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U.S., Iran Return to the Brink of All-Out War

As both sides intensify strikes, future peace talks appear uncertain.

An illustration of Alexandra Sharp, World Brief newsletter writer

By Alexandra Sharp , the World Brief writer at Foreign Policy .

A nighttime view shows a large fire blazing along a shoreline, with intense orange flames and thick dark smoke rising into the sky. The fire reflects brightly on the water's surface. In the foreground, circular aquaculture pens float in the water, while several boats are positioned near the burning structures in the background.

Smoke rises from a port near the Strait of Hormuz following a U.S. strike in Kuhestak, Iran, on July 8. Social media via Reuters

July 9, 2026, 5:10 PM

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at escalating U.S. and Iranian strikes, a leadership contest for Britain ’s Labour Party, and Australia selling uranium to India .

U.S. and Iranian forces intensified their strikes on Thursday, as both sides exchanged fire for a third consecutive day. With Washington and Tehran expanding the scope and scale of their attacks, experts have suggested that the Middle East may be on the brink of returning to all-out war.

On Tuesday, Iran targeted several oil and gas tankers in the Strait of Hormuz that appeared to be trying to use a route that circumvented Iranian waters. Within hours, the U.S. military launched retaliatory strikes, and on Wednesday, President Donald Trump declared that the U.S.-Iran cease-fire was effectively “over.”

“This is in retribution for yesterday’s bombing of ships by Iran,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Wednesday. “If it happens again, it will get much worse!” That day, Trump also suggested that he could order bombings on critical civilian infrastructure—such as bridges, electric plants, and desalination facilities—and he threatened to “take over Kharg Island,” a vital hub for Iran’s crude industry.

Since hostilities reignited two days ago, U.S. forces have struck more than 170 targets in Iran, the U.S. military said on Thursday, “including air defense systems, coastal surveillance assets, missile and drone storage sites, naval capabilities, and military logistics infrastructure along Iran’s coastline” as well as small boats belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

According to video footage verified by the New York Times on Thursday as well as statements from Iranian officials, a railway bridge near the city of Agh Qala, more than 700 miles from the Strait of Hormuz, was also hit. The railway connects the capital of Tehran to the northeastern city of Mashhad, where former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was buried later that day. The burial marked the end of a weeklong funeral procession honoring the slain leader, who was killed by U.S. and Israeli attacks on Feb. 28.

An Iranian official also accused the United States on Thursday of targeting an area near an Iranian nuclear power plant. Recent U.S. strikes have killed at least 14 people and injured some 78 others in Iran thus far, Iranian officials said. U.S. Central Command has declined to comment on the alleged railway and nuclear power plant strikes.

In retaliation, Iran has stepped up its own assaults, firing at U.S. targets in the Gulf nations of Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain, the latter of which is home to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet headquarters. Tehran also claimed on Thursday to have launched ballistic missiles at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base, a Jordanian military facility used by U.S. forces; until now, Jordan has largely avoided Iran’s ire.

“America still hasn’t learned that bullying and breaking promises are no longer cost-free,” Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, wrote on X. “Let me put it plainly: If you strike, you’ll get hit.” According to Kuwait’s authorities, at least one person has been injured in recent days due to falling debris.

The status of peace talks remains uncertain. On Wednesday, Trump dismissed further dialogue as a “waste of time” but later claimed that Iranian leadership had called him because they “want to make a deal so badly.” Tehran has yet to publicly state whether negotiations are still on the table.

Meanwhile, Israel may be ready to rejoin the fray . On Thursday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said that Israel is prepared to resume military operations against Iran “with even greater force” if needed.

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What We’re Following

Britain’s biggest races. Britain’s ruling Labour Party opened nominations on Thursday for a leadership contest to replace outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who resigned in June in the wake of Labour’s abysmal performance in local elections. Candidates have until Wednesday to submit their bids; if multiple individuals are put forward, then a vote will be held the following month.

However, only one nominee is in the running so far: Andy Burnham , former Greater Manchester mayor and recent winner of the Makerfield by-election. Burnham’s popularity has skyrocketed since he declared his intention to replace Starmer, with former Health Secretary Wes Streeting backing his candidacy despite previously expressing his own interest in Downing Street. If Burnham faces no challengers, then he could become premier as soon as July 17.

Burnham isn’t the only British politician facing a special election. On Tuesday, far-right Reform UK leader Nigel Farage resigned from Parliament, where he represented the constituency of Clacton, to force a by-election that he apparently hoped would stifle investigations into his financial affairs. “I have decided that the people of Clacton should be the judges of my actions,” Farage said after declaring his intention to re-run for the seat.

Yet what was meant to win over public favor appears to have backfired, with rival parties dismissing his move as a publicity stunt and vowing to boycott the race. That has left Farage facing just one candidate: Count Binface, a satirical character played by comedian Jon Harvey who wears a trash can on his head. “Game on, Nige,” Binface wrote on X on Tuesday.

Uranium exports. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese agreed on Thursday to sell uranium to India, ending a yearslong delay caused by concerns that New Delhi would use the critical resource to produce nuclear weapons. Neither Albanese nor Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi specified how much uranium would be sold or when. Yet both leaders have confirmed that the uranium would only be used for peaceful purposes, such as to generate energy.

Australia has the world’s largest known uranium deposits, but as the country does not have any nuclear weapons or nuclear energy facilities, Canberra exports all of its supply. Meanwhile, India possesses around 190 nuclear weapons , according to the Arms Control Association, and has expressed interest in expanding its arsenal. Canberra had initially refused to sell uranium to New Delhi, as India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. However, Australia began to ease its position in 2014, with the caveat that India separate its civilian and military nuclear programs and allow International Atomic Energy Agency oversight.

“Australia and India are close partners and even closer friends,” Albanese told reporters ​on Thursday after finalizing the deal, with Modi emphasizing the “historic opportunities” that both countries have for greater collaboration . During Thursday’s summit, Canberra and New Delhi also agreed to bolster defense and security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific as well as to potentially work together on low-carbon aluminum projects.

Super Typhoon Bavi. People across East Asia braced on Thursday for Super Typhoon Bavi, which meteorologists have warned could be the region’s most destructive tropical storm in years. Already, Bavi spans approximately 621 miles at its widest point, making it roughly the width of France, and it is recording wind speeds of 124 miles per hour.

“When it makes landfall or gets close to coastal regions, the damage could be catastrophic,” Xiangbo Feng, a tropical cyclone researcher at Imperial College London, told Reuters on Thursday. “A small change in Bavi’s track could have a significant influence.” The typhoon is expected to hit southern Japan on Friday before moving into eastern China and potentially Taiwan on Saturday.

In preparation, Taiwanese authorities have placed roughly 29,000 soldiers on standby for rescue efforts. Both Japanese and Taiwanese airlines have canceled flights, and Chinese officials have warned residents to stay inside after triggering Beijing’s second-highest weather alert. But as Bavi churns closer, many experts are concerned that the region is already overwhelmed, as locals are still picking up the pieces from Typhoon Maysak, which killed at least 39 people earlier this week.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose country hosted this week’s NATO summit, gave foreign leaders in attendance a rather unorthodox parting gift: a personally engraved vintage revolver with a box of live ammunition. The gift was intended to showcase Turkey’s defense industry, which was the world’s ​third-largest exporter of small arms between 2019 and 2024. Symbolic though it may have been, several European officials expressed surprise with Ankara’s unusual choice.

This post is part of FP’s ongoing coverage . Read more here .

Alexandra Sharp is the World Brief writer at Foreign Policy . Bluesky: @alexandrassharp.bsky.social X: @AlexandraSSharp

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