War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Faleh al-Zaidi has pledged that the country will be free of any foreign military presence on its soil and that weapons will be solely under state control by October 1, according to Al Jazeera.

According to a statement by his office, Al-Zaidi “affirmed the commitment to the agreed-upon timelines” — under which the international coalition’s military mission in Iraq and the withdrawal of its forces will be completed by September 30 — during a meeting with US Central Command chief Admiral Brad Cooper.

October 1 will “mark a new day in the history of the Iraqi state”, as Iraq will be “free of any foreign military presence” and responsible for ensuring its own security and stability, the statement adds.

Al-Zaidi adds that the monopoly on force will be held only by state institutions, which will bolster “the state’s authority and sovereignty, and guarantee security and stability”.

Iran’s ISNA news agency reports that Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi has had a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in the city of Mashhad.

According to the state news outlet, Naqvi travelled to the city to visit the shrine of Munawar Razavi.

Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei has written a message on X to mark the anniversary of the Geneva Conventions, noting that the countries that brought it into being are violating those laws.

He recounts that the four treaties established the basic rules of war “in order to civilise humanity and humanise war”.

“The architects of these four treaties could scarcely have imagined that, in 2026 — 77 years after the adoption of these instruments — the United States, host nation of the United Nations and a permanent member of the Security Council, would repeatedly threaten to attack the infrastructure, bridges, and power plants of another country, and would in fact commit such crimes,” Baqaei writes.

He adds that Article 1 of the Conventions does not merely obligate signatories to respect the treaties, but to “ensure respect” for them as well.

“Silence in the face of explicit threats against civilian objects is not mere political passivity — it is the erosion of one of the most fundamental civilisational and legal achievements of the post-World War II era,” he writes.

The newly appointed Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, has highlighted the “strategic depth” of relations between Iran and Pakistan, noting that the two countries have developed strong political and defence ties that should be used to expand bilateral cooperation, Iranian state news agency IRNA reports.

Rezaei has made the remarks during a meeting with Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi in Tehran, where he has emphasised Pakistan’s “special position” in Iran’s foreign policy and that Tehran considers Pakistan’s government, military and people “among the major assets of the Islamic world”, the news agency adds.

He adds that both countries should use their existing ties and “valuable capital” to pursue broader cooperation.

Rezaei also stresses the responsibility of major Muslim countries to “strengthen unity and convergence” across the Ummah.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has condemned Israel’s “systematic destruction” in the country’s south as a violation of international law, as Israel’s defence minister said its military was “destroying all the houses” there, AFP reports.

Salam says Israeli “attacks, incursions, demolitions and the systematic destruction of homes”, infrastructure, government buildings and places of worship “represent a serious violation of the principles and rules of international law and international humanitarian law”.

Claiming that villages and towns “are entirely ‘military facilities’ does not stand up to any logic and cannot be used as an excuse for destroying them, displacing their inhabitants and preventing them from returning”, he says in a statement.

Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz has vowed to destroy infrastructure and keep troops in a so-called “security zone” as well as in Syria and Gaza during a visit to southern Lebanon, AFP reports.

“As the prime minister and I have clearly stated, we are not withdrawing from this security zone,” Katz said, according to a statement from his office.

The Israeli military “is here to protect the northern communities and its own forces. We will clear this area and guarantee the security of the residents of the north. We will in no way withdraw from the security zones: not in Lebanon, not in Syria, and not in Gaza,” he adds.

In southern Lebanon, Katz says the military is “destroying the underground infrastructure” in the area and “destroying all the houses”.

A vast oil spill in the Gulf is quickly becoming one of the world’s worst in years after being allowed to spread almost unchecked for weeks, Reuters reports citing international agencies, satellite imagery and environmental groups.

The slick off the coast of Oman from a grounded tanker carrying Russian crude has reportedly reached the mainland, the UN’s shipping agency tells Reuters.

The slick now covers an area of more than 2,000 square kilometres, says John Amos, an oil spill specialist who reviewed satellite imagery obtained by Reuters.

The Caroline Bezengi, carrying an estimated 800,000 barrels of Russian oil and under international sanctions, ran aground on June 30 at an Omani island that is part of a marine nature reserve. The ship first reported difficulties off Yemen on June 8. Maritime sources said a blast appeared to have occurred aboard the Caroline Bezengi.

No party has claimed an attack, but the vessel was navigating two separate wars on its journey from Russia to India.

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US President Donald Trump has claimed that the United States is in control of the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reports.

“The US has total control over the Strait of Hormuz. I think we will keep it!” he writes on Truth Social. “Our Naval Blockade is being called, by everyone, a wall of steel, and there is nothing Iran can do about it.”

The Lebanese military has said that Israeli attacks are preventing it from completing its deployment in southern Lebanon and hindering the return of residents to their homes, according to Al Jazeera.

In a statement posted on X, the army accuses the Israeli military of continuing its “assaults and violations of existing agreements and international laws”.

It lists the latest attacks as the bombing of a building, a public school, a clinic, a children’s daycare and several homes in the Nabatieh area.

The attacks demonstrate Israel’s “persistence in its destructive approach to inflict the greatest possible damage on the southern villages and towns, and to prevent the establishment of stability”, the military states.

Lebanese forces continue to carry out their missions in the south, but face “significant difficulties” as Israeli attacks are hindering “the completion of its deployment and the return of the residents”, it adds.

Al Jazeera, citing Lebanon’s National News Agency, reports that Israeli warplanes carried out two air strikes targeting the town of al-Mansouri in the country’s south. There have been no immediate reports of casualties or damage.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has requested that Iran help prevent further escalation by Yemen’s Houthi rebels in the Red Sea’s Bab al-Mandeb during a phone call with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, Al Jazeera reports citing the Iranian presidency.

According to a statement, the Japanese prime minister has welcomed what she terms progress in Iran’s negotiations with Oman over the Strait of Hormuz, expressing hope that the strategic waterway will reopen as soon as talks conclude successfully.

It adds that Takaichi has also reiterated Tokyo’s support for diplomatic efforts to end the war, adding that it is in the long-term interests of both Tehran and the broader Middle East.

Pezeshkian thanks Japan for supporting efforts to end the war, noting that his country “never sought instability” in the region and claiming that the US and Israel had undermined regional peace through acts of aggression.

He adds that Tehran acted in accordance with international law and consistently sought to improve relations with neighbouring countries.

Oil prices have risen once again after attacks on two ships reinforced worries about disruptions to Middle East supplies, Reuters reports.

Brent futures were up 35 cents, or 0.4 per cent, at $89.26 a barrel by 1219 GMT (5:19pm PKT), heading for a sixth day of gains. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose by 57 cents, or 0.7pc, to $83.77, heading for a fifth daily gain.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan will undertake a two-day visit to Egypt tomorrow, where the situation in Iran and the Strait of Hormuz will be on the agenda, Al Jazeera reports citing Turkiye’s state-run Anadolu news agency.

Anadolu adds that he is expected to express support for diplomatic efforts aimed at re-establishing the US-Iran ceasefire and reopening the waterway as soon as possible.

Oil prices have risen in volatile trade after attacks on two ships reinforced worries about disruptions to Middle East supplies, and as talks to end the Iran war hit an impasse, Reuters reports.

Brent futures were up 17 cents, or 0.2 per cent, at $89.08 a barrel by 1055 GMT (3:55pm PKT), heading for a sixth day of gains. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 20 cents, or 0.2pc, to $83.40, heading for a fifth daily gain.

There have been no discussions between Iran and the United States to extend the ceasefire because from Tehran’s perspective the deal had no start date and therefore there is nothing to extend, a senior Iranian source tells Reuters.

Spokesperson for the Iranian Armed Forces has warned the US against renewed aggression against Iran, IRIB reports.

“In the event of renewed US aggression against Iran, energy transmission lines, power plants, all American and non-American systems, and even global internet-connected infrastructure are at risk,” IRIB quoted him as saying.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun has received US General Joseph Clearfield, the head of the Military Coordination Group for Lebanon (MCG4L), in Beirut, Al Jazeera reports.

The meeting addressed the steps to be taken towards the implementation of the framework deal agreed in Washington, DC, on June 26, according to a statement issued by the Lebanese presidency.

The discussions were held in light of the talks conducted by Clearfield in Israel last week, the presidency added.

The MCG4L is a trilateral coordination body established under this agreement.

Iranian Ambassador Reza Amiri Moghadam has called on Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, where the two exchanged views on the evolving regional situation, according to the Foreign Office (FO).

Dar underscored that “dialogue and diplomacy remain the only effective means of addressing outstanding issues and achieving lasting peace, stability, and prosperity in the region”.

He also reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to deepening engagement with Iran, the FO said.

Oil from a vast slick leaking from the grounded tanker Caroline Bezengi is reported to be reaching Oman’s mainland, the UN’s shipping agency said. according to Reuters.

“Oil is drifting offshore to the northeast of (Oman’s) Al-Qibliyyah Island, with some oil reported to be reaching the mainland. Oil spill contingency planning is in place,” a spokesperson at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) said.

The tanker was carrying around 800,000 barrels of oil from Russia bound for Asia grounded off the coast of Oman on June 30 and is around 22 nautical miles off Oman’s fishing village of Sharbithat, the IMO spokesperson said.

The United States and Iran have agreed to extend a ceasefire ahead of the expiration of the 60-day deadline under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, Anadolu Agency reports, citing a Pakistani source.

Joseph Aoun has met General Joseph Clearfield, chair of the Cessation of Hostilities Supervisory Committee, in the presence of US Ambassador to Lebanon Michelle Sison, Al Jazeera reports.

The committee was established in November 2024 to monitor the ceasefire, verify violations and provide direct deconfliction between the Lebanese and Israeli militaries.

However, the meeting comes amid repeated Israeli violations of the ceasefire.

The International Energy Agency has sharply reduced its forecast for global oil demand this year, as supplies remain crimped by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and high prices deter buyers, Reuters reports.

Demand is expected to slump by 1.6 million barrels per day (mb/d), compared with its forecast slump of one million barrels in its previous monthly report in July.

Crude prices have remained well above levels seen before the US and Israeli attacks on Iran in late February, sparking a war that has seen oil infrastructure damaged in several Gulf countries.