War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

Iran’s FM Abbas Araghchi has held a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov.

The two ministers discussed and consulted on the latest regional and international developments, Iran’s state media IRIB reports.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it’s moving to “nip in the bud” separatist and opposition groups it accuses of trying to infiltrate the country’s northwest, casting recent military operations there as a pre-emptive strike against US-backed unrest, Al Jazeera reports.

IRGC spokesperson Brigadier-General Hossein Mohebbi said Tehran is alert to what he called an “enemy plan” to reorganise anti-government factions, including the exiled Mojahden-e-Khalq, to reignite deadly protests that swept Iran in December and January.

“What we are doing in the northwest is to nip them in the bud before they enter,” Mohebbi told the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

He said the IRGC’s focus on the Strait of Hormuz, where it has been locked in a confrontation with the United States, had not left it blind to other threats.

Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency has published a list of 11 US drones that it says were shot down by Iranian-made air defences in July alone.

• July 8: An MQ-9 drone was shot down in the skies of Khormoj, Bushehr province.
• July 12: A cruise missile was shot down in the skies over Jahrom
• July 15: A Lucas drone was shot down in the skies over Lar
• July 16: An MQ-9 drone was shot down in the south of the country
• July 17: An MQ-9 drone was shot down in the skies over Andimeshk
• July 18: An MQ-9 drone was shot down in the skies over Asaluyeh
• July 19: An MQ-9 drone was shot down in the skies of Ahvaz, an MQ-9 drone was shot down in the skies of Asaluyeh, and a spy drone was shot down by the 48th Fateh Brigade
• July 20: An MQ-9 drone was shot down in the skies over Kermanshah, and a missile was shot down in Rudbar-e Janoub

US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz says that talks between Washington and Tehran are “happening at every level”.

Speaking to NBC News, he said, “What we are constantly seeing though, is on the Iranian regime’s side, they are divided; there is internal fighting…“

Pope Leo XIV has renewed his appeal for peace in the Middle East, warning that intensified military operations are again unleashing destruction and endangering lives.

Reciprocal US-Iranian attacks on civilian infrastructure are worsening shortages of water and electricity, said the Catholic pontiff in an X post.

He urged all parties to halt strikes and urgently return to dialogue and diplomacy to secure lasting peace for the region.

Yemen’s Prime Minister Shaeed Mohsen al-Zandani says the Houthi militia’s continued targeting of commercial vessels and threats to Red Sea security demonstrate it’s executing an Iranian agenda, Al Jazeera reports.

In a post on X, al-Zandani said the attacks jeopardise freedom of navigation, disrupt global supply chains and trade, and undermine UN regional and international peace efforts.

“The protection of freedom of navigation and maritime security is a collective responsibility,” the prime minister said, calling on the international community to take a firmer stance to deter Houthi behaviour and dry up its sources of support.

Al-Zandani also stressed that his government will continue close coordination with the Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen’s “legitimate government”.

US Congressman Ryan Zinke, who is currently visiting Pakistan, says that “President Trump, the Field Marshal Asim Munir and the Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif are working together,” adding that he sees “enormous opportunity”.

Speaking to Pakistan TV, Zinke said there was “still scope for diplomacy with Iran,” stressing that Tehran must meet key conditions including abandoning nuclear weapons ambitions and keeping the Strait of Hormuz open.

The Lebanese army has said that Israeli forces are continuing their attacks in southern Lebanon, violating international law, Al Jazeera reports.

It said in a statement that Israel has destroyed or demolished more homes in areas of southern Lebanon it occupies.

Shelling and gunfire have been reported in the villages of Kfar Tebnit around Nabatieh, Haddatha and Konin near Bint Jbeil, as well as Nab’a Ibl al-Saqi, al-Mansouri, Bayt al-Sayyad and Majdal Zoun, surrounding Tyre.

It also reported Israeli forces burning olive groves and blowing up the Litani River Authority project in Markaba.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered the accelerated reconstruction and rebuilding of strategic infrastructure, such as rail networks and international transit corridors, after US attacks on the country, Al Jazeera reports, citing Iran’s Mehr News Agency.

Pezeshkian was briefed on the damage during a visit to the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development.

He highlighted infrastructure links with neighbouring countries as strategic priorities.

“The completion and connection of rail networks with neighbours could play an effective role in boosting economic resilience, developing international transit corridors and maximising Iran’s geopolitical capacities,” Pezeshkian said.

An oil tanker exploded in the Strait of Hormuz after colliding with a naval mine, Reuters reports, citing Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.

Tasnim said the tanker struck the mine after leaving the route designated by Iran in the strategic waterway.

There was no immediate official statement from Iranian authorities regarding the incident.

The US ambassador to the United Nations has told Fox News that President Donald Trump has paused attacks on Iran to allow more room for diplomacy, Reuters reports.

“He’s giving talks some space, he’s giving it a little bit of room,” Mike Waltz told the broadcaster.

Waltz did not provide further detail on the nature of the talks, but there has been a weekend lull in the fighting between Iran and the United States.

The Pentagon paused bombing operations after 13 nights of escalating strikes and there were no weekend reports of attacks by Iran on its neighbours.

The Bahrain Grand Prix, which was cancelled in April due to the Middle East war, will be held in Malaysia in early October, Formula One organisers have announced, AFP reports.

“Formula 1 and the FIA can confirm that Malaysia will host the… Bahrain Grand Prix at the Sepang International Circuit from October 2-4 2026,” F1 and motorsport’s world governing body said in a statement.

The original F1 calendar featured 24 races but those in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were cancelled because of the war. Upcoming events in neighbouring Qatar and Abu Dhabi also remain in doubt.

Sepang circuit, to the south of Kuala Lumpur, returns to the calendar for the first time since 2017 to host what will be called the “Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia”.

“This is fantastic news for our fans. They will continue to enjoy a full and exciting Formula 1 calendar, while also seeing the sport return to a great venue,” said Formula One chief executive Stefano Domenicali.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) says it has received a report of an “incident” in the southern Red Sea, Al Jazeera reports.

“It has been reported to UKMTO that a tanker witnessed a splash from an unknown projectile in close proximity to the vessel,” it said in a statement, adding that the vessel and crew were reported to be safe.

“Environmental impact is unconfirmed at present. Vessels are advised to transit with caution and report any suspicious activity to UKMTO while authorities continue to investigate,” it said.

Iranian parliament’s deputy speaker Ali Nikzad has declared that Ukraine’s “reckless” move of allegedly attacking an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea will not be left without a response, IRNA reports.

He emphasised that Iran will consistently uphold its lawful right to safeguard its territorial sovereignty, and that any location from which an attack on Iranian territory originates will be considered a legitimate military target.

Houthi rebels claim they downed a Saudi drone over the northwest of Yemen, a day after the Yemeni group claimed it attacked oil facilities in the Gulf kingdom, reports AFP.

The Houthi’s military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group “successfully shot down a Turkish-made … armed reconnaissance drone belonging to the Saudi enemy while it was conducting hostile operations”.

Lebanon’s army has condemned ongoing Israeli military activities in the country’s south that it says are preventing its full deployment under a framework deal reached with Israel last month, reports AFP.

“Israeli occupation forces continue their attacks and violations of current understandings and of international laws through the systematic destruction and bulldozing of homes, bombardment and sweeps with automatic weapons in several southern areas,” an army statement said, adding that “the continuation of these attacks obstructs the army’s full deployment according to current agreements and prevents the return of residents to their villages and towns”.

Iran has said it has halted retaliatory attacks in the region after the United States stopped its strikes on the country for the past two nights, reports AFP.

“These attacks continued until two nights ago, but over the past two nights the Americans have stopped their attacks,” said army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia. “Since … our strategy has essentially been retaliatory, we have also halted our retaliatory operations. “

Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Akraminia says Tehran “took action to assert its rights” over the Strait of Hormuz after the “US violated its commitments and tried to create a fake and illegal route in the Strait of Hormuz” against the MoU signed in June, Al Jazeera reports.

“In these operations, the Islamic Republic of Iran’s army placed US bases in Jordan, Kuwait and Bahrain — which are considered among the most important bases of this country in the region — at the centre of its operations,” he said in remarks quoted by the Tasnim news agency.

Qatar’s transport ministry has announced that maritime navigation activities are now resuming.

“Maritime navigation activities can now resume fully for all types of maritime vessels and ships,” the ministry posted on X.

It once again urged all parties to abide by maritime regulations and instructions to ensure the “highest levels of safety and security for all trips”.

The Abdali border crossing between Kuwait and Iraq has reopened, Iraq’s state news agency has reported according to Al Jazeera.

The main land border between the two countries was temporarily closed after an unspecified drone attack last Thursday. The Kuwaiti army reported “material damages” after the strike.

The Abdali border crossing is located in the northern Al-Jahra province in Kuwait.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has fired warning shots at six ships over the past 24 hours as they tried to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, Al Jazeera reports.

Iran’s state television reported that the ships were stopped from continuing their journey, as the path they were taking was reportedly “outside the designated route” set by Tehran.

A day earlier, four ships trying to pass through the Strait of Hormuz were also halted by the IRGC for “unauthorised passage”.

The differences over what route ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz can take have been a key point of contention between the US and Iran, leading to the most recent conflict in the region.

Iran’s army has warned that the Middle East war would widen if the United States chooses to press ahead with attacks on the Islamic republic, reports AFP.

“I believe that if the Americans once again fall for the Zionists’ deception, or move in line with them, and insist on continuing the war, particularly through air strikes, geographically this will expand further,” army spokesman Mohammad Akraminia told state television.

He said the war had already expanded to the Bab el-Mandab Strait at the entrance of the Red Sea, referencing the recent military flare-up between Yemen’s Houthi rebels and Saudi Arabia.

“The scope of our operations now encompasses the entire region, from US bases in Jordan to the countries along the Persian Gulf,” he said.

Akraminia said the situation in the Middle East for the United States is “difficult and unsettled,” predicting that Washington was now looking “for a new strategy.”

“We are prepared for each of the options and scenarios that appear likely,” he added.