War, latest news. Iran, Pasdaran: ‘We have seized a US underwater drone in the Strait of Hormuz’

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards claim to have seized a US submarine in the Strait of Hormuz.

The United States has imposed sanctions on “all remaining Iranian airlines” not yet affected by US restrictions, stepping up economic pressure on Tehran. The Treasury Department has announced measures against 36 entities accused of supporting the Iranian aviation sector, which “the regime uses to transfer weapons, personnel and illicit cargo”: these include 27 Iranian airlines and companies based in, amongst other countries, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Malaysia and Kazakhstan. “In essence, we are cutting off the entire aviation sector of the Iranian economy from the market,” a Treasury official told reporters. “With Operation Economic Outcast, we promised serious consequences for those who provide financial lifelines to the Iranian regime,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, warning that anyone doing business with the remaining Iranian airlines risks being cut off from the global financial system. The new measures also target companies in third countries accused of supporting the activities of Mahan Air – which is already subject to US sanctions and accused by Washington of facilitating the operations of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps – as well as cargo service providers and commercial agents who have assisted its international flights.

Further reading

Oil and gas: why the war in Iran isn’t causing prices to soar in the same way as the Russian invasion of Ukraine

27 July 2026

“The British Labour Government is fuelling rampant anti-Semitism around the world. For this reason, in coordination with Prime Minister Netanyahu, we have decided to take a series of measures against the UK government in response to their actions.’ This was stated by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar after London announced sanctions on products from Israeli settlers.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced the closure of the British consulate in Jerusalem; the expulsion of UK representatives from the Board of Peace coordination centre in Kiryat Gat and from the ‘British support team’ in Ramallah, which trains Palestinian Authority forces; a ban on the entry of 12 officials from London “active in the boycott and delegitimisation of Israel”, in response to UK sanctions on products from Israeli settlers in the West Bank.

‘I have called on the Prime Minister to close the British Consulate in East Jerusalem today, as it is operating openly on behalf of the Palestinian Authority. This must be Israel’s firm response to British audacity.’ This was written by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir in response to the UK’s decision to impose sanctions on Israeli products from West Bank settlements. Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar has called a press conference for this afternoon.

The United Kingdom has formalised its decision to impose sanctions on trade with Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories occupied under international law. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband announced this in the House of Commons, marking a shift in policy by the Labour government under new Prime Minister Andy Burnham compared to the previous administration led by Keir Starmer, even at the risk of provoking the wrath of the State of Israel and Donald Trump’s US administration. The announcement was followed by a joint statement from 12 countries, including France and Canada.

The Iranian army’s air defence forces have claimed to have detected, tracked and shot down a US MQ-1 drone over the Strait of Hormuz. This has been reported by Iranian media, which state that the unmanned aircraft was intercepted by defence systems deployed in the south-eastern region of the country and that the operation was carried out using advanced air defence systems developed in Iran.

Iran is making “significant progress” in negotiations with Oman on the management of the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a meeting with his Japanese counterpart. The negotiations, which have been ongoing for several weeks, aim to establish a “permanent” corridor and to define “the future management of the strait”, as well as a mechanism for the “provision of the necessary navigation and security services”. According to Tehran, the geographical coordinates of a route planned by the two countries through the strait “have already been agreed”. Crucial to global energy supplies, the Strait of Hormuz has been blocked by Iran since the start of the war triggered by the US attacks on 28 February. Tehran is, in fact, demanding that ships obtain authorisation to pass through the waterway and does not wish to return to the free navigation that existed prior to the conflict. Furthermore, it is seeking to impose a tax on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a measure strongly opposed by Washington and several other countries in the region.

“In mid-2025, he is alleged to have conspired with several individuals to establish a terrorist cell within the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, with the aim of organising terrorist activities designed to disrupt public order and endanger public safety and security”. A 41-year-old Jordanian national was arrested in Florence on these grounds. The man was wanted by the authorities in his home country and may soon be extradited. According to the charges, in the recent past, he is alleged to have joined an armed group in the Middle East, maintaining contact with both Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Hezbollah in Lebanon, where he is alleged to have received military and security training, including the use of firearms, in preparation for terrorist activities.

The operation was carried out by the Digos on the basis of an Interpol ‘Red Notice’. The foreign national, whose possible presence in Italia had been flagged in recent months by the AISE, was first located and then tracked down at his home in Florence. The offences with which he is charged are: “disturbance of public order and endangering the security and safety of the community, as provided for in Articles 2 and 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Law No. 55/2006 of the Jordanian Penal Code”.

Ankara and Moscow are set to sign a memorandum of understanding regarding Turkey’s import of nitrogen fertilisers, with the aim of overcoming supply difficulties from producers in the Persian Gulf due to the situation in the Strait of Hormuz. This was reported by Bloomberg, citing sources within the Turkish Ministry of Agriculture, adding that the agreement will be signed today in Moscow by Turkey’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Ahmet Bagci, and his Russian counterpart, Maxim Borovoy Markovich. According to the Bloomberg report, cited by the Turkish press, the agreement would exempt Ankara from Russian restrictions on the export of nitrogen and phosphate fertilisers and ammonia. The Turkish ministry told Bloomberg that the agreement will help secure supplies of fertilisers and raw materials for Turkey ahead of the sowing season, whilst the conflict between Iran and the United States and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz have halted imports of urea, ammonia and sulphur to Turkey from the Gulf states. In March, the Turkish Minister of Agriculture, Ibrahim Yumakli, had stated that there were currently no issues regarding food security or the supply of fertilisers, but that the government was nevertheless working on measures to increase supplies to Ankara. (

Nicaragua has accused Germany of “multiple violations of international law” before the International Court of Justice in The Hague. According to the Central American nation’s government, Berlin is allegedly facilitating genocide in Gaza, having, it claims, violated the 1948 UN Genocide Convention through its support for Israel, in particular via the arms trade. “Nicaragua is holding Germany accountable for multiple violations of international law,” stated Ambassador Carlos José Argüello Gómez, Nicaragua’s representative before the judges of the court based in the Netherlands. In these proceedings, which began in 2024, the United Nations’ principal judicial body – which settles legal disputes between states – has already rejected a request from Managua seeking to impose emergency measures that would oblige the German government to suspend all forms of aid to Israel, including the supply of military equipment. This case is distinct from another proceeding brought before the International Court of Justice in The Hague, in which South Africa accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, an allegation which the Israeli government rejects.

Canada and France are preparing to announce their intention to join Andy Burnham’s British government in the planned formalisation of a trade ban on goods produced in Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. This is reported by the BBC, citing, amongst other sources, information obtained by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The announcement from London is expected this afternoon in Parliament by the Foreign Secretary, Ed Miliband.

The forces of Yemen’s legitimate government have announced that they have liberated the Al-Yatamah area, in the province of Al-Jawf in the north-west of the country, from the Houthis. Amid renewed clashes between government forces and rebels, the United Nations International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has reported that 20,000 people have been displaced from their homes. Since Thursday, more than 300 people have been killed in the fighting.

“The solution to the current tension in the region is simple. The United States’ return to and fulfilment of the commitments it undertook under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding will pave the way for a return to normality and an end to the tensions,” the Iranian Foreign Minister said in a telephone conversation with his Japanese counterpart, Toshimitsu Motegi, on Tuesday. Araghchi also stated that significant progress had been made in talks between Iran and Oman to establish a temporary shipping route through the Strait of Hormuz. According to the IRNA news agency, Toshimitsu expressed concern about the escalation of tensions in the region.

Further reading

US-Iran agreement: the full text of the memorandum released by the US authorities

17 June 2026

Saudi Arabia has responded to the Houthi attacks with four air strikes on the city of Marib. This was reported by Sky News, citing the Houthi-controlled television channel Al Masirah. So far, there has been no official confirmation of the attacks from the Saudi side. Marib is situated east of the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, and has been the scene of clashes between the Houthis and government-aligned forces in recent weeks.

Further reading

Iran is using the Houthis to threaten global trade and European security

23 July 2026

“A complete lie”: this was the response from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office to the Haaretz article claiming that the Emir of Abu Dhabi, Mohammed bin Zayed, personally warned the Israeli Prime Minister, in a 45-minute telephone call at the end of September 2023, just a few days before the attack on 7 October, that Hamas was planning “an earthquake” against Israel. “Prime Minister Netanyahu did not speak to the President of the United Arab Emirates during the period in question and did not receive any warning from him,” stated the Prime Minister’s office, as quoted by Israeli media including the Times of Israel.

“You knew, you turned a blind eye, you failed. You are guilty.” These were the words of the leader of the Israeli Democratic Party, Yair Golan, in a video posted on ‘X’, as he commented on the accounts contained in the book ‘Kidnapped: 843 Days of Abandonment’ by journalists Shlomi Eldar and Ruth Yuva, which reveal that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been personally warned by the President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohammed bin Zayed, about a possible large-scale offensive being prepared by Hamas ten days before the attack on 7 October.

“Netanyahu is illegitimate. He belongs in prison for his crimes against the State of Israel,” Golan emphasises. “The ‘I wasn’t woken up’ stories are over. He knew. He had been warned,” adds Golan, according to *The Times of Israel*. “In the letters written in the blood of thousands of Israelis – civilians and fallen IDF soldiers – we are now faced with another chilling realisation: the man who holds the office of Prime Minister of Israel is someone who has abandoned his responsibilities. The investigation revealing that Netanyahu received an explicit warning from the President of the United Arab Emirates and deliberately concealed it from the military and Shin Bet leadership shatters all the lies he has told us. He was warned time and time again. The security apparatus had warned him. We had warned him — the hundreds of thousands of democrats who took to the squares, bridges and streets, shouting: ‘You are putting Israel in danger and leading us towards catastrophe.’ He called us anarchists… “He chose his own political survival, alongside the extremists and those who evade military service,” Golan emphasises.

Further reading

Yair Golan: 'Annexing Gaza is tantamount to the destruction of Israel'

05 August 2025

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian stated on his X account that “Iran will continue its resolute resistance until the ‘aggressors’ repent for their actions”, adding: “The Islamic Republic of Iran has always opposed war. However, just as it has courageously defended itself against aggression to date, it will continue this resolute resistance until the aggressors repent and will continue to protect the rights of the people”.

Yair Golan, leader of Israel’s left-wing democratic party, has stated that he will join the government if the opposition wins next month’s elections and that he will prioritise tackling violence by Jewish settlers in the occupied West Bank.

His top priorities will also include ending the war with Iran, the reconstruction of Gaza and the forging of regional alliances, the former military commander told Bloomberg.

Operations at a number of energy facilities in Saudi Arabia, the world’s leading oil exporter, have been suspended following attacks by the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen, which left 73 people injured, in what the Saudi authorities have described as a dangerous escalation (see post at 8.22).

The Houthis have attacked the southern cities of Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jazan and Najran, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said in an earlier statement, adding that the injured include women and children.

Kuwait exports around 1 million barrels of crude oil a day, including via ship-to-ship transfers outside the Strait of Hormuz, whilst oil flows through the strait are recovering.

The state-owned producer Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) also delivers goods directly to customers, said Shaikh Khaled Al-Sabah, head of international marketing. The company uses its own tankers and chartered vessels to transport the oil, he said.

Revenue from the Suez Canal rose by 42 per cent in July compared with the previous year, as the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz due to Iranian threats and the Houthi threat in the southern Red Sea led more ships to use the Egyptian waterway.

According to figures from the state statistics agency CAPMAS, a total of 1,340 ships passed through the canal in July. This represents a 27 per cent increase compared with July 2025, and a rise from the 1,208 ships recorded in June, continuing a partial recovery that began at the start of the year.

Following reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had been warned around ten days before 7 October of the possibility of a Hamas attack but had taken no action and had not alerted the government, the opposition – in the midst of an election campaign – reacted immediately by demanding that the Prime Minister be held to account.

“The article published this morning, claiming that Netanyahu was warned ten days before the 7 October massacre of Sinwar’s intentions, is true. Netanyahu bears personal and direct responsibility for the mistake that led to the deaths of thousands of Israelis during his term in office. Ignoring the warnings amounts to criminal negligence, which is why he is doing everything in his power to prevent the establishment of a state commission of inquiry that would bring the truth to light”, wrote former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett on X.

Saudi Arabia has announced that attacks carried out today by Yemeni Houthi rebels against its energy facilities have caused fires and the temporary suspension of some operations. “This morning, several energy facilities and installations in the southern region of the Kingdom were targeted,” said a source at the Ministry of Energy, quoted by the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA). “The attacks caused fires in several locations, leading to a temporary interruption of some operations”, as well as several injuries, the same source added. Riyadh has officially condemned the Houthi attacks.

“Several energy facilities in the southern region of the Kingdom were attacked this morning.” This was announced by the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Energy, which added that several people had been injured and were receiving the necessary medical treatment. “The fires caused a temporary disruption to operations, and the authorities are continuing to deal with the aftermath of the attacks,” the ministry said.

Seventy-three people, including women and children, were injured in Saudi Arabia following attacks launched by Yemen’s Houthis against the cities of Abha, Khamis Mushait, Jazan and Najran. This was reported by the spokesperson for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. In a statement published on X, the spokesperson said that the coalition would respond ‘firmly’ to the attacks, which Riyadh claims targeted civilian and economic objectives. The Houthis, backed by Iran, control much of northern Yemen and have been in conflict with the Saudi-led coalition for years.

“Oil prices will plummet dramatically, just as everything else is plummeting (but even more so!), when we win the war against Iran.” This was written by the President of the United States, Donald Trump, in a post on his social media platform, Truth. “Three dollars a gallon, but eventually they’ll fall below two dollars a gallon. It’ll all happen very quickly, and Iran will never have a nuclear weapon,” Trump added.

The price of oil continues to rise following further tensions between the US and Iran, following yesterday’s attack on a Saudi Aramco facility in the Saudi city of Jizan, near the border with Yemen. Brent crude is trading at $98 a barrel (+1%), whilst WTI stands at $93.36, up 2.6 per cent.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has stated that the report published today by *Haaretz* – claiming that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu received a personal warning from the leader of the United Arab Emirates regarding Hamas’s war plans a few days before the attack on 7 October – is “true”. In a post on X, the leader of the B’Yachad party stated: “The report published this morning, claiming that Netanyahu had been warned 10 days before the 7 October massacre of Sinwar’s intentions, is true. Netanyahu bears personal and direct responsibility for the failure that led to the deaths of thousands of Israelis during his term in office”. Netanyahu’s rival claims that his “ignoring the warnings amounts to criminal negligence, which is why he is doing everything possible to prevent the establishment of a state commission of inquiry that would bring the truth to light”. He adds: “He did not go out into the field. He did not alert the security forces’ top brass. He did not prepare Israel for an attack. And he did not convene the government.”