US strikes Iran’s Revolutionary Guard over attack that killed troops in Jordan
The US military launched airstrikes on Sunday targeting Iran‘s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard to retaliate for the killing of American troops in Jordan, further widening the crossfire between the nations as they fight over Strait of Hormuz.
The strikes, now part of a weeklong campaign that has seen Iran strike US-allied countries across the Middle East, comes as an interim deal seeking to find an end to the Iran war has collapsed.
The US has targeted bridges, electrical facilities and other targets in Iran, and Tehran has retaliated by hitting power and desalination plants in Kuwait, threatening daily life in that small, oil-rich desert nation. Iran also has stepped up its threats to further expand the strikes, drawing a warning overnight from the United Arab Emirates, home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Holly Bancroft19 July 2026 20:11
Jordan summons Iran’s charge d’affaires over ‘blatant’ attacks
Jordan has summoned Iran’s charge d’affaires in Amman over what it called “unjustified and blatant Iranian attacks” and “provocative and inflammatory statements targeting the Kingdom’s territory,” Jordan’s ministry of foreign affairs has said.
Over the last week, Jordan has repeatedly said that it has intercepted Iranian missiles flying over its territory, including three that it shot down on Sunday, according to the country’s military.
Holly Bancroft19 July 2026 19:39
Kuwait says Iran have hit power generation and water desalination facility
The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry have condemned what it described as an Iranian attack on a power generation and water desalination facility, calling it a direct strike on vital civilian infrastructure.
The repeated targeting of civilian facilities amounted to a dangerous escalation and violated international law, the UN Charter and UN Security Council Resolution 2817, the ministry said in a statement.
It said Iran bore full legal and moral responsibility for the attack and its consequences.
Holly Bancroft19 July 2026 19:11
Iraqi PM will visit Tehran this week
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi will visit Tehran within the coming week, the Iraqi state news agency have reported, adding that during the visit the prime minister will sign memoranda of understanding in Tehran in areas of cooperation.
Holly Bancroft19 July 2026 18:57
Trump golfs and attends World Cup final as war continues against Iran
Trump’s only statement on the incident came in the form of a brief phone call with a NewsNation reporter. Calling their deaths “a very sad thing,” the president went on to dismiss any semblance of concern over Iran’s declaration that the ceasefire deal was broken.
“I couldn’t care less,” he told NewsNation.
Holly Bancroft19 July 2026 18:14
Gulf states continue to come under Iranian attack
In response to the latest American strikes, Iran carried out a drone attack that targeted US military assets and equipment at Kuwait’s Al-Adiri camp and Ali Al Salem Air Base, Iranian state TV reported early on Sunday.
Both bases have been targeted as part of Iran’s attacks against US assets and allies in the Gulf since last week.
Kuwait’s Electricity Ministry said a desalination plant had been attacked for the second day running, causing a fire. Kuwait’s armed forces said earlier they had again intercepted Iranian missiles, after a sustained Iranian attack on Saturday.
Bahrain’s air defences also intercepted an Iranian attack on Sunday, its state TV reported. Sirens sounded in Jordan, where the military said it had shot down three Iranian missiles.
Iranian reports said the US carried out an attack near Sirik in southern Iran, and near Shadegan, close to the border with Iraq. Iran’s Atomic Energy Organisation condemned a US attack on the site of a nuclear power plant under construction in Darkhovin, Iran’s Mehr news agency reported.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said it was investigating reports of an overnight attack, noting that the plant was in the very early stages of construction.
Holly Bancroft19 July 2026 17:14
Recap: US carries out eighth night of attacks on Iran
The US said it had completed an eighth straight night of attacks against Iran after announcing that two US military personnel were killed in Jordan.
US allies in the region also reported more Iranian attacks on Sunday. America and Iran have intensified attacks as an interim ceasefire deal signed a month ago has unravelled and a struggle for control of the Strait of Hormuz has deepened, raising the risk of a return to all-out hostilities.
Israeli officials said Israel was preparing to receive more US refuelling aircraft after the recent escalation, and ahead of a possible expansion of US military operations against Iran.
US Central Command said the latest airstrikes, beginning at 6 p.m. ET (2200 GMT) on Saturday, were designed “to further degrade Iran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and swiftly punish Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces who launched attacks against American service members in Jordan.”
Central Command later said it had completed its wave of attacks, hitting Iranian military coastal surveillance and air defence facilities.
A heavily-damaged bridge which was hit by a US strike is pictured along the road connecting Roudan and Bandar Abbas in southern Iran on July 18, 2026. (AFP/Getty)
Holly Bancroft19 July 2026 16:03
IAEA investigates reports of attack on Iran’s Darkhovin nuclear power plant site
The International Atomic Energy Agency said on Sunday that it was investigating reports of an overnight attack on the construction site of Iran‘s planned Darkhovin nuclear power plant.
The facility was in the very early stages of construction and contained no nuclear material when last inspected, the agency said.
Bryony Gooch19 July 2026 15:00
In pictures: Shi’ite Muslim girls hold pictures of children who were killed in the Minab school attack
(Reuters)
(Reuters)
Bryony Gooch19 July 2026 14:45
The Trump toll: Why plan to charge ships 20% fee in Strait of Hormuz will never work
Donald Trump has announced a 20 per cent fee on cargo ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a move that would dramatically increase the cost of transporting oil through the vital waterway.
The US president vowed on Monday to charge the fee on all cargo shipped through the strait, a toll that would cover the cost of America’s self-declared role as the “guardian of the Strait”.
It is an announcement that has already sparked fury from major shipping companies. Hapag-Lloyd, a German firm, said charging fees for passage through international waters “would be fundamentally wrong”.
You can read more about what analysts think of the “Trump toll” below:
Nicole Wootton-Cane19 July 2026 14:30