Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
- Yemen’s Houthis claim Bab al-Mandeb Strait is not closed, say blockade only targets Saudi ships
- The Houthis have claimed attacks on several Saudi oil tankers in recent days since the blockade began
- EU naval mission ASPIDES raises risk level for merchant ships in Red Sea due to Houthi actions
- This comes as the US and Iran vie for control over the Strait of Hormuz, another key passageway for energy exports
- Netanyahu vows to ‘act with full force’ after fatal West Bank clashes
- US conducts strikes on Iran for 13th consecutive night; Iran says IRGC base in northern Iran was attacked
Follow below for the latest developments on the US war with Iran and news from the Middle East on Friday, July 24:
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Skip next section Houthis on Saudi maritime blockade: ‘There is no closure of Bab al-Mandeb’07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Houthis on Saudi maritime blockade: ‘There is no closure of Bab al-Mandeb’
Yemen’s Houthi rebel group has denied that it is completely closing the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
“There is no closure of Bab al-Mandeb as some are suggesting,” Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdusalam posted on X. He said the group is just engaged in a “naval blockade targeting only the Saudi side.”
The Houthis have alleged that Saudi Arabia is sieging Yemeni areas that the group controls, and in turn have begun their “naval blockade” of Saudi vessels.
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The Houthis are an Iran-backed group and designated as a terrorist organization by the US, Canada and several other countries. They control large swathes of western and northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa and the coastline along the Red Sea.
The Bab al-Mandeb Strait links the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean. It is a particularly important passageway for Saudi Arabia to export its crude oil.
Insecurity in the Strait of Hormuz has caused Saudi Arabia to shift its oil exports to the western port city of Yanbu, where the crude is then shipped via the Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
Crude prices in recent days have temporarily spiked above $100 (almost €88) for the first time since May due to the crises both in the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb.
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The Houthis have claimed attacks on Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea in recent days.
The EU naval operation ASPIDES has raised its threat level in the Bab al-Mandeb Strait for merchant ships, and said the risk of escalation remains high.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HifCSkip next section UN urges repatriation of 6,000 sailors stranded in Strait of Hormuz07/24/2026July 24, 2026
UN urges repatriation of 6,000 sailors stranded in Strait of Hormuz
The United Nations has called on countries involved in the Middle East war to help repatriate around 6,000 sailors who remain stranded on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
UN rights chief Volker Türk called on states to urgently provide consular assistance to stranded seafarers, deliver essential supplies, and “facilitate safe passage for stranded seafarers to safely evacuate and disembark.”
“Attacks against civilian vessels are unacceptable and must stop. They are protected under international humanitarian law,” Türk’s spokesperson told reporters. “Seafarers remain exposed to hostilities as deadly attacks in the strait continue — facing imminent risks of death or harm.”
The UN rights office said 17 ship crew members had been reported killed since the conflict erupted in late February.
It said at least 93 other sailors, across nine ships, had been abandoned at sea by their ship owners.
“Thee seafarers have been left on their ships to fend for themselves without food, water, fuel, medical care, electricity or means to communicate with their families,” Türk’s spokesperson said.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Hi8MSkip next section Netanyahu vows to ‘act with full force’ after fatal West Bank clashes07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Netanyahu vows to ‘act with full force’ after fatal West Bank clashes
The Israeli military killed four Palestinians near an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank on Friday, while two Israelis were also killed in the clashes.
Israeli media reports and local Palestinian officials suggested that a group of Israeli settlers, some of whom were armed, entered the Palestinian village of Tell, southwest of Nablus, on Friday morning. The settlers were met by residents of the Palestinian village who were fearful of an attack.
Footage of the incident that was confirmed by the Israeli military and shared online by the military correspondent for Israel’s Army Radio showed two armed men in civilian clothing, as well as at least one Israeli soldier, pointing their weapons at a group of Palestinians who had gathered in a field.
“Villagers came out to defend their homes and property. Clashes and physical altercations broke out between the residents and the settlers,” the head of the village council in Tell, Walid Zidan, told the AFP news agency.
“Israeli soldiers were present and together with the settlers began opening fire … it was the settlers who stormed the village, with the intention of killing, vandalizing and setting property on fire.”
The Israeli military said it has received reports that Israeli civilians were hiking in the area and had been attacked by Palestinians.
In response to the incident, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to “act with full force against the terrorists and those who orchestrate and sponsor them.”
The Israeli military subsequently set up roadblocks near Tell and Nablus and announced a widespread operation in the occupied West Bank.
“Following the terror attack earlier today in the area of Tell, IDF soldiers are preparing for extensive counterterrorism operational activity in the sector,” the military said.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HhrxSkip next section Blasts heard near Irbil airport in Iraqi Kurdistan07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Blasts heard near Irbil airport in Iraqi Kurdistan
Blasts were heard near Irbil’s airport in Iraqi Kurdistan on Friday, news agencies reported citing their journalists on the ground.
The Associated Press said its journalist heard at least seven blasts around 9:30 a.m. (0630 GMT) and observed at least four plumes of black smoke from areas near or inside a military base at the city’s airport. The base hosts US forces in northern Iraq.
An AFP journalist observed drones hovering over the city, with air defenses activated.
According to the Reuters news agency, a drone crashed near Irbil International Airport, prompting a temporary flight suspension.
Irbil is the capital of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HgUpSkip next section US attacked IRGC base in north: state media07/24/2026July 24, 2026
US attacked IRGC base in north: state media
Iran said that the US military hit a Revolutionary Guards’ (IRGC) base in the northern province of Gilan, according to the state media.
“This morning, an IRGC naval forces headquarters in Zibakenar was targeted by American enemy projectiles, which damaged some of the equipment in the complex,” said Ali Bagheri, deputy governor for the province, quoted by the official IRNA news agency.
He added, “Based on initial investigations, no reports of human casualties have been received so far, and the various aspects of this incident are being investigated by the relevant authorities.”
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https://p.dw.com/p/5HgEESkip next section Iran’s FM Abbas Araghchi warns countries assisting US attacks07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Iran’s FM Abbas Araghchi warns countries assisting US attacks
Speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Kyrgyzstan, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Tehran would hold accountable any country assisting the US in an attack on the Islamic republic.
“Any participation, cooperation or assistance in committing aggression against Iran will create international responsibility for the relevant parties,” Araghchi said, adding that Iran “reserves its right to take all necessary measures within the framework of self-defense.”
He said the source of any aggression against Iran would be considered as a legitimate target of Iran’s defense forces.
https://p.dw.com/p/5Hg3GSkip next section US strikes on southwest kill at least four people, says Iran07/24/2026July 24, 2026
US strikes on southwest kill at least four people, says Iran
The overnight US attack on the province of Khuzestan in southwestern Iran killed at least four people and injured several others, Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported.
Khuzestan deputy Governor Valiollah Hayati said that the US missile attack hit areas around provincial capital Ahvaz.
“Four of our compatriots were martyred and five others were injured,” IRNA cited Hayati as saying.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HflCSkip next section Bahrain sounds sirens 07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Bahrain sounds sirens
Bahrain activated sirens early Friday, alerting residents to take shelter from detected attacks.
The sirens were activated hours after the US said it had launched a new series of strikes on Iran, continuing its attack for the 13th consecutive night.
The Gulf states have come under frequent fire over the past week as the US and Iran exchange escalating strikes.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HfkiSkip next section Germany’s Merz condemns Houthi’s Red Sea attack07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Germany’s Merz condemns Houthi’s Red Sea attack
Saim Dušan Inayatullah Editor
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has strongly condemned attacks by Yemen’s Houthi militia on Saudi ships in the Red Sea.
He called for an immediate end to the attacks and described any form of naval blockade as “unacceptable.”
“These reckless attacks endanger freedom of navigation and threaten to further undermine regional stability,” Merz said in a statement on Thursday.
Merz expressed Berlin’s solidarity with Saudi Arabia and its other partners in the region.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HfgLSkip next section Trump says Iran will pay for damage to shipping07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Trump says Iran will pay for damage to shipping
US President Donald Trump said Iran would be held responsible for the financial cost of any damage to ships or cargo amid the dispute over the Strait of Hormuz.
He said he would use seized Iranian assets to pay for any damage to shipping.
“From this point forth, any and all damages done to Ships, Cargo, or anything related thereto, will be paid for by Iranian Money that the United States has in its possession, and controls,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“These damages may be very substantial but, nevertheless, this is the fair and equitable thing to do,” Trump added.
Trump’s statement comes after Iran-backed Houthis said they attacked two Saudi Arabian oil tankers in the Red Sea.
In response, Iran warned that Trump’s threat to use seized Iranian assets would set a dangerous precedent.
“Seizing another nation’s assets to pay for unrelated future claims is an incendiary precedent,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HfbfSkip next section US strikes Iran for 13th night in a row07/24/2026July 24, 2026
US strikes Iran for 13th night in a row
The US has said it launched strikes on Iran for the 13th consecutive night, as Iranian state media reported explosions across the country.
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said that it targeted Iran’s military command centers, drone storage facilities, communication networks, coastal surveillance sites, and maritime capabilities.
CENTCOM said the strikes were launched “to hold Iran accountable and diminish threats from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to commercial shipping” in the Strait of Hormuz.
Tensions between Iran and the US have escalated over shipping routes since a ceasefire collapsed earlier this month.
CENTCOM also said that it had redirected 12 commercial vessels and disabled one to prevent ships from entering or leaving Iranian ports or coastal areas since “resuming the naval blockade against Iran nine days ago.”
The latest US attacks come after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they targeted two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.
President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened “major military punishment” against the Houthis if their attacks on ships continue.
https://p.dw.com/p/5HfZCSkip next section Welcome to our coverage07/24/2026July 24, 2026
Welcome to our coverage
Midhat Fatimah | Karl Sexton Editor
The US has struck Iran for the 13th night in a row on Friday, after Tehran targeted US sites in Kuwait the previous night.
On Thursday, Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels claimed that they targeted two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, escalating tensions around one of the world’s key energy shipping routes.
Following the attack by Houthis, Trump threatened Iran and the Houthis with “major military punishment.”
Meanwhile, the US has signed a major nuclear deal with Saudi Arabia, alongside a separate bilateral safeguards pact.
Stay tuned as we bring you the latest on the US conflict with Iran and other developments from the conflict in the Middle East.
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