Latest war news. UAE ships hit in the Strait of Hormuz. Bessent: ‘Unprecedented measures against Iran to be taken soon’

“Washington’s logic is incomprehensible. On the one hand, it calls for freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz; on the other, it was the US aggression against Iran that compromised it in the first place. Now Washington claims it can remedy the consequences of its own strategic error by continuing the war. Something is wrong.” This was written on X by Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s permanent representative to international organisations in Vienna.

“I wholeheartedly support the proposal put forward by the philosopher Eugenio Mazzarella and other prominent figures to award the Nobel Peace Prize to the children of Gaza. In Gaza, many children have lost their lives. Those who have survived bear the scars of barbarism. Their dreams have vanished. All that remains are nightmares: hunger, thirst, fear. They have lost brothers, sisters, parents and friends. Many are wounded or maimed. They no longer have a home. They no longer have a school. They do not even have the chance to take comfort in the hypocritical distinctions made by adults: just wars, legitimate wars, strategic wars, collateral damage, reprisals. They know only horror, in its raw and unvarnished form. “They, who have known no peace, deserve the Nobel Peace Prize.” This was announced on Facebook by M5S leader Giuseppe Conte.

“This proposal,” continues Conte, “has been relaunched by the daily newspaper *Avvenire*, which, having set up a dedicated email address (petizione.gaza@avvenire.it), is receiving thousands of expressions of support. “We are currently working with Professor Mazzarella to prepare a detailed report and submit the formal nomination through the official channels of the Nobel Prize Committee. Members of parliament and university professors are eligible to do so.”

One letter too many in the on-screen caption on Iranian state television turned Abbas Araghchi into the “Minister of the Kharigiti”, the sect that abandoned the first Imam of Shia Islam and killed him, and many Iranians have interpreted the incident as yet another attack by the broadcaster on the man tasked with negotiating with Washington. The story is reported by Iran International. The occasion was the signing of an agreement between two ministries, with footage showing Araghchi alongside Health Minister Mohammad-Reza Zafarghandi. The on-screen caption announced the agreement between the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of ‘khavarejeh’ (Kharigiti affairs) rather than ‘kharejeh’ (foreign affairs). Within a few hours, the caption had become a national issue: for many, it represents an escalation of accusations against the Foreign Minister, even amounting to heresy. The reformist daily Etemad asked: “Mistake or deliberate act?”

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards have stated that they shot down an MQ-9 drone over the southern Iranian province of Hormozgan, using a new air defence system. This was reported by Iran International.

The United States is insisting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly condemn the siege imposed by extremist settlers on the Palestinian village of Qusra: this is according to the Times of Israel, citing government sources in both countries.

The siege has already sparked public criticism in the United States: the US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee – although a staunch supporter of Jewish settlements in the West Bank – yesterday condemned the settlers who were besieging a Palestinian home, describing them as ‘Israeli terrorists’.

According to sources, Washington began to protest after learning that the home of a Palestinian-American was among those under siege; Netanyahu has not yet commented publicly on the events in Qusra.

Il primo ministro israeliano Benjamin Netanyahu tiene una conferenza stampa a Gerusalemme, il 15 giugno 2026, a seguito dell'accordo tra Stati Uniti e Iran. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun/Pool/Foto d'archivio

‘Three main issues’ continue to stand in the way of an agreement on the rules governing navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, despite ongoing talks and Pakistan’s mediation between Tehran and Washington. This is reported by the Kuwaiti daily Al-Jarida, citing a source at the Iranian Foreign Ministry. According to the source, “the first sticking point concerns the sequence of steps to be taken. The United States is demanding that Tehran be the first to announce the reopening of the Strait; only then would Washington be prepared to lift the naval blockade imposed on Iran and unfreeze a portion of Iran’s frozen assets”. ‘The second critical point,’ writes Al-Jarida, ‘is Tehran’s demand for the lifting of US sanctions. The third point, however, concerns the truce: Iran is calling for a permanent ceasefire, whilst Washington prefers to extend the current one, which is due to expire next week.”

The same source, the Kuwaiti newspaper points out, also reported that Tehran had informed the Pakistani mediator of the existence of a temporary agreement with Oman to regulate shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. The agreement is reportedly already in place, but will not be announced until Washington has lifted the blockade on Iranian ports and unfrozen some of the frozen assets. According to the Iranian source, the agreement between Iran and Oman provides for ‘the opening of two shipping lanes in the Strait: ships would enter the Gulf via the lane closest to the Iranian side and exit via the one closest to the Omani side’. The agreement also provides for ‘the creation of a joint Iranian-Omani body responsible for managing the Strait and issuing transit permits, free of charge’ but, the source emphasises, ‘optional charges could, however, be applied for additional services, such as environmental protection and navigational assistance during transit’.

France has called on Israel to arrest and bring to trial the settlers who are besieging homes in the village of Qusra, in the West Bank, and to protect the Palestinian civilian population, as it is “obliged to do under international law”. “France condemns in the strongest possible terms the occupation by Israeli settlers of several Palestinian homes in the village of Al Qusra in the West Bank, as well as the violence perpetrated against Palestinian civilians. It calls on the Israeli authorities to arrest and prosecute those responsible”, the French Foreign Ministry stated in a press release.

Palestinian Vice-President Hussein al-Sheikh has condemned the order issued by Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz to prepare for the transfer of public order functions in the West Bank from the army to the Israeli police. “This move constitutes a flagrant violation of international law, of internationally recognised resolutions and signed agreements, as well as a further attempt to impose Israeli law and sovereignty over the occupied West Bank,” al-Sheikh said.

The Vice-President added that Israeli settlements in the West Bank are illegal and called on the United Nations Security Council to put a stop to what he described as Israel’s unilateral actions. In a statement, the Israeli Ministry of Defence said that the police would set up a force dedicated to managing civil affairs in the West Bank and would be given the necessary authority and funding to carry out this task. “The army’s role is to combat Palestinian terrorism… and not to hunt down young people living in the hills,” said Katz.

Israeli warplanes and drones carried out attacks at intervals, targeting the al Mashaa neighbourhood and agricultural areas on the outskirts of the village of al Mansouri, in the Tyre district of southern Lebanon.

The attacks were accompanied by other offensive operations in the town of al Mansouri, south-east of Tyre, according to the Lebanese National News Agency.

Magda, one of the five young Italian activists who witnessed first-hand the siege by Israeli settlers of the Palestinian family in Qusra, south of Nablus, tells ANSA that early this morning a small group of Jewish extremists returned to the courtyard of the house and re-erected the tent that had been dismantled in recent days by the Israeli security forces.

“Then four soldiers arrived, spoke to the settlers and gave them time to leave. Afterwards, more soldiers arrived and took down the tent,” he explains. “In the morning, around 50 Israeli activists arrived; they were carrying a Palestinian flag and had brought food, but they were then turned away by the soldiers because the area had been declared a military zone.”

**Mo: Sources say Italian activists removed by the IDF in the West Bank are safe**

Rome, 14 August (Adnkronos) – The Italian activists who were in the Palestinian village of Qusra, south of Nablus in the West Bank, and who were removed by the Israeli army, are reportedly safe and are now in a nearby village. The activists had been ordered to leave by the IDF, the Israeli Defence Forces. The mayor of Qusra, Abdul-Azim Wadi, in a statement reported by the Palestinian news agency Wafa, had previously explained that the Israeli army had “forcibly expelled the Italian activists who had managed to reach the houses a few days earlier, following attacks by settlers and the encirclement of the area”.

The mayor of Qusra, Abdul-Azim Wadi, announced in a statement reported by the Palestinian news agency Wafa that “the occupying forces forcibly expelled the Italian solidarity activists who had managed to reach the houses a few days earlier, following attacks by settlers and the encirclement of the area”. The mayor accused the Israeli army of having “prevented the activists from reaching the three besieged homes, whilst gangs of settlers continued to besiege the families, preventing access and the delivery of aid and essential supplies”. “The gangs of settlers,” the mayor reported, “began besieging the homes at the start of the week, blocking the access roads with stones, erecting a tent nearby, preventing family members from entering or leaving, and cutting off the water and electricity supplies.”

‘We’ve been with the Palestinian family under siege by settlers in Qusra since the very first day – it was a Sunday. We’d gone there to assess the situation and try to understand what was happening, then the extremists arrived and pitched their tent in the villa’s courtyard. We stayed with the family. This morning, the Israeli border police evacuated us.” Magda (a pseudonym for security reasons) told ANSA this story. She is a young Italian woman who, along with four other Italians – one young man and three other young women – personally experienced, for six days, the ordeal of Qusay Abu Ridi’s family, trapped by the encirclement of Jewish anarchists. “We are now staying with Palestinian friends in the village of Qusra; there are no settlers around here. It’s an emotionally significant experience; we feel sorry for the besieged family,” says Magda, recalling that the two young girls were evacuated in recent days by an ambulance that also brought food and water. At the moment, four men and two women remain in the building, she adds.

The five Italians in the village of Qusra, who were in one of the Palestinian homes surrounded by Israeli settlers, are now reportedly in a Palestinian home that is not under siege. This is according to informed sources.

Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, has reiterated that the implementation of the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding is “the only way forward” for addressing regional issues. During a meeting in Islamabad with US Chargé d’Affaires Natalie Baker, Dar emphasised the importance of dialogue and diplomacy in achieving lasting peace. According to a statement, the talks focused on bilateral cooperation between Pakistan and the United States and recent developments in the region. Dar also expressed appreciation for the “positive trend” in relations between Islamabad and Washington. Baker, the statement reports, acknowledged Pakistan’s constructive role in promoting regional peace and stability.

According to the latest figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 900 attacks on healthcare facilities have been reported worldwide since the start of 2026. “Between January and August 2026 alone, the WHO recorded 914 attacks, resulting in 911 deaths and 1,486 injuries – that is, more than four attacks a day,” said Altaf Musani, Director of Humanitarian Aid and Disaster Management at the WHO, speaking in Geneva today.

“At present,” he added, “Ukraine, Lebanon and the Occupied Palestinian Territories account for the majority of incidents, but attacks have also occurred in other contexts such as Myanmar, Iran, Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Sudan, Russia, Syria and Nigeria. “Through the Surveillance System on Attacks on Health Facilities, more than 10,400 incidents have been reported in 29 countries and territories since 2018, resulting in approximately 5,700 deaths and 8,500 injuries,” explained Musani.

Iran has given its ‘general approval’ to the principles of a strategic plan for the management of the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf. This was reported by Valiullah Bayati, spokesperson for the Parliamentary Committee on Internal Affairs and Councils, as quoted by the Iranian news agency Tasnim, according to Al Jazeera.

“The strategic plan to ensure the security and development of the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf was examined by the Commission and, after hearing the various views, its general framework was approved,” said Bayati. Among the measures set out in the plan is a ban on the transit through the Strait of Hormuz of ships and vessels owned by the United States, Israel and other countries considered ‘hostile’ by Iran. “These countries have used the Strait of Hormuz to carry out hostile actions against our country and have committed unjust and aggressive acts against the Iranian people,” said Bayati. The plan will now have to follow the procedure laid down by the Iranian authorities.

The Israeli armed forces have withdrawn from most of the homes in the Palestinian village of Qusra, south of Nablus in the West Bank, where they had entered as part of an operation aimed at evacuating a number of settler outposts that had sprung up in the area. The news was reported by villagers to the Times of Israel and comes after days of tensions that have attracted the attention of the international community.

According to eyewitness accounts gathered at the scene, IDF soldiers had entered the homes yesterday morning. Several hours later, however, the Israeli army changed its approach, announcing that troops would not remain inside occupied homes. By the evening, the military had therefore vacated almost all the homes they had occupied during the operation.

A small group of Israeli activists arrived in the area of the besieged homes in the Palestinian village of Qusra, in the West Bank, bringing food which they left several metres from the entrances to the homes. However, Qusay Abu Ridi, a resident of one of the besieged homes, reported that the border police prevented the activists from entering and delivering the food. This was reported by the Times of Israel. In the hours leading up to this, extremist settlers returned to Qusra and re-erected the tent that had previously been set up. Subsequently, an IDF spokesperson said, the tent was dismantled once again.

Sources at the Farnesina confirm that there are also five Italians in the Palestinian village of Qusra, south of Nablus in the West Bank, which is under siege by Israeli settlers. They are reportedly inside isolated homes. There are eleven people in total, including the five Italians, aged between 20 and 40. They are believed to be four women and one man. The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through its Crisis Unit and in liaison with the consulate in Jerusalem and the embassy in Tel Aviv, is monitoring the situation.

The United Arab Emirates has ‘strongly’ condemned Iran’s hostile attack on two vessels affiliated with ADNOC, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, whilst they were passing through the Strait of Hormuz. In a statement, the Foreign Ministry emphasised that “this constitutes a flagrant violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2817”.

“Targeting commercial maritime traffic and using the Strait of Hormuz as a tool for economic coercion or blackmail constitutes an act of piracy by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps,” the statement adds, “and poses a direct threat to the stability of the region, its peoples and global energy security”.

The United Arab Emirates has accused Iran of attacking two vessels linked to the state-owned oil company Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) whilst they were passing through the Strait of Hormuz. The UAE’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has condemned what it described as a “hostile Iranian attack” on the two vessels, stating that no injuries were reported. ADNOC confirmed that “two of its vessels were attacked whilst transiting” the strait and reported that the situation had been “brought under control”, according to the official UAE news agency WAM. No further details were provided regarding the nature of the attack or the extent of any damage to the vessels.

Human Rights Watch has called on the United Nations Security Council to ensure that an international force remains in southern Lebanon, with the aim of protecting civilians and deterring abuses by the Israeli army and Hezbollah.

In August 2025, the United Nations Security Council had decided to extend UNIFIL’s mandate for one final time until the end of 2026, when its phased withdrawal was due to begin. According to HRW, that decision preceded the latest escalation between Israel and Hezbollah and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of civilians.

Jared Kushner, son-in-law and negotiator to US President Donald Trump, is to travel to the Middle East next week in an attempt to revive the plan to end the war in Gaza, after the agreement recently announced by the US administration met with opposition from Israel.

According to a spokesperson for the Board of Peace – the body set up by Trump to oversee the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas – Kushner, the Board’s senior representative Nickolay Mladenov and the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair are due to arrive in Israel on Sunday. The delegation will then travel to Cairo, where meetings have been taking place for months involving a Palestinian technocratic group set to take control of Gaza as part of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement. The visit, the source explained, is intended to demonstrate the commitment of Trump and the Board of Peace to bringing about ‘peace, prosperity and sustainable security’ in a demilitarised Gaza, where Hamas has relinquished control to allow for the reconstruction of the devastated territory. However, the plan has met with rare public opposition from Israel.

Defence Minister Israel Katz has ordered the IDF to draw up a plan to transfer all law enforcement powers relating to civil matters in the settlements and amongst the Israeli population in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank) to the Israeli police. This was announced by the minister’s office.

“The IDF’s task is to combat Palestinian terrorism and to focus on defending the borders and settlements against threats. Full responsibility for enforcing civil regulations and maintaining law and order will be transferred to the police,” said Katz, who yesterday held a meeting on the situation in the West Bank with the Chief of the General Staff, the Head of Operations, the Head of Military Intelligence and other commanders.

The US Central Command (Centcom) has announced the launch of the first multinational, multi-domain task force of attack drones. The unit, named Task Force Falcon Strike, will deploy one-way attack drones – that is, unmanned systems operating in the air, on the surface and underwater – operated by US military support personnel and regional partners. The launch of Falcon Strike comes nine months after Centcom established Task Force Scorpion Strike: the first US military squadron dedicated to attack drones in the Middle East. According to a statement, Scorpion Strike has achieved key operational milestones, including the first-ever launch of an aerial attack drone from a US Navy warship, which took place last December.

The squadron also deployed unmanned aerial systems during Operation Epic Fury and, in July, carried out attacks on Iranian port facilities using unmanned attack craft. “Task Force Falcon Strike will build on the achievements of Scorpion Strike, in light of the extraordinary innovation taking place amongst our regional allies and partners,” commented Admiral Brad Cooper, head of Centcom. Personnel from US Central Command’s Special Operations Command – the unit that launched Scorpion Strike – will lead the Falcon Strike team, comprising US and regional representatives.

Israeli forces continued their bombing and destruction operations overnight in various locations in southern Lebanon, according to the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA). Around midnight, according to the agency, Israeli forces caused a powerful explosion in the Mashaa al-Mansouri area , after dropping explosive devices. Machine-gun fire was also reported on the outskirts of Majdal Zoun and al-Mansouri and in the surrounding valleys. A series of powerful explosions was also heard in the towns of Beit Yahoun, Haddatha and Qounine, with the blasts felt as far away as the coastal villages. Israeli fighter jets and drones also continued to fly over the area. The explosions coincided with movements of Israeli tanks and an advance towards Haddatha, in the district of Bint Jbeil, the NNA added.

War in the Middle East – 14 August 2026

For five nights, Israeli settlers surrounded three Palestinian homes on the outskirts of a town in the occupied West Bank, preventing the families from leaving safely whilst their food and water supplies gradually ran out.

Qusai Abu Rida was forced to barricade himself inside his home with his teenage son after settlers had cut off the water and electricity. The two were forced to drink well water whilst dozens of Israeli settlers pitched tents outside the house. His brother, who lives in Ohio and owns the house, was following developments via the security cameras and asking for updates.

“Over the past 48 hours, several media outlets have reported a series of false stories regarding the deployment of the USS Abraham Lincoln to the Middle East. According to one report, seven sailors are said to have died in a brawl on board the aircraft carrier, whilst other sources have recently suggested an increase in suicidal thoughts. These reports are false.” This was posted on social media by the US Central Command (Centcom) after several Iranian media outlets reported in recent days that seven American sailors had been killed and many others injured in a violent clash aboard the Abraham Lincoln, the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier that has been engaged in the conflict with Iran for months.

According to Iranian media, this report is linked to latent discontent amongst a crew that has been put under severe strain by one of the longest continuous deployments of an aircraft carrier in modern American naval history. However, this account has now been denied on social media by Centcom, which emphasises that “the widespread circulation of false reports regarding the historic deployment of the Abraham Lincoln is a disservice to our men and women in uniform and their loved ones”.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has threatened to subject Iran to economic isolation “the likes of which the world has never seen before”, adding that new measures are due to be introduced from next week.

“It will be a combination of economic isolation, the likes of which the world has never seen before,” Bessent said on the programme “Rob Schmitt Tonight” on the conservative television channel Newsmax, adding that “the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz... will prevent anything from entering or leaving Iranian ports”.