US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the US will not attack Iran before November's US midterm congressional elections, asserting that the two countries are having "productive" talks about ending the months-long conflict.

"We will not be attacking Iran at any time prior to the Midterm Elections to be held in the United States on November 3rd," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

"We are having productive discussions with the Islamic Republic of Iran," Trump said, adding that the country was in "very bad condition" economically and militarily.

The US President also said the US blockade would remain "in full force and effect," while claiming that 22 million barrels of oil had passed through the Strait of Hormuz overnight, with none coming from or going to Iran.

However, oil flows through the strategic waterway have fallen sharply, according to a Financial Times report published on Thursday. Preliminary data showed that only 4 million barrels passed through the strait on Tuesday, down from a daily average of 15 million barrels in late September.

Iran and the US have exchanged proposals in recent weeks, aimed at ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global energy shipping route.

Iran's Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday that the negotiations between Iran and the US are continuing and both sides are exchanging messages through mediators.

Noting Iran has received the US views on its seven-day plan and is "currently reviewing" them, Araghchi said Iran will in the coming days submit its response to the US views on its proposed plan to end the war in an interview with Tasnim News Agency.

Under Iran's seven-day plan, Tehran proposed ending the war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz within seven days, provided that the US accepted its conditions. 

Despite the diplomatic exchanges, differences remain over Iran's nuclear program. Iran's state broadcaster IRIB reported on Thursday, citing Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, that Tehran would neither abandon uranium enrichment nor hand over its stockpile of enriched uranium.

Eslami said Iran's nuclear program complied with its safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.

His remarks came days after US Vice President JD Vance told Reuters that Iran needed to make "meaningful" reductions in its enrichment capacity.

Washington also moved to increase economic pressure on Tehran. The US Treasury Department announced fresh sanctions on Thursday targeting individuals, networks and 17 vessels allegedly involved in transporting Iranian crude oil, petroleum products and petrochemicals.

Meanwhile, fighting between Yemen's Houthi group and Saudi-backed forces has intensified, with attacks and missile interceptions reported in Saudi Arabia.

At least three people were reportedly killed and eight others injured in Saudi-led coalition strikes on Yemen on Thursday, as the Houthis launched attacks targeting airports in Saudi Arabia amid escalating fighting.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a statement posted on social media platform X on Thursday that Saudi forces carried out 59 air and missile strikes on the capital Sanaa and 10 provinces over the past 24 hours.

On Thursday, the Houthis launched multiple airstrikes on Saudi Arabia, claiming missile attacks on Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport and separate ballistic missile strikes on the country's southwestern Najran International Airport and King Khalid Air Base in the southwest.

In a statement, coalition spokesman Turki al-Maliki said the coalition forces intercepted and destroyed two ballistic missiles heading in the direction of Riyadh, and one missile in the direction of the city of Khamis Mushait, close to the Yemeni border, on Thursday.

The Saudi Civil Defense said in a statement that debris from an intercepted ballistic missile fell in the capital Riyadh on Thursday, causing material damage to a kindergarten and a medical complex.

The recent escalation followed Houthi attacks on two Saudi airports on Tuesday and Wednesday that left three people dead and 36 others injured, according to the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation. The Houthis claimed responsibility for both attacks.

(With input from agencies)