Donald Trump.

Those choices could include additional airstrikes or a ground operation requiring a secure air corridor and defensive perimeter.

Both approaches would be “highly risky,” he said, particularly because Iran retains dispersed ballistic missiles and drones capable of striking U.S. forces and bases across the region.

Hoffman said Trump’s national security team is likely reviewing those options ahead of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s planned visit to Washington next week.

The U.S. is considering a highly complex military operation to seize enriched uranium from Iran’s fortified nuclear facilities, according to a New York Post report citing people familiar with the planning.

The proposed mission could require thousands of troops to secure sites, clear damaged entrances and establish protected routes while a small special operations team retrieves and transports the nuclear material.

Experts described the potential raid as extraordinarily dangerous and logistically demanding.

Iran has reportedly reinforced facilities including Isfahan with mines, booby traps and additional security forces, limiting the element of surprise.

Other potential targets include the damaged Fordo complex and a site near Natanz known as Pickaxe Mountain, where Iran is believed to have moved centrifuges.

Analysts said airstrikes or demolition missions could remain alternatives if removing the material proves too risky.

Lawmakers offered sharply different reactions to the White House’s new nuclear cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia, with Republicans emphasizing the need to preserve key U.S. partnerships in the Middle East and Democrats warning the deal could trigger a regional arms race.

Reps. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn.; Jamie Raskin, D-Md.; Mark Alford, R-Mo.; Gregory Meeks, D-N.Y.; and Shomari Figures, D-Ala., weigh in on the agreement and its broader security implications.

Supporters framed the deal as an important step in maintaining U.S. influence in the region.

Critics raised concerns about nuclear proliferation and whether the agreement could encourage other Middle Eastern nations to pursue similar capabilities.

A tanker reported a splash from an unknown projectile near the vessel while transiting the southern Red Sea, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations reported Sunday.

The ship and its crew are safe.

Authorities are investigating the incident, and vessels in the area have been advised to proceed with caution and report suspicious activity.

The battle over the Strait of Hormuz control has reported moved to other regions in the Middle East, including the Red Sea.

An Israeli airstrike killed a senior Hamas security official and an associate Sunday as they traveled through Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, according to medics and police officials.

The strike killed Col. Wael El-Ledawi, who led the Hamas-run internal security service in central Gaza, and Maj. Ramez Abu Zraiq, the officials said.

The Israeli military said it had targeted a Hamas terrorist but provided no additional details.

Israel has killed dozens of members of Gaza’s Hamas-led police force in recent months, saying many were tied to the group’s armed wing and posed threats to Israeli troops.

Four Israeli soldiers have been killed by terrorists in Gaza over the same period.

The truce ended full-scale fighting but has not stopped near-daily strikes across the territory.

Reuters contributed to this report.

The U.S. military has paused its airstrikes on Iran after nearly two weeks of intensifying bombing, while diplomatic efforts have pushed forward to try to avert a return to all-out war.

But it remains to be seen whether the U.S. and Iran are at an inflection point in a mercurial conflict that will reach the five-month point Tuesday.

President Donald Trump both has threatened more strikes and said talks are pressing on.

Adding to the uncertainty is the impact of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s planned visit with Trump next week in Washington. Israel, which launched the war alongside the U.S. on Feb. 28, has been notably absent from the renewed American attacks over Iran’s effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping corridor through which 20% of the world’s oil normally flows.

“The Iranians understand that perhaps it could get worse because Israel could come into the conflict,” said Michael Singh, managing director at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.

On the other hand, Israel’s lack of involvement so far “may signal to the Iranians that we’re looking to limit the conflict.”

Singh, who was senior Middle East director on the National Security Council during the George W. Bush administration, said he was hesitant to read too much into the lull in fighting.

“If it turns into a multiday pause, that’ll be something significant,” he said. “But it’s hard to know. Is it an operational pause? Is it a pause to allow for some kind of behind-the-scenes diplomacy?”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Technical and political consultations between Iran and Oman over the Strait of Hormuz are ongoing, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson said early Sunday morning, describing the talks as productive.

The diplomatic push comes as U.S. military strikes against Iran remain “on a hold,” according to the Department of Defense.

The U.S. military said its naval blockade of Iran remains in full effect, despite the pause in attacks.

President Donald Trump has, for now, stepped back from plans to expand U.S. strikes, giving diplomacy an opportunity to work as he sits on a major assault on Iranian infrastructure.

Reuters contributed to this report.