Iran war news Highlights: Saudi Arabia weighs military offensive against Houthis in Yemen - report
Iran war news Highlights: Saudi Arabia is considering a military offensive against Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen, Reuters cited regional and Western officials as saying. Riyadh is weighing multiple military options as it seeks to counter the Houthi threat.
Iran war news Highlights: President Donald Trump weighing possible new strikes on Iran? Roughly 9,000 US sailors and Marines aboard a group of ships, including the Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group and Makin Island amphibious readiness group, are heading to the Middle East as Washington expands its military presence around Iran, the Associated Press reported Thursday, citing a US official.
The deployment could bring three US aircraft carriers to the region by the end of October, the official told AP on condition of anonymity. The USS George H.W. Bush and USS George Washington carriers are already in the region, along with the USS Boxer amphibious readiness group.
With personnel already in the Middle East, the deployment would raise the US naval presence to more than 20,000 sailors and Marines, along with hundreds of aircraft, the report added.
'US aims to drain Iran’s remaining revenue'
The United States is targeting Iran’s remaining sources of revenue to further weaken its ability to fund military operations and activities abroad, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday on X.
“The Iranian regime's ability to fund its war machine and inflict terror on the world has been severely diminished thanks to Operation Economic Outcast,” Bessent wrote, adding that the latest measures against Iran’s industrial sectors were intended to help the United States and its partners “drain the regime’s revenue once and for all.”
Bessent’s post on X quoted a Treasury Department post saying the department is targeting some of the last significant elements of Iran’s industrial infrastructure, including its rail and automotive conglomerates, which the department said have been co-opted by the Islamic Republic and the IRGC.
Trump warns Iran of 'very hard' response if Flydubai link confirmed
US President Donald Trump on Thursday warned that Iran would face a “very hard” US response if investigators establish that Tehran was behind the Flydubai incident.
“Oh they’ll be hit, very hard, don’t worry,” Trump said when asked what would happen if an Iranian link were confirmed. “You just ask them. They know what happened. They’ll be hit very hard.”
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Iran war news LIVE Updates: Iranian actress Elnaz Shakerdoust sentenced to 1 year in prison over support for protesters
Iranian actress Elnaz Shakerdoust has been sentenced to one year in prison for supporting protesters killed during a January crackdown.
The sentence was upheld on appeal, according to HRANA and Iranian outlet Emtedad, citing her lawyer.
Shakerdoust also faces a two-year ban on political, artistic and online activities.
Her current whereabouts are unknown.
The actress, who has appeared in dozens of films over a two-decade career, said in February that she would never act in Iran again.
She publicly mourned those killed in the crackdown, saying she would not participate in celebrations or play roles “on this soil that smells of blood”. (AFP)
Iran war news LIVE Updates: Saudi weighs military offensive against Houthis in Yemen - report
Saudi Arabia is considering a military offensive against Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen, Reuters cited regional and Western officials as saying.
Riyadh is weighing multiple military options as it seeks to counter the Houthi threat.
One option under consideration is a coastal military push aimed at securing the Red Sea shipping route.
Another scenario involves a multi-front assault against the Houthis.
The potential operation comes amid continuing concerns over Houthi attacks and threats to shipping in the Red Sea.
The plans reflect Saudi Arabia’s broader efforts to address the security threat posed by the Iran-backed Houthi movement in Yemen.
The officials cautioned that the options being discussed do not necessarily mean Saudi Arabia has taken a final decision to launch an offensive.
Iran war news LIVE Updates: Iran-Iraq flights resume - 40 daily services to Najaf allowed, Mahan Air excluded
Iranian airlines, excluding Mahan Air, have been allowed to operate 40 daily flights to and from Iraq’s Najaf International Airport.
The decision follows Iraq’s suspension of flights to and from Iran last week in line with US sanctions.
The US is set to provide a one-month Treasury waiver allowing flights carrying Shi’ite Muslim religious pilgrims between Iran and Iraq, according to Reuters.
Iraq had sought exemptions from the sanctions for travel related to religious pilgrimage, medical treatment and education.
The Iraqi prime minister’s office welcomed Washington’s response and cooperation in granting the requested exemption.
The US accuses Mahan Air of transporting personnel from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, as well as weapons and drones.
Mahan Air remains excluded from the flights permitted under the arrangement. (Reuters)
Iran war news LIVE Updates: ‘You can win in your imagination’ - Iranian official takes swipe at Trump
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council secretary Mohsen Rezaei mocked US President Donald Trump in a post on X on Friday.
Rezaei called Trump “the worst president in American history” and accused him of suffering repeated failures.
He said Trump “just keeps talking—and talking”, adding that his words had surpassed his own fantasies.
Rezaei said Trump could “win every day in your own imagination”, but argued that reality is shaped by Iran.
He pointed to Iran’s people, soldiers and missiles as factors shaping events.
Iran war news LIVE: Macron says G7 to release up to 100 million barrels of diesel, crude as Hormuz crisis drives fuel prices higher
French President Emmanuel Macron said the G7 will release up to 100 million barrels of diesel and crude to ease fuel supply pressures.
Macron said G7 members agreed to continue coordinating actions to help oil supplies move through the Strait of Hormuz.
France proposed that European countries and International Energy Agency members release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude from strategic reserves.
The Trump administration has urged the European Union to tap its stockpiles to help lower fuel prices and avoid a potential US ban on diesel exports.
Brent crude dropped below $100 a barrel, while European diesel futures initially fell nearly 6% following the reserve-release proposal.
The Middle East war and Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries have disrupted fuel markets, with diesel particularly affected.
Diesel prices at US pumps have climbed to around $6.50 a gallon, increasing pressure on farmers and other fuel consumers.
Rising domestic fuel prices have prompted US President Donald Trump to say he would support a potential ban on diesel exports.
European diesel futures have at times climbed above $200 a barrel, raising concerns about demand destruction.
The disruption to oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz has intensified concerns over crude and refined-fuel supplies.
Iran war news LIVE Updates: Lebanon PM Nawaf Salam says war-hit region needs urgent funding, reconstruction beyond state capacity
Lebanon Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said the scale of destruction and reconstruction needs in southern Lebanon exceeds the Lebanese state’s ability to finance the recovery alone.
Salam urged greater financial support for rebuilding areas devastated by the latest Israel-Hezbollah war.
Salam made the remarks during a visit to Nabatieh, one of the southern cities badly affected by Israeli airstrikes.
Large numbers of people remain displaced, particularly from southern Lebanon, amid continuing instability.
Iran war news LIVE Updates: 3 in 4 Yemen families face hunger as Saudi Arabia-Houthi fighting disrupts food supplies - WFP
Three in four families in WFP-accessible, government-controlled areas of Yemen are now without sufficient food, up sharply after the latest fighting.
The renewed conflict has displaced 152,000 people, with families arriving near Aden and Taiz without adequate food or water.
Prices of staples including wheat flour and vegetable oil are increasing as fighting disrupts supplies in a country that imports around 90% of its food.
Continued fighting is restricting humanitarian access to frontline areas, including Taiz, complicating efforts to deliver food and assistance.
Fighting could disrupt the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a major maritime chokepoint linking the Red Sea with the Gulf of Aden.
WFP warned that disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, alongside Red Sea and Black Sea disruptions, could push up global food and fuel prices. (Reuters)
Iran war news LIVE Updates: OPEC+ oil capacity assessment expected to finish by mid-November
An OPEC+ oil capacity assessment exercise is expected to be completed by mid-November, Reuters reported.
Iran war news LIVE Updates: Iran lawmaker warns US attack would open new fronts in region
Any US military action against Iran would open new fronts against Washington in the region, and Tehran would use missiles for the first time that would surprise the world, a lawmaker said on Friday.
Ruhollah Mousavi, a member of parliament’s internal affairs and councils committee, made the remarks in response to the possibility of a new US attack.
Iran war news LIVE Updates: Arab Israeli arrested on suspicion of spying for Iran
Israeli police and the Shin Bet security agency said on Friday they had arrested a 25-year-old Arab Israeli on suspicion of carrying out missions for Iran in exchange for money, the Times of Israel reported.
The suspect, identified as Mohammad Halaf from Baqa al-Gharbiya in northern Israel, was accused of making contact with Iranian agents and carrying out tasks on their behalf for “thousands of shekels.”
He was expected to be indicted later on Friday at the Haifa District Court on charges related to harming state security, the report said.
Israel has arrested dozens of people over the past two years on suspicion of working for Iran, often after initial contact through social media and messaging platforms such as Telegram.
Iran war news LIVE: Yemen’s military launches 20 strikes against Houthis, spokesman says
Yemen’s armed forces carried out 20 airstrikes against Houthi fighters, vehicles and military reinforcements in Taiz province over the past three hours, the military spokesperson said on Friday.
Iran war news LIVE: US three-carrier surge could bring 20,000 troops amid Iran war
The Pentagon is planning for a potential three-carrier deployment to the Middle East that could bring nearly 20,000 US troops, up to 150 fighter jets and multiple missile-capable destroyers to the region, the Washington Post reported Thursday, citing US officials.
Iran war news LIVE: Iran enriching uranium to 60%? US envoy says…
US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz accused Iran of violating its nuclear obligations and refusing to abandon its nuclear programme.
“Iran broke the rules. They refused to abandon their nuclear ambitions,” Waltz told the UN Security Council, as per Al Jazeera.
“They are enriching uranium to 60 percent, which has no credible civilian purpose,” he said, adding that IAEA inspectors had been repeatedly denied access in Iran.
Waltz said the IAEA Board of Governors referred Iran to the UN Security Council for noncompliance “just two weeks ago” and accused Iranian negotiators of continuing to reject demands to give up the country’s nuclear programme.
Tehran has rejected US demands to end uranium enrichment, saying its nuclear programme is peaceful and that enrichment is a right under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Iranian officials have also accused the IAEA of politicisation and rejected recent resolutions against the country as politically motivated.
Iran war LVE Updates: US sends Patriots to Saudi, Qatar amid possible renewed Iran war, says report
The US military reportedly sent two additional Patriot missile batteries to Saudi Arabia and Qatar in recent weeks to protect key oil and gas facilities amid the possibility of renewed US military operations against Iran, Axios reported, citing two US officials and a regional source.
One Patriot battery was deployed to Saudi Arabia to protect a key oil facility, while another was sent to Qatar to defend a natural gas facility, according to the report.
Axios said the deployments were intended to reassure the two US allies that Washington would help protect their energy infrastructure if President Donald Trump decides to resume major combat operations against Iran.
Iran war LVE Updates: Strong explosions heard in Yemen capital
Loud explosions were heard Thursday evening in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, which is controlled by pro-Iranian Houthi forces, an AFP correspondent said. The Saba agency, which is affiliated with the anti-government fighters, spoke of "Saudi aggression" on X.
Iran war LVE Updates: US sends 9,000 troops, USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier to Middle East
The US military is sending roughly 9,000 troops aboard a group of ships to the Middle East as President Donald Trump weighs possible new strikes on Iran, the Associated Press reported Thursday, citing a US official.
The ships carry more than 7,000 sailors and 2,000 Marines and include the USS Theodore Roosevelt carrier strike group and the USS Makin Island amphibious readiness group.