Day News Recap: Middle East tensions deepen as Yemen, Iran and Gaza dominate a volatile day

Yemen saw the deadliest fighting in this window, with Houthi missile and drone attacks on military sites in Marib and Hadramawt killing at least 58 members of the internationally recognised government forces, while a separate Houthi strike on government held Marib killed two civilians and injured 14 others.  🔗  🔗

Sponsored

The fighting also fed fears of wider spillover, as reports said Saudi Arabia was being affected by the conflict and preparations were under way for a possible mine clearing operation in the Strait of Hormuz using uncrewed surface vehicles, underwater drones and explosive laden robots.  🔗  🔗

Iran remained at the centre of the regional standoff, with parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accusing Donald Trump of running what he called theatre diplomacy on loop after the US president said planned strikes on Iran were off, even as talks over the Strait of Hormuz continued and Iran and Oman agreed shipping route coordinates.  🔗  🔗

Israel signalled it could act alone if needed, with Benjamin Netanyahu saying Israel may move unilaterally as the war with Iran drags on, while Trump said the conflict with Iran and Venezuela was still active and renewed his warning about leaks and munitions shortages.  🔗  🔗

Sponsored

Elsewhere in the region, a bomb planted inside a minibus exploded in Jaramana on the outskirts of Damascus, killing at least two people and wounding 13, while another blast in the same suburb was reported to have killed several more and injured others.  🔗  🔗

In Lebanon, residents in the south said they were again facing Israeli strikes, evacuation orders and damage to homes and farmland, and in the West Bank Israeli prosecutors filed a rare indictment against settler Yinon Levy over the killing of Palestinian activist Odeh Hathaleen, while a raid in Qalandiya refugee camp injured at least 51 Palestinians.  🔗  🔗  🔗

Gaza also drew regional condemnation, as eight Arab and Muslim countries issued a joint statement denouncing what they called ongoing Israeli violations in the strip.  🔗

Beyond the Middle East, security concerns widened, with Germany investigating an explosives laden drone found at Leipzig/Halle Airport, North Korea firing a ballistic missile toward the sea off its east coast, and South Korea recovering 15 suspected North Korean landmines after monsoon floods near the border.  🔗  🔗  🔗

Sponsored

Other flashpoints included Russia intensifying glide bomb strikes on Ukraine, US intelligence warning Moscow could test NATO within weeks, and the UN chief condemning the deadliest Russian strikes on Kyiv this year after 17 people were killed.  🔗  🔗  🔗

In Asia Pacific, Taiwan's president joined an emergency evacuation drill during the Han Kuang exercises, Fiji's Pacific Islands Forum meeting was disrupted when Kiribati and Naoero blocked a statement criticising China's missile test, and Sri Lanka said prison riots linked to suspected gang tensions left three inmates dead and 23 injured.  🔗  🔗  🔗

In the Americas and Europe, Toronto police arrested two people over a shooting at the US Consulate, Argentina said it would not retaliate after Brazil downgraded ties over Javier Milei's remarks, and Italy said it would keep Schengen controls on arrivals from Spain until at least 15 August.  🔗  🔗  🔗

In the UK and other domestic stories, Heathrow briefly closed one runway after a grass fire caused delays and cancellations, while the Conservatives proposed banning foreign nationals from new social housing tenancies in England and the UK published updated data on returns and illegal working enforcement.  🔗  🔗  🔗

Other legal and political developments included Armenia preparing to try Catholicos Karekin II and six clerics in a church feud case, Australia advancing its $2 billion PFAS lawsuit against 3M, a Victorian court data leak to the dark web, and Philip LeVota being indicted in Missouri over an alleged bribery scheme tied to the 2026 election.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

In Washington, Trump also signed orders targeting birthright citizenship and birth tourism, renewed his 2020 election fraud claim, and imposed a 15% tariff on polysilicon imports after a national security review, while the US and Angola held a defence cooperation meeting and US immigration prosecutors in Maryland announced multiple July cases.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

#Yemen #Iran #Israel #markets #tariffs #breakingrecap #recaprecap