U.S. President Donald Trump switched from a newly inducted Boeing 747-8, gifted by Qatar, to the legacy Air Force One prior to departing Turkey earlier this month following intelligence inputs regarding a “credible threat” from Iranian proxy forces targeting him, media reports said.
The security development surfaced while Mr. Trump was attending the NATO summit in Ankara, according to The New York Times. Trump had arrived aboard the Qatari-donated aircraft, which currently lacks the advanced defensive systems integrated into the primary Air Force One fleet.
-ANI
The Yemeni government air force on Saturday (July 25) carried out airstrikes on Houthi missile and drone launch sites and arms depots in the Marib and al-Jawf provinces along the front line with the Iran-aligned group, two Yemeni military officials said.
The officials said the strikes were among the first offensive operations launched by the Saudi-backed Yemeni government against the Houthis amid renewed violence in the more than decade-old conflict, following the collapse of a four-year truce between the Houthis and Saudi Arabia.
-Reuters
Yemen’s Houthi rebels said on Saturday (July 25) they had targeted Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities on the Red Sea coast, as the Tehran-backed group threatened to intensify its response if struck by the Gulf monarchy.
In a video statement, military spokesman Yahya Saree said the group had targeted sites operated by the Saudi oil giant Aramco in Jizan and Yanbu using drones and missiles and threatened “to expand our movements and escalate... during the coming hours and days”.
-AFP
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Saturday (July 25) their forces stopped four ships attempting to transit the strategic Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours.
“Four vessels that had intended to transit through the southern area of the Strait of Hormuz via an illegal and unsafe route were stopped over the past 24 hours after warning shots were fired by the IRGC Navy,” the Guards said in a statement quoted by state television, adding that the ships had “altered course”.
-AFP
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Saturday (July 25) there was no military solution to the escalating conflict between Saudi Arabia and the Tehran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen after both sides traded attacks.
“We believe that there is no military solution to the issue of Yemen, Bab al-Mandab, and other regional issues,” said Mr. Araghchi in an interview published on Saturday by the state-run Iran Daily newspaper, calling for “dialogue”.
He said the situation in Yemen “cannot be attributed to Iran” and that the incidents occurring in the area of the Bab al-Mandab Strait were “rooted in old disputes and issues between Yemen, Saudi Arabia and the countries of the region”.
-AFP
Iran reported no strikes overnight into Saturday (July 25), an apparent break from nearly two weeks of consecutive nights of U.S. attacks, but tensions remain high following a recent escalation over control of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian Health Ministry spokesperson Hossein Kermanpour posted on X, saying that “Iran had a peaceful night,” without any attacks reported. The U.S. Central Command didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. However, unlike the previous 13 nights, it did not announce new strikes.
Sirens sounded multiple times early Saturday in Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu and Jizan provinces, which house crucial oil facilities on the Red Sea, according to the Saudi Civil Defence.
-AP
The Houthi movement’s decision to target Saudi-linked shipping in the Red Sea has raised fears of a wider regional conflict. As tensions spread from the Strait of Hormuz to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, concerns are growing over energy supplies, global trade routes, and the risk of an even broader Middle East war.
The Houthi movement's decision to target Saudi-linked shipping in the Red Sea has raised fears of a wider regional conflict. As tensions spread from the Strait of Hormuz to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, concerns are growing over energy supplies, global trade routes, and the risk of an even broader Middle East war.
The second phase of the Iran-U.S. war is being fought almost exclusively over the future of the Strait of Hormuz. The sequence of events leading to the restart of hostilities suggests there was no genuine meeting of minds when the MoU was signed. As before, by holding out and retaliating, Iran has forced the issue — shipowners now seem resigned to paying a “logical” toll, even as they worry about the precedent it sets for other straits.
Explore the escalating Iran-U.S. conflict over the Strait of Hormuz and the implications for global shipping and security.
Iran on Saturday (July 26) slammed the European Union over its latest sanctions against Iranian officials over alleged human rights violations, accusing the bloc of hypocrisy and describing its approach as the “banality of evil.”
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei made the remarks in a post on X after European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas announced new restrictive measures against Iranian judges accused of serious human rights violations and a cyber official allegedly linked to repression of information.
Responding to Mr. Kallas’ statement, Mr. Baqaei questioned the EU’s human rights stance and accused the bloc of overlooking what Tehran described as attacks against Iranian civilians.
-ANI
The Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea are under pressure as the U.S.-Iran conflict intensifies. Here’s how the crisis could impact India’s oil imports, LPG prices, inflation, and why the government is looking on ethanol for cooking.
The Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea are under pressure as the U.S.-Iran conflict intensifies. Here’s how the crisis could impact India’s oil imports, LPG prices, inflation, and why the government is looking on ethanol for cooking.
Air defence systems in Saudi Arabia intercepted two ballistic missiles from Yemen on Saturday (July 25, 2026) targeting oil refineries in Yanbu, Greek security sources said, as Saudi Arabia and the Iran-aligned Houthis exchanged fire in a new front of the Iran war.
Late on Friday (July 24, 2026), the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said it had struck Houthi military sites in the port city of Hodeidah linked to attacks on shipping by the group, which has declared a naval blockade of Saudi Arabia.
Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said last week that all Saudi oil and other vital facilities would be targets for the group’s missiles and drones if Riyadh escalated its involvement in the conflict.
Saudi Civil Defense, the state’s emergency services, had issued warnings for Yanbu, on the Red Sea, and later said the danger had passed. Civil Defense also issued a warning for the port city of Jizan, home to a 4,00,000 barrel-per-day oil refinery.
There were no immediate official reports of damage, and Saudi state oil giant Aramco did not respond to requests for comment on the incidents. - Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday (July 24, 2026), that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the U.S. next week.
Mr. Trump’s comments came in his speech at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner on Friday (July 24, 2026), while he was falsely casting U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer as Palestinian.
Trump announces Israeli PM Netanyahu's visit to the U.S. next week amid ongoing U.S.-Israel tensions over Iran.
Saudi Arabia struck the port city of Hodeida in Yemen, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said in a statement early Saturday (July 25, 2026) in response to Iranian-backed Houthi rebel attacks on Saudi shipping.
The Houthis said the group would escalate after tensions have been brewing for weeks, breaking a years-long calm. The Saudi strikes on Saturday were in retaliation for Houthi attacks on two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea on Thursday (July 23, 2026).
Houthi-run Al Masirah television said Saudi strikes hit facilities belonging to the state telecommunications corporation and also targeted Kamaran island, off Yemen’s western coast. The broadcaster said one employee was injured and a woman was also wounded in Kamaran Island.
The coalition said that strikes only targeted “military targets” and did not target the port saying that all Yemeni ports were open for maritime navigation. The Houthis announced a ‘maritime blockade’ against Saudi ships in the Red Sea for earlier this week. - AP
The U.S. military said on Friday (July 25, 2026) that it fired on another merchant vessel that was trying to breach its blockade of Iran’s ports, while the Islamic Republic targeted American strongholds around the Persian Gulf.
The U.S. and Iran showed no sign of backing away from their conflict after a 13th straight night of strikes. With fighting flaring again and diplomacy uncertain, both sides made moves suggesting an escalation was possible. U.S. embassies in West Asia began alerting Americans in the region that options to leave could become more limited, while Iran’s Revolutionary Guard advised residents of neighbouring countries to stay away from bases with U.S. troops.
Saudi Arabia struck the port city of Hodeida in Yemen in response to Iranian-backed Houthi rebel attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said on Saturday. The Houthis said they would escalate after tensions have been brewing for weeks, breaking a yearslong calm. - AP
Tehran-backed Houthi rebels claimed a missile attack on Saudi Arabia on Saturday (July 25, 2026) as U.S. President Donald Trump mulled fresh strikes on Iran in the deepening West Asia war.
The U.S. military broke its daily announcement of fresh strikes on the Islamic republic on Saturday, following 13 nights in a row hitting military targets there.
Mr. Trump said he had not yet decided whether to launch major strikes on Iran, hours before the conflict widened across the region with Yemen’s Houthi rebels claiming a missile attack on the southern Saudi city of Jizan.
The Houthis had accused the U.S. ally Riyadh of a “dangerous escalation” after it struck military targets belonging to the group on Friday (July 24, 2026), following the rebels announcing a maritime blockade of the top oil producer and hitting its ships in the Red Sea. - AFP
U.S. President Donald Trump said that he believes Iran “would love to make a deal” with the United States to end the renewed conflict in West Asia but suggested that Tehran is “not ready” yet. He reiterated that his administration would not allow the Islamic Republic to acquire a nuclear weapon.
Speaking at the rescheduled White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) Dinner, Mr. Trump said his administration was handling the Iran issue “extremely well” and dismissed critical media coverage on the status of the conflict.
“It’s all going extremely well. Don’t believe the fake news,” Mr. Trump said during his remarks.
ANI
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed a missile attack on the southern Saudi city of Jizan on Saturday (July 25, 2026), the group’s Ansarollah media posted on Telegram.
Saudi Arabia earlier issued brief warnings to residents in Jizan and Yanbu after the rebels vowed to retaliate against the kingdom for attacks this week.
AFP
President Donald Trump has said that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the U.S. next week. Mr. Trump’s comments came in his speech at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner on Friday (July 24), while he was falsely casting U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer as Palestinian.
“I am going to send him (Schumer) a beautiful Palestinian outfit tomorrow, so he can greet Bibi Netanyahu when he comes to town next week,” Mr. Trump said.
“He turned Palestinian,” Mr. Trump said of Mr. Schumer, who is Jewish, while also joking that sharia law was Mr. Schumer’s “new founding.”
Reuters
Iran-backed Houthi rebels vowed to retaliate against Saudi Arabia on Saturday (July 25, 2026) after they accused the kingdom of targeting civilian infrastructure, as the West Asia war widens across the region.
Riyadh struck Houthi military targets in Hodeida on Friday (July 24), with rebel media reporting two wounded after the Yemeni group announced a maritime blockade of the top oil producer and hit its ships.
The flare-up marks a new front of the war that has engulfed the region following US-Israeli strikes on Tehran in February, and comes on top of Iran’s parallel blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, Riyadh’s only other maritime route.
“The Saudi enemy’s targeting of civilian facilities in Hodeida and Kamaran island constitutes a dangerous escalation,” the Houthis’ Ansarollah media posted on Telegram.
“We affirm that these recent crimes will not go unanswered.”
AFP
The U.S. military said it had fired on and disabled a tanker ship that was attempting to evade the American blockade on Iranian ports.
“We disabled the tanker after the crew attempted to run the blockade at least four times prior,” said Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, spokesman for U.S. Central Command.
“The crew was repeatedly warned, didn’t comply, and U.S. forces on scene disabled the ship after firing into its engine room,” he said. “The ship is no longer transiting to Iran.”
AFP
Published - July 25, 2026 09:10 am IST