Syria’s Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani has rejected Israel’s justification for striking the Abu al-Duhur airbase, saying there were no plans for a Turkish military base or permanent troop presence. He said Turkish officers had visited as part of military cooperation, while Damascus remains open to a security deal with Israel but wants de-escalation from both sides.

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz showed no signs of recovery on Wednesday as talks between the US and Iran remained deadlocked over ending the war.

Preliminary Kpler data reported by Reuters showed only nine commodity vessels transited the key waterway, unchanged from the previous day, keeping global shipping and energy markets under pressure.

Israel’s military will launch criminal investigations into the 2024 killing of 5-year-old Palestinian girl Hind Rajab and the 2025 deaths of 15 Palestinian paramedics, following reviews of 150 incidents involving troop conduct in Gaza.

Meanwhile, France is expelling two Iranian diplomats in a tit-for-tat move. At the same time, Iran’s parliament speaker and top negotiator visit Iraq amid tensions over the war and the Strait of Hormuz.

Gaza’s Al Qarara Seed Bank is rebuilding its collection of heirloom seeds after the Israel-Hamas war destroyed much of its original stock.

From a makeshift tent in Deir el-Balah, the project is carefully preserving local wheat, barley, vegetables and leafy crops to help farmers restart cultivation and protect Gaza’s agricultural heritage.

The seed bank, founded in 2017 with support from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), now relies on plastic tubs, barrels and sacks to store seeds.

Farmers borrow the seeds and return them after harvest, helping maintain a local supply of crops at a time when agricultural land, water, fertiliser and other farming inputs remain severely limited.

The UAE said it detected two ballistic missiles launched from Iran, the first such incident reported since the May 4 strike on Fujairah port. Both missiles, which the defence ministry assessed were targeting maritime traffic, fell into the sea. Iran rejected the allegation as “baseless”.

The UAE subsequently suspended all trade, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran until further notice.

“The defence ministry affirms its full readiness to deal with any threats and firmly confront anything that aims to destabilize the state’s security,” it said, as fears of renewed escalation grew following the expiry of the 60-day window for US-Iran peace talks.

US agencies have warned that unidentified hackers are attempting to breach Siemens devices used to monitor and operate water facilities and other critical infrastructure, Reuters reported.

The alert covers Siemens S7 Series programmable logic controllers used across the water, energy, manufacturing, chemical, food and agriculture sectors. It follows cyberattacks on local water systems in several US states in recent weeks that cybersecurity experts suspect may be linked to Iran.

The joint advisory was issued by the NSA, FBI, Department of Energy, Environmental Protection Agency and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency.

The US national debt surpassed a record $40 trillion on Wednesday, just five months after crossing $39 trillion, as defence costs—including spending on President Donald Trump’s nearly six-month-old war in Iran—added to pressure from social programmes and interest payments.

White House spokesman Kush Desai said the administration was cutting waste while accelerating economic growth. Experts, however, warn that rising debt could increase borrowing costs, constrain wages and investment, and make goods and services more expensive.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced the “most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country”, escalating Washington’s pressure campaign against Iran after accusing Tehran of failing to seize opportunities to reach a deal.

Here’s what Trump said:

• Iran had failed to take advantage of the opportunities offered by his administration to reach a deal.
• The US would launch what he described as the “most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country”.
• The campaign would impose “economic warfare and isolation on an unprecedented scale” against Tehran.
• Any country helping Iran through its financial institutions, businesses, airports or government entities would face severe economic consequences.
• Oil smuggling, swap lines, cash transfers, exchange houses, ship registries and front companies facilitating trade with Iran must cease immediately.
• US allies must support Washington’s efforts to isolate Iran and counter what Trump called the threat posed by Tehran.
• The measures would cripple Iran’s ability to “project terror worldwide”, Trump claimed.
• Trump reiterated that Iran would “never have a nuclear weapon”.

Brent crude traded just below $92 a barrel, holding onto gains of more than 5% over the previous four sessions as the prolonged US-Iran conflict continued to fuel supply concerns.

West Texas Intermediate futures for October delivery hovered near $84 a barrel.

Good morning and welcome back to our live coverage of the war in West Asia.