War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

The Israeli military says 14 soldiers of the Givati Brigade’s Tzabar Battalion, who took part in Thursday’s mass desertion at the Sde Teiman army base in southern Israel, have been sentenced to 30 days in military jail, Al Jazeera reports.

It adds that the commander of the Givati Brigade also permanently dismissed those soldiers from combat duty.

Dozens of Israeli soldiers abandoned their weapons and walked out of the military base in a dispute with a senior commander reportedly trying to restore discipline.

Soldiers at the base have long been accused of flagrant violations of laws, including the torture of Palestinian detainees.

Italy’s Defence Minister Guido Crosetto has rejected opposition criticism over the deployment of troops and military assets ⁠to the Gulf ⁠region, saying the mission’s framework had been properly disclosed, Al Jazeera reports.

According to the defence ministry’s website, around 400 Italian air force personnel have ⁠been deployed to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain since March.

Lawmakers from Italy’s centre-left Democratic Party have accused the government of failing to seek parliamentary authorisation for the mission, saying Saudi Arabia was outside the scope of ‌a mandate approved for overseas military assignments.

Kuwaiti forces have destroyed Iranian drones targeting “vital and military facilities”, AFP reports quoting the defence ministry.

“The hostile targets were engaged and destroyed. This resulted in material damage due to falling shrapnel, without any human casualties being recorded,” it says in a statement.

Iranian armed forces have said that the Strait of Hormuz remains closed despite claims by the US Central Command (Centcom) that traffic is continuing, according to state-run IRIB.

“The Strait of Hormuz is CLOSED, and any passage will be possible only in coordination with Iranian naval forces,” IRIB cited the armed forces as saying, adding that Centcom falsely claims shipping companies can cross the strait under US military escort.

President Donald Trump convenes a cabinet meeting today at his Camp David retreat as he grapples with how to resolve his war against Iran and bring down gasoline prices that are threatening Republicans in November midterm elections, Reuters reports.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters at a briefing last week that this would be the 13th cabinet meeting of Trump’s second term and that it would be “a lot of fun and something different for the cabinet to experience together”.

The agenda for the meeting will likely focus heavily on foreign policy.

The Iraqi government spokesperson says that the US–Saudi airstrikes targeting the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) were carried out without Baghdad’s prior knowledge, Iran’s state-run IRNA reports.

“The government had no prior knowledge of the attacks carried out on Iraqi territory,” Haider al-Aboudi told the state-owned Iraqi News Agency (INA) late on Thursday, noting, “The government has not granted any approval to carry out attacks on specific sites or targeted groups within Iraqi territory.”

A British-Azerbaijani dual citizen has been arrested in Cyprus as part of a UK probe and is facing extradition accused of spying for Iran on a British air force base, London police say according to AFP.

Rashad Sultanov, 44, was arrested on July 17 as part of a Counter Terrorism Policing London investigation into incidents at the RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus between May 11 and June 22, 2025.

“He allegedly conducted hostile surveillance on the base, a prohibited place, and is alleged to have then shared information with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), a foreign intelligence service,” UK authorities said in a statement.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say that they have struck two tankers attempting to pass though the strategic Strait of Hormuz under the “air escort” of the US military, AFP reports.

The IRGC said the “non-compliant oil tankers… were struck and brought to a halt, while four other oil tankers quickly changed course and returned to their previous positions”.

Two very large crude carriers (VLCC) carrying oil loaded from the Gulf exit the Strait of Hormuz, with traffic through the waterway remaining thin, Reuters reports, citing Kpler ship-tracking data.

The Spain B vessel is carrying crude oil loaded from the Saudi Arabian port of Ras Tanura on July 12, and is currently anchored off Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates. Meanwhile Noble, which loaded Iraqi Basrah crude on July 25, is heading to China.

Both VLCCs are carrying about 2 million barrels of crude each. They were among four commodities vessels that have transited the strait so far. All four exited the waterway.

A drone attack has targeted a camp belonging to an Iranian Kurdish opposition group located east of Iraq’s Erbil, AlJazeera reports, citing local security sources.

China’s foreign ministry said that an Iranian attack that hit a building belonging to a Chinese company in Kuwait did not affect Chinese citizens, Reuters reports.

China has urged Kuwait to take effective measures to protect the safety of Chinese nationals and institutions, Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the ministry, said at a press briefing.

Bodies of five members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) killed in joint US-Saudi strikes in Iraq this week have been returned, AFP reports, citing IRNA.

“The bodies of five IRGC members killed in the recent US-Saudi attacks on Iraq were brought into the country through the Mehran border crossing,” in western Ilam province, the IRNA state news agency reported.

The United States and Saudi Arabia said on Wednesday they had struck Iran-backed militants in Iraq in response to recent attacks on the Gulf kingdom.

Israel has carried out massive midnight explosions across the southern regions of Yohmor al-Chqif, Arnoun, and Kfar Tebnit, Lebanon’s National News Agency reports.

The blasts resonated throughout the south, with shockwaves felt as far as Iqlim al-Kharrub and Khalde.

In the Marjayoun district, violent explosions near Beaufort Castle shattered windows and damaged homes in the nearby town of al-Qlaiaa.

Local residents described intense shockwaves that shook the area, accompanied by a heavy smell of gunpowder, according to NNA.

The Iranian army says its forces targeted strategic US military facilities at Kuwait’s Ahmed Al-Jaber airbase in a drone attack, describing the operation as retaliation for recent US strikes, according to Al Jazeera.

In a statement carried by Tasnim news agency, the army said the attack targeted hangars, satellite communication systems, and equipment warehouses using drones.

Oil prices fell but kept on track for a monthly rise of about a fifth, as more supplies flowed through crucial maritime chokepoints, despite a lack of major breakthroughs in talks between the United States and Iran, Reuters reports.

Brent futures fell $1.03, or 1.2 per cent, to $88 a barrel by 0215 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude slipped $1.50, or 1.8pc, to $82.09 a barrel. On a monthly basis, both benchmarks were set to rise about 20pc.

Twenty-five commodities vessels passed through the Bab el-Mandeb strait a day earlier, while traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained low with only two tankers transiting, according to Kpler shipping data, Reuters reports.

Of the 25 vessels that transited the Bab el-Mandeb strait, 18 entered the waterway and seven exited. The traffic included several oil tankers, among them two very large crude carriers, one Suezmax tanker and five Aframax tankers.

Meanwhile, only two vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz, both in ballast and entering the waterway.

Some ships could still be sailing with their transponders turned off, which are not considered in the counts.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has discussed de-escalation efforts under way in the Middle East with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa in a phone call, Al Jazeera reports, citing the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

Al-Sharaa condemned “attempted attacks” on Saudi oil facilities by Iran-backed groups in Iraq and backed the Saudi right to respond, according to the agency.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has said that Egypt’s security is of “utmost importance” to the Islamic Republic, according to Reuters.

“Egypt is an important friend and partner in the region, and its security is of utmost importance to us,” Araqchi posted on X.

His comments come after a drone attack targeted vessels at Egypt’s Damietta port, raising fears of the Iran war widening to a new front. No party has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Iraqi government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi has said that Baghdad neither approved nor had prior knowledge of US-Saudi strikes on Iraqi territory, Reuters reports, citing the state news agency.

Saudi Arabia and the US Central Command (Centcom) carried out strikes against Iran-backed groups in Iraq that they said were responsible for drone attacks on the kingdom’s oil facilities.

President Joseph Aoun says the Lebanese people “paid a heavy price” during Israel’s war on the country, with thousands killed, villages destroyed and families forced from their homes, Al Jazeera reports.

The Lebanese presidency says on X that after meeting Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, Lebanon remains committed to recovering from the conflict.

“What the war could not destroy is the will of the Lebanese. Today, we are more determined than ever to restore the sovereignty of our state, rebuild our homeland and build a secure and stable future for all Lebanese,” Aoun says.

“I am pleased to visit the Republic of Turkiye, at a juncture that reflects the deep-rooted relations binding our two countries, and a shared will to bolster cooperation in ways that serve the interests of our peoples and contribute to the stability of our region,” he adds.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly says Egypt has secured alternatives to cover its energy needs after a drone attack on Wednesday damaged a gas vessel at Damietta port, Al Jazeera reports.

No group has claimed responsibility, and authorities are continuing their investigation, he adds.

The commander of Iran’s Khatam Al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Major General Ali Abdollahi, has issued a harsh warning to US forces, stating “their coffins are a part of their equipment”.

“Today, the Americans and their mercenaries have realised to the very core of their being that their coffins are part of their equipment in the region,” Abdollahi says, according to the Fars news agency.