Kuwait's chief of staff meets in Saudi Arabia with defence coalition for Bab el-Mandeb strait Kuwait's chief of staff, General Khaled Al-Shuraian, met in Saudi Arabia with a "maritime defence coalition" to preserve freedom of navigation in Bab el-Mandeb strait, Kuwait's state news agency reported on Thursday.
Iran holds funeral for pilot killed during March mission Funeral ceremonies have begun in Iran for air force pilot Majid Kazemi, who was killed during a combat mission in March. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei paid tribute to the second brigadier general after authorities recovered and identified his remains. Kazemi was one of four crew members aboard two Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force Su-24 bombers taking part in an attack on 2 March 2026.
Exclusive: Festival supporting rescued animals forced to cancel after UK Lawyers for Israel complaint Submitted by Imran Mulla on Thu, 07/30/2026 - 11:13 Scout Association-owned venue cancelled booking for The Great Vegan Gathering following a UKLFI complaint The Great Vegan Gathering was scheduled to take place at Gilwell Park Scout Activity Centre in London from 27 August to 31 August (The Great Vegan Gathering) Off A vegan festival aiming to raise money for rescued animals has been cancelled after a complaint was sent to its venue by controversial lobby group UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI). But three bands named by UKLFI in its complaint have hit back against it in comments made to Middle East Eye. The Great Vegan Gathering was scheduled to take place at Gilwell Park Scout Activity Centre in London from 27 August to 31 August, featuring more than 50 performers.
Support for Israeli-US war on Iran falls as most Americans call it pointless Public backing in the United States for the war on Iran has continued to weaken, a new poll has found. About two-thirds of US adults said the conflict which Israeli pushed the country in had no purpose and was not worth pursuing, the survey by the Associated Press and the NORC Center for Public Affairs Research showed. The findings also indicated declining support for President Donald Trump’s decision to wage war, with few respondents favouring a prolonged conflict.
IRGC says it downed hostile drone over southwestern Iran Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it intercepted and destroyed a hostile drone over the southwestern port city of Bandar Imam Khomeini early on Thursday. The IRGC’s local division detected the unmanned aircraft inside the city’s airspace before shooting it down, the Tasnim news agency reported. Parts of the drone fell onto a residential property following the interception, but authorities reported no deaths.
Iran blames US for Hormuz closure as Oman talks continue Iran says negotiations with Oman remain under way in Tehran as efforts continue to address the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and disruption to global shipping. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said Iranian and Omani officials had held several rounds of discussions since talks began last week, including further meetings on Thursday. Baghaei blamed US and Israeli military operations for destabilising the vital waterway.
IRGC says US missile attack killed three personnel Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says a US missile attack killed three of its personnel on 30 July. The IRGC’s Ansar al-Mahdi branch in Zanjan province identified those killed as Mahmoud Mollajabari, Mohammadreza Cheraghi and Jamal Amiri, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported. The branch said the three died while “defending Iran’s borders and people”.
Aoun’s Ankara visit seeks clarity in Lebanon-Turkey relationship Submitted by Adam Chamseddine on Thu, 07/30/2026 - 11:17 Lebanese president’s one-day trip comes as Beirut seeks to preserve ties with competing regional powers United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon armoured vehicles driving past destroyed buildings in southern Lebanon on 22 July 2026 (Jalaa Marey/AFP) Off Lebanese President Joseph Aoun is set to visit Ankara on Thursday for talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in a one-day trip aimed at clarifying an established but increasingly ambiguous relationship between the two countries. Aoun will travel with a small delegation of presidential advisers, without any ministers, and no bilateral treaties are expected to be signed during the visit. Lebanese and Turkish sources told Middle East Eye that the talks would instead focus on the broader political relationship between Beirut and Ankara, including Turkey’s concerns over Lebanon’s regional positioning and the possibilities for expanded military and diplomatic cooperation.
IRGC says missiles destroyed three US F-35 jets at Jordan base Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it fired several ballistic missiles at Jordan’s al-Azraq airbase, which hosts US F-35 fighter jets. The IRGC said the attack targeted a runway and maintenance hangar in response to a US strike on Iran’s Qeshm Island that killed two parents and their child, the Fars news agency reported. It said the missiles completely destroyed three F-35 aircraft and inflicted “heavy damage” on three others.
‘I am dying slowly’: Gaza professor blocked from cancer treatment by Israel’s siege Submitted by Maha Hussaini on Thu, 07/30/2026 - 11:14 Israel’s restrictions on medicines and medical evacuations leave thousands of cancer patients without life-saving treatment Kholoud Abu Sahmoud says she is slowly dying from cancer as Israel continues to severely restrict medical evacuations (Hani Abu Rezeq/Middle East Eye) Off In a cramped space beneath the staircase of a school-turned-shelter in southern Gaza, university professor Kholoud Abu Sahmoud is slowly losing her battle with cancer. After 15 rounds of chemotherapy, the 33-year-old Palestinian mother of two was told she could no longer continue treatment because the drugs available in the war-ravaged enclave were not suitable for her type of cancer. “I was first diagnosed with liver cancer immediately after giving birth to my daughter, about nine months ago.
London insurers expand Red Sea high-risk zone after Houthi attacks London’s marine insurance market has expanded the section of the Red Sea it classifies as high risk following renewed Houthi attacks on commercial vessels. The Joint War Committee moved the northern boundary of its designated risk zone further up the Red Sea in guidance issued on 29 July. The committee comprises underwriters from Lloyd’s syndicates and representatives of London insurance companies.
Iranian press review: Iran relies on speedboats to keep Strait of Hormuz closed Submitted by MEE correspondent on Thu, 07/30/2026 - 09:54 Meanwhile, former IRGC navy chief calls for an end to the war with the US, students accuse Iranian embassy of working with Belarusian security services Iranian seamen piloting a speedboat near a Chinese Navy type 903A ship at sea during a 2024 naval exercise between Iran, Russia, and China in the Gulf of Oman (Iranian Army office/AFP) Off Speedboats described as key deterrent in Gulf As renewed attacks between Iran and the US expand into Iraq and Yemen, the Hamshahri daily, which has close ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), has dedicated its front page to a report on the force's speedboats in the Gulf. On Wednesday, the daily described the boats as the "winning card in the Persian Gulf" and said they are one of the main elements of Iran's deterrence against an expansion of US attacks. "The fleet has become one of the most complex challenges facing American forces in the Persian Gulf over the past two decades by relying on the 'swarm attack' tactic.
US awards Lockheed Martin $58. 6bn Patriot missile contract The US Army has awarded Lockheed Martin a contract worth up to $58. 6bn to expand production of Patriot interceptor missiles, the Reuters news agency reported.
Influential Iraqi Shia leader blames Iraqi militias for deaths in US-Saudi strikes Influential Iraqi Shia leader Muqtada al-Sadr has blamed armed groups and Baghdad’s failure to establish state control over weapons for fighters killed in joint US-Saudi air strikes. Writing on X, al-Sadr accused militia leaders of pursuing personal interests while exposing their fighters and Iraqi security personnel to deadly attacks. “The militias’ reckless actions and the failure to restrict weapons to the state have been, and continue to be, the cause of the unjust martyrdom of our fighters,” he said.
Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan meets newly elected Hamas leader Submitted by MEE staff on Thu, 07/30/2026 - 09:59 Khalil al-Hayya briefed Fidan on Israeli attacks, settlement expansion and Palestinian reconciliation Palestinians run for cover as smoke and fire rise during an Israeli strike on the the Al-Muttaqin Mosque in Gaza City on 28 July 2026 (Omar Al Qattaa/AFP) Off Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has met Khalil al-Hayya, the newly elected head of the political bureau in Hamas, as well as a delegation from the Palestinian group. Fidan congratulated Hayya on his appointment during Thursday’s meeting, sources within Turkey’s foreign ministry said, according to the semi-official Anadolu Agency. Hayya briefed Fidan on Israel’s continuing attacks across Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
War on Iran: Rescuers search for survivors on Qeshm Island after US kills toddler and parents Submitted by MEE staff on Thu, 07/30/2026 - 09:28 A mother, father and child died in the attack, as US forces launched a wave of attacks on Iran following Tehran's targeting of a Jordanian-American base Iranians sift through the rubble to look for survivors after US attacks on the island of Qeshm on 30 July (Screengrab) Off Footage released by Iranian state broadcaster IRIB on Thursday showed rescue teams clearing rubble as they searched for victims in the Chah-Tango neighbourhood of Qeshm Island, in Hormozgan province, following a US strike. The attack hit a civilian home, killing three members of the same family: a father, a mother and their two-year-old child. Two surviving family members, aged seven and nine, were taken to a medical centre for further treatment, according to Iranian officials.
Pakistan pushes to revive collapsed Iran-US agreement Pakistan says it is working to bring Iran and the United States back to negotiations under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding. Islamabad signed the agreement and has urged both sides to resume talks after an exchange of attacks led Washington and Tehran to declare the interim deal dead. “We are doing our utmost to bring all parties back to the Islamabad MoU,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi told reporters.
Israeli air attacks kill six Palestinians in Gaza overnight At least six Palestinians have been killed and 25 others wounded in Israeli air attacks across the Gaza Strip overnight, medical sources told Al Jazeera. The latest casualties add to the mounting toll from Israel’s continuing bombardment of the besieged Palestinian territory.
Why the New York Times story on Mossad recruiting Ahmadinejad doesn't add up Submitted by Marco Carnelos on Thu, 07/23/2026 - 20:44 A toxic figure reviled across the West, the former Iranian president is among the least plausible candidates for an Israeli regime-change plot Former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad speaks in Tehran on 2 June 2024 (Atta Kenare/AFP) On The New York Times published an extraordinary investigation this month, asserting that Israel ’s Mossad spent years cultivating former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as an intelligence asset, with the aim of installing him as leader of a post-Islamic-Republic Iran. The report, authored by a team of veteran investigative journalists, describes secret meetings in Budapest, encounters with then-Mossad chief David Barnea, covert payments, and a dramatic wartime extraction of Ahmadinejad from his bombed Tehran compound on 28 February. From this moment, the story becomes confused.
Egypt says drone attack sparked fire on American LNG ships Egypt has attributed a fire that damaged two vessels at the Mediterranean port of Damietta to a drone attack, marking its first official account of Wednesday’s incident. The Egyptian cabinet said preliminary findings showed that a drone caused the July 29 blaze. No group has taken responsibility.
