ICYMI: Here’s where the US-Iran conflict stands
• The US carried out a seventh consecutive night of strikes on Iran, targeting military and logistical sites.
• Iran expanded its response beyond Israel, launching missiles and drones towards Gulf countries. Bahrain said it had “intercepted and destroyed a number of the treacherous Iranian aerial attacks”, while Kuwait said its air defences were responding to “hostile drone threats”. Saudi Arabia briefly issued alerts for Yanbu and Al-Kharj before saying the danger had passed.
• Kuwait Airways suspended flights until further notice, saying the decision was taken “due to the regional security situation and to ensure the safety of our passengers and crew”.
• Bahrain urged residents to avoid debris from the attacks, saying “the deliberate use of missiles and drones to target civilians and private property constitutes a blatant violation of international humanitarian law.”
• In southern Iran, officials said a US strike on a desalination plant in Jask county cut drinking water supplies to 20 villages with around 10,000 residents. Hamzeh Pour, chief executive of the Hormozgan Water and Wastewater Company, said the pumping station and a power transformer had been “completely destroyed”, leaving the area facing “a severe water shortage”.
Shahana Yasmin18 July 2026 08:19
Watch: Trump again claims Iran are desperate to make a deal
Nicole Wootton-Cane18 July 2026 11:45
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation reports damage and injuries from Iranian attacks, state media says
Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said one of its oil facilities was hit on Saturday by “repeated Iranian attacks”, resulting in significant material damage and some injuries, according to Kuwait’s state news agency.
Nicole Wootton-Cane18 July 2026 11:15
Kuwait says several firefighters injured after Iranian attacks
Kuwait has said several of its firefighters have sustained injuries tackling fires caused by Iranian strikes.
“The first incident resulted, during the firefighting operation, in a number of injuries among the firefighters and one of the workers, where the site was evacuated and they were transported to provide them with the necessary medical assistance,” it said in a statement, according to Al Jazeera.
Nicole Wootton-Cane18 July 2026 10:45
Starving and stranded in a war zone: The sailors living in fear of death in the Strait of Hormuz
Iran has stepped up attacks on ships in the waterway, leading to the collapse of an interim US peace deal. The crisis is leaving seafarers spending months without food, medication and wages, Maira Butt reports.
Nicole Wootton-Cane18 July 2026 10:15
Recap: Netanyahu pushes back planned trip to US after Lindsey Graham’s funeral delayed
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has cancelled a planned trip to the US next week, his office announced on Thursday.
The purpose of the trip was to attend the funeral of US senator Lindsey Graham after his sudden death this week.
However, the service has now been postponed until the end of the month.
On Wednesday reports indicated that the Israeli leader would be travelling to the US on Saturday, a senior official told Reuters.
The official told the outlet that Netanyahu intended to meet President Donald Trump but that it had not been confirmed that he would.
Nicole Wootton-Cane18 July 2026 09:45
Iran claims strikes on Al Azraq air base in Jordan
Tehran says it has struck Al Azraq air base in Jordan.
It comes after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed it had targeted US aircraft in Bahrain and a US “signals and communications centre” Kuwait following continued US strikes on Iran.
Nicole Wootton-Cane18 July 2026 09:15
Why it’s so difficult for the US to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz
President Donald Trump has been trying to force Iran to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz for months, turning to everything from airstrikes and naval blockades to negotiations and threats to destroy a “whole civilization.”
But restoring oil tanker traffic in the vital Middle East shipping corridor to prewar flows likely will require a much bigger armada of U.S. warships if not tens of thousands of American troops on Iranian soil, experts say. Despite on-and-off fighting, Iran can still target vessels in the narrow Persian Gulf waterway with drones and missiles that have been hidden in a country a third of the size of the continental United States.
Shahana Yasmin18 July 2026 09:00
Liverpool man charged on suspicion of spying for Iran
A Liverpool man has been charged on suspicion of spying for Iran after an investigation by counter-terror police.
Vahid Aberi, 39, was arrested on Wednesday in the Birmingham area on suspicion of assisting a foreign intelligence service.
Shahana Yasmin18 July 2026 08:30
Bahrain says it intercepted multiple Iranian aerial attacks
Bahrain’s Defence Force said it had intercepted and destroyed several Iranian aerial attacks on Saturday, accusing Tehran of continuing its “systematic hostile approach” by targeting civilians in the kingdom.
In a statement on X, the General Command of the Bahrain Defence Force said its air defence systems had “intercepted and destroyed a number of the treacherous Iranian aerial attacks”, adding that all branches and units remained “at the highest levels of readiness” to defend the country.
The military urged residents not to approach any suspicious objects or debris left behind by the attacks and to report them immediately, saying specialist teams were prepared to deal with them safely.
It added that “the deliberate use of missiles and drones to target civilians and private property constitutes a blatant violation of international humanitarian law.”
Shahana Yasmin18 July 2026 08:04
