Britain backs US efforts for diplomatic solution on Iran
British Finance Minister John Healey said on Tuesday that the country supports US efforts to secure a
diplomatic solution on Iran and welcomed steps to increase pressure, including the expanded sanctions on Iran announced Monday.
Healey also called on Iran to cease its "de-stabilising activity" across the region, including in the Strait of Hormuz.
UN chief 'greatly alarmed' as Israeli forces enter Palestinian refugee facility
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres on Tuesday condemned an incursion by Israeli forces on a training center run by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in an east Jerusalem suburb.
"The Secretary-General is greatly alarmed at this development, as it will deprive young people of the vocational education they were receiving," spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
He added that the training center "and other UNRWA premises are premises of the United Nations. They are inviolable and immune from any form of interference."
Oman FM says hopes to announce temporary Hormuz shipping corridor soon
Omani Foreign Minister Badr Albusaidi said on Tuesday that he hoped his country and Iran would soon announce the establishment of a temporary shipping corridor in the Strait of Hormuz after weeks of negotiations.
"I am hopeful that we will soon announce a temporary corridor for the Strait of Hormuz, as well as practical arrangements to restore safe navigation. Future management of the strait and a permanent solution will follow in due course," Albusaidi said in a statement after meeting Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi in Tehran.
Iran, Oman say discussed mine-clearing project in Hormuz strait
Iran and Oman's foreign ministers discussed on Tuesday a framework agreement for a temporary corridor through the Strait of Hormuz and a mine-clearing project in the key waterway that they border, according to a joint statement.
"The two Ministers discussed a phased framework" that includes "the establishment of a joint temporary navigational corridor through the Strait of Hormuz and an agreement to implement a joint project to clear the Strait of mines", the statement shared by Oman's foreign ministry said, adding that technical negotiations for a permanent solution would continue.
Trump says the Strait of Hormuz demined, warns Iran not to place new mines
US President Donald Trump has said that all mines within the international waters of the Strait of Hormuz have been removed or detonated, and that Iran had been notified that any ship or boat placing new mines would be destroyed.
Iranians queue for petrol after US announces expanded sanctions
Long queues formed at petrol stations in Tehran on Tuesday after the US announced expanded sanctions against Iran.
Although Iran's leaders have shrugged off the toughed sanctions, having already endured sanctions for decades, some residents of the capital feared that they would feel the pinch.
"Naturally, sanctions affect people's lives. People are being hurt, both those who are financially well-off and those who are financially weak," said realtor Mehdi Yazdian, 55, who urged the authorities to control prices.
"Yes, these sanctions are having an effect, but naturally, our people are resilient. These sanctions have been in place for 47 years."
Israeli lawmaker under army escort smashes Palestinian memorial
A far-right Israeli lawmaker took a sledgehammer to a Palestinian memorial in the occupied West Bank on Tuesday while under military escort, a move that was later condemned both by the army and Israeli politicians.
Footage circulating online showed Zvi Sukkot, who is also a settler and activist, smashing a monument commemorating "martyrs" in the Palestinian village of Madama in the northern West Bank, while soldiers stood nearby.
"A few days ago, I demanded that the military take action to remove the monuments commemorating terrorists in the murderers' villages of Madama and Burin. Unfortunately, they remained in place. So I went there myself and took action to remove them," Sukkot posted on Facebook, along with a video of the act.
The Israeli military said Sukkot and his aides had conducted a "tour" of the area "with security provided by IDF soldiers who had been diverted from their operational activities for this purpose".
"Contrary to the agreed-upon coordination, the participants acted deceptively and manipulatively, without authorisation, departing entirely from the approved framework, and began demolishing one of the monuments in Madama," it added.
Residents of the West Bank village of Madama inspect a damaged monument, which bears the names of Palestinians killed in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, after far-right Israeli lawmaker Zvi Succot smashed it on August 25, 2026. (Photo: Majdi Mohammed, AP)
Oil tanker struck by 'unknown projectile' in Hormuz
An oil tanker was hit with a projectile off the coast of Oman in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a report Tuesday that highlighted the ongoing dangers for shipping companies attempting to use the waterway.
The oil tanker was hit late Monday a few miles off the east coast of Oman, according to a report Tuesday from the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Organization.
The strike disabled the ship's engine, but all crew were reported safe, the UKMTO said. There were no immediate reports of any environmental impact. Prior attacks on tankers during the war have caused oil spills.
West Bank settlers attack AFP journalists
Israeli settlers in the West Bank on Tuesday attacked AFP journalists reporting on tension with Palestinians, in violence that left at least five people injured, according to the reporters and medics.
A three-person team from the international news agency had travelled to the village of Jannatah near Bethlehem to report on Israeli activists who conduct solidarity visits with Palestinians facing harassment by Israeli settlers, who recently blocked a road in the area.
After an altercation broke out between the settlers and activists, the Israeli military ordered journalists to leave what it called a "closed military zone", at which point two additional cars full of settlers swooped in.
Israeli settlers arrive to confront left-wing activists in the West Bank village of Jannatah on August 25, 2026. (Photo: Ilia Yefimovich)
The settlers, many of them children, threw stones towards the journalists and activists. One AFP journalist ducked a stone but then a child settler struck him in the chin with a stick, causing minor bleeding, he said.
The AFP journalists returned to see their two parked cars both damaged, with back windshields smashed in and tyres punctured.
An Israeli settler attacks a left-wing activist at an Israeli outpost in the Israeli-occupied Palestinian village of Jannatah in the West Bank on August 25, 2026. (Photo: Ilia Yefimovich)
Five people were treated for injuries, the Palestine Red Crescent Society said, with AFP journalists reporting seeing at least one Israeli activist taken in a Palestinian ambulance.
Trump says executions of Iran protesters must stop
US President Donald Trump expressed outrage at the mounting number of executions in Iran of people allegedly involved in historic mass protests earlier this year before the war began.
"The failing Islamic Republic of Iran is not paying large segments of their military, while at the same time killing protesters, even when they are not protesting, at levels not seen before. It is a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions, and must be stopped, NOW," he wrote on Truth Social.
Qatar says US sanctions on Iran are unilateral, calls for mediation efforts
US sanctions on Iran are unilateral and Qatar is supportive of mediation efforts to resolve the issue between the two countries, a Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said.
USS Abraham Lincoln to dock in Thailand next week, Thai official says
The US Navy aircraft carrier the USS Abraham Lincoln will dock in Thailand next week, following a prolonged deployment in the Middle East during the Iran war, a Thai official said.
The Lincoln, which left the Middle East on Saturday, has not make a port call in more than 200 days, setting a modern-day record for consecutive days at sea, according to Democratic lawmakers, amid reports of concerns about mental health and deteriorating conditions aboard.
The ship, which has roughly 5,000 sailors and Marines aboard, will be in Thailand for "rest and recreation after their long sea journey," the official said, asking not to be named.
Iran threatens retaliation as new US sanctions hit already-struggling economy
Iranian officials are maintaining their strong rhetoric against the US, after Washington announced a fresh raft of sanctions against Iran. Tehran has pledged to hit back with its own measures, while the country is already suffering from already high inflation.
Finnair suspends flights to Dubai over Middle East instability
Finnish carrier Finnair said it had cancelled all of its flights to Dubai for the winter season due to the heightened security situation in the Middle East.
Finnair flights will be suspended between Helsinki and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates from October 25, 2026 to March 27, 2027, the airline said in a statement.
"The security situation in the Middle East has remained unstable, with no clear signs of improvement," it added.
US prepares to send diplomats back to Middle East embassies after Iran war evacuations
The US State Department is preparing to send diplomats back to embassies in the Middle East that were evacuated before and during the war with Iran, the New York Times reported, citing an internal State Department document.
The return of Foreign Service officers and the scaling back of emergency measures at US missions in the region could begin as early as this week, the report said.
China is Iran’s largest trading partner and key customer for Iranian oil
Beijing is a key customer for Iranian oil, accounting for roughly 90 percent of Iran’s exported oil.
Iran has weathered sanctions for decades, using complex international financial networks to evade restrictions. Before the war, it continued to export millions of barrels of oil, mostly to China.
China says will 'safeguard own interests' after US vows Iran sanctions
China said it would safeguard its interests after Washington laid out plans for the "economic asphyxiation" of Beijing's economic partner Iran, issuing penalties on some entities including in China and expanding secondary sanctions threats.
"China has already stated many times that it firmly opposes illegal unilateral sanctions... China will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard its own rights and interests," foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a regular news briefing.
German GDP growth revised upwards, defying Iran war turmoil
German growth rose faster than previously thought in the second quarter thanks to strong exports, official data showed, as Europe's biggest economy defied the turmoil unleashed by the Iran war.
Gross domestic product grew 0.3 percent from April to June compared with the first three months of the year, according to revised data from the statistics office Destatis. A first estimate in July had put growth at 0.2 percent.
What could new US sanctions on Iran entail?
The US says it is preparing to announce new sanctions on Iran. It's been billed an "economic D-day" and is expected to add further pressure on the country's economy that's already been battered from previous sanctions and a US naval blockade.
The renewed economic pressure would not be the first time the US has used economic tools at its disposal to corner Iran.
Yesterday's key developments:
- Pakistan's powerful army chief Asim Munir met with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian in Tehran on Monday, state television reported, as Islamabad tries to mediate a resolution to the Middle East war.
- Iranian Economy Minister Ali Madanizadeh has predicted "another defeat" for the United States, saying the Islamic republic had a "two-year plan" to counter Washington's new sanctions.
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that Iran had attempted to assassinate one of his two sons, without offering further details.
(the broadcaster with AFP, AP and Reuters)
