New posts
13:24
European Aviation Agency Advises Airlines To Avoid Iranian Airspace
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said on July 8 that airlines should avoid the airspaces of Iran, Iraq, and Lebanon until August 31 amid ongoing tensions in the Middle East and the potential for more military action.
The move came after the United States launched a new round of military strikes against Iran after accusing Tehran of attacking commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the worlds most important maritime chokepoints.
Tehran retaliated by hitting Kuwait and Bahrain, US allies in the region and home to American military bases.
In response, US President Donald Trump said the framework deal with Iran that includes a 60-day cease-fire was over, although he added that he was leaving it up to US negotiators as to whether to continue peace talks.
EASA said its advisory decision was based on "ongoing high level of tensions and the potential for further military action."
The agency added that should the current cease-fire break down, Iranian airspace was likely to be exposed to imminent threats.
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
13:19
6,000 Seafarers Remain Stranded In Persian Gulf
Nearly 6,000 seafarers remain stranded in the Persian Gulf, the head of the International Maritime Organization said on July 8.
I condemn the attacks over the past two days against several ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, IMO chief Arsenio Dominguez said in a statement as he called for "maximum restraint and de-escalation.
"These reckless attacks have again placed innocent seafarers in grave danger," Dominguez added.
His statement came after US President Donald Trump said the interim deal with Iran was over, although he added that he was leaving it up to US negotiators as to whether to continue peace talks.
The United States launched a new round of military strikes against Iran and revoked a key sanctions waiver covering Iranian oil sales after accusing Tehran of attacking commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the worlds most important maritime chokepoints.
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
11:11
Oil Prices Rise 5 Percent After Trump Says Deal 'Is Over'
Moments after US President Donald Trump said thedeal with Iran had ended,oil prices on global markets rose by more than 5 percent.
Brent Crude rose 5.3 percent to $78 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate crude rose 5.4 percent to more than $74 a barrel.
The United States struck more than 80 targets in Iran after Tehran targeted shipping in the Strait of Hormuz on July 5 and July 6.
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
10:31
7.7.2026
Khamenei's Dayslong Funeral Ceremonies Move Through Holy City Of Qom
Mourners attend prayers for Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamene at the Jamkaran Mosque in Qom on July 7.
Thousands of mourners gathered in the Iranian holy city of Qom on July 7 as funeral ceremonies for the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei entered a fourth day.
Khamenei's remains are being carried through a series of funeral ceremonies and processions at Shi'ite holy sites ahead of his burial in his hometown of Mashhad on July 9.
State television broadcast aerial footage showing large crowds in Qom, where a prayer service was led by 93-year-old cleric Abdollah Javadi-Amoli while mourners chanted "death to America," a slogan frequently heard at official events in Iran.
Authorities have sought to portray the ceremonies as a demonstration of national unity and resilience following the US-Israeli war and months after anti-government protests, which posed one of the most serious challenges to the Islamic republic in years before being brutally suppressed.
SEE ALSO:
'Bodies Behind Every Car': Witnesses Recount No-Mercy Killings In Iran's Central Cities
So far, there has been no sign of Mojtaba Khamenei, who succeeded his father as supreme leader in March but has not appeared publicly since reportedly being wounded in the same air strike that killed his father at the start of the war in late February. It remains unclear whether he will attend the funeral ceremonies.
A further funeral procession is planned in Iraq before the ceremonies conclude with Khamenei's burial on July 9.
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
09:58
7.7.2026
Iranian Foreign Minister Says Final Talks Won't Begin Under US "threats"
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has said that talks on a final agreement with the United States would not begin while Washington continued to issue threats, after US President Donald Trump warned he would "finish the job" if the two sides failed to reach a deal.
"Negotiations on final deal will not commence if threats continue. Honor your signature," Araqchiwrote on Xon July 7, referring to an interim Memorandum of Understanding signed last month that calls on both countries to refrain from the threat or use of force against each other.
On July 6, Trump renewed his threat of further military action against Iran, saying the US would either reach a deal with Tehran or "finish the job" that began with US and Israeli air strikes at the end of February.
"We can knock down their bridges in one hour, we can knock out their energy supply....They don't have any money now. We haven't given them any money," he added.
The exchange came as Iran continued funeral ceremonies for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the conflict.
Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, called Trump's remarks "delusional," saying "Iranians are unfamiliar with the language of threats. So, speak to the Iranian people with respect, otherwise we will respond in another language."
US-Iran talks ended a week ago without indications of a breakthrough amid a 60-day cease-fire intended to create time for diplomacy.
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
08:07
7.7.2026
'Unknown Projectile' Hits Tanker Off Oman Coast
United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), a shipping security monitor, said late on July 6 that it had received a report of a tanker being hit by an unknown projectile off the coast of Oman, causing a fire.
No injuries or environmental impacts were reported,UKMTO said.
It said the vessel was traveling south of the Strait of Hormuz about 8 nautical miles off of Limah, Oman.
The investigation into the incident was ongoing, it added. No further information was immediately available.
Citing a US official, Axios reported that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) fired at least two missiles at commercial ships transiting through the Strait of Hormuz. That report could not immediately be verified.
Tensions remain elevated across the region following the US-Israeli war against Iran amid a fragile cease-fire in the region.
While commercial shipping has resumed through the Strait of Hormuz, security risks remain high both there and in waters off Yemen, where merchant vessels have faced repeated attacks and attempted boardings in recent days.
Iran has threatened to impose fees on ships transiting the strait and has fired upon vessels it said did not coordinate with its authorities. Most of the rest of the world rejects Tehran's efforts to control traffic in the international waterway.
An oil tanker was struck by an "unknown projectile" off the coast of Oman near the Strait of Hormuz on July 7, causing a fire but no reported casualties or environmental damage, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.
The shipping security monitor said the vessel was hit on its port side while travelling southward and urged ships to "transit with caution" as authorities investigate.
With reporting by AFPShare
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
22:32
6.7.2026
Trump Renews Threat To 'Finish The Job' With Military Action Against Iran
US President Donald Trump renewed his threat of further military action against Iran, saying the US would either reach a deal with Tehran or "finish the job" that began with US and Israeli air strikes at the end of February.
"We're either going to make a deal or we're going to finish the job. OK. And it won't be tough to finish the job. I'd rather make a deal, because I don't want to affect 91 million people," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on July 6.
"We can knock down their bridges in one hour, we can knock out their energy supply....They don't have any money now. We haven't given them any money," Trump added.
US President Donald Trump renewed his threat hit Iran's bridges and energy supplies.
The remarks came as Iran reacted defiantly to remarks by the US president at a time the country is holding funeral ceremonies for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of the conflict.
Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, called Trump's threat "delusional."
"Iranians are unfamiliar with the language of threats. So, speak to the Iranian people with respect, otherwise we will respond in another language," Zolqadr said in remarks broadcast by state media.
US-Iran talks ended a week ago without indications of a breakthrough amid a 60-day cease-fire intended to create time for diplomacy.
On July 3, Trump said Washington hadgiven Tehran "a week off"for the funeral proceedings before the resumption of indirect negotiations with Iran on implementing a framework peace agreement.
With reporting by ReutersShare
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
19:32
6.7.2026
Israeli, Lebanese Working Groups To Meet In Rome On July 15-16, Envoy Says
WASHINGTON -- Israeli and Lebanese working groups will meet in Rome on July 15-16 for a new round of talks on border, security, and other issues, Israeli ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, said on July 6.
Israeli Ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter (left), speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, D.C., US, on July 6, 2026
Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), Leiter said the meetings would mark the next step in implementing a new trilateral framework between Israel, Lebanon, and the United States.
He later confirmed to RFE/RL that the talks would be held at ambassadorial level and that he would attend.
Leiter also said Lebanese President Joseph Aoun was expected to meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on July 21.
During the discussion, Leiter said Israel and Lebanon viewed the new trilateral framework as gaining primacy over the Lebanon-related provisions of an earlier US-Iran memorandum of understanding.
"Both Israel and Lebanon clearly see our trilateral agreement superseding the first clause of the MOU," Leiter said, referring to the earlier understanding. He added that whether Washington shared that interpretation was "a question for the administration."
Leiter said the new framework established direct coordination between Israeli, Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), and US military officials.
"What I will say is that the mechanism that we have between Israel directly with Lebanon -- now directly with LAF, directly with senior LAF officers -- our senior officers in Northern Command, LAF officers from their Southern Command, and our American counterparts from CENTCOM is working very closely," he said.
The ambassador said Israel would remain in parts of southern Lebanon until Hezbollah was dismantled and no longer posed a threat to Israeli communities.
"It is now clear that Israel will withdraw only when Hezbollah is dismantled," he said, arguing that this would allow Lebanon to regain full sovereignty.
Leiter also said the new framework envisaged negotiating a comprehensive peace agreement that could be finalized once the Hezbollah issue was resolved.
"We're beginning to do that next week," he said, referring to the Rome talks. "Let's create that document and put it on the shelf... so the moment that we have dealt with the Hezbollah problem, we have a full-fledged peace."
On Iran, Leiter said Israel's position remained that any future agreement should permanently prevent Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons, producing large numbers of ballistic missiles, or continuing support for regional proxy groups.
He cautioned against easing economic pressure on Iran, saying additional funds could enable Tehran to rebuild its military capabilities.
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
13:32
6.7.2026
Months After Reported Strike On Residence, Ex-President Ahmadinejad Reappears At Khamenei Funeral In Tehran
Iranian state media have published a photograph showing former President Mahmud Ahmadinejad attending the funeral procession for late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran.
The photograph published on July 6 shows Ahmadinejad walking down a street among other mourners surrounded by members of his security detail.
Former Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad (center) attends a funeral procession for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on July 6.
During the first wave of Israeli and US strikes on Tehran at the start of the conflict in February, which killed Khamenei and reduced his official compound to rubble. Ahmadinejad's residence, or an area surrounding it, in eastern Tehran was also reported to have been targeted.
The attack on Ahmadinejad's residence, followed by the lack of any public information about him during the 40-day war, fueled widespread speculation about his whereabouts.
Less than two months ago, following the cease-fire and citing US officials, The New York Times reported that Ahmadinejad had been considered as apotential figure to lead Iranif the government collapsed.
The New York Times report published on May 19 said that the US-Israeli air strike on Ahmadinejad's residence early in the war "had been designed to free him from house arrest" and was part of a broader regime change plan.
Ahmadinejad, who served as president from 2005 to 2013, was once known as a hard-line loyalist and fierce critic of the United States and Israel. But he later fell out with Irans ruling establishment, repeatedly clashed with Khameneis circle, and was barred from running in several elections.
With reporting by RFE/RL's Radio FardaShare
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
12:50
6.7.2026
10 Japan-Linked Ships Exiting Gulf After Being Stranded For Months
Hundreds of ships had been stranded in the Strait of Hormuz during the US-Israeli conflict with Iran. (file photo)
Ten Japan-linked vessels have been transiting the Strait of Hormuz on July 6 as they leave the Persian Gulf, according to shipping and vessel-tracking data from the London Stock Exchange Group.
The same data shows that a supertanker carrying Saudi crude oil for South Korea also exited the strait on July 5. The crucial waterway usually accounts for around one-fifth of global oil and gas trade.
These are among the ships that had been stranded in the Persian Gulf for months because of the war in Iran, with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps effectively preventing them from leaving.
Last month, Iran and the United States signed a framework cease-fire agreement under which Washington committed to lifting its naval blockade of Iran, while Tehran agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil tanker traffic.
According to Reuters, the Japan-linked vessels include six very large crude carriers, two chemical tankers and one container ship.
The tankers are carrying crude oil from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, loaded in late February and early March, during the opening weeks of the US-Israeli conflict with Iran.
When the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding was signed in June, it was reported that more than 1,500 ships had been stranded in the Gulf during the war.
Before the conflict, more than 130 vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz each day.
With reporting by ReutersShare
Copy link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
LinkedIn
Email
Share
Load more
Share
Tweet
Share
Flip
Email
