Middle East live: Saudi Arabia shuts down critical oil pipeline after attacks

Iraq agrees to Iran request for joint investigation into drone launch sites

⁠Iraqi ⁠Prime Minister ​Ali Faleh al-Zaidi ​has agreed to an Iranian request ​for ‌a ⁠joint investigation into the ‌discovery of drone launch ⁠platforms near the Iraqi-Iranian border, the ​prime minister's office ‌said on Saturday.

The investigation will examine ‌the circumstances surrounding the ​discovery of the platforms near the border ​area, the statement said, ​after it ​was used to ​launch attacks on the Saudi Arabia East-West pipeline.

Russia concerned by 'uncontrolled' situation in Bab el-Mandeb

The ​situation in the ​Bab el-Mandeb strait is developing in an ​uncontrolled ‌manner, prompting ⁠concern in Moscow, ‌Interfax reported on ⁠Saturday, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Yemen's ​Iran-aligned Houthis reached ‌the strategic island of Perim in ‌the Bab el-Mandeb ​strait on Friday, four Yemeni government sources told ​Reuters, moving ​to tighten ​their grip on a ​vital global shipping route in the widening Middle ⁠East war.

Bahrain rules out Iran meeting on Hormuz until diplomatic relations restored

Bahrain ⁠said ​it ​will not attend ​any meeting ‌with ⁠Iran ‌to discuss ⁠the Strait of ​Hormuz ‌until diplomatic ties between ‌the ​two countries are restored, according ​to ​state media.

Iran president and UAE crown prince meet in New Delhi: Iranian embassy

Iran's president and the United Arab Emirates crown prince met in New Delhi on Saturday, the Iranian embassy in India said, as the countries remain at odds over the Middle East war.

The embassy said that Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian "held a meeting and talks" with the senior UAE official on the sidelines of the BRICS summit, posting a photograph of the meeting with Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed on social media.

BRICS nations call for 'maximum restraint' in Middle East

Members of the 11-nation BRICS group including China, Russia, Iran and India called for calm in the Middle East, in a joint statement issued Saturday at a summit meeting.

"We express deep concern over the continued escalation of tensions in Middle East/West Asia and, recalling our respective national positions, call for exercising maximum restraint, as well as avoiding actions that could further aggravate the situation," the statement issued in the Indian capital New Delhi read.

Houthis seize key sites around Bab el-Mandeb as Saudi oil exports face disruption

Saudi Arabia has stopped transferring oil through a major pipeline after it was attacked by drones. Meanwhile, Houthi forces have taken control of a strategic port and island in Bab el-Mandeb from Yemeni government forces. Iran, which backs the rebels, says it had nothing to do with the attacks.

Iraq races to contain fallout after local Iran-backed militias accused of attacking Saudi pipeline

Iraq’s government was racing to contain the fallout after local Iran-backed militias were accused of attacking and shuttering a key Saudi pipeline. 

Though an umbrella group of Iran-backed militias in Iraq denied their involvement, Iraq's government confirmed the attacks had originated from its territory. The government pledged to investigate and dismissed two senior officials.

The country is under mounting pressure to prevent local militias from aiding other Iran proxy groups across the region. The Iraqi government has set a September 30 deadline for non-state groups to disarm, but several of the most powerful militias have said they will not comply.

Iran's Pezeshkian meets Abu Dhabi Crown Prince on BRICS sidelines in India

Iranian ​President Masoud Pezeshkian met Abu Dhabi ​Crown ‌Prince ⁠Sheikh ‌Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed ⁠Al Nahyan in ​New Delhi, on ‌the sidelines of ​the BRICS leaders' summit, Iran's embassy ​in ​India said ​in a post ​on X.

Trump says Yemen's Houthis have asked US not to intervene

Trump said that Yemen's Iran-allied Houthi fighters, who have seized a vital shipping corridor linking Europe and Asia, have asked Washington not to intervene.

The Houthis have taken control of Yemen's entire Red Sea coast after capturing three strategic islands in a lightning offensive.

Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, has relied on the area ever since Iran's Hormuz blockade choked off its shipments via the Gulf.

"The Houthis called us and they don't want to fight with us," Trump told reporters on a visit to Dublin, Ireland.

Trump claims Yemen's Houthis asked US not to intervene

US President Donald Trump has said Yemen's Iran-allied Houthi fighters asked Washington not to intervene as they seized control of a vital shipping corridor linking Europe and Asia.

The Houthis have taken control of Yemen's entire Red Sea coast after capturing three strategic islands in a lightning offensive.

Their advance is a major blow to Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, which has relied on the area ever since Iran's Hormuz blockade choked off its shipments via the Gulf.

"The Houthis called us and they don't want to fight with us," Trump told reporters in Dublin as he met with Irish PM Michael Martin.

"They don't want us to go after them," he said, adding that "everything's gonna work out fine and dandy" in the region.

Trump meets with Ireland's Michael Martin in Dublin on September 12, 2026. Photo: Kylie Cooper, Reuters

Trump says Iran war will end after US midterm elections

President Donald ​Trump repeated ​that he believed the war with Iran will ​end after ‌US ⁠midterm elections in November ‌and that oil prices will tumble ⁠once it does.

"I think very soon. ​I think it'll ‌be probably right after the mid-terms. They're trying ‌to hold out as ​long as they can to complicate the election. But ​I think people ​are wise ​to it," Trump told reporters in ​Dublin.

"When that happens, oil prices will come tumbling down."

Iran president says Middle East has no need for US 'policeman'

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said that the Middle East does not need the United States to be a "regional policeman", with the two countries at war and vying for control of the Strait of Hormuz.

"We do not need a regional policeman: the territorial integrity and security of the region can only be guaranteed by its main players and the countries that comprise it," he said on the sidelines of a Brics summit in India during a meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.

"The territorial integrity and security of the region can only be guaranteed by its main players and the countries that comprise it," he added, according to the Iranian presidency.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi shakes hand with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during their meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in New Delhi, India, September 11, 2026. © Indian Foreign Ministry via AP

Trump says Strait of Hormuz, Saudi concerns will 'work out just fine'

⁠US ​President Donald ​Trump said that everything would "work ​out ‌just ⁠fine" when asked ‌whether he could help ⁠move traffic through the ​Strait of Hormuz ‌in light of fresh concerns ‌about Saudi ​Arabia.

"Everything will work out just fine," Trump ​said, speaking in ​Dublin after ​meeting Irish President ​Catherine Connolly.

US President Donald Trump gestures as he leaves Aras an Uachtarain after meeting the Irish president in Phoenix Park in the Irish capital Dublin on September 12, 2026. © Adrian Dennis

Lebanon's president visits south after Israel blows up strategic Hezbollah site

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun visited the country's south on Saturday, in a surprise trip to a city close to a strategic Hezbollah position recently captured and blown up by Israel.

Official Lebanese media said he arrived in the city of Nabatieh unannounced and accompanied by security officials.

His visit comes a day after a senior US diplomatic official said a new round of US-brokered talks between Israel and Lebanon, initially scheduled for next week, had been pushed back to October. 

Aoun expressed solidarity with locals in Nabatieh who greeted him on Saturday, according to footage broadcast by Lebanese media.

US limits air defence time slots for tankers sailing through Hormuz, FT reports

The ⁠US has ​asked tankers travelling through the ​Strait of Hormuz to sail only at specific times ​to ‌guarantee military ⁠protection after Iran stepped up attacks ‌on ships travelling at night, ⁠the Financial Times reported on Saturday.

Washington has been ​offering air-based defence ‌since May to ships wanting to sail via a ‌route hugging the Omani coast ​on the strait's southern side.

That period during which ships would ​be protected was cut down ​to two ​specific time slots daily around the ​start of September, the FT reported, citing emails sent by the US naval co-ordination centre to maritime advisers.

Iraq orders investigation into Saudi East-West pipeline attack

Iraq ⁠welcomed ​Saudi Arabia's decision ​to hold off on retaliation ​after ‌Riyadh ⁠said ‌drones launched from Iraqi territory ⁠struck its East-West pipeline.

Iraq ​condemned any ‌attack threatening Saudi security ‌and said its ​prime minister had ordered an investigation ​into ​those responsible, according ​to a statement ​from its armed forces.

Saudi East-West ⁠oil pipeline was temporarily shut down after attacks

⁠The ⁠Saudi ​energy ​ministry said the vital East-West oil ​pipeline ‌was ⁠temporarily ‌shut down after several attacks on ⁠the pipeline in ​the Riyadh ‌and Medina regions on ‌Thursday, adding ​that some people were injured and received medical ​treatment, ​state media ​reported, citing ​a source at the Saudi energy ⁠ministry.