U.S. President Donald Trump today vowed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would not face arrest at a UN summit in New York, after the city’s new mayor said he was investigating the move.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani admitted he was unsure if he had the power to order police to detain a foreign leader but said he was discussing the matter with the city’s legal team ahead of the summit in September.
“Benjamin Netanyahu will not be arrested, in any way, shape, or form, while in the United States of America. He is fighting against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Mr. Trump said on social media.
- AFP
Iranian Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni arrived in Pakistan today for talks with the country’s top leadership amid the escalating military confrontation between Iran and the U.S.
Mr. Momeni was received by his Pakistani counterpart, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who had invited him to visit the country.
Iran’s official IRNA news agency confirmed Mr. Momeni’s arrival in Islamabad in a post on X, saying the visit was aimed at “boosting cooperation between the two nations”.
- PTI
U.S. President Donald Trump today said Iran would “pay” for killing U.S. soldiers after multiple service members were killed in action over the weekend.
- Reuters
A vessel was struck by an unknown projectile 17 nautical miles east of the UAE’s city of Dibba, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said today.
The attack caused damage to the steering gear, but the vessel’s crew were reported to be safe, UKMTO said.
- Reuters
Iran is fighting a “full-scale war” with the United States, its President said today, as Washington expanded its strikes across the Islamic republic.
The declaration came as Tehran’s Yemeni allies, the Houthi rebels, threatened to expand the war yet further by announcing they would blockade Saudi ports, putting at risk Riyadh’s ability to bypass the Strait of Hormuz for some of its oil exports.
Throughout the war, which began in late February, Iran has targeted what it says are U.S. assets across the region, with the Revolutionary Guards saying today they hit targets in Bahrain, Jordan and Syria, but so far the Houthis have stayed on the sidelines.
“The reality is that today the Islamic Republic of Iran is engaged in a full-scale war,” President Masoud Pezeshkian said, according to a presidency statement.
- AFP
The U.S. military said today that it has redirected seven commercial vessels and disabled one as part of the U.S. naval blockade on Iranian ports.
- Reuters
Bahrain said Iranian drones targeted its air navigation systems today, though traffic remained unaffected, while Kuwait also reported attacks as the United States and Iran traded strikes.
A shaky U.S.-Iran ceasefire has all but collapsed as Iran began attacking vessels using an Omani route in the Strait of Hormuz.
In response, the U.S. has attacked Iran, which has responded with strikes on the Gulf and other Arab countries.
“As a result of a hostile Iranian act of aggression against the Kingdom of Bahrain, civil air navigation systems... were targeted by hostile drones,” Bahrain’s aviation authority said.
“However, air navigation operations remained unaffected,” it added.
- AFP
Two French diplomats in Iran suffered “an extremely serious act of intimidation” by Islamic Republic security services, with one of them physically abused, France’s foreign minister said today.
Jean-Noel Barrot said in a statement sent to AFP that the two diplomats were targeted by the Iranian officials late yesterday “in flagrant violation of diplomatic immunity”.
Both were “detained for several hours without reason, interrogated and one of them was physically abused” before they were able to return to the embassy, he said.
- AFP
Iran’s Fars news agency reported that an explosion was heard in Shiraz.
- Reuters
Oil transfers between tankers in waters outside the Strait of Hormuz have slowed following a wave of recent attacks on vessels by Iranian forces, according to satellite analysis and sources.
Since the start of the Iran war in late February, ship-to-ship (STS) transfers between tankers have helped enable oil to leave the Gulf despite the threats to commercial vessels sailing through the Strait of Hormuz.
Under the practice, tankers using one of two makeshift routes close to either the Iranian or Omani coast have shuttled cargoes through the waterway with clearance from either Washington or Tehran.
-Reuters
A deal to secure an Israeli withdrawal from south Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah faced its first test on the ground today, as the Lebanese army began taking charge of security in three southern villages, Washington said.
The United States said operations had started in “pilot zones” in Froun, Srifa and Zawtar al-Gharbiya “in accordance with the Trilateral Framework and under the auspices of the Military Coordination Group for Lebanon.”
- AFP
Iran’s revolutionary guards say they targeted al-Sakhir air base and Bin Salman port in Bahrain, Arifjan base in Kuwait, according to a report by FARS.
-Reuters
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels today announced a maritime embargo of their foe Saudi Arabia, after the pair traded fire last week for the first time in years.
The rebels “declare a maritime embargo against the criminal Saudi enemy, based on the equation of ‘an eye for an eye,’ effective immediately upon the issuance of this statement,” military spokesman Yahya Saree said.
- AFP
U.S. gas prices jumped to an average of $4 a gallon again on Monday (Juy 20, 2026) as the U.S. and Iran launched more attacks.
According to motor club federation AAA, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline is now back to $4. The average price a year ago was $3.14 a gallon.
The price is a national average, meaning drivers in some states have been paying well over $4 a gallon for a while now, while others pay less. Prices vary between states due to factors ranging from nearby supply to differing tax rates.
- AP
Bulgaria, a NATO and EU member, will seek parliamentary approval on Monday (July 20, 2026) for up to eight U.S. tanker aircraft to be stationed at a military airport, Prime Minister Rumen Radev said, after a move to place such planes at a civilian airport triggered controversy.
The government will ask parliament to approve a request by Washington to station tanker planes at the Bezmer military facility to support the U.S. military’s operations in the Middle East, Radev told an annual conference of Bulgarian Ambassadors in Sofia.
A move earlier this year to station the aircraft, used mainly for airborne refuelling of other aircraft, at a civilian airport in the capital Sofia without prior parliamentary approval, sparked controversy and the planes left last month.
- Reuters
Iran on Monday (July 20, 2026) congratulated Spain on its victory in the World Cup, saying that it had brought happiness to people around the world who opposed the United States and Israel.
On social media, the winning side appeared to have won support from people around the world thanks to the Spanish government’s condemnation of Israel’s actions in Gaza and Madrid’s criticism of the war in Iran.
On the other hand, Israeli politicians and football fans had rallied for Argentina, whose President Javier Milei has been a vocal supporter of Israel’s policies.
“The players’ defence of the Palestinian people and the support of Spain for Iran... showed that freedom and assertiveness are characteristics of that intelligent and respectful nation,” said Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, quoted by the state news agency IRNA.
- AFP
The U.S. military on Monday (July 20, 2026) identified two soldiers killed in action last week as part of the war with Iran.
The Defence Department said in a statement that 1st Lt. Tyler James Feehan, 25, of Ewa Beach, Hawaii, and Pvt. Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas, was killed in Jordan, where they were supporting a US mission against the Islamic State group. It’s unclear how they were killed.
On Saturday (July 18, 2026), the U.S. Central Command said two service members were killed in Jordan while defending against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks.
The U.S. military has said the total number of deaths in the war with Iran is 17.
- AP
Bahrain’s civil aviation body said that Iran had targeted its air navigation systems with drones on Monday (July 20, 2026), though traffic remained unaffected.
“As a result of a hostile Iranian act of aggression against the Kingdom of Bahrain, civil air navigation systems serving the Bahrain Flight Information Region were targeted by hostile drones. However, air navigation operations remained unaffected,” it said in a statement, adding that “flights and air traffic” were proceeding normally.
- AFP
Iran urged the United Nations nuclear watchdog on Monday to condemn U.S. strikes that it said targeted the Darkhovin nuclear power plant under construction in the country’s southwest.
“Iran... expects the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) Board of Governors and the Director General of the IAEA, who from time to time makes political statements regarding the Iranian nuclear issue, to clearly state their position on this matter in condemning the US crime,” Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said at a press conference in Tehran.
- AFP
Bahrain and Kuwait reported intercepting Iranian attacks on Monday (July 20, 2026), as the United States and Iran traded the latest strikes in more than a week of escalation.
A shaky U.S.-Iran ceasefire has all but collapsed as Iran began attacking vessels using an Omani route in the Strait of Hormuz to force them to use its waters.
In response, the U.S. has attacked Iran, which has responded with strikes on the Gulf and other Arab countries.
- AFP
Iran said on Monday that diplomatic exchanges with the United States via mediators were ongoing despite U.S. military strikes on the country.
“We have been informed by mediators, we have received messages -- without going into details -- but the main point is that the diplomatic apparatus has been active in recent days and ideas have been conveyed to us by certain mediators,” said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei at a press conference in Tehran.
- AFP
A vessel was struck by an unknown projectile 8 nautical miles (14.8 km) northwest of Oman’s Kumzar, overlooking the Strait of Hormuz, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency said, adding that the vessel is currently adrift.
The crew safely abandoned the vessel and have been recovered by a tug boat, UKMTO said after reporting earlier that the vessel was on fire.
The fire has not been extinguished, but no environmental impact was reported, UKMTO said.
On Monday (July 20, 2026) morning, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said two oil tankers “exploded” and were immobilised after attempting to transit what it described as an unsafe southern route through the Strait of Hormuz. On Sunday, the Guards also pointed to two ships involved in an “accident” in the same area. It was unclear whether the two incidents were related.
- Reuters
U.S. strikes overnight in northwestern Iran killed at least one person and wounded several more, state media reported on Monday (July 20, 2026).
“One person was martyred and several others were injured in a terrorist and aggressive American attack on an area southwest of Tabriz on Monday morning,” said Majid Farshi, head of crisis management of East Azerbaijan province, quoted by state news agency IRNA.
- AFP
U.S. strikes hit several locations in Iran’s southern port city of Bushehr, home to the country’s only civilian nuclear plant, state media reported on Monday (July 20, 2026).
“A few minutes ago, several locations in Bushehr city were hit by American enemy’s projectiles,” said Bushehr governor Mohammad Mozaffari, as quoted by official state news agency IRNA.
- AFP
Washington and Tehran traded strikes on Monday (July 20, 2026) as U.S. deaths in the renewed fighting climbed to three and more ships came under attack in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
U.S.-Iran tensions escalate as military strikes continue, pushing oil prices to a one-month high amid Strait of Hormuz conflict.
Kuwaiti air defences were “engaging hostile drone attacks” from Iran, the Gulf state’s military said on Monday (July 20, 2026).
“The General Staff of the Army notes that any explosions heard are a result of air defense systems intercepting the hostile attacks,” the Kuwait Army said in a post on its official X account. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said earlier on Monday they had hit U.S. military targets in Kuwait.
- AFP
Explosions were heard in the Bahraini capital Manama on Monday morning after air raid sirens were triggered, AFP journalists said.
“The siren has been sounded, citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place,” the Gulf state’s Interior Ministry wrote on X.
- AFP
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said roday that they hit U.S. military targets in Kuwait, including an early-warning radar system that was “completely destroyed”, in a statement reported by state news agency IRNA.
Iranian forces “completely destroyed a US early-warning radar system in a drone strike. In a separate attack, they struck an equipment and aircraft parts warehouse and an MQ-9 drone hangar at Ali Al Salem Air Base, setting several drones on fire,” the Guards said in the statement.
-AFP
The United States conducted a new round of airstrikes early in the morning targeting Iran after announcing the death of another American service member, and Iran fired missiles towards Jordan that risked widening the conflict into neighbouring Israel.
Step by step, the U.S. and Iran have inched closer to all-out war as last month’s interim deal meant to permanently end the fighting has crumbled and shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz has largely stalled.
The U.S.. military said the service member was killed in Iraq on Saturday during the “controlled detonation” of a downed Iranian drone.
-AP
Published - July 20, 2026 08:47 am IST