Netanyahu calls Trump meeting 'excellent,' says Iran must not get nuclear weapons

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Saudi Arabian forces, in coordination with the US Central Command, carried out targeted strikes Wednesday against sites linked to Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, the Saudi Ministry of Defense announced, in retaliation for recent drone attacks on the kingdom’s petroleum infrastructure.

The operation marks a significant escalation in tensions between Saudi Arabia and Iran-aligned groups operating from Iraqi territory.

Both Riyadh and Washington emphasised that the action was limited and aimed at deterrence rather than broader conflict.

In a statement, Maj. Gen. Turki al-Maliki, the official spokesman for the Saudi Ministry of Defence, said the strikes followed the interception and destruction of multiple drones that had targeted oil facilities in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province and the capital region of Riyadh.

Those attacks were launched from Iraq by “terrorist militias loyal to Iran,” according to the ministry.

Iran's main military command, Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, said on Tuesday that vessels belonging to any country or company accepting compensation from Iran's frozen assets would not be allowed to transit the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iran's state-run broadcaster IRIB.

A spokesman for the headquarters rejected US President Donald Trump's statement that ships damaged by Iran in the Gulf would be compensated using Iran's frozen funds.

He said Iran believes the vessels were damaged because of insecurity created by the US military and their use of what he described as an illegal and unsafe shipping route south of the Strait of Hormuz, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched multiple ballistic missiles early on Wednesday at a US military base in Jordan, the US Central Command said. If confirmed, it's the first direct Iranian strike on American forces in the country since a brief pause in US airstrikes. All the missiles were successfully intercepted, with no casualties or damage reported, CentCom said in a statement.

The attack occurred at about 1:45 pm Gulf Standard Time on Wednesday (July 29, 2026), according to the US military’s report of the launch time at 5:45 pm Eastern Time on Tuesday.

The targeted facility was likely Muwaffaq Salti Air Base near Azraq in northeastern Jordan, which has hosted US forces and aircraft and was struck in earlier Iranian attacks this month that killed American service members. 

Videos circulating on social media appeared to show missile launches from central-western Iran and intercepts by air defence systems, including US Patriot batteries or Jordanian defences.

Saudi Arabia's defence ministry said late Tuesday that its forces had intercepted drones targeting oil facilities in the east, blaming Iran-backed groups in Iraq for the launches for a second day running.

The ministry's spokesman, Turki al-Maliki, said that "aerial defences intercepted and destroyed several drones that attempted to target oil installations", adding that "these new terrorist attacks were launched from Iraqi territory and carried out by militias linked to Iran".

The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said it received a report of suspicious activity after the master of a tanker reported hearing an explosion while transiting the southern Red Sea, near Jizan, Yemen.

The report confirmed that the crew and vessel are safe and that no environmental damage has been reported. UKMTO has advised vessels to transit the area with caution and report any suspicious activity.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that he had an "excellent" meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House, marking their first face-to-face talks since the war with Iran began in late February.

"I've just finished an excellent meeting with President Trump," Netanyahu said in a video statement, adding it touched on "our common goal: ensuring that Iran does not obtain nuclear weapons". "It was one of the best conversations I've ever had with the President of the United States, our friend Donald Trump."

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said he was assured by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha that the attack on an Iranian ship in the Caspian Sea was unintentional and that Ukraine seeks no escalation. Araghchi said Iran likewise does not seek escalation, but made clear that any attack on Iranian citizens or interests is unacceptable and that there must be restitution for the losses.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, Kazem Gharibabadi, said Tehran has no plans to negotiate with the United States, while confirming that indirect talks with Oman are continuing "step by step." Speaking on Iranian state television, Gharibabadi said Iran would not allow Washington to "get used to fighting whenever it wants and sitting at the negotiating table whenever it wants," and claimed it was the US that had sent messages seeking an end to the conflict. He also reiterated that Iran would not recognise a southern route through the Strait of Hormuz and said responsibility for mine clearance in the waterway rests solely with Iran.

A satellite image captured on July 26 showed smoke rising from an oil facility in Jazan, Saudi Arabia, a day after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement said it had targeted Saudi Aramco facilities in Jizan and Yanbu. The image, provided by the European Union's Copernicus Sentinel-2 programme, showed a trail of smoke above the site.

CENTCOM said more than 20 US Navy warships are operating across the Middle East, enforcing the ongoing naval blockade against Iran it has described as a "steel wall." As of July 28, the command said it had redirected 18 commercial vessels attempting to breach the blockade, disabled two that did not comply, and boarded two others to verify compliance.

Kuwait's Cabinet strongly condemned what it called Iran's repeated aggression against the country, including an attack targeting the Abdali border crossing last Thursday, warning that the continued attacks amount to a dangerous escalation and a direct threat to regional security and stability. Separately, Foreign Minister Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah informed the Cabinet that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had summoned the Iranian ambassador and handed him a protest note over Iran's targeting of the Kuwaiti tanker "Kuwan."

Yemen's Houthi rebels said Tuesday that they had targeted a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea with ballistic missiles for allegedly violating a blockade on the kingdom's ports announced by the group last week.

"The targeting of the Saudi vessel came after it ignored warnings," a Houthi military spokesman said, identifying the ship as the NCC Ghazal and saying it had been "forced to turn back".

President Trump concluded separate Oval Office meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said both meetings were positive and productive.

Saqr Ghobash, Speaker of the Federal National Council (FNC), met today in Beirut with Nawaf Salam, Prime Minister of the Republic of Lebanon, at the Grand Serail.

During the meeting, the two sides discussed the fraternal relations between the UAE and the Lebanese Republic and ways to enhance cooperation in a manner that serves the shared interests of the two countries and their brotherly peoples.

They also exchanged views on several issues of mutual interest and stressed the importance of continuing coordination and consultation to support joint Arab action and enhance security and stability across the region.

The meeting reflects the shared commitment to strengthening the fraternal relations between the UAE and Lebanon and reinforcing consultation and coordination on issues of mutual interest. It also underscores the UAE's commitment to supporting joint Arab action and its belief in the importance of unifying efforts to promote stability and development, and to support initiatives that serve the interests of Arab peoples and fulfil their aspirations for a more prosperous future.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived Tuesday at the White House for his first in-person talks with President Donald Trump since the Iran war began, as the leaders seek to patch over public disagreements on the conflict.

The meeting is expected to be dominated by the war, which began with US and Israeli strikes on Iran in late February but has seen a recent pause in the fighting as Washington says it wants to give negotiations a chance.

Israel has not taken part in the latest round of hostilities between the United States and Iran, which flared earlier this month as an April ceasefire collapsed.

"We will discuss all the issues on the agenda, first and foremost Iran. Naturally, our goal is to safeguard our security and also to expand the circle of peace around us," Netanyahu said before departing from Israel.

The European Union on Tuesday condemned an "aggression" this month by Iranian security services against two French diplomats in Tehran. 

"The EU unequivocally condemns the aggression against two diplomats of the Embassy of France in Tehran perpetrated by Iranian security forces on July 19," the EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in a statement.

"Such acts constitute a blatant violation of the Vienna Conventions and jeopardise the very conduct of diplomatic relations."

France said the two diplomats suffered "an extremely serious act of intimidation" by Iranian security services, with one of them physically abused. 

Oman's Foreign Minister held a video conference with his counterparts from Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states to discuss developments in the current regional situation and updates on ongoing negotiations.

The ministers reaffirmed the importance of stepping up coordination to ensure freedom of navigation and safety in the Strait of Hormuz, while emphasizing the priority of political and diplomatic solutions to strengthen regional security and stability.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on Tuesday for the first time since the start of the Iran war, over which they have publicly disagreed.

Relations between Netanyahu and Trump have occasionally appeared strained in recent months, but both have sought to tone things down.

Tuesday's meeting is expected to be dominated by the war, which began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February, as Washington says it wants to give negotiations a chance.

Israel has not taken part in the latest round of hostilities between the United States and Iran, which flared earlier this month as an April ceasefire collapsed.

Israeli defence minister Israel Katz on Tuesday said that American warplanes used Israeli bases during their attacks on Iran, reiterating that his country was prepared to retaliate if targeted.

Fighting between the US and Iran has been paused since Friday after 13 nights of US strikes on the Islamic republic, after an April ceasefire collapsed.

Israel has not taken part in the latest round of hostilities in the war that began in late February with a wave of US-Israeli strikes on Iran.

"The fact is that, at the moment -- and this could change within an hour -- the Iranians are firing at everything in the region except one country: the State of Israel," Katz told Israel's right-wing Channel 14.

Kuwait's Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly condemned the repeated Iranian drone attacks targeting Jordan, calling them a flagrant violation of the kingdom's sovereignty and territorial integrity and a threat to its security. In a statement issued Tuesday, the ministry reaffirmed Kuwait's full solidarity with Jordan and its support for all measures taken to safeguard the country's security, sovereignty, and the safety of its people.

An Israeli drone struck a residential apartment in Nabatieh Al Fawqa in southern Lebanon, as Israeli forces continued demolitions and strikes in border areas.

The state-run National News Agency reported that the drone carried out two consecutive strikes on the building, causing a fire inside the apartment. No casualties were immediately reported.

Iran says it lost around 230 million cubic metres of gas production capacity during the war with the United States and Israel, according to government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani.

Speaking at a news conference, Mohajerani said the conflict significantly affected the country's energy sector.

The latest estimate comes after Tehran sought compensation in April for damage it says was caused by US and Israeli attacks. Iranian officials previously estimated that the war, which began on February 28, resulted in about $270 billion in direct and indirect losses.

Oman has proposed a regional mechanism for jointly managing the Strait of Hormuz, according to a Reuters report citing a Gulf source.

Under the Omani proposal, which has regional backing, Iran would not exercise sole control of ​the vital waterway, the source told Reuters.

The plan is said to be modelled on the Strait of Malacca, where users voluntarily contribute fees to help fund navigation, environmental protection, and search-and-rescue operations.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi held separate phone calls on the Strait of Hormuz with his Omani and Saudi counterparts Badr Al-Busaidi and Faisal bin Farhan, state TV said Tuesday.

During the calls, "they stressed the need to strengthen cooperation and advance joint diplomatic efforts to establish stability in the region and eliminate the insecurity imposed on the Strait of Hormuz due to the aggressive actions of the United States," the state broadcaster added.

Iran has maintained control over the strait since the start of the Middle East war on February 28, disrupting shipping through the vital conduit.

In recent weeks, fighting has also spread to involve Saudi Arabia and the Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

The last few days have nonetheless seen a lull in hostilities in the region.

Iran's judiciary on Tuesday announced the hanging of two men over charges relating to anti-government protests that peaked in January, with media reporting it took place in a public square.

"The death sentences of Abolfazl Sepahi and Amir-Hossein Safari were carried out this morning," the judiciary's Mizan Online website said.

Mehr news agency meanwhile reported that the hanging took place in "a square in the city of Malekshahr" in the central Isfahan province, with people present.

The two were found guilty of "attacking police officers with machetes and knives, tying them to road signs, pulling them on the ground, dousing them with gasoline, and setting them on fire" on January 8, Mizan said.

It added that they had faced charges of "moharebeh (waging war against God) by drawing weapons and creating fear and terror" and "corruption on earth for committing acts that severely disrupted public order and security in the country", among others.

The Jordanian Armed Forces said they intercepted and destroyed a drone that entered Jordanian airspace early on Tuesday.

According to the state-run Petra news agency, the drone was brought down in the kingdom’s eastern desert.

The announcement came shortly after Israel’s military said it had also intercepted a drone near its border with Jordan, adding that the aircraft did not enter Israeli territory.

South Korea’s Kospi index plunged more than 10% on Tuesday as heavy selling hit semiconductor stocks amid concerns over the sustainability of the artificial intelligence boom.

Shares of chip giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix fell sharply, dropping 12% and 12.7% respectively, forcing a temporary trading halt.

Investors are worried that growing competition from Chinese AI startups and chipmakers could challenge global companies that have surged on the AI boom.

Chinese chipmaker CXMT’s 466% jump in its Shanghai debut after raising $8.6 billion in its IPO added to concerns over increased competition.

Other Asian markets also declined, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 down 4% and Taiwan’s Taiex falling 3.9%. Hong Kong and Shanghai also ended lower, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.6%.

Oil prices slipped more than 1% as investors turned cautious.

The Israeli military said on Tuesday it intercepted a drone near the Jordanian border and was looking into its origin.

"A short while ago, the Israeli Air Force intercepted a UAV in the area of the Jordan border," the military said.

"The UAV did not cross into Israeli territory. The origin of the launch is under review."

Jordan has been repeatedly targeted since war resumed between Iran and the United States earlier this month.

Israel has not taken part in the latest round of fighting.

Separately, the Israeli military said early Tuesday that air sirens sounded in the area of Kissufim, next to the Gaza Strip, due to a "false identification".

The United States began reviewing its military presence in Europe on Monday, officials said, after US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told his NATO counterparts last month that Washington was planning such an analysis.

"As the Secretary (Hegseth) laid out then, this will be a real review, designed to ensure that NATO is moving fast and irreversibly toward Europe taking primary responsibility for its conventional defense," US Defense Under Secretary Elbridge Colby wrote on X.

"The outcome of this Review will be an acceleration of NATO's transition to a stronger, more equitable, and sustainable alliance," Colby added.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly lashed out against European allies over their response to his war in Iran, including the refusal to allow US forces to use their bases during the start of the conflict.

Hegseth has also threatened to reduce Washington's NATO spending unless allies reached defense spending targets.

As part of that process the Pentagon has already told allies it is reducing the number of assets worldwide that it makes available for NATO operations.

The US State Department confirmed Monday that the next round of talks between Israel and Lebanon will be held in Rome on August 4 through 6, as Israel prepares to withdraw from two "pilot zones" in southern Lebanon.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani first announced the next round of US-mediated talks last week, with a State Department official detailing the talks to AFP on the condition of anonymity.

The Israel-Lebanon framework deal emerged after war broke out between Israel and Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah on March 2, against the backdrop of the wider Middle East war.

It calls for an end to the war in Lebanon, disarmament of the Lebanese movement, the deployment of Lebanese troops in the south and for Israeli forces to steadily withdraw from the country in two "pilot zones."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu landed in Washington on Monday (local time) for high-level talks with US President Donald Trump, placing regional security and the confrontation with Iran at the top of the bilateral agenda.

Yemen's internationally-recognised government on Monday said it is ready for any escalation with Houthi rebels after the Iran-backed group launched attacks and a maritime blockade targeting Saudi Arabia. 

Fears are growing that renewed fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi rebels in Yemen may further destabilise the Arabian peninsula and rattle the region's precarious fault lines.

"At the end of the day, we are prepared for any escalations," Yemen's foreign minister designate Afrah al-Zouba told reporters during a briefing in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

The comments came just hours after the Houthis said they launched fresh drone strikes targeting Saudi Arabian oil infrastructure in response to incursions by the kingdom's drones.

Maritime traffic patterns diverged sharply in recent days across two of the world’s most critical shipping lanes in the Middle East, with markedly fewer vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz while activity remained robust through the Bab al-Mandab Strait, according to ship-tracking data.

Between July 24 and 26, the Strait of Hormuz — the narrow waterway between the Arabian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman through which about one-fifth of global oil passes — saw just 29 verified crossings.

Of those, 21 vessels were exiting the Middle East Gulf and eight were entering. Routing was split, with 14 using the Iranian unilateral scheme, 14 undetermined and one following the Hormuz Traffic Separation Scheme, MarineTraffic reported.

By contrast, the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea recorded 100 verified crossings, with traffic nearly balanced: 51 vessels entering the Red Sea and 49 exiting.

The vast majority — 90 — followed the established Traffic Separation Scheme, while 10 made "dark" transits (with transponders off).

Some vessels that had paused or reversed course ultimately proceeded, indicating operators are weighing risks in real time rather than abandoning the route.

Global oil prices fell sharply in early Asian trading on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington had halted its bombing campaign against Iran to allow diplomacy a chance, easing fears of an immediate disruption to Middle East crude supplies.

A market snapshot at 7:36 am Tokyo time showed:

• Brent crude: $88.36 per barrel, down $8.42 (-8.70%)

• WTI crude: $81.97, down $0.64 (-0.77%)

• Murban crude: $84.43, down $12.62 (-13.00%)

• Natural gas: $2.740, down 0.98%

The steep decline in Brent and Murban crude reflects investors rapidly unwinding the geopolitical risk premium that had been built into oil prices during weeks of escalating conflict between the US and Iran.

Yemen is worried that Houthi rebels are trying to emulate Iran's attempts to control the Strait of Hormuz, a senior official said Monday, after the group announced a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia. 

The "Houthis want to copy the Iran experience in Hormuz," foreign minister designate Afrah al-Zouba told reporters during a briefing saying the Tehran-backed rebels were "in harmony" with Iranian escalation in the region.  

Global oil prices fell sharply in early Asian trading on Tuesday after US President Donald Trump said Washington had halted its bombing campaign against Iran to allow diplomacy a chance, easing fears of an immediate disruption to Middle East crude supplies.

A market snapshot at 7:36 am Tokyo time showed:

• Brent crude: $88.36 per barrel, down $8.42 (-8.70%)

• WTI crude: $81.97, down $0.64 (-0.77%)

• Murban crude: $84.43, down $12.62 (-13.00%)

• Natural gas: $2.740, down 0.98%

The steep decline in Brent and Murban crude reflects investors rapidly unwinding the geopolitical risk premium that had been built into oil prices during weeks of escalating conflict between the United States and Iran.

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi called on Monday for an investigation into Saudi Arabia's claim that drones targeting its territory had been launched by pro-Iran groups in Iraq, his spokesman said.

Zaidi directed "the competent security authorities to investigate the statement issued by the ministry of defence of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia regarding the targeting of the kingdom with drones launched from Iraqi territory", spokesman Sabah al-Numan said in a statement. 

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella network of Iran-backed Shia militias conducting attacks against US and Israeli targets while operating outside Iraq's formal military structure, said the Saudi accusations were "fabrications that serve only as an attempt to justify their inability to respond to the painful Yemeni strikes".

President Donald J. Trump announced that the US would draw on Iranian funds under American control to compensate for damages caused by recent attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, describing the move as a fair way to hold Tehran accountable without burdening American taxpayers.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One as he traveled to an event in Michigan, Mr. Trump addressed the issue directly. “We’re going to use Iran’s money to pay for the damage they did,” he said. “In other words, the Iran money that we control will be used to pay for damages.”

The president’s remarks come amid heightened tensions in the Gulf, where Iranian forces or proxy groups have been linked to assaults on commercial vessels, disrupting a critical chokepoint for global oil shipments. US Treasury officials are finalising details on the precise extent of the damages, the total value of frozen Iranian assets to be tapped, and implementation timelines.

Day 148: Saudi air defences foil drone attack on oil facilities

Day 147: Iran says military ready as Netanyahu heads to US

Day 146: Iran says it earned $11.5b in oil sales during the war

Day 145: US-Iran war escalates as Tehran targets US bases in Gulf

Day 144: House approves bid to limit war with Tehran as oil hits $100

Day 143: US tightens Iran blockade, redirects 9 commercial ships

Day 142: Air defences roar over Tehran on 11th night of strikes

Day 141: Iran president says country in 'full-scale war' with US

Day 140: US strikes Iran, Gulf states face missile threats as war risks spread