Iran’s supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei said Tehran and Washington cannot reach any agreement unless Israel stops its attacks on Lebanon. In a post on X on July 27, he said Iran had set protection of Lebanon’s territorial integrity and the complete, unconditional end of what he called the Zionist regime’s aggression as key conditions for any deal aimed at ending a US-imposed war.

In multiple posts, Khamenei voiced support for Lebanon’s Hezbollah resistance movement, its former leader Hassan Nasrallah, and people in southern Lebanon, described as the main targets of Israeli attacks. He said the Islamic Republic of Iran considers protecting the “oppressed but strong mujahideen,” referring to Hezbollah fighters, a strategic responsibility.

His remarks came amid reports of moves to halt exchanges of attacks between Iran and the United States and resume diplomatic activity. Tehran has repeatedly said Israel must end attacks in Lebanon as a condition for ending the war between Iran and the United States. Iran included that demand in the first clause of a memorandum of understanding signed with Washington in June, but the arrangement later collapsed over disagreements concerning the Strait of Hormuz.

The conflict involving Iran spread into new areas as the United States paused strikes inside Iran, according to a Reuters report published July 27. Yemen’s Houthi rebels claimed attacks on Saudi oil facilities along the Red Sea coast, while Iran accused Ukraine of attacking one of its commercial ships in the Caspian Sea. The reported developments added pressure beyond the Persian Gulf.

After 13 consecutive nights of bombing, US forces did not launch new attacks on Iran on Saturday, though the US military said its naval blockade against Iran remained in place. Senior White House officials said President Donald Trump prioritised a diplomatic solution. The New York Times reported that escalation risks, pressure on US weapons stocks, Gulf allies’ dissatisfaction and risks to the global energy economy contributed to reducing military action.

Houthi spokesman Yahya Sarea said the group struck Aramco facilities in Jizan and Yanbu. Reuters-verified video showed thick smoke from the direction of the Jizan refinery, while Aramco did not comment; Saudi forces intercepted two missiles fired at Yanbu. Iran said one sailor was killed and another wounded in the Caspian incident, and summoned Ukraine’s acting ambassador. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed an attack on the Iranian ship and alleged Russia was supplying Iran with satellite information.

Iran announced it was temporarily suspending retaliatory military operations against US allies in the Middle East after the United States stopped attacks on Iran for the past two nights. The announcement, reported on July 26, came after Washington temporarily paused a war that had been nearing five months. Iranian army spokesman Mohammad AkraminIA said Iran's strategy had been to strike back in response to hostile or offensive actions.

The conflict, centered on the strategically important Strait of Hormuz, had disrupted diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran. It later expanded beyond a major energy corridor to attacks involving US bases in the Middle East, regional shipping and US-allied Gulf countries. The reported pause has raised hopes of a return to diplomatic talks, while US media reports said pressure to maintain supplies of defensive weapons, including Patriot interceptors, may have contributed to the halt.

CNN, citing a Pentagon source, reported that US military operations against Iran were currently paused. President Donald Trump nevertheless threatened much larger attacks if necessary on Friday. The New York Times reported that plans to escalate had been put on hold because weapons stocks were declining. At a White House meeting, Vice President JD Vance and General Dan Caine voiced concern about the risks of wider conflict, and Caine warned Trump about possible consequences.

US President Donald Trump has temporarily halted a major military operation against Iran because stocks of weapons, including Patriot missile-defense interceptors needed to counter Iranian attacks in the Middle East, are rapidly declining. Trump reviewed the issue with senior advisers and cabinet members on Friday, according to a report published July 26.

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Dan Caine warned at the meeting that while a new large-scale strike was possible, it could seriously damage the defensive capability of US forces. The White House said Trump still prioritizes a diplomatic solution, but all options remain open if Iran attacks the Strait of Hormuz or US allies.

Several administration officials believe recent strikes have not militarily deterred Iran and that further attacks could strengthen internal unity there rather than return Tehran to talks. After nearly two weeks of conflict, the intensity of attacks between the United States and Iran eased somewhat on Saturday, while fighting continued in Yemen. Washington also imposed sanctions on nine entities and four individuals linked to Iranian businessman Babak Zanjani's business network.

Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Ansarullah Houthi group have exchanged fresh military attacks, heightening tensions despite diplomatic efforts to reduce the Yemen conflict. In a report published on July 26, the Houthis said they launched successive attacks on the Saudi cities of Yanbu and Jizan, targeting multiple oil facilities with more than 12 cruise and ballistic missiles and Yemen-made drones.

The Houthis described the operation as fully successful and said all designated targets were hit. Saudi authorities, however, said every incoming attack from the Houthis had been successfully intercepted in the air. The claimed Houthi response came a day after Saudi attacks in Yemen’s Hodeidah province and on the strategically important Kamaran Island in the Red Sea. Saudi Arabia said its strikes targeted Houthi positions on the island.

The UN special envoy to Yemen and Omani officials urged both sides to return to talks immediately. UN, Saudi and Houthi representatives are in Oman for a possible second round of peace talks. Diplomats said attacks were unlikely to stop before negotiations begin. The Houthis said they would continue missile attacks and a naval blockade unless the blockade on Sanaa airport and Hodeidah port is lifted, with Aramco oil facilities as main targets.

Pakistan is seeking a way to restart stalled talks aimed at ending the nearly five-month conflict between the United States and Iran, according to three Pakistani sources. The new diplomatic effort was launched at China’s initiative, the sources said. Preliminary discussions took place during Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni’s visit to Islamabad this week, when he met senior Pakistani officials and army chief Asim Munir.

Momeni’s trip was his second visit to Pakistan within 10 days, but major complications remain before negotiations can begin. Pakistan faces difficult diplomatic calculations after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels announced a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia. Pakistan, which signed a mutual defence agreement with Saudi Arabia last year and relies on Saudi financial support, strongly condemned recent Houthi attacks.

China said it supports mediation initiatives by Pakistan and other countries and pledged an active role in restoring peace in the Gulf. A Pakistani official said China’s interests were being severely harmed by the continuing war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, while disruption in the Red Sea could endanger other trade routes. Islamabad has told Tehran that halting attacks on Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states is now a key precondition for new talks.

An opinion article by Syed Musa Reza, published in Amar Desh on July 25, 2026, portrays the funeral and mourning ceremony in Tehran for Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as a symbol of shifting power relations in the Middle East and global politics. The article says mourners chanted against the United States and Israel and demanded revenge for Khamenei’s death. It argues that the event conveyed institutional continuity and unity behind Iran’s current leadership.

Citing an analysis by Middle East Monitor, the article says large gatherings in Tehran, Qom and Karbala challenged assumptions that removing senior leaders through a “decapitation strategy” would collapse Iran’s state system and allied axis. It also interprets the attendance of senior leaders from Pakistan and Tajikistan as evidence that Global South states are making diplomatic choices based on national interests and regional realities.

The article references seven lessons identified by Russia’s state media outlet RT from a recent Persian Gulf conflict. These include the reduced impact of sanctions, cheaper military technologies, limits on sole naval control, asymmetric warfare, discussion of alternative energy-trade currencies, divisions in military alliances and the importance of strategic patience. It concludes that international politics is moving toward a multipolar balance of power.

At a meeting on the sidelines of a Southeast Asian summit in Manila, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov focused chiefly on Russia’s war in Ukraine. The meeting came amid reports alleging a broader Russian role in Iranian attacks on US military facilities in the Middle East. Reuters reported on Wednesday that US intelligence agencies began examining possible Russian involvement after Iranian drone strikes hit several targets, including a CIA-related facility at the US Embassy in Saudi Arabia. Officials cited by the report said the strikes’ effectiveness and precision could indicate Russian assistance.

CNN reported on March 6, citing US intelligence sources, that Moscow had been helping Tehran identify the locations of US personnel and military aircraft in the Gulf. Nicole Grajewski of Sciences Po’s Center for International Research said a Russian role in target selection was plausible because Iran’s space-based capabilities are limited, though Iran also has its own human intelligence network. She said Russian assistance had strengthened Iranian capabilities but that Iran’s own strategy appeared to have had greater influence on the course of the conflict.

Iran said it carried out drone strikes on US military bases in Bahrain and Jordan, according to a report published on July 24, 2026. In a statement, Iran’s army said it targeted fuel tanks, equipment warehouses and soldiers’ accommodation at Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain.

The statement also said aircraft hangars, maintenance facilities and housing areas at Al Azraq base in Jordan were hit. Iran’s military warned that any action against its interests would undermine regional security and economic stability. The report cited Al Jazeera as its source.

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi movement announced on Monday a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia, citing retaliation for what it called an unjust blockade imposed on Yemen. The declaration came amid intensifying military exchanges between Iran and the United States, marking a new escalation in the regional conflict. The Houthis said the blockade would take effect immediately under a policy of 'an eye for an eye.' Saudi Arabia has not yet issued any response to the announcement.

The move follows ten consecutive nights of U.S. strikes on Iran and retaliatory attacks by Tehran on American-linked sites across several Middle Eastern countries. These developments have effectively collapsed a memorandum of understanding signed between Tehran and Washington last month. Despite the hostilities, both sides have signaled possible interest in returning to diplomatic talks.

According to the report, Tehran had pressured the Houthis to close the Bab al-Mandeb Strait if U.S. attacks on Iranian energy infrastructure continued. Closure of this key route between the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea could cut global oil supply by about seven percent, while the ongoing Gulf conflict has already reduced supply by roughly ten percent.

Iran has launched attacks on US military installations in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia, according to reports published on July 18, 2026. Tehran claimed that American air bases, radar systems, weapons depots, and fighter jets in these countries were damaged. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) stated that the strikes were carried out in retaliation for recent US attacks inside Iran.

The IRGC said its forces destroyed Bahrain’s main AI center and a US drone vessel depot. It accused the United States of committing war crimes by attacking several Iranian bridges and killing civilians the previous night. Axios reported that the strike on a US base in Saudi Arabia, involving ballistic missiles, was Iran’s first direct attack in the Gulf in about four months.

Kuwait, Jordan, and Bahrain announced that they intercepted several Iranian missiles and drones, while Qatar said its armed forces thwarted multiple air raids. Jordan’s military confirmed intercepting ten missiles early Saturday without casualties or property damage.

Iran and the United States have intensified retaliatory attacks across the Middle East, marking the seventh consecutive night of US air and military strikes on Iranian targets. According to US Central Command, the latest operations hit Iranian surveillance centers, underground arsenals, and naval assets, while a full naval blockade was imposed on Iranian ports. At least three people were killed and eight injured in Hormozgan province, where bridges and a tunnel were damaged. Explosions were reported in several Iranian cities, including Yazd, Lar, Ahvaz, and Bandar Abbas.

In response, Iran launched drone and missile attacks on US military installations in Kuwait, Jordan, and Bahrain. Iranian state media reported strikes on ammunition depots and command centers, while the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed successful missile hits on Jordan’s Muwaffaq Salti air base. Kuwait’s defense ministry said it intercepted Iranian drones, and Bahrain issued air raid sirens urging civilians to seek shelter.

Iran’s forces also claimed to have downed a US MQ-9 drone and targeted American naval assets in the northern Indian Ocean, further heightening regional instability.

Iran carried out a series of missile and drone strikes on US military installations across Bahrain, Kuwait, and Qatar late Thursday night and early Friday. The Iranian army confirmed targeting a US aircraft at a Bahraini military base. Kuwait’s military reported responding to the attacks, while Qatari authorities said debris from a missile injured a child. Explosions were heard in several parts of Qatar, prompting a security alert urging residents to stay in safe shelters.

Qatar’s defense ministry later announced that its armed forces successfully intercepted a missile aimed at the country, and the interior ministry declared that the security situation had returned to normal. In Kuwait, the defense ministry said 32 hostile drones were detected and shot down, with debris damaging some residential buildings but causing no casualties. Reuters reported that several key facilities in Kuwait were damaged, though details were not disclosed. Bahrain’s interior ministry issued air raid warnings and instructed citizens to remain calm and seek shelter.

Authorities across the affected countries have heightened security measures and urged the public to follow official guidance as assessments of the attacks continue.

Egypt and Turkey have significantly deepened their military cooperation amid regional tensions and shifting geopolitics. The two countries have conducted joint air and naval exercises, initiated defense production projects, and strengthened coordination in intelligence and diplomacy. Egypt has also enhanced the capacity of its new defense headquarters, ‘The Octagon,’ while joining Turkey’s Kaan stealth fighter program as a development partner. These moves signal a strategic realignment that could reshape regional alliances.

The growing partnership has drawn concern in Israel and the United States, particularly as Egypt’s advanced military capabilities expand. Washington has reportedly sought clarification about recent high-level defense communications between Cairo and Ankara. Analysts describe the relationship as an emerging defense partnership rather than a formal alliance, noting that full military integration would require binding defense commitments and joint command structures.

Observers suggest that this cooperation could reduce regional dependence on U.S. security guarantees and foster a new Arab-Islamic security framework. It may also influence power balances in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Red Sea, and the Suez Canal, while potentially limiting Israel’s regional dominance.

Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have condemned Iran’s retaliatory attacks on US facilities across several Middle Eastern countries. In a statement, Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said the Iranian strikes threaten security and freedom of navigation. The ministry accused Iran of violating international law, the UN Charter, the charter of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and principles of good neighborliness through repeated attacks on commercial vessels. Although Saudi Arabia was not directly targeted, a Saudi oil tanker was damaged last week while crossing the Strait of Hormuz.

Kuwait’s foreign ministry also denounced the Iranian attacks, warning that the escalation poses serious risks to regional stability and peace. The statement said the strikes would heighten tensions, undermine diplomatic efforts for peaceful resolution, and threaten regional security. Kuwait affirmed its right to take necessary measures to protect its sovereignty and security under international law and the UN Charter.

According to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the attacks targeted Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan, Qatar, and Oman, while the United Arab Emirates claimed to have intercepted Iranian missiles and drones.