Middle East Eye

Bahrain activates warning sirens as Iran launches missiles towards Gulf Bahrain has activated warning sirens across the country as Iran continues to launch missiles and drones towards Gulf states. The Interior Ministry urged citizens and residents to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place...

Aragchi says ‘personal remarks’ should not affect Iran-Iraq relations Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, told his Iraqi counterpart that the "valuable" relationship between Tehran and Baghdad should not be affected by "certain personal and unofficial remarks", according to Iran's state news...

Morning recap Good morning Middle East Eye readers, US struck Iran for the eighth consecutive time overnight, with the US Centcom claiming that IRGC forces who had launched a deadly attack on its service members in Jordan were targeted during the strikes. Iran’s supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei sa...

Lebanese president hopes to generate pressure on Israel during US trip  Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will make his first trip to the White House this week to present a plan to US president Donald Trump on how to disarm Hezbollah and secure Israel's withdrawal from Lebanon. Aoun is the firs...

Israeli military closes area around Gaza ahead of settler march, report says Israeli military has declared the entire Gaza periphery region a closed military zone, ahead of a march planned by a right-wing group that seeks to reestablish Israeli settlements inside the territory, Israeli media repo...

Emergency services on alert in Iran's earthquake-hit Khuzestan Iranian authorities have put emergency services on alert in Khuzestan province, which was hit by a magnitude 5 earthquake this morning. Khuzestan governor, Seyed Mohammad Reza Mowlaizadeh, said he has issued the “necessary instruction...

Palestinians bid farewell to teenage footballer shot during settler raid Palestinians have bid farewell to a 17-year-old footballer, Fadi Al-Naasan, who died on Saturday of bullet wounds sustained during an Israeli settler attack on the village of Al-Mughayyir in the occupied West Bank a wee...

Iranian commander warns of 'devastating response' to aggression A top Iranian military commander, Major-General Ali Abdullahi, warned that “any aggression or barbarism will be met with a decisive and devastating response” from the country’s armed forces, Al Jazeera reported. Abdullahi, the comman...

Centcom: Eighth strikes against Iran completed, IRGC guards behind Jordan attack targeted The US military said it carried out an eighth consecutive night of strikes on Iran late on Saturday, targeting coastal surveillance and air defence facilities, maritime capabilities, and missile and drone st...

Iranian drones strike two US bases in Kuwait, report says Kuwait’s Ali Al-Salem base and Camp Udairi came under attack of Iranian army’s kamikaze drones during the 16th phase of Operation Sa'eqeh (Thunderbolt), Iranian media reported. IRNA said Camp Udairi is one of the major US bases in the regi...

Report: Aipac stops taking donations for Democrats who backed Israel aid cut The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac), a leading pro-Israel lobbying group in the United States, has stopped accepting campaign contributions for 15 House Democrats it had previously endorsed, after they v...

Family of five, including three children, killed in Israeli strike on Gaza A family of five -- three children and their parents -- was among the 11 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes in Gaza on Saturday, according to the territory’s civil defence and hospitals. A ceasefire remains in place be...

West Bank attacks: Settlers set mosque on fire, Israeli forces olive trees Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian village of Tuwani in the West Bank, setting a mosque and a vehicle on fire and spray-painting a Star of David on the mosque's wall, according to Palestinian Christian human rights ...

US strike hits a location in Qeshm Island, Iranian media says The office of the governor of Iran's Hormozgan province said that an American strike hit a location in Qeshm at around 3.40 am local time on Sunday, according to the state news agency IRNA. Residents had reported hearing multiple ...

US cautions Americans Middle East situation has ‘potential for unforeseen escalation’ The US State Department has warned Americans worldwide to exercise increased caution, saying that due to “heightened tensions in the Middle East, the security environment remains complex with the potential for u...

Emergency water delivery begins for 10,000 Iranians, official says Emergency delivery of drinking water was underway in about 20 Iranian villages, with a population of around 10,000 people, after a US strike on a desalination plant in the port city of Jask in Hormozgan province cut off the supply...

Reports: Blasts heard in Iranian port cities of Bandar Abbas, Bandar Lengeh Explosion sounds were heard in the strategically important southern Iranian port cities of Bandar Abbas and Bandar Lengeh, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency. Tasnim reported a US strike near Haji Abad i...

Iran attacks Kurdistan Freedom Party's bases, state broadcaster says Iran has launched heavy attacks on bases belonging to the Kurdistan Freedom Party in Erbil and Sulaymaniyah, according to Iranian state broadcaster IRIB. Earlier, Kurdish-language broadcaster Aryen TV reported that Iran had clos...

Israeli settlers storm Palestinian homes in Hebron, steal sheep Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian homes in the Wadi al-Rakhim area south of Yatta, near Hebron, on Saturday evening, stealing three sheep, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa. Local anti-settlement activist Osama Makham...

Iran closes two border crossings with Kurdish region of Iraq Iran has closed the Marivan and Hawraman border crossings with Iraq and urged residents to stay away from the surrounding frontier areas in Kurdistan province, Kurdish-language broadcaster Aryen TV reported.  Border guards warned c...

US launches new strikes on Iran after deaths of service members in Jordan US forces have begun launching new air strikes against Iran at President Donald Trump’s direction, according to US Central Command. In a post on X, Centcom said the attacks were intended to further degrade Iran’s ability to...

Trump says deaths of US service members ‘very sad’ US President Donald Trump said deaths of two US service members in Iranian attacks is “a very sad thing,” as he reacted to the announcement. “We hate to see it happen. It’s in service to our country,” Trump told NewsNation. He  also said tha...

US defence secretary says deaths of US service members ‘stiffens our resolve‘ US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has reacted to the Iran's killing of two US service members in Jordan yesterday. “Their sacrifice only stiffens our resolve,” said Hegseth in a post on X.

Israeli military kills Palestinian woman in Gaza Israeli artillery killed a Palestinian woman and wounded several other people after shelling a group in Gaza City's Zeitoun neighbourhood, Al Jazeera reported, citing a source in the ambulance and emergency service. The incident was separate from a...

EU, Gulf states call on Iran to permanently open Hormuz without conditions The European Union and Gulf states called on Iran to permanently open the Strait of Hormuz without conditions or fees, Saudi state television reported. Vessels are seen anchored in Bandar Abbas along the Strait of Hormuz i...

Lebanese soldier killed as army vehicle hits explosive in south Lebanon A Lebanese soldier was killed and an officer and another soldier were wounded when a suspicious object exploded in an army vehicle in the southern Lebanese town of Mansouri, the Lebanese army said on Saturday. The Israeli mil...

UKMTO says vessel seized in Gulf of Aden now in Somali waters A vessel seized yesterday while passing through the Gulf of Aden off Yemen’s coast has now “been manoeuvred into Somalian territorial water,” the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said. The organisation said that it is now classifyi...

UKMTO reports tanker incident involving military forces east of Oman's Duqm A merchant vessel and military forces have been involved in an incident about 100 nautical miles east of Duqm, Oman, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO). "Reports indicate that the tanker was...

World Cup 2026: Palestinian flags become a target at US-based games The  Palestinian  flag has become one of the most visible, and most targeted, symbols at  World Cup games held in the  United States . Several supporters  carrying them  at matches have told Middle E...

World Cup 2026: Palestinian flags become a target at US-based games Submitted by Mohammed Ahmad on Sat, 07/18/2026 - 18:10 Palestinian flags have become one of the tournament's most visible symbols of solidarity, but supporters have been told to remove them, and in some cases had them confiscated...

Two US service members in Jordan killed in Iranian attack, US says Two US military personnel in Jordan were killed on Friday by Iranian missiles and drones, the US Central Command said in a statement on Saturday.

Iran’s Khamenei says US president’s signature ‘worthless and invalid’ Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei condemned the US attacks on Iran, said the repeated breaches of agreements with Iran show that the US president’s signature is “worthless and invalid.” The statement was released by Iran’s...

Qatar condemns Iran's latest attacks on Gulf countries 'in strongest terms' Qatar condemned "in the strongest terms" Iran's latest attacks targeting Jordan, Bahrain and Kuwait. In a statement posted on X, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the targeting of electricity and water desalination pla...

US and Israel used Karim Khan misconduct claims to 'defang' ICC, says former EU top diplomat Submitted by Sondos Asem on Sat, 07/18/2026 - 16:32 Josep Borrell denounces ICC bureau’s disregard for judicial panel findings and says the removal vote is part of reactions to Khan’s decsion to seek arre...

Iran says renewed US strikes killed at least 50 people At least 50 people have been killed and more than 500 wounded in Iran in the latest US strikes, the Iranian government said on Saturday.

Iran declares Islamabad agreement suspended, blames US violations Iran  said on Saturday that it had suspended all of its commitments under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), accusing the  United States  of violating the agreement as military exchanges between the two...

Israeli strike kills six people in Gaza An Israeli air strike killed six people in an apartment building on Jamal Abdel Nasser Street, west of Gaza City, Al Jazeera reported. 

Qatar condemns Iranian attacks on Gulf countries Qatar condemned Iran’s attacks on Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan, calling them a “flagrant violation” of their sovereignty. Doha said the attacks marked a “dangerous escalation” and constituted a “blatant breach of international law, the Charter of the...

Iran declares Islamabad agreement suspended, blames US violations Submitted by MEE staff on Sat, 07/18/2026 - 14:08 Tehran says Washington violated all obligations under the memorandum as it focuses on 'defending the country' A plume of black smoke and flames rises over Mangaf, south of Kuwait Ci...

Iran suspends agreement with Washington after 'US violations' Iran's deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, said Tehran had suspended its commitments to the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Washington as US attacks continue.  “The US has violated and suspended all its commitm...

Kuwait Petroleum Corporation reports damage and injuries from Iranian attacks Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said one of its oil facilities was hit on Saturday by "repeated Iranian attacks". The corporation said the attacks led to significant material damage and some injuries.

Bahrain sounds air raid warning for sixth time Bahrain has set off air raid sirents for the sixth time in the last few hours.  A Bahraini Interior Ministry spokesperson called on its citizens and residents to "remain calm and head to the nearest safe place." 

The world must stop Israel's unprecedented assault on Palestinian children Submitted by Noam Peleg on Thu, 07/16/2026 - 21:07 After nearly three years of genocide, the international community is failing in its duty to protect the most vulnerable  An injured child is treated in Khan Younis fo...

US attacks kill 50 people since July 6: Iran Health Ministry Iran's health ministry said US attacks since July 6 has killed at least 50 people and wounded more than 500 others. 

Jordan shoots down four drones, says no casualties reported The Jordanian Armed Forces said they had intercepted and shot down four drones that entered the country’s airspace over the past 24 hours. In a statement, the military said there were no casualties or material damage.

US strikes leave 10,000 Iranians without water as Kuwait desalination plant burns Submitted by MEE staff on Sat, 07/18/2026 - 09:31 Officials said facilities were destroyed as Iran warned countries hosting US forces to prepare for retaliation Precision strikes target Iranian military sites in a h...

The truth is Burnham’s mea culpa on Gaza was nothing but a change in tone Submitted by Barry Malone on Thu, 07/16/2026 - 15:09 Britain’s anointed prime minister's Gaza apology contained nothing of substance for the victims of genocide – or anyone else Children react as Palestinians inspect the si...

US strikes on Iran’s Hormozgan province kill eight people: Tasnim Local Iranian media are reporting that a US attack on Iran’s southern Hormozgan province over the past two nights killed “about seven to eight people”, all of them civilians, according to Ahmad Moradi, a representative for the prov...

Kuwait reschedules flights due to airspace closures Kuwait Airways said it is rescheduling some flights due to airspace closures, according to a statement posted on social media. Similar disruptions occurred during the regional escalation earlier this year, when airspace closures across several G...

IRGC claims missile and drone attack on US base in Jordan Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it launched a “devastating and simultaneous missile and drone attack” targeting fighter jet shelters and a large aircraft parking area at the US base in al-Azraq, Jordan. The IRGC said t...