War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

US President Donald Trump says “We’re doing a very good job” as far as the war on Iran is concerned, reiterating that Tehran can never possess a nuclear weapon.

“If we didn’t attack them with the B-2 bombers early on, they were two weeks away, maybe three weeks away from having a nuclear weapon,” he says at an event at the White House, referring to bombing raids on suspected Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025.

“And if they had a nuclear weapon, they would have used it and they would have used it fast,” he adds. “They would have blown up the Middle East, they would have totally blown up Israel … and then they would have headed for our country.

Trump claims that the Iranians “would probably hit places like San Diego and Los Angeles first because the route for a missile is much more convenient”.

US President Donald Trump says there will be “big news” on diesel, as prices remain at near-record highs in the weeks before the Nov 3 congressional elections that will determine control of Congress, Reuters reports.

“We have a big announcement coming up on diesel,” Trump says without elaborating at a White House event. “We have, I think, some big news on that diesel situation. We’re going to be knocking the hell out of it.”

Germany will release up to 15 million barrels of diesel, heating oil and crude from emergency reserves, its economy minister told Reuters on Friday, making Europe’s largest contribution under a G7-backed effort to ease fuel shortages and curb soaring energy prices caused by the wars in Iran and Ukraine.

“Diesel and heating oil will be the first, with crude oil to follow,” Germany’s Economy Minister Katherina Reiche tells Reuters, adding that Germany will fully implement the G7 agreement.

“We must always have the entire supply chain in mind. Available crude oil alone is not enough,” she says without specifying the breakdown between diesel, heating oil and crude or the timeline of the release.

US President Donald Trump has again claimed that fuel prices will come down and the war on Iran will be over soon.

“The prices will come tumbling and it’s going to be over soon, one way or the other,” he says, addressing an event at the White House, reiterating his claim that Iran’s military has been largely destroyed.

“We took out, yesterday, 28 million barrels” of oil from the Strait of Hormuz, he adds.

Residents report hearing a powerful boom in the vicinity of Aden airport in southern Yemen, according to Reuters.

There have been no immediate reports of casualties or damage, and the cause of the sound is not immediately clear.

Yemen’s transport ministry says the airport was attacked earlier this week by the Houthis with ballistic missiles and explosive-laden drones.

The European Union could face a natural gas shortfall of up to 14 billion cubic meters this winter, equivalent to around seven per cent of the bloc’s demand, amid depleted storage levels and disruptions to global energy supplies, Anadolu reports.

A report by the US-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), shared with Politico, warns that the EU’s gas reserves have fallen to just above 70pc — their lowest level for this time of year since records began in 2011.

The potential deficit could affect energy supplies equivalent to the consumption of 10 million to 12 million European households, raising concerns over higher electricity bills and possible energy-saving measures.

Foreign Office spokesperson Ambassador Sajjad Haider Khan has said that Pakistani troops stationed in Saudi Arabia under the Makkah Alliance will not cross the border into Yemen, reiterating that it is a defensive organisation.

“It is an alliance intended to defend the three countries against aggression. Therefore, these forces would not cross the border into Yemen to launch attacks against the Houthis,” he says at a press briefing.

“However, they would, of course, be utilised to defend the country’s territory and safeguard its sovereignty.”

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei has called out the double standard of France possessing nuclear weapons while stressing that Tehran can never acquire one.

“Emmanuel Macron, the President of the French Republic, declares: ‘To be free, therefore, one must be feared, and to be feared, one must be powerful’. Yet, he himself asserts, regarding Iran, which has never sought to acquire nuclear weapons: ‘Iran must never possess nuclear weapons. Neither today, nor in five years, nor in ten years. Never,’” Baqaei writes on X.

He questions why Paris views peaceful civilian use of nuclear technology by Tehran as a “threat”.

“The harsh reality is this: they do not want peace for all. They want to maintain the monopoly on the kind of power that inspires fear and the monopoly on the legitimacy to intimidate,” Baqaei adds.

“They intend to remain powerful themselves, equipped with nuclear weapons and, of course, fearsome, while imposing restrictions on others—including countries that simply seek to harness nuclear energy for peaceful purposes—by waving the spectre of an alleged ‘nuclear threat.’”

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it has struck a tanker attempting to traverse an “illegal route” through the Strait of Hormuz, which Tehran has sought to blockade since the outset of the Middle East war, AFP reports.

Iranian forces “have taken control of the administration of the strait”, the Guards say in a statement carried by the state news agency IRNA. “In carrying out this mission, a few hours ago, a giant LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) carrier named NV Sunshine, owned by NatWit, which was attempting to transit via the illegal route south of the Strait of Hormuz, was struck.”

In a press briefing, Foreign Office spokesperson Ambassador Sajjad Haider Khan has called reports of PAF jets striking Houthi targets in Yemen “speculative news which has been refuted by the Ministry of Information”.

A Yemeni military source says government forces backed by Saudi Arabia have launched an operation to recapture the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait, AFP reports.

While a Saudi diplomat said that Riyadh-backed forces successfully captured the strait, a military source on the ground, speaking before the diplomat’s statement, contradicted that account, saying fighting was ongoing.

The military source within the government confirms to AFP that government forces launched a “major operation” in the strait region, supported by Saudi air power, noting that “fighting is fierce and advances are limited”.

Britain says Kuwait has agreed to buy a £370 million ($489 million) air defence system from a UK-based company, which will help protect the Gulf state from drone attacks at a time of escalating conflict in the region, Reuters reports.

Kuwait is buying the system, which will incorporate jammers, radars and interceptors with an AI-enabled control centre, from London-headquartered MARSS, a company owned by Australia’s EOS.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO) reports that a vessel has been struck off the coast of the United Arab Emirates by an “unknown projectile”.

“Status of the crew, damage assessment and environmental impact are unknown at present,” it says in an advisory, noting that the incident is under investigation.

The US embassy in Jordan has instructed American nationals in the region to exercise caution amid the escalating conflict between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi rebels, Al Jazeera reports.

“Be aware of potential flight cancellations, airspace closures and travel disruptions,” the embassy says in an advisory.

Iran and aligned groups “may target other US interests overseas or at locations associated with the United States and Americans throughout the world, including US businesses and other institutions”, it warns.

“US citizens should continue to monitor information from the Jordanian government about specific threats and follow instructions, including sirens and other warnings. Please also monitor all US embassy travel advisories and guidance,” the embassy adds.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has expressed regret that efforts to end the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz have not yielded fruit, according to Al Jazeera.

He says that international agreements are increasingly being disregarded and rulings by international courts are not being enforced.

“International agreements have lost their effectiveness. Likewise, decisions issued by international courts are no longer being enforced,” he tells the International Justice Summit in Istanbul.

Erdogan has also criticised the current international system, saying the UN cannot be considered “legitimate and equitable” if it fails to reflect the will of the international community.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says Iran-aligned groups must stop what she described as reckless and violent acts, following attacks on Riyadh airport, which she attributes to the Houthi movement in Yemen, Reuters reports.

The European Union stands in full solidarity with the people of Saudi Arabia and Gulf partners, von der Leyen says, adding that attacks on civilian infrastructure are “unacceptable”.

Italian energy minister Gilberto Pichetto Fratin said he will not fly to Riyadh for the International Energy Forum Ministerial Meeting in person next week but will participate via a video link, Reuters reports.

Pichetto Fratin said he held a video call with Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Energy, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, expressing Italy’s solidarity following recent attacks on Saudi Arabia and reaffirmed his intention to visit the kingdom at the earliest opportunity

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has held a phone conversation with his Armenian counterpart, Ararat Mirzoyan, IRNA reports.

During a phone call late Thursday, Araghchi and Mirzoyan discussed bilateral issues and the latest regional developments.

US diesel prices remain at near record highs, up 70 per cent since the US-Israeli war on Iran began despite two high-profile recent moves by President Donald Trump to boost supplies of the fuel, pressuring allies to release emergency reserves and expanding access to tax-exempt red-dyed diesel, Reuters reports.

The wars in Iran and Ukraine have triggered an unprecedented global fuel supply crunch, pushing average US diesel prices to $6.28 a gallon on Thursday according to AAA.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian says at a regional summit in Turkmenistan that peace negotiations will only succeed without “pressure and threats”, with the months-long Middle East war locked in a stalemate, AFP reports.

“Dialogue holds meaning and a chance of success only when based on mutual respect and mutual commitments, and when devoid of pressure and threat,” he said during his speech at the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) summit.

UN forecasts global growth to slow to 2.6 per cent in 2026 from 2.9pc in 2025 as Middle East war drives up energy prices, Anadolu reports.

Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority has said that three of the kingdom’s nationals were killed in attacks the day before at Riyadh’s international airport, with Yemen’s Houthis claiming a series of attacks targeting the facility, AFP reports.

“The attacks resulted in the martyrdom of three Saudi citizens,” the agency said, adding the attacks targeted the airport’s facilities and a plane belonging to national flag carrier Saudia

A Saudia Airlines pilot was killed, and an aircraft was damaged at Riyadh airport, the company said on Friday, following strikes targeting the facility that were claimed by Yemen’s Houthis, AFP reports.

“It is with profound sadness that Saudia announces the passing of Captain Hamoud Ali Alkalthami,” the Saudi flag-carrier said in a statement, citing an “incident” at King Khalid International Airport.