Blasts near Damascus hotel housing Macron during historic Syria visit wounds 18 Two bombs exploded near a hotel in Damascus where French President Emmanuel Macron spent the night, wounding 18 people and overshadowing the first visit to Syria by an EU head of state since Bashar al-Assad was toppled. Macron's motorcade left the hotel shortly before the blasts. The French president pressed ahead with his visit, meeting Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa at the presidential palace.
Israeli strikes kill at least three Palestinians in Gaza Israeli strikes killed at least three Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, health officials in the enclave said. Medics said an Israeli air strike killed a man and wounded two children in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis, in southern Gaza. Later on Tuesday, another Israeli air strike hit near a tent encampment housing displaced families in western Gaza City, killing one person and wounding five others.
Three tankers struck within hours in Hormuz, Qatar slams Iran Three tankers, including a Qatari LNG vessel, were struck within hours in the Strait of Hormuz, prompting peace mediator Doha to denounce an "unacceptable" Iranian attack. An "unknown projectile" hit a tanker overnight, causing a fire, before two more were hit, at least one by a drone, the British maritime security agency UKMTO said. Earlier in the day, citing anonymous sources, Iran's IRIB said an oil tanker attempting to pass through the Omani route in the Strait of Hormuz was attacked "after ignoring repeated warnings".
Turkey and UK to sign new defence partnership deal Submitted by Ragip Soylu on Tue, 07/07/2026 - 15:25 The sensitive agreement is being compared to the 2021 defence pact between France and Greece, although sources declined to say whether it includes a mutual defence clause The UK had previously been in talks with Ankara to supply with Eurofighter jets, like the one seen here in Qatar in October, 2022 (AFP) Off Turkey and the UK are expected to sign a security and defence partnership deal on Wednesday, the latest development in the growing partnership between the two countries. The deal will commit both countries to closer cooperation on defence, multiple sources familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye. According to the sources, the document mandates both countries to support each on every matter on defence, including cooperation on their respective defence industries, counterterrorism, hybrid threats, and cybersecurity.
Peace Now report: 2025 witnessed largest West Bank settlement expansion Titled Annus Mirabilis: Actions by the Israeli Government to Annex the West Bank, 2023–2025 , the report by Peace Now and Kerem Navot concludes that the Israeli government has advanced de facto annexation of the West Bank at an unprecedented pace, WAFA reported. The report suggests that the measures advanced by the Israeli government form a single, systematic policy geared towards deepening Israeli control over the West Bank. Instead of focusing on isolated developments such as settlement construction, outpost authorisation, or state land declarations, the report, for the first time, consolidates all government actions and demonstrates that they constitute a single policy, WAFA reported.
Israeli strikes kill two Palestinians in Gaza, wound seven including two children An Israeli airstrike had killed a man and wounded two children in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis in southern Gaza. Later on Tuesday, another Israeli airstrike hit near a tent encampment housing displaced families, killing one person and wounding five others, medics said. Israel has repeatedly carried out strikes in Gaza since a US-mediated ceasefire with Hamas was reached last October.
Qatari LNG tanker and Saudi crude oil ship damaged in Hormuz The Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker Al Rekayyat reported that it had been struck overnight and its engine room set on fire. Maritime security sources said a Saudi crude oil tanker had also been damaged. "Mayday mayday mayday.
Syria says 18 wounded in Damascus blasts during Macron visit The blasts occurred in central Damascus near the hotel where France's president spent the night, with the Elysee Palace saying his visit is ongoing. The blasts came moments before Syrian state television announced Emmanuel Macron's arrival to the presidential palace to meet his counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa. The Syrian interior ministry said that "18 people, including four police officers, were injured" as a result of the two explosions caused by "two improvised devices, the first of which was placed inside a car parked on the side of the road, while the second was placed inside a garbage container".
NATO foreign ministers to meet Gulf Arab counterparts to discuss Hormuz tensions NATO foreign ministers will meet Gulf Arab counterparts on Tuesday to address the stalemate over reopening the Strait of Hormuz, including a Franco-British proposal for a multinational maritime mission that Iran has so far dismissed. The meeting on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Ankara will bring together ministers from Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates following weeks of tensions in the strategically important waterway despite an interim US-Iran peace deal. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) said early on Tuesday that a tanker was struck east of Oman's Limah.
Explosion heard in Damascus during French president's visit An explosion was heard in central Damascus on Tuesday as French President Emmanuel Macron visited the Syrian capital, AFP journalists said, with witnesses reporting smoke rising near a high-end hotel where the leader spent the night. At least one blast was heard before ambulances rushed to the scene, while Macron, the first Western European leader to visit Syria since the 2024 fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, held talks with Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa at the presidential palace.
Morning update Good morning Middle East Eye readers, Tensions have reignited amid an attack on an oil tanker off the coast of Oman, with severe damage to the vessel reported. While Axios indicated that two US officials blamed Iran for the attack on the ship, Tehran's IRIB state broadcaster reported that the targeting happened after the vessel "ignored repeated warnings". Here are more updates from across the region: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said that he is preparing to travel to the White House for a meeting with US President Donald Trump towards the end of July, where the two are set to discuss the framework of the agreement with Israel.
Iranian media says vessel struck near Oman for 'ignoring repeated warnings' Iranian media say ship attacked in Hormuz after attempting to take US-backed route We have more details on the attack on the tanker attack. The IRIB state broadcaster is reporting that an oil tanker attempting to pass through the Omani route in the Strait of Hormuz was attacked "after ignoring repeated warnings". According to the broadcaster, citing anonymous sources, the vessel was planning to travel through the waterway with the support of the US Navy.
US needs to move bases from Gulf to Israel, former Centcom commander says The US needs to relocate its bases in the Gulf to Israel and neighbouring countries to better protect its assets from Iran’s missiles and drones, the former head of US Central Command (Centcom), General Frank McKenzie, said at a webinar last week. “No one in their right mind would ever put the Centcom forward headquarters, you know, 100 miles away from Iran, [in Qatar], yet that’s where it is,” he told the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, referring to al-Udeid military base. McKenzie, who was the top military official overseeing US forces in the Middle East from 28 March 2019 to 1 April 2022, said that in 2022, he and other officials told the Biden administration that the constellation of US bases around the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain was vulnerable to Iranian attacks and US forces should be dispersed to the West, including to Israel.
Tanker hit by unknown projectile 8 nautical miles away from Oman's Limah, maritime body says A vessel was hit by an unknown projectile while traveling southbound about 8 nautical miles east of Oman's Limah, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency (UKMTO) said early on Tuesday. The targeting struck the tanker's port side, causing a fire. UKMTO indicated that there were no casualties or environmental impact reported.
Israeli parliament advances bill on inquiry into 7 October failures Israel's parliament has approved a bill in its first reading to establish a commission of inquiry into the security failings that led to the 7 October attacks. "The purpose of the proposed law is to bring about a full, thorough, and independent investigation of the events of the ... October 7 massacre" and the genocidal wars that followed, an explanatory note to the bill said.
Israel restricts flow of goods into Gaza at Karem Abu Salem crossing Israel is restricting the flow of goods into Gaza at the Karem Abu Salem crossing, the UN's humanitarian agency has reported. Last week, only 42 percent of supplies routed through Egypt and 65 percent of those from Ashdod port could be offloaded at the crossing, which sits at the intersection of Egypt, Israel and Gaza and is known to Israelis as Kerem Shalom, OCHA said in its latest update. The UN and its partners managed to deliver about 42,000 pallets to Gaza in June, down from around 46,600 in May.
Israeli settlers attack Palestinian homes and farmland in occupied West Bank Dozens of Israeli settlers reportedly attacked Palestinian homes and farmland in the occupied West Bank's Hebron governorate on Monday, injuring six residents. Activist Osama Makhamra said around 30 armed settlers attacked homes in the village of Umm al-Khair in Masafer Yatta, in the South Hebron Hills, after the Israeli military closed the village's main entrance. According to Wafa, the official news agency of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Makhamra said the settlers carried out the attack under the protection of Israeli forces.
US needs to move bases from Gulf to Israel, former Centcom commander says Submitted by Sean Mathews on Mon, 07/06/2026 - 21:06 Retired General Frank McKenzie says Iran war has shown that current basing system is now an 'artefact' This handout satellite image taken on 1 March 2026 shows a view of smoke rising from damage at the US Fifth Fleet naval base in Bahrain's capital Manama after it was hit by Iranian strikes (2026 Planet Labs PBC/AFP) Off The US needs to relocate its bases in the Gulf to Israel and neighbouring countries to better protect its assets from Iran’s missiles and drones, the former head of US Central Command (Centcom), General Frank McKenzie, said at a webinar last week. “No one in their right mind would ever put the Centcom forward headquarters, you know, 100 miles away from Iran, [in Qatar], yet that’s where it is,” he told the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, referring to al-Udeid military base. McKenzie, who was the top military official overseeing US forces in the Middle East from 28 March 2019 to 1 April 2022, said that in 2022, he and other officials told the Biden administration that the constellation of US bases around the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain was vulnerable to Iranian attacks and US forces should be dispersed to the West, including to Israel.
Israeli forces strike southern Lebanon town after funeral attack Israeli forces have carried out an air strike on the town of Baraachit in southern Lebanon's Bint Jbeil district, Lebanon's National News Agency reported. The attack came after a mass funeral for civilians in the same town on Sunday was targeted by Israeli artillery fire. No casualties were reported in the strike.
Israeli army says it targeted vehicle near southern Lebanon 'security zone' The Israeli army says it targeted the Al-Aqida area in southern Lebanon, claiming that "four suspects" approaching the so-called security zone in a vehicle posed a threat to its forces. As we reported earlier, four people were killed in an Israeli strike on a vehicle in the neighbouring Nabatieh al-Fawqa area. The victims included the principal of Youssef Shamoun Public School, her mother, a foreign domestic worker and a Syrian citizen.
