⚠️ SYRIA STRIKE RESPONSE; U.S.-IRAN STANDOFF AND HORMUZ ESCALATION
🕑 Published: August 18, 2026 · 11:45 PM Israel time
💥 SYRIA STRIKE RESPONSE: U.S. Special Envoy Tom Barrack said: “We are deeply concerned that the confirmed Israeli airstrikes on Abu al-Duhur Air Base constitute an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability. The Al-Sharaa government has neither adopted a predatory posture nor maintained proxy forces. It has, in fact, repeatedly indicated a preference for de-escalation with Israel. The US has in the past, and will continue in the future, to host discussions to encourage diplomatic cadence over kinetic frustration for both nations. Enduring deescalation agreements are built through sustained dialogues with all concerned nations and principals. The US continues to believe that restraint and engagement offer the more constructive course. We encourage all parties to prioritize logical discourse over further military incidents”.
Syria also acknowledged possessing nuclear material left from the Assad regime, stating: “It is our right to develop a civilian nuclear program.”
⚠️ U.S.-IRAN STANDOFF CONTINUES: President Trump said the United States is not seeking an extension of the MoU with Iran.
Trump said: “I want an agreement with Iran for one reason—to prevent it from obtaining nuclear weapons, but Iran is not going to sign the agreement that I see as necessary.”
He added: “No talks with Iran are taking place, nor are any planned. The naval blockade remains in place. The Strait of Hormuz is open and operational. All naval mines have been removed.”
Trump said: “They want to make a deal, but they are not going to make the kind of a deal that I feel is necessary”.
He also said: “I like the idea of declaring the Strait of Hormuz a U.S. territory. We have total control over the Strait”.
Trump issued a military threat against Oman, warning that Washington would launch airstrikes if Oman obstructed U.S. objectives in the conflict with Iran. “If Oman gets in the way, we’ll bomb the sh*t out of them,” Trump said.
⚓ IRAN THREATENS ESCALATION IN HORMUZ: A senior Iranian official told Reuters that Tehran is shifting from a defensive posture to a “fully offensive” policy and is giving the United States “a few weeks” to implement the peace deal.
The official added: “All Iranian entities will be prepared to escalate tensions in the Strait of Hormuz and across the region if diplomacy fails. Iran will not wait indefinitely for the U.S. to continue the naval blockade,”
❗️ IRAN FIRES MISSILES TOWARD UAE: Alert sirens sounded in the UAE before the Emirati Defense Ministry issued an all-clear. The ministry said Iran launched two ballistic missiles toward the country. One fell outside the UAE’s borders, while the other fell in Emirati territorial waters.
⚓ IRAN SEIZES EMIRATI TANKER: Iran seized an Emirati tanker near Qeshm in the Strait of Hormuz, according to Iran’s Fars News Agency.
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