Ongoing Conflict News

Pentagon Raises Iran War Casualty Total The Pentagon has updated its official casualty database to show that 18 U.S. service members have been killed and 624 wounded since the war with Iran began on February 28. The Defense Casualty Analysis System listed 420 wounded troops as of Friday, meaning the Saturday revision added more than 200 previously undisclosed injuries. The Pentagon also divided the casualties between Operation Epic Fury and a newly created category called “Overseas Operations,”

Romania Downs Third Drone in Three Days A Romanian Air Force F-16 shot down a drone that entered Romanian airspace on July 26, the third such interception in three consecutive days. The aircraft was destroyed at 10:13 a.m. over Romanian territorial waters in the Sulina–Chilia area of the Danube Delta, near the Ukrainian border. Two F-16s operating from Fetești Air Base under NATO command were involved in the July 26 response. Romanian reporting placed the engagement about 12 kilometers northeast

Saudi Tanker Struck Near Jizan Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement has claimed attacks on two Saudi oil tankers, while Saudi authorities have confirmed that at least one vessel was struck near the port of Jizan on the southern Red Sea coast. The Saudi-flagged Encelia was hit near the port’s outer approaches, causing a fire near its bow. The crew was reported safe, the tanker was secured, and no environmental damage was initially reported. A maritime-security source said the vessel issued a dist

A declared blockade against Saudi ports is already diverting tankers and threatening the main alternative to the Strait of Hormuz. Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi movement is threatening to open a second maritime front in the U.S.–Iran war, declaring what it describes as a naval blockade against Saudi Arabia and warning commercial shipping companies to avoid Saudi ports. The threat is already affecting vessel movements. Tankers carrying Saudi crude have reversed course rather than pass through the B

Eleven consecutive nights of U.S. attacks have failed to end Iranian retaliation or restore commercial passage through the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S.–Iran war remains locked in an active escalation cycle, with American forces completing an eleventh consecutive night of strikes while Iran continues missile and drone attacks against U.S. and allied positions across the region. The conflict has now moved well beyond the opening campaign of airstrikes. It is increasingly defined by sustained militar

Zelensky Appoints New Military Chief President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi on July 21 and appointed Joint Forces Commander Mykhailo Drapatyi as his replacement, per a Kyiv Independent Report. Zelensky thanked Syrskyi for his service and credited him with contributing to the defense of Kyiv, the 2022 Kharkiv counteroffensive, and Ukraine’s operation in Russia’s Kursk region. “A significant path has been traveled. The defense of Ukraine continues,

First reported US combat use of sea drones US Central Command said American forces used unmanned surface vessels in combat for the first time during strikes on Iran on Sunday, targeting a submarine and ship maintenance facility at Bandar Abbas Naval Base. In a social media post Monday, CENTCOM said, “Three Corsair unmanned surface vessels hit the port at Bandar Abbas Naval Base, marking the first time American forces have employed sea drones in combat operations.” It added that the strikes “degr

Battlefield Picture as of July 12, 2026 The Russia-Ukraine war remains a high-intensity attritional conflict with no decisive operational breakthrough by either side. Russia continues to hold the ground initiative, especially in Donetsk, while Ukraine is expanding long-range attacks on the infrastructure supporting Russia’s war effort. The most consequential ground fighting is centered on Kostiantynivka, part of Ukraine’s fortified defensive belt in Donetsk. Russian forces are advancing from sev

Direct Combat Resumes The U.S.–Iran conflict returned to sustained direct combat on July 12 after the June ceasefire arrangement largely broke down. The immediate focus has shifted from Iran’s nuclear infrastructure and leadership to the Strait of Hormuz and whether commercial vessels can pass without Iranian authorization. The United States launched additional strikes on Iranian coastal and military targets on July 12. Reported targets included missile systems, fast-attack boats, command facili

Overnight strikes hit both sides of Crimean Bridge area Ukraine carried out overnight drone strikes on energy and military-related targets on both sides of the Crimean Bridge, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 21. In a Telegram post, Zelensky said Ukraine’s long-range capabilities were used against “the occupiers' military logistics, oil industry, and air defense.” He said the attack hit “targets on both sides of the Crimean Bridge,” including maritime oil transportation logistics in Rus

Strait Status Remains Disputed Iran’s military declared the Strait of Hormuz “closed” on Saturday, according to a message attributed to the military’s operations command and posted on Tasnim’s Telegram account at about 9:10 a.m. ET. The statement said, “The Strait of Hormuz will be closed to vessel traffic,” and described recent air strikes in Lebanon as “America’s blatant breach” of a memorandum of understanding meant to end the war. That claim was quickly contradicted by other officials. Hours

US-Iran Agreement and Hormuz Access President Donald Trump said the United States and Iran have reached a peace agreement to end recent hostilities, with the Strait of Hormuz set to reopen under the deal. In social media posts on June 14, Trump said he had authorized “the immediate removal of the United States Naval blockade” and wrote, “The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete.” According to reports, the exact timing of the strait’s reopening was described differently. Some ac

Ukraine Reports Net Territorial Gains in May Ukrainian forces recaptured more territory than they lost along the front in May, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said on June 8. He said Ukraine regained nearly 100 square kilometers more than Russia captured during the month, bringing Ukraine’s total gains since the start of 2026 to more than 600 square kilometers. Syrskyi did not specify how much territory was liberated in May. A June 1 assessment by the monitoring group DeepState had also sai

U.K. intelligence chief cites new estimate of Russian war dead Anne Keast-Butler, director of the United Kingdom’s Government Communications Headquarters, said on May 27 that nearly 500,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In remarks described as based on “new intelligence,” Keast-Butler did not provide a precise casualty figure or detail the methodology behind the estimate. The comments came during her first public sp

U.S. Reports Self-Defense Strikes Near Bandar Abbas U.S. forces carried out strikes on multiple Iranian targets in southern Iran on Monday night, with U.S. Central Command describing the action as self-defense. According to CENTCOM spokesperson Capt. Tim Hawkins, the operation was intended to protect U.S. troops from what he called threats posed by Iranian forces. In a statement, Hawkins said the targets included missile launch sites and Iranian boats that were attempting to emplace naval mines.

Covert Israeli Sites Reported in Western Iraq A New York Times report says Israel operated at least two covert outposts in Iraq’s western desert for more than a year, using one site to support operations against Iran. Iraqi officials cited by the NYT confirmed a second base in addition to one previously reported by The Wall Street Journal. According to regional security officials, Israel began preparing the main makeshift site in late 2024, selecting remote desert terrain for potential use in a

Ukrainian Intelligence Reports Gains in Stepnohirsk Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, HUR, said on May 18 that Ukrainian forces had pushed Russian troops out of key positions in Stepnohirsk, a town in Zaporizhzhia Oblast about 30 kilometers south of the regional capital. The operation was attributed to the Artan special unit, which said it acted in coordination with adjacent units to “oust the Russian occupiers” and stabilize the situation in the settlement. According to the unit’s stateme

Ukrainian strikes hit Moscow region and occupied Crimea Ukraine said it carried out a coordinated long-range attack overnight on May 16–17 targeting military-industrial and fuel infrastructure in Moscow Oblast and Russian-occupied Crimea. The Security Service of Ukraine, or SBU, said the operation was conducted jointly with the Armed Forces and included strikes on the Moscow Oil Refinery, air defense systems, and infrastructure at the Belbek military airfield in Crimea. Russian authorities and l

Reported Military Procurement Cuba has sought to acquire drones and other military equipment from Russia within the past month, according to an Axios report published May 17 citing unnamed U.S. officials. The same report said Cuban officials have discussed possible attacks on the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, targets in Key West, and U.S. military vessels. A senior U.S. official told Axios that Cuban authorities are also studying how Iran has withstood sustained U.S. military pressure durin

Drone strike hits edge of Barakah site A drone strike sparked a fire Sunday on the edge of the United Arab Emirates’ Barakah nuclear power plant, the country’s only nuclear facility, in what UAE authorities described as an “unprovoked terrorist attack.” No group immediately claimed responsibility, and officials did not assign blame. The UAE Defense Ministry said three drones crossed the country’s western border with Saudi Arabia. Two were intercepted, while the third struck near the plant. Saudi

Footage Released After Deep-Strike Claims Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on May 16 published video footage he said showed Ukrainian strikes on Russian military targets located far behind the front line. The attacks were presented as part of Kyiv’s expanding long-range strike campaign against military infrastructure, air-defense assets, logistics nodes, and other support systems used by Russian forces. Zelensky said the strikes reached targets at distances of nearly 1,000 kilometers from

Joint operation in Lake Chad Basin U.S. and Nigerian forces killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki in a Friday evening operation in the Lake Chad Basin, according to statements from U.S. Africa Command and the Nigerian presidency. President Donald Trump announced the mission on social media, describing al-Minuki as the Islamic State’s “second in command” globally. AFRICOM said al-Minuki served as ISIS’s director of global operations. Nigerian President Bola Tinubu said the strike also killed “several of his

U.S. forces seize sanctioned Iranian-flagged cargo ship U.S. Marines boarded and took custody of the Iranian-flagged cargo ship Touska after the vessel attempted to pass a U.S.-enforced naval blockade near the Strait of Hormuz, according to statements Sunday from President Donald Trump and U.S. Central Command. Trump said on social media that the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance stopped the ship after it tried to continue toward Iranian waters despite orders to

Commercial traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains under severe strain after reports that Iranian forces fired on merchant vessels and warned ships they were not authorized to transit the waterway. The incidents mark a renewed maritime escalation in the broader U.S.–Iran conflict and place fresh pressure on one of the world’s most important energy corridors. Merchant vessels report direct fire Reuters reported on April 18 that merchant ships attempting to cross the strait received