Iran: US airstrike one month on – two dead on Larak Island. Trump: ‘We will hit them hard’

Two people were killed and several others were injured in the US attack that took place overnight on the island of Larak. This was reported by the state news agency IRNA, citing the governor of Qeshm.

At the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Kyrgyzstan, “it is only natural that, first and foremost”, Iran will seek to “secure recognition of the people’s rights in relation to the war and the recent clashes”: this was stated by Tehran’s Foreign Minister , as quoted by Tasnim. “In any case, the region is unstable and the SCO member states must also be informed about this issue and must adopt appropriate and united positions to address it,” Araghchi added.

The European Union welcomes efforts aimed at pressuring Iran to put an end to its destabilising activities and to enter into peace negotiations in good faith, including through further economic pressure, including the US-led operation “Economic Outcast”. This is stated in a declaration issued on the occasion of the meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors in Asheville, in the United States.

Saudi Arabia has begun preliminary talks to raise at least $8 billion through a new loan, stepping up efforts to diversify its sources of funding in the face of the economic fallout from the conflict with Iran. This is according to Bloomberg, which adds that the Saudi Arabian Public Debt Management Centre has begun sounding out banks regarding a possible transaction. The state-owned oil giant Saudi Aramco is also reportedly holding similar discussions with banks. Both potential transactions are at an early stage and may not materialise, Bloomberg adds.

Israeli artillery strikes have hit Houla, in southern Lebanon. This was reported by the Lebanese news agency NNA, following reports of artillery attacks – also attributed to Israel – which targeted the areas of Mansouri and Buyout Al-Sayyad from last night until the early hours of this morning.

“Iran has intercepted a cargo ship and referred the case to the judicial authorities, following the publication of images showing it discharging waste oil into the sea in the Strait of Hormuz ”, said Esmaeil, deputy head of the Port and Maritime Department of Hormozgan Province. “It was a dry bulk carrier transporting sugar which had discharged a mixture of used oil, bilge water and industrial sludge directly into the sea,” he told the IRNA news agency, adding that teams of Iranian experts had carried out a clean-up of the area.

“The Americans’ claim that last night’s attack was intended to prevent Iran from laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz – and that they succeeded – is pure fantasy and pure fiction.” A military source told the Tasnim news agency, adding: “Last night’s clash had nothing to do with the laying of mines.” “On the one hand, the Americans claim to have neutralised all the mines; on the other, they claim to have prevented new mines from being laid. Now the question is: exactly how were the oil tankers responsible for striking the mines punished? The vessels in question were punished and their bases in the region were hit by Iranian projectiles,” he emphasised.

Natural gas prices in Europe have soared after the United States and Iran resumed trading barbs, threatening to prolong disruptions to maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Benchmark futures (TTF) have risen by 5.7 per cent to over 70 euros per megawatt-hour. Liquefied natural gas flows from the Persian Gulf have effectively come to a standstill over the past two months, and Europe is under pressure to replenish its unusually low gas stocks ahead of the start of the heating season in October. Gas prices in Europe are expected to end August with a rise of over 15 per cent.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has strongly condemned the attack carried out by Iran using a drone intercepted over its territorial waters, describing it as a “dangerous escalation”. In a statement released on X, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed “firm condemnation of the hostile Iranian attack against the country, which involved a drone intercepted by air defence systems over the UAE’s territorial waters”, adding that the United Arab Emirates reserves the “full and legitimate right to respond”.

Anwar Gargash, a presidential adviser to the United Arab Emirates, has stated that the Middle East region needs “realistic and sustainable” political solutions, which must begin with de-escalation and the restoration of shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Gargash said that the approach must go “beyond” the Memorandum of Understanding, which he claimed “has failed to outline a practical and acceptable roadmap”. The statement, reported by Al Jazeera, comes just hours after Iran claimed to have targeted the United Arab Emirates, allegations which Abu Dhabi has rejected.

JORDAN VALLEY – The man who sets bones arrives on the scorching plain like a mirage. His slender silhouette seems to split in two against the ochre landscape of the Jordan Valley. Harry gets out of the car. Yousef’s eldest son already knows what to do: he opens the boot and carries an aluminium case bigger than himself over to three small trees. Under the only shade available, Harry sets up the treatment table, whilst the children watch curiously. He touches Yousef’s spine, listens to it, then helps him lie down and begins with a wooden instrument of his own making. He has been an osteopath all his life. Now he is retired. He still carries on practising.

‘To defend the rights of Palestinians, we must ensure they are able to work. Without a functioning body, they would be lost. That’s what I do. I get them back on their feet,” says Harald Finkbeiner, 68, an Israeli citizen. “Here in Kirbet Makhoul, as in the other villages, everyone knows me as Harry.”

The Iranian President, Masoud Pezeshkian, has arrived in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan, for the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).

On the sidelines, according to the official Iranian news agency IRNA, bilateral meetings are scheduled with the prime ministers of India and Pakistan and with the presidents of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. A meeting is also expected between Pezeshkian and the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin.

“I stand with the Givati fighters who have insisted on their right and duty to serve in the IDF whilst upholding their values and faith. I had hoped that the IDF would see reason and make my intervention unnecessary, but since that has not happened, as leader of ‘Religious Zionism’ I cannot stand idly by and I will demand answers from the army on this matter”. This was stated in a post on X by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the far-right ‘Religious Zionism’ party.

Smotrich is referring to the army’s decision yesterday to punish 16 religious soldiers – who last week refused to board an armoured vehicle because of the presence of a female soldier, a paramedic – with detention and other disciplinary measures.

Israel and Greece have signed a €3 billion agreement, under which the Jewish state will supply Athens with a multi-layered air defence system. The Times of Israel reports the news. The agreement, dubbed ‘Achilles’ Shield’, provides for the export by Israel of several systems, including David’s Sling and Spyder, manufactured by Rafael, and Barak MX, manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries, according to a statement from the Israeli Ministry of Defence. The ministry states that this is the “largest defence export deal in the history of relations between Israel and Greece and one of the largest in the history of the State of Israel”. It also marks the first time that Israel will supply another country with a “comprehensive defence system against a wide range of threats”, including ballistic missiles and drones. The agreement was signed today in Tel Aviv.

Five years on from the chaotic end of the war in Afghanistan, the longest conflict in American history may offer a lesson to the United States as it grapples with the war in Iran: starting a war is often easier than managing to end it. This is the analysis put forward by the New York Times, which argues that the reasons that led three US presidents to postpone withdrawal from Afghanistan – the fear of losing international credibility, a sense of responsibility towards local allies, and the desire not to undermine the sacrifice of fallen soldiers – risk resurfacing today. Washington, the newspaper points out, continues to fight in Iran despite the prospects of a military victory appearing increasingly remote. At the start of the war, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, a veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, had assured that the new conflict would be different: ‘This is not Iraq. This is not an endless war,’ he had declared, promising a ‘targeted’, swift and ‘decisive’ campaign. However, Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the limitations of the American strikes have gradually altered Washington’s strategy. The Trump administration is now relying on a naval blockade of Iranian exports and economic sanctions to achieve the results that the air strikes have failed to deliver. The timeframe has also changed: when asked how long the Navy could sustain the blockade, Hegseth replied that the United States could maintain it “for as long as necessary, indefinitely”. The parallel with Afghanistan, the NYT observes, lies above all in the asymmetry of what is at stake: back then, the Taliban were fighting for their very survival and could simply wait for the United States to lose the will to continue; today, similarly, for the Iranian leadership the conflict is a matter of survival, whilst for Washington the costs of a possible withdrawal would be far more limited. The United States would probably have the military capability to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz, but such an operation might require a ground intervention and entail human and economic costs that neither Trump nor a public opinion largely opposed to war seems willing to bear.

“The Democrats want our country to lose the war against Iran, which won’t happen because we are winning decisively and without difficulty.” This was stated by US President Donald Trump in an interview with Fox News. “When the time comes,” he continued, “either we will win or they will do something. I’m happy to win. I don’t need a signature on a piece of paper.”

Oil operations on the Iranian island of Kharg have not been halted and the situation at the country’s main crude oil export hub is “calm”. This was stated by Hamid Bovard, managing director of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), refuting claims made by US President Donald Trump on social media.

“Trump’s posts are laughable, and the situation in Kharg is calm and under control,” said Bovard, as quoted by Nournews.

Following the US air strikes and Iran’s response, French government spokesperson Maud Bregeon has called for “calm” and the “peaceful reopening” of the Strait of Hormuz. Speaking to Bfmtv-Rmc, Bregeon also announced that the French government intends to “continue sector-specific aid” for the purchase of fuel, particularly for businesses facing the greatest difficulties.

The United Arab Emirates’ Ministry of Defence has denied that Al Minhad airbase was hit by missiles, describing reports circulating in the media as “false”. The clarification comes after Iranian sources had claimed responsibility for an attack on US installations at the base. “The Ministry of Defence denies reports that Al Minhad Air Base was hit by missiles and confirms that such information is false,” reads a statement issued by the UAE authorities.

The ministry added that the Armed Forces remain on high alert to respond to any threat and protect the country’s “sovereignty, security and stability”.Shortly before, the same ministry had reported that the UAE Air Force had taken action against a drone spotted in the country’s territorial waters as it approached from Iran.

Iran has attacked US military targets in the Middle East, in response to the first American strikes on its territory in a month. The last US attack on Iran prior to yesterday took place on 29 July, in response to “an attempted surprise attack on US forces” in the region, according to a statement issued at the time by the US military. Tehran’s Revolutionary Guards claimed on that occasion that they had responded to a US attack by striking two US air bases in Jordan with ballistic missiles, causing “serious damage”. The Jordanian army stated that it had intercepted eight missiles. Tehran also claimed to have targeted US military personnel at an airbase in the United Arab Emirates and to have shot down a US drone in the Strait of Hormuz. The flurry of attacks came after the United States announced yesterday that it had struck Iranian rocket launchers on the small island of Larak. Washington stated that its attacks were aimed at preventing Iran from deploying further sea mines in the strait, just days after the US had announced that it had completed the clearance of explosives from the waterway. Although a ceasefire was agreed in April and a memorandum of understanding for a final peace agreement was signed in June, no agreement has yet been reached.

The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defence has announced that the Air Force “responded to the sighting of a drone in the country’s territorial waters, coming from Iran”. In a statement published on X, the Ministry emphasised that the Armed Forces remain on high alert to deal with any potential threat, whilst air defence systems continue to monitor and protect the country’s airspace 24 hours a day. The news comes after the Iranian military claimed to have carried out a drone attack on the US military base at Al Minhad in the United Arab Emirates.

“We are not seeking war, and this is the clear message we have conveyed to the world so far, but we will never stand idly by in the face of any aggression and will deliver a decisive response to the aggressors,” said President Masoud Pezeshkian this morning, as quoted by IRNA, in response to the recent US attack on Iran. “Instability in the region is not in the interests of any country and will pose a challenge for everyone,” he added.

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy stated today in a press release that “a supertanker that had breached regulations caught fire spectacularly after striking two sea mines”.

“Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has claimed that the attacks carried out by US forces to prevent it from laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz constituted an ‘act of aggression’. This claim is completely false.” US Central Command wrote this on its X account, explaining that the attack on the Iranian launchers at Larak was “a limited and precise action against Pasdaran units engaged in laying mines, which posed an imminent threat in the Strait of Hormuz”.

An American official has confirmed to Fox News that Iran is attacking US forces in Jordan, after the latter struck two Iranian missile launchers on the island of Larak. According to the source, no significant impacts have been reported so far and almost all of the incoming missiles have been intercepted.

Iran has fired missiles towards Aqaba and the Muwaffaq Salti base in Jordan, where US military forces are stationed: this is according to Arab sources cited by the Iranian Fars news agency. The same sources, also reported by other Iranian media outlets, spoke of “several explosions” in various parts of Jordan. Fars notes that Tehran had promised a response to the US raid on the island of Larak.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards have stated that the United States “will be punished” for the attack carried out on the island of Larak. This was reported by the semi-official Tasnim news agency. “In an act of aggression”, the United States “attacked the island of Larak, resulting in the martyrdom and injury of some of our fighters and citizens. This action will be punished and will lead to the punishment of the aggressor”, it stated. Tasnim also reports that initial unofficial reports indicate that, following the attack, “so far two people have been killed and two have been injured”.

US forces have attacked two Iranian launchers on the island of Larak. A US official told Axios that the raid was launched after “Pasdaran forces had been observed preparing to fire rockets laden with naval mines towards the Strait of Hormuz”.