Live: Araghchi says Iran-Oman Hormuz talks 'may reach outcome soon'

The Israeli military has killed two people and injured nine in an attack on Deir ez-Zahrani, a village in southern Lebanon, according to the Lebanese health ministry.

Earlier, Israeli warplanes killed seven people in a strike on a house on the outskirts of Ansar village in southern Lebanon, local media reported.

The Israeli military confirmed it launched new attacks in southern Lebanon earlier today. 

Israeli forces fire tear gas canisters towards Palestinian homes in the village of Al-Mughayir, northeast of Ramallah, after locals tried to fend off an attack by Israeli settlers, according to Quds News Network.

Israeli occupation forces fire teargas towards Palestinian homes after locals in the village of Al-Mughayir, northeast of Ramallah, after locals tried to fend off an attack by Israeli settler militias on the village. pic.twitter.com/3lEPcbBwu8

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) August 15, 2026

During an incursion into the town of Beita, south of Nablus, in the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces occupied several Palestinian homes.

More than 900 physical obstacles, including Israeli checkpoints, gates, roadblocks and other restrictions, are delaying and limiting aid to the West Bank, the UN has said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said aid and municipal workers have been struggling to secure access to three Palestinian families in the village of Qusra in the Nablus governorate. 

These families have been trapped there since Tuesday, following the establishment of a settler outpost next to their homes and the tightening of access restrictions in the area.

OCHA said attempts to deliver food, water, milk formula, medicines and hygiene items to the besieged residents have been unsuccessful so far.

Partners warn that efforts to protect Palestinians have been ineffective, with settlers reportedly reinstalling a tent that Israeli forces had dismantled yesterday. 

Good morning Middle East Eye readers,

President Donald Trump said he would "soon" declare the Strait of Hormuz part of US territory after defeating Iran.

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi retorted that Tehran would not be intimidated by threats or a show of force by Washington.

Trump’s remarks came as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said no decision has yet been made to resume negotiations with the United States.

Araghchi added that mediator Qatar and Pakistan were in contact with Iran and exchanging messages, but that this did not amount to negotiations.

Here are the latest developments from across the region: 
•    Israeli air strikes on southern Lebanon early Saturday morning killed at least seven people. Advancing Israeli forces also demolished homes in Bint Jbeil.

•    A bulk carrier has been struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz,  the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.

•    Yemen’s government says at least four civilians were killed when Houthis fired six ballistic missiles at the Red Sea port of al-Mokha on Friday.

•    UAE's Abu Dhabi National Oil Company said that one of its vessels came under attack while transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Friday.

•    Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree has said the rebels “targeted concentrations and weapons belonging to the Saudi enemy”.

•    Three Palestinians were injured in firing by the Israeli army and settlers in the occupied West Bank on Friday evening, Wafa reported.

•    Maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz increased on 13 August, with 13 confirmed vessel crossings, up 44 percent from nine crossings recorded the previous day, according to maritime tracking firm Kpler.
    

A bulk carrier has been struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz,  the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.

UKMTO said it received a verified report that the projectile hit the vessel’s hull.

"The crew is reported safe, no damage assessment has been reported, and environmental impact is unknown at present," the UKMTO wrote on X, advising vessels to transit the area with caution and report any suspicious activity.

UKMTO WARNING 113-26

Click here to view the full product⤵️https://t.co/f4Pt3qj8lL#MaritimeSecurity #MarSec pic.twitter.com/wCoOZYK4DT

— UKMTO Operations Centre (@UK_MTO) August 15, 2026

Seven people were killed following an Israeli air strike on the town of Ansar in southern Lebanon early Saturday morning, according to the country’s civil defence.

Israeli jets struck the outskirts of Ansar in the Nabatieh district, as well as the vicinity of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, Quds News Network reported earlier.

At dawn, Israeli troops blew up a number of homes in Bint Jbeil and targeted residential areas along the Kounine–Saff al-Hawa road with heavy machine gun fire, according to Al Jazeera.

Israeli warplanes launched an air strike on the al-Masha’ neighbourhood in the town of al-Mansouri in Tyre district.

Quds News Network said Israeli forces were attempting to advance and occupy areas of Ali Al-Taher hills.

Breaking | Israeli occupation aircraft launch an airstrike on the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa in southern Lebanon. pic.twitter.com/vxdGp747ET

— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) August 15, 2026

Authorities in eastern Libya under military commander Khalifa Haftar helped secure the release of an American missionary held hostage held by an Islamic State affiliate in West Africa's Sahel region, escorting him to freedom through Libya, Reuters reported, citing five sources.

Four of the sources said that a deal was brokered, with one saying saying a ransom was paid. 

However, a senior source in Haftar's forces said they had carried out a military operation in Mali to free the hostage, Kevin Rideout. 

Reuters said the State Department declined to comment while the White House did not respond to a request for comment about Haftar's involvement. 
In a social media post, Trump said the US looks forward to welcoming Rideout home.
 

The ongoing siege of a several Palestinian families in the West Bank “is not an isolated incident”, but “part of an accelerating pattern of state-backed settler terror and forced displacement across the occupied West Bank,” an Amnesty International official said.

In a post on X, Erika Guevara Rosas, Amnesty International’s senior director for research, advocacy, policy and campaigns, said the “world must act now to protect Palestinians, end impunity, and hold Israel accountable”.

“Three Palestinian families in Qusra have been under siege for days. Settlers have attacked their homes, blocked access to food and water, and even assaulted ambulances trying to reach them. Instead of protecting the families, Israeli forces allowed the settlers to remain,” she said.

Three Palestinian families in Qusra have been under siege for days. Settlers have attacked their homes, blocked access to food and water, and even assaulted ambulances trying to reach them. Instead of protecting the families, Israeli forces allowed the settlers to remain. This is…

— Erika Guevara Rosas (@ErikaGuevaraR) August 14, 2026

At least four civilians were killed when Houthis fired six ballistic missiles at the Red Sea port of al-Mokha on Friday, Yemen's internationally recognised government said.

The Yemeni armed forces aligned with the government said in a statement that the attack on the port targeted a civilian facility and economic and maritime installations, killing one port security guard, Reuters reported.

Two sailors were also missing and eight civilians were wounded, the armed forces said.

A South Florida site backed out of hosting a rally with Democratic US Representative Rashida Tlaib, a vocal critic of Israel's government, after complaints by a Democratic state lawmaker in the party's latest flashpoint over its stance on Israel.

Tlaib, the first Palestinian American member of Congress, was scheduled to appear on Friday at a rally for three candidates in Florida's upcoming Democratic Party primary.

However, The Venue Fort Lauderdale, which was scheduled to host the event, suddenly cancelled it after State Representative Michael Gottlieb, chairman of the Florida Legislative Jewish Caucus, posted a statement on Thursday calling the planned rally an "anti-Jew" gathering.

Tlaib has condemned antisemitism and says criticism of Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories and its attacks in Gaza and Lebanon is not antisemitic.

The Venue in a statement cited "increased security concerns" for its decision and said it is Jewish-owned and "our values and commitment to the Jewish community are deeply important to us." (Reporting by Reuters)

Hamas is expected to hold internal elections in the Gaza Strip next week to choose the head of its political bureau for the territory, Arab48 reported.

Ali Al-Amoudi is the most likely candidate to succeed Khalil Al-Hayya, who was elected head of Hamas’s political bureau in July after competing against Khaled Meshaal, Arab48 reported, citing Al-Araby Al-Jadeed newspaper.

Al-Amoudi was among the Hamas leaders closest to former political bureau chief Yahya Sinwar, who was assassinated in Rafah in October 2024.

Arab48 said Al-Amoudi played a supporting role in reaching the October 2025 ceasefire agreement.

Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree has said the rebels “targeted concentrations and weapons belonging to the Saudi enemy”.

In a statement carried by Press TV, Saree said the “servicemen targeted warships belonging to its (Riyadh’s) tools and mercenaries in the al-Mokha area, using a large number of ballistic missiles”.

“The strike was precise, and the operation resulted in the destruction of the boats and weapons, and the death and injury of dozens among the Saudi enemy's concentrations,” he said, according to the statement.

Hezbollah’s secretary general, Sheikh Naim Qassem, said Israel’s 33-day war against Lebanon in 2006 has proved that “the occupying regime only understands the language of force”, Press TV reported.

In a speech on the anniversary of Hezbollah’s “victory” against Israel in the 2006 war, Qassem said the 2006 war began after the capture of two Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah with the “aim of securing the release of Lebanese abductees from Israeli jails”.

He said the abduction of Israeli soldiers took place after all communications and diplomatic efforts failed to secure the release of the Lebanese captives, according to Press TV.

“This action was necessary to fulfil the promise that we would not abandon our prisoners in jails,” he said. 

Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry has strongly condemned an attack on two tankers belonging to the UAE’s oil giant ADNOC while transiting the Strait of Hormuz.

In a statement, the ministry said that “the recurrence of these attacks constitutes a dangerous escalation and a direct threat to the security and safety of maritime navigation and global energy supplies.”

#Statement | The Foreign Ministry expresses the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s strongest condemnation and denunciation of the targeting of two tankers belonging to the UAE’s ADNOC while transiting the Strait of Hormuz, in yet another unacceptable recurrence of Iranian attacks… pic.twitter.com/gLwsNRVKBi

— Foreign Ministry 🇸🇦 (@KSAmofaEN) August 14, 2026