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02:20
US, Iran Threaten Vital Infrastructure As Rhetoric Heats Up Again
Tehran threatened to strike US- and Israeli-linked infrastructure sites in the Middle East after US President Donald Trump said American forces would continue to hit Iran very hard until the Islamic republic cant take it anymore.
“We’ll be hitting him very hard and, you know, at some point they’re going to say, ‘We just can’t take it anymore,'” Trump said during a cabinet meeting at the Camp David presidential retreat in the state of Maryland.
Meanwhile, Iran’s state-run Tasnim news agency early on August 1 cited a senior security official as saying Tehran has prepared a “comprehensive plan” to respond to any “potential American recklessness.”
SEE ALSO:
Washington Must Rethink Its Security Role In The Gulf, Says Former Trump NSC Official Allison Minor
The official Tehran’s plan includes striking critical infrastructure of Israel and the US, including energy facilities, in the region, according to Tasnim.
Those comments came after multiple US media outlets, including CBS and The Wall Street Journal, citing sources, reported that Trump had ordered a fresh air campaign aimed at forcing Tehran to surrender and that it could come as soon as this weekend.
CBS News reported that US and Israeli forces were planning joint strikes on energy-related sites, also as soon as this weekend, and that the targets would likely be oil refineries and power plants.
Trump has often threatened to blast key Iranian infrastructure facilities throughout the war. A week ago, he vowed to destroy a bridge or power plant every time that Tehran fires at ships in the vital Strait of Hormuz, through which much of the worlds oil and gas supplies normally transit.
CBS, citing multiple unnamed sources, added that Trump had not yet given the go-ahead for the coordinated US-Israeli strikes. The report comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Washington to meet with Trump and US defense chief Pete Hegseth.
If the strikes do take place, it would mark Israels return to active combat activities for the first time since the initial days of the war, which began on February 28 before an interim deal brought about an often broken cease-fire.
CBS claimed in its reporting that some White House aides voiced strong objections to the plan at the Camp David cabinet meeting.
Even as he threatens further attacks on Iran, Trump has insisted that it is still possible to reach a peace deal with Tehran.
Elsewhere, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels on August 1 denied reports they were planning to impose fees on commercial ships transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, insisting that passage through the strategic waterway remained free.
SEE ALSO:
US Military Says Latest Strikes Target Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps
Reuters on July 29, citing regional sources, reported that the Houthis were considering imposing fees on commercial ships sailing through the southern Red Sea, after earlier declaring a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia on July 30 said it had established a maritime defense alliance to secure navigation through the Bab al-Mandab Strait amid attacks on Saudi vessels by the Houthi rebels.
The world community has condemned efforts by Iran to charge tolls or fees for another crucial sea route, the Strait of Hormuz, which is considered an international waterway and not under the control of any country. Traffic has slowed through the strait amid threats of Iranian attacks, although US forces insist the waterway is open.
With reporting by RFE/RL’s Radio Farda, AFP, Reuters, CBS, and The Wall Street JournalShare
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01:49
Houthis Deny Plan To Charge Fees For Bab Al-Mandab Strait Passage
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels on August 1 denied reports they were planning to impose fees on commercial ships transiting the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, insisting that passage through the strategic waterway remained free.
Reuters on July 29, citing regional sources, reported that the Houthis were considering imposing fees on commercial ships sailing through the southern Red Sea, after earlier declaring a maritime blockade on Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia on July 30 said it had established a maritime defense alliance to secure navigation through the Bab al-Mandab Strait amid attacks on Saudi vessels by the Houthi rebels.
Views of Bab al-Mandab Strait as seen from Yemen.
Saudi Arabia’s Defense Ministry issued a joint statement on behalf of 14 countries, including several US partners — Turkey, Pakistan, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, and Qatar — saying that the alliance was “aimed at enhancing maritime security.”
Although the Houthis have said they intend to blockade only Saudi Arabia, recent incidents in the Red Sea have raised the risk of a second chokepoint threatening global oil supplies, with threats to the Bab al-Mandab Strait compounding Irans continuing efforts to control the key Strait of Hormuz.
The world community has condemned efforts by Tehran to charge tolls or fees for passage of the Strait of Hormuz, which is considered an international waterway and not under the control of any country.
With reporting by ReutersShare
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00:08
Iraq Bolsters Defenses Following US-Saudi Strikes On Iran-Allied Fighters
Iraq has said it will bolster its air defenses and intelligence activities after US-Saudi forces struck pro-Iran militants accused of launching attacks in the region.
Government spokesman Sabah al-Numan said Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi “issued strict and immediate orders…to raise alertness and readiness to the maximum across all camps and bases, particularly at the official bases of the armed forces and the Hashed al-Shaabi.”
On July 29, US-Saudi air strikes targeted bases belonging to the Hashed al-Shaabi, an Iraqi militant alliance that has been integrated into the country’s armed forces but also includes powerful pro-Iran groups known for acting independently.
The US-Saudi strikes killed 20 fighters, including five Iranians after Riyadh said its forces had intercepted drones targeting oil facilities and blamed Iran-allied groups based in Iraq.
The government in Baghdad has expressed concerns about being pulled into the US-Israeli war with Iran and the wider Middle East conflict, with attacks being reported by both pro-Iran groups and Iranian-Kurdish exile groups in Iraq.
With reporting by AFPShare
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19:47
31.7.2026
Trump: Iran Still Has Missiles But Military Capabilities ‘Almost Gone’
US President Donald Trump, alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth (right), speaks at a Cabinet meeting at Camp David in Maryland on July 31.
US President Donald Trump said on July 31 that Iran still has some missiles and drones but that its military production capabilities have been severely degraded by US strikes, as he vowed to continue the campaign against Tehran until it backs down.
Speaking to reporters at a Cabinet meeting at Camp David, Trump said Iran had “some missiles” remaining but claimed that its missile and drone production capabilities were “almost gone.”
“They still have some missiles, but they’re a lot less than they were four or five months ago,” Trump said. “Their missile production capacity is almost gone. Their drone production capacity is almost gone.”
Trump said the United States would continue to strike Iran “very hard,” predicting that Tehran would eventually reach a point where it could no longer sustain the conflict.
In a separate interview with Fox News on the same day, Trump said the war was “going very well” and that Washington would continue its military campaign. “All you can do is keep winning, and then eventually something will happen,” he said.
Trump also questioned whether Iranian officials could be trusted in any future negotiations with Washington, accusing Tehran of repeatedly breaking commitments. He said that while a new agreement with Iran remained possible, its alleged failure to honor previous commitments had undermined his confidence in reaching a deal.
The comments came after US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it had carried out a major wave of strikes against Iranian military targets, including Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) command centers, missile and drone facilities, coastal defenses, and maritime capabilities.
Iran, meanwhile, has continued its attacks against US and allied targets in the region. Tehran has also threatened shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, with its forces claiming to have attacked commercial vessels and Washington disputing some of Iran’s claims regarding the status of the waterway.
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16:11
31.7.2026
Zelenskyy: Iran Conflict Linked To Russia’s War Against Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Russia’s war against Ukraine is intertwined with the US conflict with Iran, adding that Moscow is “very happy” to see Washington’s attention shift from the war in Ukraine to the Middle East.
“Russia gave drones to Iran,” Zelenskyy said in aFox News interviewexcerpt published on July 31, adding that Tehran had used the Moscow-supplied weaponry to attack countries in the Middle East.
“The [fragments] are Russian in the destroyed drones…. Everybody saw this,” he said.
Iran has long been an ally of Russia. Its military equipment and technology were crucial during the first stage of Moscow’s war effort against Ukraine. According to Kyiv’s estimates, Russia’s military has used tens of thousands of Shahed drones to attack Ukraine since the full-scale invasion began in February 2022.
SEE ALSO:
Ukraine Hits At Iran. In The Caspian Sea, Things Get Even Messier.
Now, with Tehran in need, the Ukrainian president added that he was “absolutely” convinced Moscow had provided Iran with satellite images of US military bases across the Middle East.
“Russia is very happy that there is no ending the war, real ending the war in the Middle East…. Because they understand that since the United States is in this war, they can’t help Ukraine on the same level like it was before,” Zelenskyy said.
The interview excerpt was released days after Zelenskyy returned from the United States, where he asked US President Donald Trump to provide Kyiv with licenses for Patriot missiles.
Ukraine has desperately sought to obtain more air defense capabilities to defend itself against Russia’s daily air attacks and prepare for another winter during which Moscow could again intensify its targeting of the countrys energy infrastructure, leaving thousands of people without heat or electricity amid freezing temperatures.
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14:03
31.7.2026
Kuwait: Iranian Drone Attacks ‘Neutralized’
Kuwait announced that it air defense forces had intercepted and neutralized Iranian drones that attacked the country’s “vital and military installations” on July 31.
“Hostile targets were targeted and destroyed. This resulted in material damage from shrapnel, but no human casualties were recorded,” the Kuwaiti Defense Ministry said in a statement.
Earlier on July 31, Iran’s military announced that it had carried out drone attacks on Kuwait. The army called the attack a response to US strikes on Iran on July 29, including an attack on a residential neighborhood on Qeshm Island, which according to Iranian officials killed three civilians, including a child.
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12:31
31.7.2026
Iran’s IRGC Says It Attacked More Tankers In Hormuz
Vessels in the Strait of Hormuz near the beach of Bandar Abbas, Iran (file photo)
Following a US Central Command (CENTCOM) denial of its claims that the Strait of Hormuz had been closed, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) issued another statement reiterating its assertions and claiming it had attacked and stopped two additional oil tankers.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps released a statement on July 31 saying it had attacked two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and reiterated its earlier claims of stopping two other tankers. The IRGC also released images of an oil tanker burning in the dark amid flames, purportedly dated July 31.
On July 30, CENTCOM called recent reports by the IRGC and its affiliated media outlets about the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the destruction of three F-35 fighter jets, and the passage of an Iranian tanker through the US naval blockade “false” and said these claims do not correspond to reality.
CENTCOM also said commercial shipping continued to transit the Strait of Hormuz and that the only threat to maritime security was the IRGC’s “repeated threats and attacks against civilian mariners and commercial vessels.”
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12:19
31.7.2026
British-Azerbaijani Man Arrested In Cyprus On Charges Of Spying For Iran
British counterterrorism police said on July 31 that a dual British-Azerbaijani citizen arrested by Cypriot authorities had been charged with spying for Iran.
According to Counter Terrorism Policing London, Rashad Sultanov, 44, is accused of conducting hostile surveillance of RAF Akrotiri, a British air base in Cyprus, on behalf of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). He was arrested by Cypriot police on July 17 and is awaiting extradition to the United Kingdom.
British authorities allege Sultanov collected intelligence from the restricted military base and shared it with the IRGC.
Sultanov’s arrest in Cyprus was first reported last year. The July 31 announcement concerned the UK charges brought against him and the extradition request, rather than a new arrest.
RAF Akrotiri was targeted in drone attacks during the recent US-Iran conflict.
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12:06
31.7.2026
Trump, Iran-Backed Hamas Say Deal Reached On Disarmament Though Israel Silent
US President Donald Trump said an agreement had been reached on the “complete disarmament” of Hamas, a key part of Iran’s regional network of allied militant groups that has been designated a terror organization by the United States, in the Gaza Strip.
Hamas confirmed on July 31 that it had agreed to the deal, which includes it handing over its weapons to a Palestinian governing committee and the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
Iran has provided financial, operational, and diplomatic support to Hamas, which is seen as part of its so-called axis of resistance against the United States and Israel. Washington has made neutralizing Tehran’s regional proxy network one of its aims during the current war with Iran.
“This is a monumental step toward lasting PEACE and SECURITY,” Trumpwroteon his Truth Social platform.
“As disarmament is completed, Israeli forces will withdraw, and the International Stabilization Force will work with a new Palestinian police force to take responsibility for Gaza being safe for its residents and its neighbors,” he added.
Israel has yet to comment on the accord.
In a background briefing with reporters after Trump’s announcement, US officials and some representatives from the Board of Peace said they had spent eight months negotiating what they described as a detailed roadmap under which Hamas would dismantle its military infrastructure, relinquish control of Gaza, and transfer authority to a newly created National Committee for the Administration of Gaza.
The Board of Peace, created by Trump formally established in January, is an international coalition of leaders dedicated to achieving lasting peace and reconstruction in Gaza.
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11:09
31.7.2026
Iran Says It Targeted US Base In Kuwait With Drone
Iran’s military says it targeted the Ahmad al-Jaber base in Kuwait with destructive drones on July 31.
In a statement, the military said it targeted “fighter aircraft nests, satellite communications systems, and US military equipment depots at the Ahmed al-Jaber base in Kuwait” with drone attacks.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) and Kuwait have not yet responded to the claim.
Iran called the attack a response to the US attacks on the night of July 29, including on a residential neighborhood on Qeshm Island, in which Iranian media reported on July 30 that several civilians were killed.
US bases in Kuwait have been one of Iran’s main targets in its new round of strikes and have been the target of missile and drone attacks by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and the Iranian military on almost a daily basis.
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