US, Iran Trade New Strikes in Fight Over Hormuz Strait

Smoke rises from explosions at an unknown location, following what US Central Command (CENTCOM) said were strikes on Iranian military targets, in this screen grab from a video released on July 8, 2026. (US Central Command/Handout via Reuters)
Smoke rises from explosions at an unknown location, following what US Central Command (CENTCOM) said were strikes on Iranian military targets, in this screen grab from a video released on July 8, 2026. (US Central Command/Handout via Reuters)
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US, Iran Trade New Strikes in Fight Over Hormuz Strait

Smoke rises from explosions at an unknown location, following what US Central Command (CENTCOM) said were strikes on Iranian military targets, in this screen grab from a video released on July 8, 2026. (US Central Command/Handout via Reuters)
Smoke rises from explosions at an unknown location, following what US Central Command (CENTCOM) said were strikes on Iranian military targets, in this screen grab from a video released on July 8, 2026. (US Central Command/Handout via Reuters)

The United States and Iran traded strikes on Thursday for the second day running as Washington and Tehran battled over the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

The vital oil shipping corridor is a flashpoint in the Middle East war, with Tehran insisting on control of the strait despite it being open to free passage before the US-Israeli attacks in February.

After the foes traded attacks on Wednesday, US President Donald Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was "over", but left the door open to more talks and added any strikes would end quickly.

US forces said the latest attacks against Iran were aimed at "their ability to threaten the freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz", citing recent strikes against commercial ships in the waterway.

The US Central Command said they had struck approximately 90 military targets, including missile and drone storage as well as military logistics sites along Iran's coastline.

Iran's reprisals came quickly, with the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) saying they had struck "key infrastructure and facilities" at US bases in the region.

American strikes hit a railway bridge in Iran's northeast, according to several official media, and the official IRNA news agency reported strikes on a military base in coastal Bushehr, which hosts the nation's only civilian nuclear power plant.

Earlier, warplanes were heard over Iran's Kish Island and explosions rocked the port cities of Bandar Abbas, Konarak and Chabahar, part of which lost electricity, IRNA reported.

"This is in retribution for yesterday's bombing of ships by Iran," Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Wednesday. "If it happens again, it will get much worse!"

Late on Wednesday while speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump said the Iranian side had "called a little while ago," and that they wanted "to make a deal so badly".

Trump did not provide further details of the call -- including who was on the line -- but went on to cast doubt over the value of any deal, calling the Iranians "sort of crazy".

- Control over the strait -

Iran's chief negotiator said Thursday that the Strait of Hormuz would be opened only under "Iranian arrangements".

"The United States still has not learned that bullying and breaking its promises no longer come without consequences," Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said on X. "Let me be clear: If you strike, you will be struck."

Since US-Israeli strikes triggered war in February, Tehran has insisted on controlling the strait, saying it will charge fees for passage and threatening to hit vessels that deviate from its authorized route.

Its military struck at least three ships in recent days, prompting extensive US strikes against Iranian targets on Tuesday.

The latest strikes come just ahead of the Thursday burial of Ali Khamenei, Iran's former supreme leader, who was killed at the outbreak of the war on February 28.

UN chief Antonio Guterres called meanwhile "on all parties to exercise maximum restraint" -- as did Pakistan, a key mediator in the US-Iran talks.

Iran said Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Qatar's prime minister had spoken over the phone on Wednesday and "underscored the importance of using diplomatic means to resolve regional issues".

Both the United States and Iran said they had hit dozens of targets in the initial wave of attacks, which Iranian state television said had killed eight Iranian military personnel.

CENTCOM said its forces struck more than 80 targets on Tuesday, while the Guards said they hit dozens of US military facilities in Kuwait and Bahrain.

The latest attacks by Iran did not result in any American casualties or cause major damage to facilities, a US military official said on Wednesday.

Washington wants free passage for ships while Iran is insisting on fees and has refused to allow vessels to pass through Omani waters.

All three vessels recently struck were sailing close to Oman, which had proposed a temporary transit corridor hugging its coastline.

Maritime traffic had tentatively resumed after Washington and Tehran signed the deal to end hostilities last month.

But almost 6,000 seafarers remain stranded in the area, International Maritime Organization chief Arsenio Dominguez said Wednesday.



US Lawmaker Says He Was ‘Detained’ by Israeli Settlers in West Bank

US Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) speaks with a Palestinian resident of Turmus Ayya, near Ramallah, during a visit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 9, 2026. (Reuters)
US Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) speaks with a Palestinian resident of Turmus Ayya, near Ramallah, during a visit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 9, 2026. (Reuters)
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US Lawmaker Says He Was ‘Detained’ by Israeli Settlers in West Bank

US Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) speaks with a Palestinian resident of Turmus Ayya, near Ramallah, during a visit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 9, 2026. (Reuters)
US Representative Ro Khanna (D-CA) speaks with a Palestinian resident of Turmus Ayya, near Ramallah, during a visit in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 9, 2026. (Reuters)

A prominent Democratic US lawmaker from California, Ro Khanna, said Saturday he was "detained" by armed Israeli settlers along with other Americans during a visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank and said the military was complicit in the incident.

"Israeli settlers, brandishing American made M4s, detained me & other Americans on my trip to Palestine," Khanna said in a post on X.

When the Israeli military arrived at the scene, he added, "they sided with the settlers & continued our detention. They made a huge mistake."

Footage and accounts provided to The New York Times by Khanna and his team shows a group of armed men blocking the road outside a small village in the southern West Bank and swearing at them in Hebrew and Arabic.

Khanna told the Times that when the Israeli troops arrived at the scene, the soldiers spoke to the settlers and subsequently blocked the road themselves when the settlers left.

After calls to the US embassy and Israeli police, Khanna said he was allowed to pass.

The Israeli army did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment.

The United States is a staunch ally of Israel, but some lawmakers, especially Democrats, have vehemently criticized Israel's military offensive in Gaza, and more generally the treatment of Palestinians in the occupied territories.


Floods in Bangladesh Kill 44, Leave Over a Million Stranded

11 July 2026, Bangladesh, Dhaka: People wade through floodwaters in Dhaka, after torrential rain caused severe flooding and waterlogging across parts of the country. (dpa)
11 July 2026, Bangladesh, Dhaka: People wade through floodwaters in Dhaka, after torrential rain caused severe flooding and waterlogging across parts of the country. (dpa)
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Floods in Bangladesh Kill 44, Leave Over a Million Stranded

11 July 2026, Bangladesh, Dhaka: People wade through floodwaters in Dhaka, after torrential rain caused severe flooding and waterlogging across parts of the country. (dpa)
11 July 2026, Bangladesh, Dhaka: People wade through floodwaters in Dhaka, after torrential rain caused severe flooding and waterlogging across parts of the country. (dpa)

Floods and landslides triggered by days of torrential monsoon rain have killed at least 44 people in southeastern Bangladesh and left over a million stranded as authorities raced on Saturday to deliver aid to devastated communities.

The disaster management ministry said on Saturday that flooding across seven districts — Chattogram, Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Rangamati, Khagrachhari, Moulvibazar and Habiganj — has disrupted daily life, isolated thousands of families, and stranded 267,918 households.

Power outages, damaged roads and broken communication ‌links have slowed ‌rescue and relief efforts. Many residents have been unable ‌to ⁠cook for days ⁠as flood waters submerged their homes, while others are struggling after thick layers of mud covered kitchens and living spaces.

“There is still water inside our home and we have no way to cook. The dry food we had has run out, and we spend the nights in the dark with our children because there is no ⁠electricity,” said Nurul Islam, a resident of a flood-hit ‌area in Chattogram.

Thousands of families are ‌relying on dry food — flattened rice, puffed rice or biscuits that do ‌not require cooking — and emergency relief. Washed-out roads and damaged bridges, ‌however, have made it difficult for aid workers to reach some of the hardest-hit communities.

Army and navy personnel are ferrying food, drinking water, medicines and other essential supplies by boat to isolated communities, as authorities step up relief ‌efforts.

"The government is doing everything possible to support flood victims. Relief, safe drinking water and medical supplies are ⁠being distributed, ⁠and we urge people whose homes have been inundated to move to the nearest shelter," Disaster Management and Relief Minister Iqbal Hossain said during a visit to affected areas in Chattogram.

The heavy rain also triggered landslides in Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar earlier this week, killing 16 refugees, including women and children. More than one million Rohingya refugees live in the camps, where makeshift shelters on steep, deforested hillsides are especially vulnerable during the monsoon season.

Bangladesh is one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries, with seasonal monsoon rains regularly causing floods, river erosion and landslides. Scientists say climate change is making extreme rainfall more frequent and intense, increasing the scale and severity of such disasters.


Iran Warns It Will Not Be Bound by Deal with US if Violations Continue

An Iranian woman walks near an anti-US mural in a street in Tehran, Iran, 09 July 2026. (EPA)
An Iranian woman walks near an anti-US mural in a street in Tehran, Iran, 09 July 2026. (EPA)
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Iran Warns It Will Not Be Bound by Deal with US if Violations Continue

An Iranian woman walks near an anti-US mural in a street in Tehran, Iran, 09 July 2026. (EPA)
An Iranian woman walks near an anti-US mural in a street in Tehran, Iran, 09 July 2026. (EPA)

Iran warned that it would no longer be bound by a deal with the US aimed at ending the Middle East war if Washington's violations of the agreement continued, state TV reported on Saturday.

Referring to the deal struck with the help of Pakistani mediation, Tehran's UN ambassador said in remarks in New York on Friday "that if the United States continues to violate its obligations under the Islamabad Understanding, Iran will no longer consider itself bound by its commitments under that understanding", according to a statement carried by state broadcaster IRIB.

The Iran-US deal was preceded by an April ceasefire, but the two sides have exchanged significant fire in recent days over the Strait of Hormuz, threatening talks laid out under the deal aimed at finding a permanent resolution to the war.

Following the exchanges, US President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire over, but said talks with Iran would continue.

In his remarks to reporters on Friday, Iranian UN representative Amir Saeid Iravani said Washington had "violated its obligation by launching and continuing large-scale military attacks against Iran's sovereignty and territorial integrity".

"Iran remains committed to the faithful implementation of (the) Memorandum of Understanding provided that the United States fully and faithfully complies with its own obligations," he added.