Iran: former US Defence Secretary says the war will last another six months

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reiterated Israel’s determination to “see the mission through” to overthrow the Iranian regime, stating that “its end is near”, in a video message in Hebrew released by his office to mark an event during today’s cabinet meeting. This is reported by The Times of Israel. Should Iran “make an error of judgement” and attack Israel, “it would suffer a blow it cannot even imagine”, Netanyahu warned, asserting that the regime “is weak, is fighting for its survival and is faltering”. On Thursday, Netanyahu made similar remarks, stating that Israel’s “primary mission” is to overthrow the Iranian regime, and attributing to the Israeli military operations carried out following the invasion and massacre of 7 October 2023, led by Hamas, with the credit for having curbed Iran’s nuclear and missile threats.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reported to have ordered the dismantling of unauthorised settler outposts in the West Bank, following pressure from the United States on Israel to crack down on settler attacks against Palestinians. This was reported by Haaretz, which specified that the order would apply to outposts established by settlers without authorisation from the Israeli government. It is unclear when this dismantling might begin, the Israeli newspaper notes. Unauthorised outposts generally consist of a small number of settlers living in prefabricated structures, Haaretz points out, noting that in the past the Israeli authorities have dismantled some of these outposts, but have also retroactively legalised others and even allowed them to receive government funding. Settlements in the West Bank, an occupied territory, are illegal under international law.

Un colono israeliano conduce un gregge di pecore in un campo vicino al villaggio palestinese di Al-Mughayyir, in Cisgiordania, il 6 settembre 2026, mentre gli studenti palestinesi del posto tornano a scuola per il nuovo anno accademico. Dall’inizio del 2026, diversi adolescenti palestinesi sono stati uccisi in attacchi che hanno coinvolto coloni israeliani, tra cui episodi di sparatorie avvenuti nei pressi della scuola del villaggio, secondo un rapporto dell’Ufficio delle Nazioni Unite per i diritti umani nei Territori palestinesi occupati (OHCHR oPt). EPA/ALAA BADARNEH

The death toll from Israeli attacks on the south of Lebanon stands at four, with at least 20 people injured. This was reported by the Lebanese Ministry of Health, as quoted by Al-Jazeera. The broadcaster adds that, according to local media reports, the Israeli raids destroyed the Ghandour Hospital in Nabatieh al-Fawqa; it is noted that there were neither staff nor patients inside at the time of the attack.

The war between the United States and Iran, which began six months ago, is set to continue for at least another six months with no resolution in sight. This was stated in an interview with The Guardian by Leon Panetta, former US Secretary of Defence and Director of the CIA under Barack Obama’s administration, who said he believed “it is likely that this war will continue for another six months without being resolved”, given US President Donald Trump’s evident struggle to find a way out of an increasingly contentious conflict. “It is no secret that the United States and Iran are locked in a terrible stalemate, in which there are very few options available to end this war,” Panetta notes. The ongoing conflict is well on the way to becoming “another failed war” in the Middle East, “like Iraq and Afghanistan”, and to go down in history as yet another “forever war” in the region, he says. The newspaper recalls the recent and sudden resignation of the US Army Secretary, Dan Driscoll, who reportedly stepped down in the midst of the conflict following tensions with Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth over a series of dismissals of senior officers. According to the former Pentagon chief, the US military “is going to war at a time of enormous turmoil” within the Pentagon’s chain of command, “which really creates the feeling that there is nobody in charge”.

“There are probably only around 30 million barrels of Iranian crude oil left that China has not yet purchased. So they will run out soon and there will no longer be any problem with Chinese purchases, because they will have no more product to buy.” This was stated by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in an interview with Fox News. Bessent described Operation ‘Economic Outcast’ as “the greatest effort ever undertaken to economically isolate a country”, arguing that Washington intends to “strangle” the Iranian regime. “The blockade is working in a way we have never seen before. Everyone says that sanctions don’t work, but I can assure you that the blockade and sanctions represent one of the most powerful combinations in the history of economic isolation,” he said. As for the Strait of Hormuz, Bessent reiterated that it could lose much of its importance for the oil market within two years, thanks to the development by Gulf oil-producing countries of “alternative routes via pipelines that will no longer require oil to pass through the Strait”.

Il segretario al Tesoro degli Stati Uniti Scott Bessent interviene durante una conferenza stampa, mentre i ministri delle finanze e i governatori delle banche centrali dei paesi del G20 si riuniscono ad Asheville, nella Carolina del Nord (Stati Uniti), il 1° settembre 2026. REUTERS/Sam Wolfe/Foto d'archivio

Whilst the United States and Iran have been trading attacks in recent months, specialised military units have been carrying out delicate and difficult covert underwater operations at night in the Strait of Hormuz to clear the strategic waterway – through which a large proportion of the world’s oil trade passes – of mines. This is reported by the Financial Times in an article citing ‘sources familiar with the operation’. ‘Mainly at night, the US sent Navy SEAL divers, underwater robots and specialised submersibles into the strait for a four-month mine-clearing mission,’ writes the FT. ‘The delicate process of defusing the explosive devices was carried out underwater and in the dark in an attempt to eliminate a crucial factor that was preventing ships from transporting vital cargoes through the strait.’

The Lebanese Ministry of Health has reported the deaths of four people, including two women, in air strikes in the south of the country attributed to Israeli forces following an evacuation order. Meanwhile, Israel has stated that it carried out raids following a drone attack by Hezbollah against its soldiers. The ministry reported that two people were killed in Nabatiyé el-Faouqa and another two (both women) in the nearby town of Arabsalim, adding that a further 20 people were injured in various locations, including women and three children.

A group of people have been arrested after a video, which went viral on social media, showed them waving the flag of the People’s Mujahedin Organisation (PMOI), a banned Iranian dissident and anti-regime group. This was reported by local media on Sunday. According to state television, the videos show these people, riding motorbikes and driving cars, waving the PMOI flag – white with a red emblem in the centre – on the streets near Karaj, west of Tehran. They are accused of having links to the outlawed group. The PMOI’s satellite television channel also broadcast the footage.

Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, held telephone talks late in the evening with his Turkish counterpart, Hakan Fidan, and his Saudi counterpart, Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, according to Al Jazeera, citing the Iranian state broadcaster IRIB. Earlier, the Turkish news agency Anadolu had reported on a telephone call between Fidan and Araghchi. According to IRIB, Araghchi and his two counterparts discussed “bilateral issues, regional developments and the latest diplomatic efforts aimed at establishing stability in the region and eliminating the insecurity imposed on the Strait of Hormuz by the aggressive actions of the United States”.

Israel has announced that it is carrying out a number of raids in southern Lebanon in response to Hezbollah launching two drones at IDF soldiers who were on duty in the Security Zone. The soldiers returned fire, destroying one of the two drones. In a statement released on Telegram, the IDF reported no casualties. ‘This,’ the statement reads, ‘is a blatant violation by the terrorist organisation Hezbollah. IDF soldiers,’ the statement concludes, ‘will continue to operate in the Security Zone with the aim of eliminating any threat to Israeli civilians and military personnel.’

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards have announced that they have attacked a US naval drone that was attempting to enter the Strait of Hormuz. ‘The heroic naval forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,’ reads a statement broadcast on the state television channel IRIB, ‘have attacked an American military drone that was attempting to enter the restricted area of the Strait of Hormuz’. Yesterday’s retaliation against three oil tankers linked to the US, in retaliation for earlier American attacks on Iranian oil tankers.