Updated

Iranian flights to Baghdad and Muscat were cancelled ahead of new US sanctions targeting Iran's aviation industry taking effect at midnight, Iranian civil aviation officials said, citing negotiations with Oman and Iraq to redirect affected flights. The move, announced by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, came seven months into the US-Iran war and marks an escalation of the economic pressure campaign against Tehran. Separately, US federal prosecutors in Manhattan, working with the Justice Department's criminal division, are investigating cryptocurrency exchange Binance over possible violations of US sanctions on Iran, examining trading activity on its platform. Both developments illustrate Washington's expanding use of financial and sanctions tools against Iran alongside its military and diplomatic pressure.