By Feras Dalatey

DUBAI, July 9 (Reuters) - Russia hopes by mid-July to have a commercial logistics hub up and running in one of two berths at the naval base it leases in the Syrian port of Tartous, while keeping a military presence at the other, Syrian officials told Reuters.

The hub will handle a wide range of Russian goods including wheat and grains, and target initial cargo volumes of around 250,000 tons per month, one of the officials said.

July 11 (Reuters) - A written statement from Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei threatened vengeance for the death of his predecessor and father on Saturday, but added that it would depend not only on Iran but also on "free people around the world".

In the supreme leader's first public message since funeral ceremonies for his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, began a week ago, the statement read on state television said that vengeance was "the demand of the nation" and "must certainly" take place.

July 10 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he had ordered the military to be prepared to launch strikes against Iran if the Iranian government carried out or attempted an assassination of the president.

By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON, July 10 (Reuters) - The U.S. issued new Iran-related sanctions on Friday targeting a key financier for Iran's new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei and 13 other individuals and entities, following Tehran's resumed attacks on oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, the Treasury Department said.

The sanctions took aim at Ali Ansari, an Iranian banker and businessman based in Dubai who had previously been sanctioned by Britain for his role in financially supporting the activities of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and other entities, Treasury said.

By Enas Alashray and Steve Holland

CAIRO/WASHINGTON, July 10 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Friday that the United States and Iran had agreed to continue talks despite a recent escalation of hostilities but he flatly declared that the ceasefire reached between the two sides last month was over.

The United States also stepped up demands that Iran stop attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz, where recent hostilities have pushed oil prices higher, a politically sensitive issue for Trump ahead of November congressional elections.

By Kanishka Singh

WASHINGTON, July 10 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's administration on Friday extended work permits for hundreds of thousands of immigrants with temporary protected status from Haiti and six other countries, hours before they were due to expire.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which is part of the Department of Homeland Security, said work permits for Haitians with temporary protected status will now expire on July 24. Permits for recipients from Ethiopia, Syria, Somalia, Yemen, South Sudan and Myanmar will end in a week's time.

By Steve Holland

WASHINGTON, July 10 (Reuters) - The United States is demanding that Iran publicly state it will stop attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz and that all lanes in the strait will be open to shipping with no tolls, senior U.S. officials said on Friday.

Iran has adamantly refused to give up control of the strait, the strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world's oil supply typically flows.

By Karen Freifeld

July 10 (Reuters) - The U.S. loosened export controls on the United Arab Emirates on Friday, making it easier to export Nvidia AI chips, military equipment, commercial satellites and spacecraft in a boost to relations between the two allies.

The announcement underscores strengthening U.S.-UAE relations, with the Gulf ally playing an increasingly important role in Washington's strategy toward Iran, while creating revenue opportunities for U.S. companies, particularly tech firms.