Two US troops killed, third missing
------- after Iran strike in Jordan
July 18th, 7:54pm
(Al Mayadeen English)
Two US soldiers were killed, a third went missing, and four others
were wounded after Iran struck US military aircraft and facilities
in Jordan in retaliation for US attacks on civilian sites in
Bandar Abbas.
The US Central Command announced on Saturday that two
US soldiers were killed and a third remained missing
following a military operation carried out
in Jordan, on July 17.
CENTCOM added that four other US service members were
wounded and transferred to hospitals inside Jordan for
treatment. It did not provide further details about the
operation or clarify the circumstances surrounding
the casualties.
The announcement came one day after Iran’s Islamic Revolution
Guard Corps said it had launched a large-scale attack on US
military aircraft stationed in Jordan.
According to the IRGC, the operation was carried out in two phases
using several ballistic missiles and a large number of drones,
targeting US fighter jets and aerial refueling aircraft.
The Iranian force said several fighter jets and refueling aircraft
were destroyed, while a number of others.... sustained
extensive damage.
Retaliation for US aggression on Bandar Abbas
The IRGC said the strike was launched in response to US attacks
carried out from bases in Jordan ----- against civilian sites in
Bandar Abbas, southern Iran.
It said the US aggression targeted bridges, residential
neighbourhoods, and a water pumping station,
describing the attack as a major war crime
against Iranian civilians .....and
civilian infrastructure.
The Iranian operation therefore targeted facilities and aircraft
directly involved in Washington’s regional military campaign.
US regional command ....moved to Jordan
The IRGC also revealed that the US military had transferred its
regional command centre from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar to
Al Azraq in Jordan following Iran’s attack on the Qatari
base last year.
It said Al Azraq had since become a central hub for directing US
aggression against the Palestinian people and other countries
in the region.
The base - reportedly - hosts dozens of aerial refueling
aircraft alongside US F-35, F-15, and F-16 fighter jets.
According to the IRGC, aircraft stationed at the Jordanian base
have been used to launch strikes against the peoples of
Palestine, Iran, and Lebanon.
The Iranian force stressed that the relocation of US military
assets to Jordan had not placed them beyond Tehran’s
reach, with the latest operation demonstrating Iran’s
ability ----------- to strike Washington’s regional
military infrastructure.
Source: Al Mayadeen
_____________________________________
Israeli analyst: Iran fighting 'like a
modern superpower' against
US aggression
July 18th, 3:13pm
(PressTV)
An Israeli writer and political analyst based in the UK has described
Iran's retaliatory strikes against the United States ---- as historically
unprecedented, saying Washington is confronting "a real army" for
the first time - and acknowledging the Islamic Republic's military
precision and operational effectiveness.
In a post published on his X account on Saturday, Alon Mizrahi
noted that no military force in history had inflicted such
precise and effective strikes against US forces.
"No military in history has hit US forces with the efficiency
and precision of Iran’s armed forces," he wrote.
Mizrahi went on to say that the US had little experience
confronting a conventional military power capable of
sustained operations.
"Americans don't even know what it means to take on a
proper military, and they are being destroyed," he said.
The analyst also hailed Iran's military strategy, describing
it as combining advanced military capabilities with
ideological commitment.
"Iran fights like a modern superpower with the spirit of a
holy, native Islamic military," he said, adding that “they
are still using only a small part of their capabilities.”
Mizrahi further described the war as one of the most significant
military confrontations in modern history, saying, "We are
witnessing the grandest and most epic battle ---- since
the Red Army vanquished the Nazis in World War II.”
The remarks come amid continued exchanges of strikes
between Iran and the United States, with tensions
remaining high across the region.
Over the past few days, the US military has conducted
waves of deadly strikes on Iran ..and reinstated a
blockade of Iranian ports in flagrant violation
of a war-terminating deal.
In response, Iranian armed forces have launched heavy reprisal
attacks against strategic US targets in several US-allied
countries in the region, declaring the Strait of Hormuz
closed “until further notice” and at least until “the
end of US interference in the region.”
The US has perpetrated numerous violations against Iranian
territory since April 7th, when US President Donald Trump
announced a unilateral ceasefire........ in the latest round
of US-Israeli aggression targeting the Islamic Republic.
The violations continued - even after Washington and Tehran
signed a Pakistan-mediated memorandum of understanding
last month, whose first clause ---- clearly mandates the
cessation of aggression on all fronts.
________________________________________
Iran judiciary chief: US strategy in
Gulf ---- suffered 'strategic failure'
July 18th, 11:43am
(Al Mayadeen English)
Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei says US strategy in the Gulf
has failed, stressing efforts to isolate Iran have become
a "nightmare for the aggressors."
The developments in the Gulf region represent "the clearest
evidence of the American enemy's strategic failure," Iran's
Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said on
Saturday..... as the US aggression on Iran and
Tehran's subsequent retaliation continue.
Speaking on Saturday, Ejei said the failure of the "southern
corridor plan" had "nipped the enemy's malicious scheme
in the bud," adding ''the dream of imposing a blockade
on Iran's borders "has turned into a nightmare for
the aggressors."
He said Iran's Border Guard and the Islamic Revolution
Guard Corps (IRGC) stationed in the Strait of Hormuz
"are not merely safeguarding the country's
geographical frontiers ----- but are also
defending Iran's dignity and its legal
sovereignty - against systematic
aggression."
Ejei further asserted that Iranian forces "will turn the
enemy's repeated betrayal of its promises and its
entrenched hostility - into an historic defeat."
IRGC retaliation - ongoing
The IRGC conducted a simultaneous missile and drone
strike against a US base in Azraq, Jordan, targeting
fighter shelters and a large parking ramp,
according to the IRGC's Public
Relations Office.
In a statement, the IRGC reported -- that the operation was
carried out in the early morning hours as part of the 20th
wave of Operation Nasr 2. The strike was launched in
response to the US aggression the previous night,
the statement said.
"With a crushing and simultaneous missile and drone attack
on the fighter shelters and a large parking ramp at the US
base in Azraq, Jordan," the IRGC said, "at least two US
fighter jets & 3 US aircraft were completely destroyed
while inflicting major damage on a number of others."
Earlier on Saturday, the IRGC announced that its naval
forces carried out drone and missile strikes on US
targets --- in Kuwait and Bahrain.
In a statement, the IRGC said that its naval forces, in the
19th wave of Operation Nasr 2 ---- carried out drone and
missile strikes on "a fuel support pier for the US fleet
at Kuwait's Al Ahmadi port" & "a gathering point for
enemy combat aircraft at Sheikh Isa in Bahrain."
The statement added - that its forces destroyed "a US data
intelligence centre in Bahrain known as Batelco" and also
destroyed "a US signals and telecommunications centre
in Kuwait."
In a separate statement --- the IRGC said its ground forces
destroyed "a radar at the US Ali Al Salem base in Kuwait"
and targeted "a support centre for ground forces in
Arifjan, killing a number of personnel."
The IRGC also noted - that its fighters destroyed
"a weapons maintenance and repair hangar
and a drone hangar."
These operations were conducted as part of
---- the 18th wave of Operation Nasr 2,
the statement added.
Source: Al Mayadeen
______________________________________________
Israel plans to build over 1,000
new illegal settler units --- in
occupied West Bank -------
Palestinian agency warns
July 18th, 11:02am
(PressTV)
A Palestinian anti-settlement group - says Israel is moving forward
with plans for new illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank,
which include the development of 1,024 settler units on over
1,069 dunams (1,264.2 acres) of Palestinian territory.
The Palestinian Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission
stated on Friday that the Israeli authorities ---- are intensifying
settlement expansion through efforts intended to “entrench
de facto annexation and extend settlements” across the
occupied region.
It said Israel’s so-called Higher Planning Council, which functions
under the Civil Administration, has reviewed 9 settlement plans
since the start of July that have progressed to the approval
and deposit phases.
The development plans feature 1,024 new settler units, with
455 units already approved and 569 units submitted for
further planning evaluations.
According to the commission, the projects are part of “a systematic
policy” intended to enhance settlement blocs in the occupied West
Bank, including East al-Quds, through horizontal expansion and
---- a rise in housing density to support a larger population of
illegal settlers.
Israel is placing greater emphasis on enhancing current settlements
- instead of creating new ones - by modifying construction plans,
land-use regulations, and zoning to boost settlement density,
it stated.
Israeli authorities have sanctioned a project to enlarge the Mevo
Dotan settlement, which is situated on land that belongs to the
town of Arraba in southern Jenin, by incorporating 455 new
settler units across approximately 539 dunams
(133.19 acres).
The commission further noted that 2 more proposals have been
put forward.. to enlarge the Beit Hagai and Asael settlements
located in the southern West Bank governorate of al-Khalil,
which would introduce 569 settlement units across an
area exceeding 519 dunams (128.2 acres).
It was stated that settlement planning has evolved into “an
integrated system” aimed at transforming Palestinian
geography by enlarging settlements and connecting
them to Israeli infrastructure, while simultaneously
limiting Palestinian urban growth.
The policy is characterized as a method for reinforcing Israel’s
“de facto annexation” of occupied Palestinian territories.
According to a report released on July 6 by the Palestinian
Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission, settlers
conducted 3,488 attacks in the first half of the year.
The attacks included raids on Palestinian villages,
arson of homes, shootings, land seizures, and the
establishment of settlement outposts, leading to
the deaths of 17 Palestinians.
Approximately 750,000 settlers inhabit 141 unauthorized
settlements and 224 settlement outposts throughout
the occupied West Bank, which includes around
250,000 individuals in occupied East al-Quds.
Since October 2023, the occupied West Bank has experienced
a rise in assaults by the Israeli army and settlers. Official
Palestinian statistics indicate that these attacks have
resulted in the deaths of 1,181 Palestinians, nearly
13,000 injuries --------- and the abduction of
approximately 24,000 Palestinians.
_______________________________________
US strikes on desalination plant
disrupt water supply to 20
villages in southern Iran
July 18th, 10:58am
(PressTV)
Hormozgan Water and Wastewater Company initiates an
emergency response ---- with operation crews repairing
drinking water plants and pipes ---- after US strikes
destroyed a desalination station in southern Iran.
US strikes on a desalination plant have disrupted
drinking water supplies ---- to 20 villages in
southern Iran’s Hormozgan province,
according to the provincial
authorities.
Abdolhamid Hamzehpour, CEO of the Hormozgan Water and
Wastewater Company, told media on Saturday that the US
strikes damaged water desalination pumps in the coastal
Bunji village, in Iran’s Jask county, denouncing it as a
“terrorist attack.”
Hamzehpour said the pumping plant for extracting seawater,
in addition to an electrical power transformer station, were
“completely destroyed.”
According to Hamzehpour, the desalination plant has a production
capacity of 3,150 cubic metres a day, providing potable water to
20 villages in the region --- with a population of 10,000 people.
Hamzepour added that since the attack, the people in these
villages are facing a water shortage crisis, and emergency
measures by maintenance operators have been initiated
to manage the situation.
“The operational teams of the Hormozgan Water and Wastewater
Company are working to provide emergency water supplies to
residents while repairing the damaged facilities to restore
drinking the water service ---- as quickly as possible,”
he noted.
NYT reports: US targeting water
facility constitutes war crime
The New York Times reports, that US forces intentionally
targeting a water facility in Iran constitutes a war crime.
The US military has targeted drinking water facilities in multiple
locations in southern Iran, cutting off water to a multitude of
residents already grappling with water shortages ---- as
temperatures in the region hit around a scorching
50 degrees Celsius.
US strikes for the past seven nights, have targeted civilian
infrastructure across several Iranian provinces, including
Hormozgan, Bushehr, Sistan and Baluchestan,
and Khuzestan.
Iran’s Health Ministry said on Friday that at least 38 people
were killed and more than 400 others injured.... in the
attacks of the past week.
In response to the strikes, the Islamic Revolution Guards
Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian Army launched multiple
waves of attacks ---- against US military positions
across the region.
________________________________________
Yemen's strategic position could reshape
the course of a wider regional conflict
July 18th, 10:01am
(PressTV)
As the Iran-US confrontation threatens to spill across the
region, attention is increasingly turning to Yemen
and the strategic waterways ---- that could
determine the course of the conflict.
Hussain al-Bukhaiti, activist and political commentator, spoke of the
potential closure of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, Yemen's warnings to
Saudi Arabia and the United States, and the far-reaching military
and economic consequences that a broader regional escalation
could unleash, on PressTV.
https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2026/07/18/772495/Yemen-s-
strategic-position-could-reshape-the-course-of-a-wider-
regional-conflict