Opening summary: Iran claims attacks on Strait of Hormuz ships amid fresh US strikes
Iran attacked a tanker in the strait of Hormuz early on Tuesday, forcing its crew to abandon the ship, as Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis announced an immediate maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia in the Red Sea after the two sides traded fire last week for the first time in years. The developments came during a tenth consecutive night of US airstrikes, with Tehran still refusing to loosen its grip on the strait of Hormuz, a vital route for global energy supplies.
A Houthi official said the Bab al-Mandeb strait — at the southern end of the Red Sea, through which about 12% of the world’s trade usually passes — would be closed to the Saudis in response to the kingdom’s “unjust blockade on Yemenis for over 10 years”. Saudi Arabia said it would take “all necessary measures to protect its vessels in accordance with international law”.
Even as Iran’s president said the country had returned “full-scale war”, the Iranian interior minister travelled to Pakistan — described as a key mediator in the conflict — for talks. The latest US strikes came hours after Donald Trump said Iran would pay “many times over” for killing US soldiers after multiple service members were killed in action over the weekend.
A tanker came under attack early Tuesday in the Hormuz strait off Oman, forcing the crew to abandon the vessel, the British military’s UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) centre said.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed the attack as well as two other attacks on ships in the waterway on Monday. The US military’s Central Command said its latest airstrikes were to “degrade” Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping in the strait and included hitting military command centres and missile and drone launch sites.
Iranian media reported strikes in parts of the country including Bandar Abbas, Tabriz and Bushehr, home to the country’s only operational civilian nuclear power. Iran launched retaliatory attacks against Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, which all host US forces.
Oil prices softened after hitting their highest levels in more than a month in the previous session. Brent crude futures eased 0.4% to $88.87 a barrel by 0052 GMT on Tuesday while US West Texas Intermediate crude for September delivery was steady at $82.47 a barrel.
Democrats have seized on the deaths of three US troops killed in Iranian strikes to urge Trump to urgently reverse his resumption of the war with Iran amid widespread anxiety over climbing casualties.
In , the Lebanese army began taking charge of security in three southern villages, the US said, as a deal to secure an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah faced its first test on the ground.
Iran says it targeted US forces in Bahrain base
The Iranian army claimed to have launched a drone attack against US military targets at the Sheikh Isa airbase in Bahrain.
In a statement carried by Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency, the army said it launched a wave of drone strikes this morning at the base, which it claimed was being used as a launchpad for attacks against Tehran.
The Lebanese army has issued a statement confirming the deployment of troops to Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh, which had been occupied by the Israeli military.
In a statement shared online, it said:
“Military units began deploying this morning in the town of Zawtar al-Gharbiyah, Nabatieh, following ongoing communications with the military coordination group for .
“The army command renews its call for citizens not to go to the town until the security situation stabilises, and to abide by the instructions of the deployed military units in order to preserve their safety.”
Lebanon army begin deployment to 'pilot zone' in southern Lebanese village
Lebanon’s army has begun to deploy troops to a southern Lebanese village to take charge of security in the so-called “pilot zone”, according to , citing a security official.
Lebanese soldiers are heading to Zawtar al-Gharbiyeh as one of the first areas being trialled in the pilot zone programme as part of a US-brokered framework agreement between Lebanon and . Two other villages — Froun and Srifa — will also trial the implementation of the programme, the US state department announced yesterday.
Under the framework, signed by Lebanon, Israel and the US on 26 June, the Israeli military will gradually retreat from the areas it occupies in southern Lebanon and hand over security to the Lebanese armed forces, which will also oversee the disarmament of the Hezbollah group.
The plan does not, however, set out a timeline for the withdrawal of Israeli troops. Hezbollah has also rejected the plan, insisting that any decisions on Lebanon should be linked to the wider negotiations between the US and .
Nearly 100 US service members have been injured over the last two weeks of escalating strikes on , the Pentagon has said, as Tehran launched a wave of reprisals to the tenth consecutive night of attacks.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Tuesday they had targeted US military sites including air defence systems and a radar installation in Bahrain and Kuwait, while a tanker in the strait of Hormuz reported being struck by an unknown projectile, forcing its crew to abandon the vessel and board a lifeboat.
Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan all said they had activated defences to repel the attacks, but the scale of US injuries at facilities across the region over recent week is likely to bring greater scrutiny to Iran’s reprisal attacks.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the vast majority of those injured only experienced “minor concussions” and 96% had since returned to work. Parnell was responding to a New York Times report that the Pentagon has withheld information about troop injuries from Iranian strikes. He denied that the Pentagon was hiding data about injuries.
In the last week three in Jordan and Iraq.
Iran says it targeted Amazon infrastructure in Bahrain
The IRGC said it targeted infrastructure belonging to the US company Amazon in Bahrain, according to a statements published by state media on Tuesday.
There was no official confirmation from Bahrain. , carrying the report, could not independently verify the incident.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is saying it has launched an attack on a US military site in Jordan.
Earlier, Jordanian state TV reported that three missiles launched from Iran overnight had been intercepted, citing the armed forces, while sirens had sounded in the capital of Amman on Monday evening.
Two US soldiers were killed in an Iranian strike on an airbase in Jordan on Friday as Tehran targets Gulf region countries hosting American forces amid continuing US attacks.
