Democratic Republic of Congo authorities released 15 prisoners and handed them over to AFC/M23 rebels on August 6-7, marking the first known prisoner transfer under a peace agreement signed last year. The International Committee of the Red Cross facilitated the handover as part of the Doha peace process for eastern DRC.
Indirect US-Iran negotiations in Doha concluded with reported progress and will resume after the state funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in airstrikes four months ago. Iran has warned the US and Israel against launching attacks during the weeklong funeral ceremony.
Indirect negotiations between the United States and Iran in Doha, Qatar, mediated by Qatari and Pakistani officials, concluded with both sides agreeing to establish a communication channel to report violations of their memorandum of understanding. However, the talks ended in stalemate over broader issues, with US officials stating that $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets will not be released until Tehran fulfills the terms of the agreement.
US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner arrived in Doha to meet with mediators, but Qatar clarified no direct high-level talks with Iran are scheduled, contradicting President Trump's claims that Iran agreed to negotiations. The diplomatic confusion follows weekend military exchanges in the Strait of Hormuz that threatened a fragile ceasefire brokered by Pakistan and Qatar less than two weeks ago.
Iran's joint military command has warned that all commercial vessels must use Tehran-approved routes through the Strait of Hormuz or face forceful action, even as indirect US-Iran negotiations in Doha show cautious progress. The threat comes as BBC journalists witnessed seized ships in the strategic waterway.
