Live: Israel shells towns and razes homes in southern Lebanon

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said that the Mecca Joint Defence Agreement signed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan was open to the participation of “other friendly nations”, Turkish media reported.

In a post on the Turkish social media platform NSosyal, Erdogan said: “The agreement does not target any country and is open to the participation of all brotherly countries seeking peace, prosperity and stability in our region.”

He added that the agreement reaffirms the right to self-defence as defined under Article 51 of the UN Charter, according to TRT World.

Several Palestinians, including two officers of an ambulance, were injured in a series of attacks and raids carried out by Israeli forces and settlers across the West Bank, Wafa reported.

•    Three Palestinians were injured after being beaten by settlers in Beit Dajan, east of Nablus. 

•    In Abu Nujaym, southeast of Bethlehem, settlers opened fire, injuring a Palestinian, before attacking an ambulance that arrived to help him and spraying its crew with pepper spray.

Director of the Palestine Red Crescent Society’s ambulance service in Bethlehem, Abdul Halim Jaafreh, said that two ambulance officers were injured in the attack, rendering the vehicle inoperable.

•    In Anza, south of Jenin, Israeli forces arrested a 13-year-old boy, Mohammed Imad Sadaqa, after raiding his family home.

•    Another Palestinian was beaten and arrested during a raid on Beit Furik, east of Nablus.

•    Settlers also attacked Palestinian homes and communities in the northern Jordan Valley and near Ramallah.

•    Israeli forces set up checkpoints, closed roads and carried out raids in Bethlehem, Jenin, Qalqilya, Tubas and other areas.

A top United States general has said that the country needs “an off-ramp” from the war with Iran, fearing that the military options currently being considered by the Trump administration could backfire, according to CNN.

US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Dan Caine has privately said in recent weeks that airstrikes alone are unlikely to accomplish the administration’s goals, CNN reported, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Caine has discussed the possibility of an off-ramp with vice president JD Vance, CIA chief John Ratcliffe and the secretary of state Marco Rubio, the report said.

Saudi Arabia lit up prominent landmarks and towers with the flags of Turkey, Pakistan and the Kingdom, following the signing of the Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA). 

This agreement embodies their shared commitment to strengthening their security and achieving peace and stability in the region and the world, striving for a secure and prosperous future, the official SPA reported. 

Several Arab nations and organisations have welcomed the joint defence agreement signed by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan on Friday.

The deal, which has been under negotiation since last year, creates a significant new trilateral framework amid a deepening regional crisis following Israeli and US attacks on Iran. 

OIC: Hissein Brahim Taha, secretary-general  of the 57-member Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, said: “This Agreement constitutes a fundamental pillar for supporting security and stability in the region and across the Muslim world.”

Yemen: During a cabinet meeting, Yemen’s internationally recognised government “praised the leadership role of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in building responsible regional and international partnerships based on the principles of cooperation and mutual respect.”

Bahrain: Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs described the pact as “a strategic partnership between equal parties, each of which contributes to it with its capabilities.”

It said Bahrain considered the deal “a qualitative addition that complements and enhances the joint defence system of the GCC countries.”

Muslim World League: The secretary-general of the Muslim World League, Sheikh Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, said the agreement is based on the bonds of brotherhood and Islamic solidarity.

He said the pact was aimed at enhancing shared security and achieving peace, stability, and prosperity in the region in particular, and the international community in general, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

The Palestinian Presidency: The Palestinian Presidency said that strengthening the capabilities of the nations of the Muslim world, their integration, and their cooperation in protecting their security, sovereignty, and legitimate interests constitutes a fundamental pillar for the stability of the region and the preservation of the resources of its peoples, SPA reported.

The presidency expressed its hope that the agreement will contribute towards supporting the rights of the Palestinian people and their legitimate struggle to end the Israeli occupation and establish their fully sovereign and independent state with East Jerusalem as its capital.

Somalia: Somalia described the agreement as a historic step toward strengthening collective security and defence cooperation, according to Anadolu Agency.

Oman is facing an impending environmental catastrophe as an alleged Russian shadow fleet tanker leaks oil across hundreds of square kilometres near a nature reserve, NGOs warn.

The ship was rocked by explosions, a maritime security firm told AFP, but the cause of the blasts is unclear.

Russia has built up a ghost fleet of old ships with opaque ownership to get around Western sanctions since its 2022 Ukraine invasion, and experts have said the vessels' poor condition increases the risk of oil spills.

Satellite imagery verified by AFP showed what appeared to be an oil slick spreading from a ship that has been stranded for over a month near al-Qibliyyah island, off Oman's southern coast.

It is far from the Strait of Hormuz, which has seen regular tanker attacks in the Middle East war.
"With oil apparently continuing to leak and the vessel stranded in a difficult location, the risk of an even larger environmental disaster remains serious," Nina Noelle of Greenpeace told AFP.

She warned of a "severe and long-lasting" consequence.

Greenpeace said the oil sheen had expanded from up to 20 square kilometres on July 24 to an estimated 600 on August 4, according to satellite imagery it reviewed. (Reporting by AFP) 

Nabil Fahmy, secretary-general of the League of Arab States, has condemned an attack by Yemen’s Houthis on Najran region in Saudi Arabia, in which several civilians were wounded, according to Emirates News Agency (WAM).

Fahmy affirmed the Arab League's full solidarity with the kingdom, warning that the continued escalation threatens the security of the region, WAM reported.

Israeli attacks on Lebanon since 2 March this year, four days after the United States and Israel attacked Iran, have killed at least 4,335 people and wounded 12,273 others, according to the country’s Ministry of Public Health. 

The Israeli army continues to occupy swaths of land in southern Lebanon and has regularly been attacking villages despite ongoing diplomatic talks between Lebanon and Israel. Hezbollah is not part of the talks.

On Friday, a Lebanese official said the two countries agreed on a shortlist of countries that could send troops to verify the disarmament of Hezbollah under a US-brokered agreement, with the US due to pick countries from the list.

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained subdued on 7 August, with eight confirmed crossings, down 33% from the previous day, according to maritime traffic tracking firm Kpler.

Traffic through Bab el-Mandeb moved in the opposite direction, rising 18 percent to 26 confirmed crossings, including three dark transits.

Most vessels used Iran’s Unilateral Scheme, Kpler said, and added that the International Maritime Organisation confirmed no additional vessel attacks.

Hormuz traffic remains subdued

The Strait of Hormuz remained subdued on 7 August, with 8 confirmed crossings, down 33% day-on-day, while most vessels used the Iranian Unilateral Scheme. Bab el-Mandeb activity moved in the opposite direction, rising 18% to 26 confirmed crossings,… pic.twitter.com/9vLl2uREMU

— Kpler (@Kpler) August 7, 2026

The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has welcomed the signing of the Mecca Agreement on Joint Defense between Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan.

In a statement issued by the organisation on X, OIC Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha said: “This Agreement constitutes a fundamental pillar for supporting security and stability in the region and across the Muslim world.”

#OIC Secretary-General Welcomes the Mecca Agreement on Joint Defense between #saudiarabia, #Pakistan and #Türkiye pic.twitter.com/R2CuclSGJP

— OIC (@OIC_OCI) August 7, 2026

Qatar’s former prime minister, Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, also welcomed the agreement, calling it “an important agreement and a step that calls for optimism”.
 

United States Central Command (Centcom) said in a post on X that it has redirected 51 commercial vessels, disabled two, and boarded two others since it reinstated a naval blockade of Iran on 14 July.

A U.S. sailor stands watch in the combat information center aboard USS Mason (DDG 87) as the guided-missile destroyer sails in regional waters supporting the U.S. blockade against Iranian ports and coastal areas. As of Aug. 7, CENTCOM forces have redirected 51 commercial vessels,… pic.twitter.com/fOO8O95UYT

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) August 7, 2026

An Iranian parliamentary committee is reviewing a preliminary bill that would bar US, Israeli and other "hostile" vessels from transiting the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's semi-official Fars news agency reported, citing a lawmaker.

The draft bill would impose fines of up to 20 percent of a ship's cargo value for violations of the proposed restrictions.

The lawmaker said the legislation was still under expert review and that parliament had invited specialists to submit recommendations before the draft is finalised.

Turkey said on Friday that its new defence agreement with Pakistan and Saudi Arabia did not contradict its commitments to the Nato alliance.

"The agreement is not in contradiction with the commitments of Turkey's existing international alliances, including those at the heart of NATO," the government's anti-disinformation service said in a post on X.

In fact, it was an additional mechanism for cooperation that supported regional security, the statement added.

"Turkey's development of regional partnerships is not an alternative to its NATO membership," he said. The anti-disinformation service said it was responding to "baseless claims and manipulative posts" criticising the new agreement.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Friday that Iran's armed forces had demonstrated their readiness and strength in confronting what he called the world's most expensive military, and urged Muslim countries to unite and rely on themselves in the face of "hostile outsiders".

His post on X came hours after Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey signed a joint defence agreement in Mecca, bringing together three Muslim US partners.

It was not immediately clear whether Araghchi was referring to the defence agreement in his remarks.