Iran war highlights: Iran warns countries aiding US will be ‘engulfed by the flames of war’

Israel says it killed several Hezbollah fighters in southern Lebanon.

Israeli military says troops opened fire after identifying Hezbollah militants inside what it called a "security zone" in southern Lebanon.

One Israeli soldier was moderately injured during the overnight operation and evacuated to hospital for treatment.

Hezbollah has not commented on the incident. (AFP)

Israeli military said one of its officers was moderately injured during a close-quarters encounter with Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon overnight on Saturday.

The incident occurred during an Israeli military operational activity despite the ongoing ceasefire.

The IDF said the soldier was wounded during a face-to-face clash with "terrorists" in southern Lebanon. (AFP)

The United Nations expressed concern over Israel's ongoing demolitions in southern Lebanon despite the ceasefire with Iran-backed Hezbollah.

The UN said the scale of the detonations is causing serious damage to civilian infrastructure, cultural heritage and local communities.

The statement followed large Israeli overnight explosions near the UNESCO-listed Beaufort Castle.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said the military destroyed "terror tunnels" in the Beaufort area using around 700 tonnes of explosives.

Beaufort Castle was added to UNESCO's List of World Heritage in Danger last week.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun described the explosions as "an extremely dangerous escalation" and a threat to the US-brokered Israel-Lebanon agreement.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported two separate maritime security incidents off the coast of Oman on Saturday.

In the first incident, a tanker was struck by an unknown projectile about 11 nautical miles northeast of Lima, Oman.

The strike damaged the vessel's engine room, leaving the tanker not under command.

No casualties or environmental pollution were reported following the first incident.

In the second incident, reported 21 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, the master of another tanker saw a large splash and an explosion close to the vessel.

The second tanker sustained no damage, according to UKMTO.

Both incidents occurred near Oman's Musandam Peninsula, close to the entrance of the Strait of Hormuz.

Kuwait's military said it detected and destroyed multiple hostile drones in the country's airspace since dawn on Saturday.

The Kuwaiti army described the incident as an Iranian attack targeting several vital facilities.

A government facility in northern Kuwait was struck during the attack.

Civilian property damaged: Civilian property belonging to a company on Bubiyan Island was also hit.

Authorities said falling drone shrapnel caused material damage, but no injuries or deaths were reported.

"The United States is rapidly moving down the path of escalating tensions in the region," said Ali Abdollahi, head of Iran's military central command. "Any country serving as defensive shield for criminal and aggressive America will be engulfed by the flames of war."

Iran said allowing the United States to use British military bases for attacks on Iran would amount to an "act of aggression" under international law.

Iranian Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi conveyed the warning during a phone call with UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, according to Press TV.

Araghchi said Iran would be entitled to exercise its right to self-defence if British territory or military facilities were used to launch attacks against Iran.

Iran said any UK cooperation with the US, including under existing defence agreements, would be "unacceptable."

Key points from the U.S. Embassy Amman security alert:

The US Embassy in Amman issued a security alert on August 1, 2026, citing heightened tensions in the Middle East and the risk of further escalation.

The embassy warned that the regional security situation remains complex and unpredictable.

Americans currently in the Middle East were advised to:

Exercise heightened caution and vigilance.

Prepare for flight cancellations, airspace closures and travel disruptions.

Consider departing the region or be ready to leave if tensions escalate.

Americans outside the Middle East were urged to seriously reconsider travel to or through the region.

The embassy warned that US diplomatic facilities have been targeted previously and said Iran and Iran-backed groups may target US interests overseas, including:

US embassies and consulates.

US businesses.

Other locations associated with Americans.

Gaza's civil defence agency reported extensive damage after an Israeli strike hit a medicine and medical supplies storage facility at Al-Aqsa Hospital early Saturday.

The Palestinian health ministry condemned the attack, calling it a "heinous crime" by Israeli forces.

According to the ministry, the strike destroyed two of the hospital's four medical warehouses and severely damaged the remaining two.

The attack also significantly damaged the adjacent outpatient clinic building, the ministry said.

Palestinian officials said vital medical consumables and supplies meant for treating patients and the wounded were destroyed or rendered unusable.

AFP footage from the site showed a large crater at the impact point.

Videos and images showed medical supplies scattered across the area, with dozens of Palestinians searching through the debris to recover usable items.

In Gaza, Israeli forces carried out heavy overnight strikes across central and northern parts of the enclave, killing at least four people and wounding dozens, according to local health officials.

The bombardment came just hours after Hamas confirmed it was prepared to disarm under a U.S.-brokered ceasefire framework first announced last October.

The proposed agreement calls for Hamas to surrender its weapons and transfer governing authority to an independent Palestinian administration, while Israel would withdraw its forces and an international stabilization force would be deployed.

Israel has not officially commented on Hamas' announcement.

Israeli far-right minister Itamar Ben-Gvir rejected the proposal, calling it "unacceptable" and insisting military operations should continue.

The Israeli military said the latest strikes targeted Hamas positions following evacuation orders issued to civilians.

Iranian lawmaker Ali Khazaei said on Saturday that conditions in the Strait of Hormuz would not return to those prevailing before the war, describing the strategic waterway as an "inalienable" part of Iran's rights, Iran International reported.

"The conditions in the Strait of Hormuz will not return to the pre-war situation," the Varamin representative said, adding that Iran would continue to maintain security in the waterway and would not accept foreign interference there.

Kuwait's military said on Saturday its air defenses were engaging hostile drone attacks following "Iranian aggression."

"Kuwaiti air defenses are currently confronting hostile drone attacks," the military said on X.

It said any explosions heard were the result of air-defense systems intercepting the incoming attacks and urged residents to follow official safety instructions.

The US military’s stockpile of missile defense interceptors fallen significantly during the Iran war, raising concerns among defense officials and analysts about America’s ability to sustain current operations and respond to future conflicts, Fox News reported.

Estimates from the Center for Strategic and International Studies revealed that Patriot interceptor inventories have declined from about 2,300 before the war to fewer than 827, while THAAD interceptor inventories have dropped from 452 to fewer than 278.

Nour News, a media outlet close to Iran's Supreme National Security Council, warned on Saturday that any US strike on Iran's energy infrastructure could trigger a wider regional energy crisis and disrupt global oil markets.

The outlet said such an attack could put major energy facilities across the region at risk, including Saudi Arabia's Ghawar oil field and Abqaiq and Khurais facilities, the UAE's Zakum field and Ruwais refinery, Qatar's Ras Laffan gas complex, Kuwait's Burgan field, Bahrain's Sitra refinery, and the Leviathan and Tamar gas fields.

"If Tehran concludes that the aim of an attack is to create lasting disruption to the country's economic capacity, it is natural that it will seek to increase the cost for the other side," the report said, warning that an attack on Iran's energy sector could escalate into "an energy security crisis" with global economic consequences.

The US CENTCOM posted on X, “A US Navy MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter is prepared for flight aboard USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) as the warship supports the U.S. blockade against Iran while sailing in regional waters. As of July 31, CENTCOM has redirected 30 commercial vessels, disabled 2, and boarded 2 to ensure full compliance. The U.S. military has also permitted nearly 30 ships to pass through the blockade for humanitarian aid.”

Iran has warned that it stands fully prepared to target key Israeli infrastructure and American energy installations throughout the region should it come under attack.

The statement came following reports that the US and Israel may be coordinating new military operations against the Islamic Republic.

A senior Iranian security official told Tasnim News Agency on Friday that Western media reports regarding prospective strikes on Iranian infrastructure represented "a kind of madness".

According to Tasnim, the official stated that Tehran has formulated comprehensive retaliatory strategies encompassing strikes on critical installations in Israel and US energy assets across the Middle East, asserting that Iran maintains complete readiness to execute these measures if provoked.

The foreign ministers of the Islamic Republic of Iran and India discussed bilateral relations and regional developments in a telephone conversation on Friday.

Outlining the latest regional developments and articulating the Islamic Republic of Iran's positions, FM Araghchi identified US treaty violations and continued military aggression against Iran—including the naval blockade and attacks on Iranian commercial shipping—as the primary causes of insecurity in the region and the Strait of Hormuz, and emphasized the international community's responsibility to hold the aggressor parties accountable, IRNA News reported.

India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, in conversation with Iranian counterpart, stated he strongly urged that commercial shipping and seafarers must not be targeted under any circumstances, reiterating that India condemns any such attacks regardless of who carries them out.

US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he was "losing faith" in Tehran, alleging that Iranian authorities routinely breach commitments even as bilateral discussions persist between both nations.

Addressing a televised Cabinet meeting at Camp David, Trump asserted that Iran lacked credibility due to its recurrent failure to abide by its pledges.

"They do lie, and they do misrepresent," Trump said. "They always want to talk, but they break their word so often."

Asked about reviving the previous U.S.-Iran ceasefire framework, Trump said: “We just want to win,” offering no clear timeline for ending the conflict.