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US strikes Iran again after Iranian attack kills two military personnel
Central Command announced that the United States has launched new attacks against Iran after earlier announcing that two U.S. soldiers were killed in Jordan, and one was missing, following an Iranian attack. Iran's supreme ruler said that Washington would be held accountable for "intensifying the conflict" before the Saturday strikes. In a press release, Central Command said that President Donald Trump had ordered the airstrikes to begin at 6 pm ET (2200 GMT). The statement said that the strikes were intended to "further degrade Iran's capability to?threaten? commercial shipping in Strait of Hormuz, and to swiftly punish Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces who attacked American servicemen in Jordan yesterday night." It did not provide any further details. Iran's Mehr News Agency reported that the U.S. launched an attack near Sirik, in southern Iran. It added that no injuries or infrastructure damage had been reported. Since an interim ceasefire agreement signed a month earlier fell apart last weekend, the U.S. has intensified its attacks on Iran. This raises the possibility of all-out warfare. Central Command confirmed that the two deaths took place on Friday, and that another U.S. soldier was still missing. This announcement brings the total number of U.S. military deaths since the beginning of the war to 16. More than 420 U.S. soldiers have also been injured. Pete Hegseth, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, posted on X that "Godspeed to heroes." "Their sacrifice only strengthens our resolve." Iran seemed to be targeting Saudi Arabia, as well as other U.S. Gulf Allies and Jordan after U.S. strikes on Iranian bridges. power facilities? and other infrastructure. Ayatollah Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran and the Iranian state media, issued a statement in which he said that the repeated breaches by the United States of the interim agreement had demonstrated Trump's signature as "utterly useless and devoid credibility." The statement read: "Now that the American enemy has decided to escalate the conflict, incurring further costs and humiliation and thereby incurring more heavy costs, it should be aware of the unforgettable lessons the noble nation Iran and the Resistance Front will teach it." The White House didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. Khamenei’s whereabouts are still a mystery. The conflict began at the end of Feburary when Israel and the U.S. launched attacks on Iran to disable their missile programme and regional proxies. It has caused a'major disruption of energy supplies', global inflation fears and a fight for control of the Strait of Hormuz. IRANIAN STRIKES REPORTED IN KUWAIT, BAHRAIN, JORDAN, SAUDI ARABIA Kuwait was attacked on Saturday. The armed forces claimed to have intercepted Iranian drones and ballistic missiles. They also said that firefighters and workers in the oil sector had been injured as a result of the attacks. Iran's IRGC claimed it had destroyed a radar at Ali Al Salem Air Base and struck a U.S. Military Support Centre at Kuwait's Camp Arifjan. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said that one of its oil installations had been damaged by "repeated Iranian strikes", which caused significant damage, and also some injuries. Iranian media reported that the IRGC also targeted a site near Bahrain, where U.S. fighter aircraft gathered at Sheikh Isa Air Base, and a data centre for intelligence. At least two?U.S. According to Iranian state television, a missile attack and drone attack on the U.S. Al Azraq base, Jordan early Saturday morning destroyed three fighter aircraft as well as other aircraft. The reports could not be independently verified. Saudi Arabia's Early Warning System issued alerts on Saturday morning urging residents in Al-Kharj to seek shelter. Al-Kharj is east of Riyadh and hosts a U.S. military base, while Yanbu on the Red Sea has an important oil export terminal. Two people who were briefed in the matter stated that an Iranian missile strike, the first to hit Saudi Arabia in more than three month, was the cause of the alerts. Saudi state media didn't say what prompted the alerts, and the government media office didn't respond to a comment request. The IRGC did not mention any attacks on Saudi Arabia. BATTLE FOR CONTROL THE STRAIT U.S. Central Command had earlier said that it had struck Iranian surveillance sites, "military logistic infrastructure, underground weapon storage, and maritime capabilities." U.S. Airstrikes on Saturday morning killed three people, injured eight more, and damaged two bridges and road tunnels in southern Hormozgan Province, which borders the Strait of Hormuz. According to the semi-official Fars News Agency, which cited provincial authorities, the U.S. conducted further airstrikes on the same province Saturday afternoon. Iran's Health Ministry announced on Saturday that more than 500 people were injured and 50 killed in U.S. airstrikes on the country during the last three weeks. Esmaeil?Baghaei, a spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign?Ministry, accused the United States of trying to control the Strait of Hormuz. This strait?usually controls around one-fifth of world oil supply. Both sides have targeted shipping traffic. The U.S. says it enforces a naval blocade, while Iran claims it targets vessels that violate its rules for navigating the Strait. According to a statement released by Saudi state TV, the European Union and Gulf States called on Iran on Saturday to stop all attacks on maritime navigation immediately and without condition and to keep it open to traffic. Reporting by Bureaus; Writing by Gareth Jones Aidan Lewis Michael Martina; Editing Alison Williams Ros Russell Rod Nickel
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CFM wins approval for jet engine durability boost
CFM International, a jet engine manufacturer, announced that it had received approval from the U.S. as well as?Europe for an upgrade to improve 'durability of engines utilised on Boeing 737 -MAX -jets. The "durability kit" will be available for LEAP-1B engine models that are powered by Airbus A320neo jets, which use the LEAP-1A model. CFM executives said in a press briefing before the Farnborough Airshow that it would double "time on wings" or gaps between critical repairs, especially for hot and harsh environments such as?the Middle East or India. In recent years, long waiting times for repair have been a major concern and hampered a part of the fleets. However, this has gradually eased. The problem stems from the significant fuel savings achieved in the latest engine generation, but at the cost of high wear and tear. This has led to longer waiting times for repair and forced some airlines to ground their aircraft. CFM announced that it has?now?reach a "near-zero" number of LEAP powered planes that are grounded due to delays in maintenance. CFM and Pratt & Whitney compete to power A320neo aircraft. Both have reported steady improvements in maintenance delays, as well as a reduction of'metal contamination' issues. CFM stated that its new update will be available on new engines and can be added to the maintenance line. (Reporting and editing by Aidan Lewis; Tim Hepher)
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Telecom Italia's board approves Poste takeover bid
The Telecom 'Italia (TIM) Board unanimously approved the Poste 'Italiane voluntary public tender 'and exchange 'offer 'for all of its shares on Saturday. Poste was TIM's biggest shareholder with a 20% stake last year. In March, it launched a bid for the shares that it did not already hold. The company said in a press release that "the board unanimously deemed the financial consideration offered fair and positively evaluated the rationale, business prospects and consistency of the operation with the path taken by TIM." Poste, whose 12600 post offices distribute retirement benefits, bets that its bid for TIM of over EUR13 billion ($14.9billion) will accelerate its growth into digital, cloud, and telecom services. Poste, which is owned to two-thirds by the Italian government, began its digital transformation early in the 2000s when it moved into electronic payments. In the last decade, Poste has enrolled roughly 30 million users (roughly 70%) in Italy's digital identification system. This allows access to online public services. Poste claims that the tie-up creates a?larger state-backed group?that can build?distributed?computing?infrastructure across the country?
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The top US prosecutor won't dispute DOJ's decision to drop Indian tycoon Gautam Adani criminal case
The top federal prosecutor of Brooklyn said he did not have any basis to dispute the 'U.S. The Department of Justice has decided to drop its case against Indian billionaire Gautam?Adani. However, he did not say whether he was in agreement with the decision. U.S. attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. wrote a letter to the judge overseeing the case on Friday, saying he "was not the decisionmaker" in the dropping of the 'case. He also said he had no reason to believe that the reasons given by Trent McCotter, the top Justice Department official who was his supervisor, were "not the real grounds" for dismissal. Nocella was asked by U.S. district judge Nicholas Garaufis to clarify whether he agreed or disagreed with McCotter’s reasons for dropping Adani’s case, and if there were any other grounds for this decision. Nocella's Office did not?respond immediately?to an?invitation for comment. (Reporting and editing by Sanjeev Mikleni and Cynthia Osterman in New York)
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Mexico's economic boost was not achieved by the World Cup
Mexico's economy is sluggish due to weak investment, uncertainty about the USMCA review and a lack of confidence in the World Cup. Mexico hosted 13 of the 104 matches in this tournament. It is expected to end on Sunday, after more than a months worth of matches played across Canada, United States and Mexico. It fell short of the ambitious tourism targets set by officials to boost gross domestic product (GDP), a figure that contracted in the first three months. Humberto Calzada is the chief economist at Rankia. Calzada said the tournament is only a temporary stimulus to an economy that the government expects will grow between 1,8% and 2,8% this year compared with analysts' predictions of 1.1%. The impact of the World Cup was localised. Banorte has lowered its estimate for the World Cup's contribution to GDP from up to 0.62%. Banamex estimated the total economic impact as $2 billion, which is about 0.1% GDP and less that half of the $5.6 Billion Mexico received from remittances alone in May. Deloitte estimated that the competition would create 100,000 temporary jobs. This is 10% less than their previous estimate. BBVA's household consumption indicator dropped 0.2% in June, despite a 16.5% increase in entertainment. Spending on hotels was down 10.5%, and restaurant spending down 4.9%. Benefits were not evenly distributed across Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey, the three?host cities. Mexican Restaurant Association reported that half of its establishments had a worse performance than usual due to the low hotel occupancy in Mexico City and protests. The data on air travel was also mixed. In June, passenger traffic increased slightly in Guadalajara, Monterrey and Mexico City but declined at the main airport. Analysts claim that the USMCA will provide greater trade certainty for Mexico. The IMF has recently reduced Mexico's growth projection to 1.2%, from 1.6%, due to companies holding back investments ahead of the review of the trade agreement and the economy's contraction by 0.6% during the first quarter. Reporting by Noe Turres Editing By Christian Radnedge
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FAA restores Boeing's authority to certify 787, 737 MAX planes
Federal Aviation Administration announced on Friday that it would allow Boeing to begin issuing airworthiness certifications for all 737 MAX airplanes and 787 aircraft next week. This marks a major milestone for Boeing as it ramps production up. The FAA stated that the "decision was made after months of data analysis and safety reviews demonstrating consistent quality production and reflects FAA's faith in Boeing's capability to issue airworthiness certifications under FAA supervision." First reported by?. After a second MAX crash that killed two people in?Ethiopia in 2019, the FAA revoked Boeing’s authority to approve MAX aircraft, and Boeing 787 planes due to quality production issues in 2022. The FAA has allowed Boeing to continue issuing airworthiness certifications for the 737?MAX aircraft and 787 planes alternately every other week. The FAA said that it has observed "comparable findings" in production quality when Boeing issued airworthiness certificates compared to when the FAA did. It added that they will continue audits, inspections and monitoring of Boeing’s production system. Boeing will continue to "work under the FAA's oversight in building high-quality, safe commercial aircraft that comply with airworthiness requirements" and "doing better", according to FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford. He added that the goal was "not to relax our regulatory compliance requirements for Boeing, but to be more cooperative in the decision-making processes." Boeing is aiming to 'increase 737 MAX Production. Last year, the FAA raised Boeing's production cap from 38 aircraft per month to 42. This was a result of a panel blowout mid-air aboard a new Alaska Airlines MAX 9 MAX 9 in January 2024. Bedford stated in May that the agency supported Boeing's decision to increase production to 47 planes per month, and they expected the company to continue to push for further increases. Bedford said he also expects that the 737 MAX 7 will be certified by the summer, and the MAX 10?will be approved by the end of the year. The MAX 7 is the shortened version of two existing types, the MAX 8 & 9, that have accumulated thousands of flight-hours. Also, the widebody 777X aircraft from the U.S. manufacturer has been delayed in certification.
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Satellite images and experts confirm that a sanctioned tanker has leaked oil near Oman.
According to experts and satellite images, a vessel sanctioned for?moving Russian oil is likely to be leaking oil off the coast Oman in a marine protected area. According to data from ship tracking, the Caroline Bezengi vessel took "Russian oil" on board before departing for its latest voyage in Novorossiysk. The last time it sent a signal to the public AIS tracking system was on June 11, off the coasts of Yemen. Rentoor Shipmanagement of Shanghai, the owner listed in shipping databases, was not available for comment. The Oman Maritime Security Centre - and Oman's Environment Authority - did not respond to requests for comments. Images from the?Copernicus Sentinel-1 & Sentinel-2 satellites on July 2-13 showed a silvery-grey slick covering waters in a bay southwest of al-Qibliyyah Island. Three independent experts - John Amos, Leon Moreland, and Louis Goddard from Data Desk – said that satellite imagery seemed to show an oil leak. A video was reviewed that showed Caroline Bezengi, off the coasts of al-Qibliyyah Island. The date of the video could not be independently confirmed. Russia's so-called "shadow fleet" is made up of aging and often poorly maintained oil tankers that are used to circumvent Western sanctions against Russian oil exports. The cause of the leak is not known. It could be a malfunction, damage from an attack by Ukraine on Russian tankers or the conflict between the U.S. Two separate maritime security sources reported that the tanker first reported problems on June 8, off the coast south of Yemeni port Mukalla. One confirmed the spill. The cause of the vessel’s problems is unclear, they said. The European Union (EU) and Britain (UK) have sanctioned the vessel, claiming that it was involved in transporting fuels from Russia.
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Energy Ministry says Azerbaijan produced 13.3 million tonnes of oil and condensate from January to June.
The energy ministry announced on Friday that Azerbaijan’s oil and condensate production fell from 13.7 million metric tons in the same period last year to 13.3 millions metric tons in this time frame. Azerbaijan’s gas production from January to June increased to 25.4 billion cubic meters from 25.2 billion cube metres in the same period last year, while oil exports fell to 10.2 millions tons from 11.6million tons, according to the report. BP, a British company, reduced its Azerbaijan oil?production to?7.9 millions tons from 8.0million tons a year ago. Gas exports into Europe dropped to?5.9 billion cubic meters from 6.1 billion cubic metres. The ministry reported that overall gas exports increased to 12.7 billion cubic meters (bcm) from 12.1 billion cubic metres. Gas exports to Turkey remained unchanged at 4.9 billion cubic meters, while those to Georgia increased to 1.2 billion cubic metres from 1.1 billion cubic metres. The TANAP pipeline increased gas deliveries to Turkey to 3.0 bcm, up from 2.9 bcm. The ministry reported that Azerbaijan exported 0.7 billion cubic meters of gas to Syria.
US strikes Iran again after Iranian attack kills two military personnel
Central Command announced the United States had launched new attacks against Iran. This was after it previously reported that two U.S. soldiers were killed and one missing in Jordan following an Iranian attack.
Iran's supreme Leader said that Washington would pay for "striking up the conflict" before the Saturday strikes.
Central Command announced in a press release that airstrikes had begun at 6 pm. ET (2200 GMT), at President ?Donald Trump's direction.
The statement did not provide any further information. "The strikes are intended to further undermine Iran's capability to threaten commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, and to swiftly punish Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) forces that launched attacks on American servicemen in Jordan last evening," it stated.
Iran's Mehr News Agency reported that the U.S. launched an attack near Sirik, in southern Iran. It added that no injuries or infrastructure damage had been reported.
Since an interim ceasefire agreement signed a month earlier fell apart last weekend, the U.S. has intensified its attacks on Iran. This raises the possibility of all-out warfare.
Central Command confirmed that the two deaths took place on Friday, and that one U.S. serviceman was still missing. This announcement brings the total number of U.S. military deaths since the beginning of the war to 16. More than 420 U.S. soldiers have also been injured.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on X, "Their sacrifice only strengthens our resolve."
Iran seemed to be targeting Saudi Arabia and other?U.S. Gulf allies, including Jordan and Jordan, were targeted by the U.S. on Saturday following attacks against Iranian infrastructure such as bridges and power plants.
Ayatollah Khamenei, the supreme leader of Iran, said in a statement that was carried on social media by his official accounts and Iranian state-run media that U.S. action has shown Trump's signature to be "utterly worthless" and "devoid of credibility."
The statement warned that the United States would face "even greater costs and humiliation". A request for comment was not immediately responded to by the White House. Khamenei’s whereabouts are still a mystery. The conflict began after the U.S., Israel and other countries launched attacks on Iran at the end of February to disable the missile program and regional proxies. It has caused major disruptions in energy supplies and fears of global inflation.
IRANIAN STRIKES REPORTED IN KUWAIT, BAHRAIN, JORDAN, SAUDI ARABIA
The armed forces claimed to have intercepted Iranian drones and ballistic missiles. They also said that firefighters and oil workers were injured in the response.
Iran's IRGC claimed it had destroyed a radar at Ali Al Salem Air Base and struck a U.S. Military Support Centre at Kuwait's Camp Arifjan. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation said that one of its oil installations had been damaged by "repeated Iranian strikes", which caused significant damage, and also some injuries.
Iranian media reported that the IRGC targeted a site at Sheikh Isa Air Base in Bahrain, where U.S. fighter aircraft and a data centre for intelligence were gathered.
According to Iranian state TV, the Guards destroyed two U.S. aircraft fighters and three others during an early Saturday morning missile and drone strike on a U.S. military base in Al Azraq.
The reports could not be independently verified.
Saudi Arabia's early-warning system sent out alerts on Saturday morning urging residents in Al-Kharj to take shelter. Al-Kharj is east of Riyadh and hosts a U.S. military base, while Yanbu on the Red Sea has an important oil export terminal.
Two people who were briefed in the matter stated that an Iranian missile strike, the first one on Saudi Arabia for more than three month, was the cause of the alerts. The government media office did not reply to a request for comment.
The IRGC did not mention any attacks on Saudi Arabia.
On Saturday, the U.S. State Department sent out a travel alert to Americans living abroad. The warning cited increased tensions in the Middle East and the "potential for an unforeseen escalation." Flight cancellations and airspace closures on a periodic basis could cause travel disruptions, according to the advisory.
BATTLE FOR CONTROL OF STRAIT. Earlier, U.S. Central Command announced that it had struck Iranian surveillance sites and military infrastructure. It also said it hit underground weapons storage, maritime capabilities, and military logistics. U.S. Airstrikes on Saturday morning killed 3?people, wounded 8 others, and damaged two bridges and road tunnels in southern Hormozgan Province, which borders the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran's Health Ministry announced on Saturday that U.S. air strikes against the country in the last three weeks had killed 50 people and injured more than 500 others.
Esmaeil Baghaei, a spokesperson for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, accused the United States of trying to control the Strait of Hormuz. This is the area that handles about a fifth of the world’s oil.
Both sides have targeted shipping traffic. The U.S. says it enforces a naval blocade, while Iran claims it targets vessels that violate its rules for navigating the Strait.
According to a statement released by Saudi state TV, the European Union and Gulf States called on Iran on Saturday to stop all attacks on maritime navigation immediately and without condition and to keep it open to traffic. Reporting by Bureaus; Writing by Gareth Jones Aidan Lewis Michael Martina; Editing Alison Williams Ros Russell Rod Nickel
(source: Reuters)