Iran updates: Blasts across southern Iran after Tehran attacks Gulf states

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We will be closing this live page soon. Here’s a quick recap of the main developments today:

• A US official tells Al Jazeera that the American military has not conducted any strikes on Iran recently, despite state media and local officials reporting explosions across southern Iran, including near the Bushehr nuclear facility.
• An unnamed US official told the media that technical talks are still ongoing and that the United States remains committed to reaching a resolution with Iran.
• US Central Command stated that American forces have assisted in the safe passage of more than 800 merchant ships and 380 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz since early May.
• According to maritime data firm Lloyd’s List, shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has dropped sharply following a resurgence of regional violence.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump agreed to maintain close coordination across multiple sectors during a recent phone call focusing on developments in the Gulf, according to the prime minister’s office.
• According to the IRNA news agency, Konarak Governor Mohammad Younes Haqqani stated that enemy fighter jets carried out a two-stage attack targeting the naval military zone in the southern Iranian city.
• The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced that Iran launched 10 ballistic missiles targeting the Azraq military base located in Jordan.
• According to Iran’s Fars news agency, the US targeted and bombed a strategically critical railway bridge in northern Iran that connects the country to China and Russia.
• French Foreign Ministry spokesman Pascal Confavreux stated that France has added its voice to international calls demanding that Israel release Dr Hussam Abu Safia, the detained director of Gaza’s Kamal Adwan Hospital.
• Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz declared that his nation stands ready to strike Iran “with even greater force” if necessary.
• The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) stated on Thursday that while violence has subsided since late June, the security situation in southern Lebanon still remains “fragile.”

Reports from the Palestinian Wafa news agency indicate that Israeli soldiers and settlers persist in entering towns, demolishing residences, and targeting locals across various areas of the occupied West Bank.

Here are some of the reported incidents:

• Al-Mughayyir: Israeli occupation forces stormed the village northeast of Ramallah, sparking confrontations that left two Palestinians wounded by live ammunition. Other residents sustained injuries and bruises after being severely beaten by soldiers during a house raid.
• Yanun: Israeli settlers demolished the Yanun primary school, which served 15 students, months after the local population was forcibly displaced.
• Deir Jarir: A group of about 150 Israeli settlers attacked the town from multiple directions under military protection. The attackers closed the town’s main gate, damaged homes and vehicles, and assaulted residents who attempted to intervene, while emergency medical crews were blocked from reaching the injured.
• Tubas: Israeli forces uprooted hundreds of trees and destroyed water pipelines in a village as part of the construction of a military road and separation wall in the area.

The US is still committed to finding a resolution with Iran, an unnamed US official told the news agency Reuters.

Technical talks with Iran are continuing, the official said.

The US and Iran have exchanged strikes this week, with the US increasing the scope and intensity of its attacks since Tuesday evening.

Democratic Senator Ed Markey criticises Donald Trump over the ongoing military conflict with Iran, warning that the administration is continuing the conflict despite congressional opposition.

“Trump is attacking Iran again and saying the ceasefire is ‘over,’ but Congress already voted on a bipartisan basis to end this reckless war,” he wrote on X.

“If Trump won’t stop bombing, Congress must cut off funding. I am leading the effort to slash Trump’s war machine. End the war now.”

His remarks followed the passage of a bipartisan War Powers Resolution by both houses of Congress last month, which ordered the president to terminate unapproved military operations unless specifically approved by lawmakers.

Trump is attacking Iran again and saying the ceasefire is “over,” but Congress already voted on a bipartisan basis to end this reckless war. If Trump wont stop bombing, Congress must cut off funding. I am leading the effort to slash Trump’s war machine. End the war now. pic.twitter.com/ZFW0pzB6Ap

— Ed Markey (@SenMarkey) July 9, 2026

Pakistan has urged “all parties” in the escalating United States-Iran conflict to exercise restraint after a fragile ceasefire that had held for nearly three weeks collapsed into a new wave of strikes and counterstrikes.

“A renewed conflict is in no one’s interest,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday.

It urged both sides to honour commitments under the Islamabad memorandum of understanding (MoU), brokered by Pakistan in April, describing it as “an enduring foundation for understanding, mutual respect and shared prosperity for the region and beyond”.

Read more here.

The US military refutes claims by Iranian state media regarding shipping routes in the Strait of Hormuz, affirming that Iran does not control the strategic waterway.

In a post on X, CENTCOM said that “Iranian state media claims that transit through the Strait of Hormuz is only permitted through routes designated by Iran” is a “CLAIM” and that the “TRUTH” is “Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz”.

The command further stated that “since early May, US forces have helped facilitate the successful transit of more than 800 commercial vessels and 380 million barrels of crude oil through the vital international trade corridor”.

🚫 CLAIM: Iranian state media claims that transit through the Strait of Hormuz is only permitted through routes designated by Iran.

✅ TRUTH: Iran does not control the Strait of Hormuz. Since early May, U.S. forces have helped facilitate the successful transit of more than 800… pic.twitter.com/cpnTDBoFEG

— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) July 9, 2026

While a US defence official has told Al Jazeera the US is not behind the most recent strikes in Iran, it’s “definitely possible” that Israel could be, former US Marine Corps officer Dan Grazier tells Al Jazeera.

“It’s certainly possible that Israel could be behind whatever military actions are going on right now,” he said. “I guess we’re going to have to wait for confirmation from them.

“I have to imagine that the United States, Donald Trump in particular, would take responsibility if it was the United States. But so far, Israel and the United States have been working kind of hand-in-hand throughout the whole course of this conflict, going all the way back to the end of February. It’s definitely possible that the Israelis could be responsible for what’s happening today.”

Speaking about the strikes against Iran this week, Grazier told Al Jazeera they appeared aimed at limiting Iran’s ability to disrupt shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

“They seem to be attacking targets that could be used to defend against any further air strikes, so attacking air defence assets. But they’re also going after the small fast boats and missile-launching sites that have been used to harass shipping traffic.”

Explosions were reportedly heard in the Konarak port city, which is home to strategic Iranian naval and military assets.

This comes after the latest spate of attacks, the US air strikes that targeted several locations in five Iranian provinces and caused dozens of deaths and injuries, including civilians and military individuals, according to the Health Ministry.

The attacks earlier also targeted the Bushehr nuclear power plant.

The government portrays this as another dangerous escalation by Washington, and the Foreign Ministry considers it a violation of international law and of Iran’s sovereignty.

The timing is particularly significant, because this comes on the day that a burial ceremony for the slain supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been taking place in the city of Mashad.

So, the political establishment here wants to frame this – the air strikes by US forces and the burial of the supreme leader who was killed by an American air strike back in February – to highlight the narrative that the critical establishment will continue with its response, and will continue with resistance.

As reported earlier, Al Jazeera reached out to a US defence official, and that official confirmed to us that the US is not, at this hour, or in the last few hours, conducting any military strikes.

This comes as there have been reports of explosions in Iran, and as we have been reporting here on Al Jazeera, on Wednesday evening as well as Tuesday evening, the US military did conduct strikes on various sites within Iran.

What we know is that on Tuesday, the US military broadened its campaign in both scale as well as intensity. We know that there was an effort to degrade Iran’s ability to target ships in the Strait of Hormuz. So, as a result, the US military has been targeting antiship missiles, coastal radars, and Iran’s air defence systems.

But again, at this hour, a US defence official is telling Al Jazeera that the US military has not been conducting strikes in Iran in the last few hours, even as there have been reports of explosions. The US military did not give an explanation for who may be behind these explosions, only saying that the US is not involved.

Renewed strikes between Iran and the United States have disrupted traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway carrying roughly 20 percent of the world’s oil and 30 percent of its seaborne fertiliser trade.

Maritime intelligence firm Kpler reports ship crossings fell from 36 on Tuesday to 23 on Wednesday, with nearly half now using Iran’s northern route past Larak Island rather than the Oman-hugging southern passage.

Al Jazeera’s Lina Abu Akleh reports:

Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has plummeted following renewed violence in the region, according to a UK-based maritime data firm.

In a post on X, Lloyd’s List Intelligence said, “Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply following the latest escalation between the
US and Iran.”

It said that transit by reported traceable vessels through the US-co-ordinated Omani path was “effectively grinding to a halt” in response to the latest violent confrontation.

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen sharply following the latest escalation between the US and Iran, with traceable vessel transits through the US-coordinated Omani lane effectively grinding to a halt pic.twitter.com/Z1lSaaAilx

— Lloyd's List (@LloydsList) July 9, 2026

The Israeli prime minister and Trump have agreed to continue coordination between their countries “in various sectors”, according to Netanyahu’s office.

In an X post on their phone call, Trump “updated the prime minister on the American moves in the Gulf”.

It added that Netanyahu “raised the severity of the statements by Erdogan and his people against the existence of the State of Israel” and stressed “the need to maintain security zones along Israel’s borders”.

Iran’s FM Araghchi has discussed the latest security situation in the region with his Saudi counterpart, Faisal bin Salman, according to Iran’s foreign ministry.

Their phone call happened as the US again attacks Iran.