U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday (July 14, 2026) that trade and investment deals with the Gulf states will replace the 20% fee for shops to pass through the Strait of Hormuz that he had proposed a day earlier.
“Based on highly productive conversations with Middle East leadership, I have decided to replace the 20% United States Reimbursement Fee with Trade and Investment Deals that the various Gulf States will be making into the United States,” he said in a post on Truth Social.
- Reuters
The United Nations human rights chief said on Tuesday (July 14, 2026) the resumption of hostilities between the United States and Iran was a huge setback for civilians in the region, and he urged restraint.
“The return to wider hostilities in the Middle East between the U.S. and Iran is a huge setback for civilians in the region and beyond. It undermines peace efforts and deepens instability, with grave risks for human rights across the entire region,” the U.N. high commissioner for human rights Volker Turk said in a statement.
- Reuters
Bahraini authorities said on Tuesday (July 14, 2026) three people were sentenced to life in prison for spying for Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, the latest in a crackdown on Iran-linked cells.
“Three defendants were charged with colluding with the terrorist Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps [IRGC] and its operatives to assist in hostile and terrorist acts against the Kingdom of Bahrain and to harm its interests; the court sentenced all of them to life imprisonment,” the prosecution said.
Since the war began, Gulf states, which have borne the brunt of Tehran’s attacks, have cracked own on alleged IRGC-linked cells.
- AFP
As many as seven Indian-flagged vessels were on the western side of the Strait of Hormuz before the start of the latest military escalation between the U.S. and Iran, a government official said on Tuesday (July 14, 2026).
Just like the early part of the West Asia conflict, these vessels are unlikely to sail out of the Persian Gulf before de-escalation of tensions, he said.
The official told PTI that five Indian-flagged vessels are engaged in commercial activities in the region.
“About 148 seafarers are onboard the seven Indian-flagged vessels in the Persian Gulf. And given the current situation, they are not planning to come out of the region as of now,” he said.
- PTI
Israel’s Foreign Minister said on Tuesday (July 14, 2026) he expected ongoing talks in Rome with Lebanon to help implement an agreement on two “pilot zones” in southern Lebanon, referring to the withdrawal of Israeli troops from those areas.
“We are ready to move forward implementing these two pilot zones. I hope and tend to believe that this round of discussions in Rome will promote it,” Gideon Saar told journalists at a press conference in Jerusalem.
- AFP
A Norwegian tanker was hit by an explosion caused by an unidentified device off the Omani coast early on Tuesday (July 14, 2026), a crisis response company said.
MTI Network said in a statement that shipping company Stolt Tankers reported that at approximately 00:40 am local time (2000 GMT Monday) “its tanker vessel Stolt Magnesium while on passage in the Arabian Sea off the coast of Oman suffered from an explosion of an unidentified external device”.
The explosion triggered a fire in the ship’s engine room, but an MTI Network spokesman added that the crew “fortunately are all safe and accounted for”.
- AFP
Fifty-five Iranian fishermen have been freed from custody in the United Arab Emirates, Iran’s embassy there said on its Telegram channel on Tuesday (July 14, 2026).
The fishermen were detained by the UAE’s coast guard in recent months due to “special conditions” in the region, the embassy added, in a likely reference to the Iran war. The process to send them home had started, the embassy said.
- Reuters
Oil prices surged on Tuesday (July 14, 2026) after the United States launched a fresh wave of strikes on Iran and President Donald Trump vowed to reimpose a naval blockade.
International benchmark Brent North Sea crude climbed 5.1% to $87.51 a barrel, while the main U.S. benchmark, West Texas Intermediate, advanced 3.9% to $81.21 a barrel.
- AFP
U.S. strikes hit in an Iranian border area near Iraq and Kuwait on Tuesday (July 14, 2026), local authorities said, as fighting between the two foes raged.
The city of Abadan, which hosts the oldest oil refinery in West Asia, as well as the port city of Mahshahr were targeted, deputy governor of Khuzestan province Valiollah Hayati said, according to state news agency IRNA.
- AFP
U.S. strikes on Tuesday (July 14) hit the port city of Bushehr, which hosts Iran’s only civilian nuclear power plant, local authorities said, as fighting between Tehran and Washington escalates.
“Four points in the city of Bushehr were hit by enemy projectiles at noon (0830 GMT)”, deputy provincial governor Ehsan Jahanian was quoted by official news agency IRNA as saying, blaming the attacks on the United States.
- AFP
India summoned Iran’s senior diplomat in New Delhi on Tuesday (Jul 14) to protest against attacks on two commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz that killed an Indian seafarer and wounded several others.
The Indian Foreign Ministry said it had summoned the deputy chief of mission of the Iranian embassy in the capital to register “a strong protest” against the attacks reported early on Tuesday (July ).
The two vessels had a total of 46 crew members, including 30 Indians, one of whom has “tragically lost his life”, it said in a statement.
“India is deeply concerned by the attacks on two vessels, MT Al Bahiyah and MT Mombasa, during their transit through the Strait of Hormuz today,” it said.
- AFP
Iranian state television on Tuesday (July 14) reported that five explosions were heard around the port city of Bandar Abbas, near the Strait of Hormuz, which has been at the centre of renewed Iran-U.S. fighting.
“A few minutes ago, five explosions were heard west of Bandar Abbas,” the state broadcaster said, without providing further details.
- AFP
Iran on Tuesday (July 14) slammed a British plan to ban support for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, alongside an Iran-linked group accused of a series of attacks against the Jewish community.
The Foreign Ministry “condemns the hostile act of the British government as unjustified, irresponsible and contrary to the fundamental principles and rules of international law”, it said in a statement.
- AFP
Bahrain on Tuesday (July 14) said it intercepted several Iranian attacks on its territory, as fighting between Washington and Tehran escalated over the vital Strait of Hormuz.
“Air defence systems intercepted and destroyed several treacherous aerial attacks launched by Iran this Tuesday (July 14) morning,” the Bahraini military said in a statement, also accusing Tehran of targeting civilians.
Iran said it had targeted the Gulf nation in retaliation for U.S. attacks on Iranian territory, with the Revolutionary Guards earlier saying they had carried out missile and drone strikes on Bahrain.
- AFP
India on Tuesday (July 14) strongly condemned the attacks on two merchant vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, in which one Indian national was killed, and 10 others were injured.
The Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy of Iran was summoned this morning by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), and a strong protest against these attacks was lodged with him.
India said it is “deeply concerned” by the attacks on two vessels, MT Al Bahiyah and MT Mombasa, during their transit through the strait.
- PTI
Charging fees for passage through international waters “would be fundamentally wrong”, German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd said on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said he would reinstate a naval blockade on Iran and charge 20% on all cargo shipped through the Strait of Hormuz.
The company told Reuters it could not reliably quantify the financial impact of tensions in the Gulf region on its business.
- Reuters
Lebanon and Israel are holding new negotiations under U.S. auspices in Rome on Tuesday, against the backdrop of a regional escalation between Washington and Tehran.
The two countries, officially at war for decades, reached a framework agreement on June 26, after five rounds of negotiations in Washington, aimed at ending the war between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah and paving the way for peace.
But Hezbollah rejects the agreement, which calls for the group’s disarmament and whose implementation is set to begin with Israeli withdrawal from two “pilot zones” in southern Lebanon.
The Lebanese presidency announced on Monday that its delegation to Rome had been instructed “to demand the immediate start of Israeli forces’ withdrawal from the two pilot zones before any further discussion”.
- AFP
China called on the United States and Iran to restore safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, as fighting between the two sides reignited over how the strategic waterway should be managed.
“Restoring normal and safe passage through the strait as soon as possible is a shared aspiration of the international community,” foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a news briefing, adding that Beijing would “make unremitting efforts to help de-escalate” the situation.
- AFP
A tanker was hit by a missile 13 nautical miles southeast of Oman’s Limah, while transiting outbound of the Strait of Hormuz on the southern route, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Tuesday, dating the reported incident to July 13.
-Reuters
Explosions were heard in the Bahraini capital on Tuesday morning, an AFP journalist said, after sirens sounded for the third time since dawn.
Bahrain’s defence ministry had warned on X that “sirens have been set off, we urge citizens and residents to remain calm and head to the nearest safe place”. It came hours after Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had carried out missile and drone strikes on the Gulf kingdom.
- AFP
Iran’s Parliament has begun work on a bill on the Strait of Hormuz, the head of the security committee said, as fighting flared between Washington and Tehran over the strategic waterway.
“Last night, coinciding with the downing of US drones, the ‘Strategic Action for the Security and Sustainable Progress of the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf’ bill was formally introduced in Iran’s Parliament,” Ebrahim Azizi wrote on X.
- AFP
Iran’s oil exports are continuing as usual despite the cancellation last week of a 60-day waiver of U.S. oil sanctions, Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad said on his official Telegram account.
Mr. Paknejad said the Oil Ministry had maintained mechanisms for years to neutralise the impact of U.S. sanctions and that Iran’s oil exports would face no problems despite the removal of the waivers.
- Reuters
The Ministry of External Affairs had summoned Iranian diplomats including Deputy Chief of Mission after an Indian crew member was killed while eight others, including six Indians, sustained injuries in an Iranian strike on UAE shipping tankers in the Strait of Hormuz close to Oman
Iran rescued 23 foreign crew members after a bulk carrier collided with another vessel north of Qeshm Island in the Strait of Hormuz, the semi-official Fars news agency reported today.
The bulk carrier suffered serious damage to its hull and began taking on water, prompting the captain to order an emergency evacuation, Fars said, adding that all crew members were safely transferred to Qeshm Island.
- Reuters
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards say they targeted U.S. Air Base in Jordan with ballistic missiles, reported Fars News.
- Reuters
Oil prices rose nearly 3% today to their highest in four weeks, as the U.S. reimposed its naval blockade of Iran while the two countries stepped up attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, heightening uncertainty about energy flows.
Brent crude futures were last up $1.50, or 1.8%, to $84.80 per barrel at 0330 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose $1.70, or 2.2%, to $79.84 a barrel.
Both contracts earlier rose more than $2 a barrel before paring some gains, while Brent had surged 9.6% in the previous session, its biggest daily gain since May 2020.
Oil prices are now at their highest since the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding to end the war on June 17.
- Reuters
Iran’s IRGC says that it destroyed the Patriot radar, U.S. Navy fifth fleet air control radar, and a C-RAM early warning radar system in Bahrain.
- Reuters
Bahrain sounds its missile alert sirens for a second time as Iran retaliates over U.S. strikes.
- AP
The U.S. military said late today its forces have completed their latest wave of strikes on Iran.
“During the five-hour mission, U.S. forces successfully struck military targets across Iran including Bushehr, Chah Bahar, Jask, Konarak, Abu Musa, and Bandar Abbas,” the U.S. Central Command said in a statement on X.
- Reuters
Iran’s Nournews has reported that areas of southern Iran’s Bushehr was hit in renewed U.S. attacks.
- Reuters
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said today they had carried out missile and drone strikes on Bahrain, after the Gulf country urged citizens to take shelter as a siren sounded.
“Several weapons support warehouses, a satellite communications center and the residential building for U.S. forces in Bahrain were targeted,” Iranian state television IRIB quoted the Guards as saying.
- AFP
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi will meet U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington today, as the U.S. administration piles pressure on Baghdad to curb Iranian influence.
His visit comes against the backdrop of renewed military escalation between the United States and Iran, Iraq’s main allies.
Washington and Tehran’s enmity has long turned Iraq into a proxy battleground and left successive governments struggling to maintain a delicate balance between the two foes.
Mr. Zaidi arrived in Washington yesterday for his first international visit since assuming office — a week-long trip during which he will meet Mr. Trump, U.S. officials and representatives of oil companies.
- AFP
Iran’s IRGC says cooperation with ‘aggressor enemy’ in the Strait of Hormuz will delay reopening of the waterway and also create a global energy crisis, says Iranian media.
- Reuters
Iran’s revolutionary guards say two ‘offending supertankers’ were hit and disabled in the Strait of Hormuz, says Iranian media.
- Reuters
Bahrain sounds missile alert sirens as Iran retaliates over new round of U.S. airstrikes.
- AP
The United States launched a fresh salvo of strikes against Iran early today, marking a new escalation in the resumption of hostilities, even as U.S. President Donald Trump said a deal with Tehran was still possible.
“We’re going to hit them very hard tonight, and we’re going to hit them hard tomorrow,” Mr. Trump told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt yesterday.
Oil prices shot up more than 9% amid fears of renewed conflict.
- AFP
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said yesterday that plans by President Donald Trump to impose hefty fees on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz would turn the United States into a “pirate” state.
Mr. Trump vowed earlier to reinstate a blockade of Iran’s ports on the strait and slap a levy of 20% on all cargo shipped through Hormuz to pay for keeping the narrow waterway open.
Tehran started blocking the key conduit for petroleum shipments after the U.S. and Israel launched attacks in late February, which prompted Washington to stop the shipping to and from Iranian ports.
- AFP
The United Arab Emirates said today that Iran attacked two ships in the Strait of Hormuz, killing one crew member and wounding eight others.
“The Ministry of Defence condemned this flagrant attack, describing it as a grave violation and a clear breach of international law that threatens regional security and stability,” the defence ministry wrote on X.
- AFP
One Indian crew member was killed, and eight others were wounded when Iranian cruise missiles struck two Emirati oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, the United Arab Emirates Ministry of Defence said today, in the latest escalation in the strategic waterway. The ministry said the tankers, the Mombasa and Al Bahiyah, were targeted in the southern lane of the strait while in Omani territorial waters. The dead crew member was aboard the Mombasa, it said.
One Indian sailor was killed and six others wounded as Iranian missiles struck UAE oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.
Published - July 14, 2026 06:44 am IST