24 Posts
• US attacks canceled: US President Donald Trump announced he is canceling planned attacks on Iran, citing progress in talks. He said the pause is contingent on “being able to rapidly make a DEAL,” comments that come a day after US officials said new strikes could take place as soon as this weekend
• Region on edge:The State Department had earlier issued a fresh travel warning to Americans in the Middle East, saying they should consider departing now. Tehran issued new threats to countries that host US bases, and Kuwaiti authorities reported Iranian drone attacks early Saturday
• In Gaza:Meanwhile, Israeli strikes left a huge crater at a hospital in the Palestinian enclave, less than 48 hours after Trump announced a potential breakthrough in Israel-Hamas peace efforts, casting further uncertainty on the new agreement
Announcing the cancellation of the planned strikes on Iran, US President Donald Trump said Saturday that Iran and “other Middle Eastern countries” asked him to hold off
Earlier in the day, raised concerns about potential new US attacks
CNN military analyst Cedric Leighton, a former US Air Force colonel, said both Riyadh and Tehran need to avoid an escalation of hostilities in the region
The Saudis are under pressure to get the Strait of Hormuz, through which much of their oil and other exports flow, reopened, Leighton said. “They’re economically at risk here,” he said
Leighton noted that the Saudis, as a key US ally in the Persian Gulf, carry significant sway with Trump
Iran is also facing economic challenges from the closure of the strait
But the military pressure on Tehran – after more than five months of war – has been taking a toll, he said, and the Iranians could use some relief
“If it’s true that … there was pressure from Iran, then I think the Iranians are probably buying some time,” he said
“They are certainly under some degree of pressure economically as well as militarily. But I also know that they are ready to, in essence, survive as much as they can,” Leighton said
President Donald Trump gives thumbs-up as he walks to board Marine One following his arrival aboard Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, New Jersey, on Friday.
President Donald Trump said Saturday night that the US is canceling a planned attack on Iran, citing progress in talks
Trump said the US “is locked and loaded and ready to go against the Islamic Republic of Iran,” but that he agreed to requests by Iran and other Middle Eastern countries “to hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to.”
Trump said the proposed agreement would include the immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and “an end to Iran’s nuclear threat.” He added that Israel joins him in the pause in strikes, which remains contingent on “being able to rapidly make a DEAL.”
CNN has reached out to the White House for more details
Trump’s comments come as no strikes have been reported from the US inside Iran in several days, after the US launched what the president described as a “heavy wave of strikes” targeting the country Wednesday
This post has been updated with additional information
US President Donald Trump greets Crown Prince and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman at the White House in Washington, DC on November 18, 2025.
President Donald Trump spoke with Saudi Arabia’s crown prince on Saturday, according to four people familiar with the matter and a regional source
Prince Mohammed bin Salman reinforced Saudi Arabia’s desire for de-escalation during the call and raised concerns about plans for potential strikes on Iran, multiple people familiar with the matter said
Officials from mediating nations, including Qatar and Pakistan, have been urgently working to stave off a new escalation in the conflict, fielding calls with officials from Iran and the United States, including Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff, according to three people familiar with the matter
An immediate goal has been to work out an arrangement between Iran and Oman to allow commercial traffic to resume flowing through the Strait of Hormuz
CNN previously reported that the US was planning fresh strikes on Iran as soon as this weekend, citing two officials familiar with the plans
“We will be hitting them very hard,” Trump said at a Cabinet meeting Friday. “At some point, they’re going to say, ‘We just can’t take it anymore.’”
Earlier in the week, US and Saudi fighter aircraft struck multiple sites in Iraq after drones were launched from Iranian-backed militias there toward Saudi Arabia
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi at a press conference in Baghdad, Iraq, on June 28.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that Iran would respond forcefully to any further American “aggression” in calls with regional counterparts on Saturday
Araghchi held separate calls with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan and Pakistani Field Marshal Asim Munir, according to posts on the Iranian foreign minister’s Telegram channel, warning that Iran would respond in kind to any “adventurous action” by the United States
Fidan also noted the call on his social media, writing that the two officials “discussed the latest status of the ongoing negotiation process.”
In a post reporting a call with Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Araghchi said that Iran would respond decisively and proportionally to “any aggression” from the US, Israel or other countries in the region
Last week, Araghchi wrote on social media that Iran’s defense strategy is an “eye for an eye” response against any attacks on its infrastructure
As US President Donald Trump weighs a potential escalation in strikes on Iran, the Middle East crisis is back in a “familiar but frustrating place,” said Behnam Ben Taleblu, the senior director of the Iran program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies
In an interview with CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield, Taleblu analyzed Trump’s threats to strike energy sites or infrastructure — and whether they’re likely to have their intended effect on Tehran:
Expert says Trump faces ‘lose-lose’ options in Iran war
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CNN
Expert says Trump faces ‘lose-lose’ options in Iran war
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The conflict in Gaza was thrust into greater focus this week when US President Donald Trump announced a potential breakthrough in diplomatic efforts. Key questions remain, however, and Israeli strikes in Gaza earlier today have added further uncertainty to the state of the agreement
To review, here’s a closer look at the control of territory in the Palestinian enclave:
Israeli strike leaves crater at Gaza hospital, destroys medical supplies
Israeli strikes on Gaza left a huge crater at a hospital less than 48 hours after US President Donald Trump announced Hamas and Israel had agreed to advance a ceasefire plan, local authorities said. The attack destroyed vital medical supplies, demolished two medical warehouses at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and damaged two others CNN’s Abeer Salman reports
1:22• Source:
CNN
Israeli strike leaves crater at Gaza hospital, destroys medical supplies
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Israel says it targeted Hamas weapon storage facilities in overnight strikes across Gaza, including onethat left a huge crater at a hospital in central Gaza
Video from the scene showed medical supplies strewn across a wide area, as well as damage to multiple canvas tents and metal structures
Palestinians stand by a crater, after an Israeli strike in Deir al-Balah, Gaza on Saturday.
In a statement, the Israeli military alleged Kalashnikov rifles, explosive devices and other military equipment were stored at the locations, and said a storage facility adjacent to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital — the site of the large crater — was used “as a hideout by Hamas terrorists.”
CNN is unable to verify that the structure was being used by Hamas. When asked to back up the claim, an Israeli military strike happened based on intelligence information.”
Medical debris was seen nearby following the strike.
A nurse who works at the hospital told CNN he was shocked to find the warehouse completely destroyed, as it had contained crucial dialysis supplies provided by UNICEF just three days previously
A humanitarian, affecting more than 1,000 patients
Hospitals in Gaza are already facing massive shortages in vital medical supplies as humanitarian organizations struggle to deliver re
CNN’s Farida Elsebai contributed reporting
A teenager arrested during widespread anti-regime protests in Iran was executed Saturday, according to a US-based activist organization
The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that Arvin Kheirkhahan, a 19-year-old who was arrested during a sweeping crackdown on anti-government demonstrations in January, was executed at Shahroud Prison in northern Iran. A court had previously convicted him of “waging war against God.”
HRANA previously said that Iran publicly executed two other protesters earlier this week. They were accused of “deadly violence against security forces,” among other crimes, though HRANA noted it could not verify the allegations against them
The Iranian government escalated its executions of dissidents after the US and Israel began their offensive in late February. In April, judiciary-affiliated news agency Mizan reported that Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei ordered expedited trials for prisoners accused of collaborating with the “aggressor enemy.”
Global oil and gas prices have been rising again in light of renewed fighting between the United States and Iran. CNN has been tracking the impact on consumers, as well as traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the vital waterway for transporting crude to the rest of the world
Here’s where oil prices stood entering the weekend:
And for Americans filling up their gas tanks in the coming days, the average price at the pump is well over $4:
Missiles are displayed in Tehran, Iran, on July 24.
The US State Department has broadly warned Americans in the Middle East to “consider departing, or be prepared to depart should there be escalation.”
The fresh travel warning comes as Washington weighs new strikes on Iran as soon as this weekend and as Tehran threatens further attacks on countries that host American military bases
The State Department also renewed warnings that those in the region should “exercise caution and heightened vigilance and should be prepared for flight cancellations, periodic airspace closures, and potential travel disruptions.”
US citizens planning to travel to the Middle East should seriously reconsider, the advisory said
A woman looks at the site of an overnight Israeli strike in Deir al-Balah, Gaza on Saturday.
US diplomatic officials have renewed their warnings to American citizens in the Middle East, saying they should exercise caution and vigilance amid heightened tensions in the region. Meanwhile, Kuwait said it intercepted Iranian drone attacks early Saturday
Here’s a look at the latest from around the region:
- The US is planning fresh strikes on Iran as soon as this weekend, two sources said. The precise scope of the bombing was not initially clear, and officials cautioned the strikes could still be called off.
- Iran has issued another warning to Gulf states that host American military bases, with Major Gen. Ali Abdollahi threatening that nations cooperating with the US “will burn in the fires of war.”
- Israeli strikes on Gaza left a huge crater at a hospital overnight, local authorities said, days after US President Donald Trump announced that Hamas and Israel had agreed to advance a ceasefire plan.
- Kuwait’s armed forces intercepted drone threats in its airspace early Saturday morning local time, the country’s defense ministry said.
- A tanker was hit by “an unknown projectile” near the entrance of the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman, the UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre (UKMTO) reported.
- And a merchant vessel safely transited through the Red Sea under the protection of the Italian frigate Bergamini, the EU naval force ASPIDES said today.
CNN’s Ibrahim Daham, Brad Lendon, Aida Karimi, Kevin Liptak, Zachary Cohen, Katie Bo Lillis and Tal Shalev contributed reporting
Israeli strikes on Gaza left a huge crater at a hospital less than 48 hours after US President Donald Trump announced Hamas and Israel had agreed to advance a ceasefire plan, local authorities said
Gaza’s health ministry said the attack destroyed vital medical supplies
“When medicines are bombed … illness becomes a weapon of war,” Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, the ministry’s director general, said in a statement
The strike demolished two medical warehouses at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and damaged two others, the health ministry said. The director general added a nearby displacement camp was leveled and civilian tents suffered extensive damage
The Israeli military said they targeted Hamas militants but would give further detail in a later statement
Footage from the scene shows people sifting through the large cavity, attempting to salvage medical supplies like IV fluids, breathing tubes, surgical masks and cotton balls buried amid the debris
‘We are unable to live even inside a tent?’ Displaced Palestinians jolted awake as Israel strikes Gaza hospital
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CNN
‘We are unable to live even inside a tent?’ Displaced Palestinians jolted awake as Israel strikes Gaza hospital
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“Destroying a medical warehouse while Gaza’s health system is already suffering from a 51% shortage of essential medicines … is a direct assault on one of the last remaining lifelines of healthcare,” Bursh said
In the past two days, eight civilians have been killed while a further 76 have sustained injuries, the Palestinian Ministry of Health said on Saturday. More than 1,200 Palestinians have been killed since the announcement of the ceasefire agreement in October last year
For context:The latest strikes come shortly after Trump announced Thursday evening that Hamas had agreed to “completely disarm” along with an Israeli troop withdrawal. While the move marked progress in the long-stagnant roadmap to peace initiated by Trump’s Board of Peace last year substantial issues need to be resolved first
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is yet to comment on Trump’s announcement but an Israeli official told CNN Israel would not withdraw from Gaza without Hamas disarming first
President Donald Trump waves as he walks from Air Force One at Morristown Municipal Airport in Morristown, on Friday.
Just past 10 a.m. on Wednesday, a delegation of Saudi officials arrived at the West Wing carrying a message for the White House
Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman, on an unannounced visit to Washington, conveyed word to both President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance from his brother, the kingdom’s powerful crown prince, that Saudi Arabia wants the Iran war to deescalate — and that prolonging the conflict carries major risks, according to people familiar with the conversations
A day earlier, another emissary had arrived through the same door with a different message. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, sitting with Trump in the Oval Office, voiced skepticism that diplomacy with Iran would prove fruitful the two discussed options for pressuring Iran, including renewing a full-scale war, those officials said
The back-to-back meetings this week were scheduled coincidentally. But they nonetheless underscore the crosscurrents facing Trump as he seeks an exit ramp to a conflict that has extended well past his deadline
As pressure mounts from fellow Republicans to wind the war down, it actually appears to be expanding, with new fronts opening up and virtually every country in the region now drawn in. Efforts at diplomacy are halting at best; a senior US official said resuming direct diplomacy with Iran does not appear imminent
Read more hereon Trump’s conflicting messages and path to a possible exit
A merchant vessel has safely transited through the Red Sea under the protection of the Italian frigate Bergamini, the EU naval force ASPIDES said today
ASPIDES is a defensive military operation that contributes support in safeguarding the passage of merchant and commercial vessels in the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Gulf
Some context:Shipping through critical waterways in the region has been heavily depressed since the conflict between the US and Iran began earlier this year, due to security threats risking safe passage
Transits of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait — a slim waterway connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf and by extension the Indian Ocean — have fallen by around one-fifth, since the Iran-backed Houthi rebels began to apply pressure in the narrow channel between Yemen and Djibouti
CNN’s Avery Schmitz contributed reporting to this post
Kuwait’s armed forces intercepted drone threats in its airspace early Saturday morning local time, a defense ministry spokesperson said
The attacks, which Kuwaiti authorities said were “Iranian aggression,” struck a government facility in the northern part of the country, as well as civilian vehicles, the spokesperson said in a statement. No casualties were reported, but the attacks resulted in some material damage caused by falling debris, the statement added
The General Staff of the Army earlier told residents in an update on X to follow safety instructions and that any explosions heard were the results of interceptions
Kuwaiti infrastructure and US military facilities in the country have been targets of previous Iranian attacks
This post has been updated with additional information
A Palestinian boy juggles a ball in front of a destroyed building in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on July 31, 2026. Hamas said on Friday.
The United States on Friday announced plans to strike Iran as soon as this weekend, according to two US officials. The precise scope of the strikes and potential targets were unclear, and the officials cautioned the strikes could be called off
This announcement comes after President Donald Trump signaled that US strikes on Iran are unlikely to end anytime soon, saying at a Cabinet meeting that “we’ll be hitting them very hard.”
Where things stand:
- No new strikes announced overnight: US Central Command did not announce it was launching strikes against Iran on Thursday and Friday. Earlier in the week, the US said it launched a “heavy wave of strikes” as a retaliatory response to Iran’s attempted attack on US military positions the previous day.
- Ship attack:A tanker was hit by “an unknown projectile” near the Strait of Hormuz, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations. It’s unclear who was responsible for the attack.
- Cyberattack blame:Trump downplayed reports that Iran was responsible for a recent cyberattack on critical infrastructure in Minnesota, instead taking aim at the state’s Democratic-led government.
- Attacks in Lebanon: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam accused Israel of breaching Lebanon’s sovereignty amid Israeli attacks in the south of the country. He also called the attacks a “clear violation of the ceasefire.”
- Roadmap: The US-backed Board of Peace, tasked with overseeing a long-term peace settlement in Gaza, issued a revised 15-point ceasefire roadmap. The US had an “understanding” with Israel to begin implementing a peace deal in Gaza, Trump said. He stopped short of detailing the sequence of the complicated reciprocal steps.
- What Israel has said:Earlier Friday, an Israeli official rejected key elements of the reported framework, stressing that “complete disarmament” of Hamas remained a precondition for any process. There would be no Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza “yellow line,” the official said, until demilitarization is completed.
- What Hamas has said: Meantime, senior Hamas official Ghazi Hamad told CNN that Israel must first cease fire, stop all targeted killings in Gaza, withdraw its troops to the “yellow line” and allow for a surge of humanitarian aid consistent with the October ceasefire agreement.
- UN chief’s reaction: The announced agreement is “the only good news in recent days,” UN Secretary-General António Guterres said, and he called for fighting on “all fronts” in the region to stop.
CNN’s Brad Lendon, Zachary Cohen, Katie Bo Lilis, Tal Shalev, Betsy Klein, Kevin Liptak, Billy Stockwell, Ibrahim Dahman, Michael Rios and Eyad Kourdi contributed reporting
A tanker was attacked off the coast of Oman near the entrance to the Strait of Hormuz, according to a Friday report received by a British maritime monitor
The ship was hit by “an unknown projectile,” which caused damage to its engine room, according to the report from the Royal Navy-sponsored United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO)
The tanker, which was not named, was hit about 12 miles (20 kilometers) northeast of Lima, Oman, on the southern side of the Strait of Hormuz, the UKMTO said, adding that the ship was not under command and no casualties were reported
The UKMTO did not say who was responsible for the attack
In a separate UKMTO update on Saturday, the master of a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman reported seeing a splash and explosion nearby. No casualties or damage on the vessel were reported, and the ship was not identified. It’s unclear if the two incidents were related
The secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, Mohammad Bagher Zolqadr, said Friday that Tehran would tighten its declared closure of the strait due to a United States blockade of shipping traffic from or to Iranian ports, according to Iran’s state-run Press TV
Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has been cut drastically frompre-war levels of around 130 ships per day to only a handful now
This post has been updated with additional information
Munitions are seen near a B1 Bomber at the Royal Air Force Fairford station on July 25 in Fairford, England. The US Air Force has used the station to launch defensive bombing missions against Iranian military targets.
The United States is planning fresh strikes on Iran as soon as this weekend as President Donald Trump seeks a resolution to the war, according to two US officials familiar with the plans
The precise scope of the strikes, and potential targets the US may go after, were not clear, and both officials cautioned the strikes could be called off
Trump, speaking at a Cabinet meeting earlier Friday, previewed a renewal of heavy strikes while venting anger at diplomatic efforts that have fallen short
US Central Command has prepared options and readied its forces for expanding the war, including a heavy 2-week bombardment of Iran’s missile sites
There has also been planning around options that would target energy sites, the officials said
The Trump administration has been leery of striking Iran’s energy infrastructure over concern that Tehran could retaliate against Gulf infrastructure sites and shock global energy markets already under strain from the war
Earlier this week, the Israeli Defense Minister said the country’s leadership wanted to strike Iranian energy infrastructure as a means of causing even more economic pressure on Iran. “We very much want to strike Iran’s energy targets — the US is not approving it at this time,” Israel Katz said
There is no indication Israel would take part in a new wave of US strikes on Iran
And the US military has made preparations to launch a series of strikes targeting Iranian nuclear infrastructure to include Pickaxe Mountain, though not specifically limited to that site, south of Tehran. Those preparations have picked up momentum in the last few days, the officials said
Asked about reports Trump had ordered a new round of weekend strikes, the White House said the president would not “stand by and allow this terrorist behavior to occur.”
Hamas agrees to give up arms but uncertainty remains
Hamas has for the first time agreed to a specific plan to hand over its weapons in Gaza. But a senior Hamas official told CNN the group will only disarm if Israel upholds its end of the ceasefire agreement. CNN’s Jeremy Diamond reports
2:01• Source:
CNN
Hamas agrees to give up arms but uncertainty remains
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The US-backed Board of Peace, tasked with overseeing a long-term peace settlement in Gaza, issued a revised 15-point ceasefire roadmap on Friday
The new plan has fewer points than the initial 20-point proposal released by US President Donald Trump last year, which has gone through various iterations since. The new roadmap offers fresh insight into the disarmament of Hamas, and how it could work:
- According to the roadmap, all police weapons must be transferred into the hands of the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), a Palestinian body tasked with governing Gaza, after it enters the territory.
- Personal weapons shall be subject to relevant Palestinian laws, overseen by NCAG, the plan said.
- Meanwhile, weapons owned by militias, who will not be integrated into Gaza’s new police or security services, shall be “decommissioned and stored under NCAG authority.”
- A “process” to decommission and store heavy weapons, military production sites and tunnels will begin in Gaza after NCAG’s entry into the territory and the deployment of an International Stabilization Force (ISF), among other conditions, per the plan.
- This process shall be “linked to an Israeli withdrawal, in phases, from the areas under its control in Gaza,” the roadmap said.
- No weapons shall be transferred or handed to Israel or non-Palestinian parties, and at the end of the process, only NCAG shall store and control weapons in Gaza, the plan said.
- The proposal also includes a commitment to end military parades and armed demonstrations.
However:Before any of this revised roadmap can happen, various steps must be completed. All parties must reaffirm their commitment to Trump’s plan, which – the roadmap said – is aimed at securing full Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and enabling Palestinian governance, reconstruction, security, recovery and economic development
To move to phase two of the deal, all requirements of the first phase must have been met and verified, and a timetable for the implementation of the second phase must have be agreed upon, according to the proposal. Only then can NCAG enter the Gaza Strip and “assume its responsibilities.”
