Explosions heard in Manama; Issa calls for Israeli withdrawal from 'pilot zones' | LIVE

Khamenei's coffin arrives in Mashhad ahead of burial

The coffin of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei arrived by plane in Mashhad, northeastern Iran, where the late supreme leader is to be buried later Thursday, the official IRNA news agency reported.

After six days of funeral ceremonies in Iran and Iraq, Khamenei's remains will be interred at the Imam Reza Shrine, the country's holiest Shiite site, in his hometown, where millions of mourners are expected to gather.

Explosions heard in Manama after airstrike sirens activated

Explosions were heard in Manama, Bahrain's capital, after air raid sirens were activated for the second time, hours after overnight Iranian attacks, an AFP journalist reported.

“Air raid sirens have been activated. Citizens and residents are urged to remain calm and proceed to the nearest safe location,” Bahrain's Interior Ministry said in a post on X.

Aoun tells Issa pressure must be put on Israel to uphold framework agreement

President Joseph Aoun told U.S. Ambassador Michel Issa that pressure must be put on Israel to “consolidate the ceasefire” in southern Lebanon, end its military operations and respect the provisions of the framework agreement.

Aoun also called on Israel to “cease bombing and demolition operations” in the occupied towns and villages of southern Lebanon.

Issa says no vacuum should be created during Israeli withdrawal from ‘pilot zones’

U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa said after meeting President Joseph Aoun at the Baabda Presidential Palace that Israel’s withdrawal from the “pilot zones” identified in negotiations between Beirut and Tel Aviv must not leave a “vacuum.”

Under the June 20 framework agreement, the Lebanese army is to deploy in the zones, located around Froun in Bint Jbeil and Zawtar north of the Litani River, while Israel withdraws and Hezbollah infrastructure is dismantled.

Issa said “preparations are underway” to implement the agreement and that a U.S. military delegation would arrive “in Beirut in the coming days” to coordinate the process on the ground. He said the start date for implementation would be set after coordination meetings with the U.S. military.

On the negotiations scheduled for Rome on July 14 and 15, Issa said the location was chosen for “purely technical reasons related to the travel” of the delegations. He said the meeting would be “organizational and operational in nature” and should lead to the creation of “specialized working groups,” with further sessions to follow “in Rome or other capitals.”

Issa added that Aoun’s expected visit to Washington at the end of the month “reflects President Trump’s interest in Lebanon and his desire to promote security and stability there, as well as to end the suffering of the Lebanese people.”

Qatar urges Iran, US to prioritize diplomacy after escalation

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi that Iran and the United States must commit to diplomacy following the latest escalation.

According to Reuters, Sheikh Mohammed also said Washington and Tehran should implement the signed memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war.

Iran says US strikes killed 14, wounded 78 over past 2 days

Iran's Health Ministry said 14 people were killed and 78 wounded in U.S. airstrikes over the past two days.

"While the cease-fire was in effect, the United States targeted five Iranian provinces" on Wednesday and Thursday, Health Ministry spokesperson Hossein Kermanpour said. He added that 47 of the wounded remain hospitalized.

Katz says Israeli ‘buffer zone’ in south Lebanon will be cleared of residents, Hezbollah infrastructure

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israeli forces “will continue to remain” in the area controlled by the Israeli army in Lebanon “until Hezbollah is disarmed.”

The region, which covers approximately 620 square kilometers and includes dozens of villages, “will be cleared of its inhabitants,” and all Hezbollah infrastructure, “both above and below ground,” will be demolished, Katz added.

Responding to comments by U.S. President Donald Trump, who said he believed Israel would withdraw from southern Lebanon, Katz said: “We did not ask anyone’s permission to enter Lebanon, and we do not need anyone’s permission to remain here.”

He added that Israel has established a “solid security zone” in the area, stretching from the coastline in the west to Beaufort Castle and “to the foothills of Mount Hermon in the east.”

Iranian military says targeted US interests in region

The Iranian military said it targeted U.S. interests in the region using drones, according to Iranian state media cited by Reuters.

The military claimed it targeted Patriot missile systems in Kuwait, a satellite antenna in Qatar and a U.S. military fuel depot in Bahrain.

US strikes stem from Iran's violation of commitments, Barrot says

The latest U.S. strikes are the result of Iran's violation "of its own commitments," French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said.

"It is Iran which, by attacking ships sailing in Omani waters, has violated its own commitments, as well as international law," Barrot told TF1 when asked about the legitimacy of the overnight U.S. strikes.

"Iran has violated the agreement reached with the United States" last month, he said, adding that "this type of maneuver must absolutely stop so that these crucial negotiations can continue under the best possible conditions" and calling for "calm."

Three killed by US airstrike near Ahvaz, Iranian media reports

A U.S. airstrike in western Iran killed three people and wounded several others, the state news agency IRNA reported, citing a local official.

Valiollah Hayati, deputy governor of Khuzestan province, said the attack targeted the outskirts of the city of Ahvaz, according to IRNA.

Iran suspends Tehran-Mashhad rail link after US airstrikes

The rail link between Tehran and Mashhad was suspended following U.S. airstrikes, Iranian state television reported, hours before the burial of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in the northeastern city.

Iran's state railway attributed the disruption to "a criminal attack by the American-Israeli enemy" on the line and said repair teams had been dispatched. State television added that road transportation was being arranged for stranded passengers.

Israeli strikes target multiple areas in south Lebanon overnight

Israeli forces carried out a large-scale bombing raid around 1 a.m. in the village of Haddatha in the Bint Jbeil district, according to our correspondent in southern Lebanon.

In separate attacks, an Israeli drone dropped two sonic bombs on Buyut al-Sayyed in the Sour district, while the Israeli army also struck houses in Khiam, Marjayoun, this morning.

Trump claims Iran wants deal

U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran "called a little while ago," and that they wanted "to make a deal so badly," according to Reuters.

Iran to bury Ayatollah Khamenei after 6 days of funeral ceremonies

Iran will bury Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Thursday in his hometown of Mashhad, concluding six days of funeral ceremonies that saw the late supreme leader's body transported to key Shiite sites in Iran and neighboring Iraq.

Khamenei, who was killed Feb. 28 at age 86 in an airstrike on the first day of the war launched by the United States and Israel, will be buried at the Imam Reza Shrine, according to the official IRNA news agency.

Authorities expect millions of mourners to attend the funeral, which the Iranian regime has presented as a demonstration of strength and unity amid renewed tensions with the United States.

Explosions heard in Bahrain after airstrike sirens activated

Several explosions were heard overnight in Bahrain after authorities activated airstrike sirens, according to an AFP journalist.

Kuwait says military repelled 'hostile' drone, missile attacks

Kuwait's military said early Thursday it repelled "hostile missile and drone attacks" after Iran's Revolutionary Guard vowed to retaliate against U.S. airstrikes on the Islamic Republic.

"The army's general staff specifies that the explosions heard resulted from the interception of hostile projectiles by air defense systems," the armed forces said in a statement posted on X, without specifying the origin of the attacks.

Iran says Strait of Hormuz will only reopen on 'Iranian terms'

Iran's chief negotiator in talks with the United States, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said the Strait of Hormuz would only reopen on "Iranian terms" following the latest exchange of airstrikes between the two countries.

"The United States still hasn't grasped that intimidation and disregard for its commitments will no longer go unpunished," Ghalibaf said in a statement posted on X.

"Let's be clear: if you strike, you will be struck," he added, saying the Strait of Hormuz "will only be opened on Iranian terms and not under pressure from American threats."

IRGC says it struck US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain

Iran's Revolutionary Guard said Thursday they struck U.S. bases in Kuwait and Bahrain in retaliation for U.S. airstrikes in Iran and threatened to expand their attacks to other countries in the region.

In a statement broadcast by state television IRIB, the Revolutionary Guard said it launched drone and missile attacks on "infrastructure and facilities" at the U.S. bases of Arifjan and Ali Al-Salem in Kuwait and Jufray and Sheikh Isa in Bahrain.

It also warned it would extend its retaliation to other bases in the region if the United States carried out further strikes.

US military says it carried out new strikes on 90 sites in Iran

The U.S. military struck some 90 "military targets" in Iran, including air defense systems, in its latest series of strikes, U.S. Central Command announced last night.

"The United States completed a new series of strikes against Iran on July 8 to further degrade Iran's ability to target commercial shipping and innocent civilian mariners in the Strait of Hormuz," CENTCOM said in a statement released on X.

Catch up on yesterday's developments in our Morning Brief

Our Morning Brief brings you an extensive roundup of yesterday's news so you're all caught up before today's live updates.

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Good morning, We are now launching our live coverage of news from the region for today.

We are now launching our live coverage of the news from the Middle East, where, for the second night in a row, the United States launched attacks against Iran, which retaliated by firing on Gulf states, primarily Bahrain and Kuwait.

We will also be following the situation in Lebanon, where the Israeli army continues to occupy several 100 square kilometers along the border and conduct strikes in the South.