New Delhi, July 29 -- Iran has proposed a temporary arrangement to reopen the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, offering Oman a new shipping management framework while rejecting a Gulf-backed proposal for equal control of the waterway.

The proposal comes amid heightened tensions following months of conflict involving Iran, the United States and Israel, and renewed efforts to restore commercial shipping through one of the world's busiest energy chokepoints.

Here's what is happening and why it matters.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Tehran has proposed a temporary traffic management system under which:

-Ships travelling in one direction would use routes through Iranian territorial waters.

-Part of the return ...