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17:46
Houthis Say Group’s Maritime Blockade ‘Only Affects Saudi Side’
Boats float near the coast of Bab el-Mandeb, Yemen (fil photo)
Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen said they do not seek to block traffic through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea, adding that their proclaimed blockade “only affects the Saudi side.”
“There is no closure of Bab al-Mandab as some are suggesting,” senior Houthi negotiator Mohammed Abdulsalam said. In recent days, the group have attacked Saudi oil tankers in the area after announcing a blockade on July 20.
The development sparked condemnation from US and European leaders, with US President Donald Trump threatening Iran and the Houthis with “military punishment” if the attacks continue.
While Iran continues to threaten shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, Houthi attacks in the Red Sea risked disrupting traffic through the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
According to AFP, at least nine ships have changed course since Houthis announced the blockade.
With reporting by AFPShare
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17:27
EU Sanctions 5 Iranian Judges, Cyber Hacker
The Council of the European Union has placed five judges of Iran’s Revolutionary Courts on its sanctions list for their “responsibility for serious human rights violations.”
The council said these judges “have presided over trials targeting religious minorities and political dissidents, including the Nobel Peace Prize Winner Narges Mohammadi, on the basis of vaguely defined national security and religious charges. In those instances, they have imposed death sentences and long prison sentences, flogging, fines or supplementary punishments on political dissidents and human rights activists, including in connection with the 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom protests following the death of Mahsa Amini.”
The Council of the European Union also announced that it has sanctioned Nima Salehi, a key figure in a Ashiyane cyber group it says has helped the Iranian government suppress the free flow of information.
“Ashiyane Digital Security cooperates closely with the EU-listed Cyber Police (FATA) and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and is responsible for intensive cyber-attacks on both domestic opponents and reformists and foreign institutions, thereby assisting the regimes crackdown against the opposition,” the EU said.
In the officialdocumentof the Council of the European Union, five Iranian judges who have been sanctioned for “serious human rights violations” are introduced, stating their positions and the reasons for their inclusion on the sanctions list.
“As Tehran intensifies its domestic crackdown, the EU will continue to hold those responsible to account,” Kallas said in a statement on X.
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13:51
Britain Vows to Defend Itself After IRGC Threat
The IRGC claims the United States has used RAF Fairford in southwest England to carry out bombing missions against Iran.
The British government said its armed forces are prepared to defend the country after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) warned that US bombers should not be allowed to operate from British bases.
In a statement on July 23, the IRGC said the United States had used RAF Fairford in southwest England to carry out bombing missions against Iran, warning that “any base used for aggression against Iranian territory is a legitimate target for us.”
The warning came after Prime Minister Andy Burnham was informed last week that Britain would continue an existing agreement allowing the UnitedI LOA States to use British bases for what the government described as the “collective self-defense of the region.”
Andy Burnham became Britain’s new prime minister on July 19.
The government said the arrangement covers US defensive operations against missile sites and capabilities used in attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Responding to the Iranian threat, a British government spokesperson said:”Our armed forces are ready to keep the United Kingdom safe from any kind of attacks, whether it’s on our soil or from abroad. The UK stands ready 24/7 to defend itself.”
“This includes through operating a layered approach to air and missile defense, provided by Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force assets equipped with a range of advanced capabilities, working closely with our NATO allies,” the spokesperson added.
The government also said its policy had not changed despite the IRGC’s warning, adding that Britain remained “committed to defending our people, our interests and our allies, acting in accordance with international law and not getting drawn into the wider conflict.”
July 17, the British government formally designated the IRGC as one of the first organizations posing a threat to UK national security.
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13:31
Amnesty International Calls On Iran To Halt Execution Of Athlete Benyamin Naqdi
Amnesty International on July 24 called on the Iranian authorities to immediately halt plans to execute athlete Benyamin Naqdi.
Naqdi was arrested in Shiraz in connection with the nationwide protests that took place in January and was forcibly disappeared for 53 days. Iranian state media broadcast his televised “confession” the day after his arrest, before he had stood trial.
On May 12, he was sentenced to death on the charge of “corruption on Earth” after authorities alleged that he had used a fire extinguisher against security forces.
Amnesty International said the death sentence was imposed following a “grossly unfair trial.” The organization also expressed concern that Naqdi’s televised “confession” was extracted under torture or other ill-treatment, citing a longstanding pattern of Iranian authorities relying on coerced confessions.
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13:26
IRGC Claims Attack On US Base In Kuwait, Causing Casualties
The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) said on July 24 that it had struck the US-operated Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait on July 24.
The IRGC claimed the attack destroyed a large ammunition depot and several buildings housing US personnel.
It also claimed that six large buildings were destroyed, three others were heavily damaged, and an unspecified number of US personnel were killed or wounded.
The claims could not be independently verified, and neither the US military nor Kuwaiti authorities immediately confirmed them.
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13:24
Iran: IRGC Naval Base On Caspian Sea Attacked
The naval headquarters of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in Zibakenar on the country’s Caspian Sea coast on July 24,accordingto the governor of Gilan Province.
Iranian media have not announced further details about the attack on the Seyyed-ol-Shohada Headquarters and have only reported so far that “no reports of human casualties have been received.”
If confirmed as a US attack, it would mark the first time in the latest round of US attacks that an IRGC base in northern Iran or on the Caspian Sea coast has been targeted.
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12:30
Iranian Media Reports 4 People Killed In US Attack On Ahvaz
Iranian media reported that four people were killed and seven others were injured following a US attack on the morning of July 24.
Valiollah Hayati, deputy governor of Khuzestan for security and law enforcement, was quoted as saying four people were killed and five others were injured in a US missile attack on areas around the city of Ahvaz. He did not provide details about the locations attacked.
Hayati added that over the past 14 days, several locations in 12 cities in Khuzestan Province have been targeted by US attacks.
There are also reports from Bandar Abbas that two people were injured in a July 23 attack on the city’s Tappeh Allah Akbar. Electricity in the area was cut off following the attack.
An official for Isfahan Province also announced that an area in the Nayin district was targeted by the United States, but the attack did not result in any casualties.
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12:23
Oil Tanker Transit Through Strait of Hormuz At Virtual Standstill
An oil tanker prepares to load crude oil at one of Iraq’s southern offshore oil terminals near Basra in April.
The number of oil tankers passing through the Strait of Hormuz on July 23 reached the lowest level in nearly seven weeks, according to data from oil tanker traffic monitoring companies.
Only one giant oil tanker, called the New Giant and carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil, left the Strait of Hormuz and headed for China on July 23.
No oil tanker entered the vital waterway on this day.
On July 21 and 22, three and eight oil tankers passed through the Strait of Hormuz, respectively.
Before the US-Iran war began, up to 150 vessels passed through the strait per day.
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11:40
Rubio Vows Iran, Russia Crises Won’t Weaken US Commitment To Asia
MANILA — As US Secretary of State Marco Rubio concluded his first Southeast Asia trip as America’s top diplomat, he sought to reassure regional partners that the war in Iran and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would not weaken Washington’s commitment to the region.
The message came as Washington confronts an escalating standoff with Iran, stalled diplomacy over Russia’s war in Ukraine, and intensifying competition with China across the Indo-Pacific. Yet Rubio’s visit also underscored a widening gap between US strategic priorities and Southeast Asia’s increasingly economic view of security.
While Rubio went to the Philippine capital for the three-day meeting of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) foreign ministers, much of the focus was on the situation in the Gulf as the US military intensified attacks on Iran.
To read the full analysis, clickhere.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks to journalists on July 23 after attending the ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting.
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11:24
UN Urges Action For Stranded Seafarers In Strait of Hormuz
Vessels anchored in the Strait of Hormuz as seen from Musandam, Oman, on June 3
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk has called for urgent action to address the humanitarian and human rights crisis facing thousands of stranded seafarers in the Strait of Hormuz.
According to Shabia Mantoo, spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at least 6,000 seafarers aboard some 400 vessels remain stranded in the Strait of Hormuz, citing figures from the International Maritime Organization, with the estimate described as not exhaustive.
“This number is not exhaustive as many others are unaccounted for, believed to be stuck in the Persian Gulf on a range of smaller vessels or have otherwise not been located,” Mantoo said inbriefing notesreleased on July 24.
Mantoo said the UN Human Rights Office has received information indicating that some seafarers have been abandoned at sea by shipowners, leaving them without support, repatriation, or even their owed wages.
According to the statement, the affected seafarers have been left aboard their vessels without food, water, fuel, medical care, electricity, or any means of communicating with their families.
“They face prolonged isolation and confinement in a conflict zone, with uncertainty about their safety and disembarkation, risking a severe toll on their mental and physical well-being,” the UN Human Rights Office said.
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