Donald Trump has warned that attacks on ships in Middle Eastern waterways will be paid for by Iranian cash that he controls. “Any and all damages done to Ships, Cargo, or anything related thereto, will be paid for by Iranian Money that the United States has in its possession, and controls. “These damages may be very substantial but, nevertheless, this is the fair and equitable thing to do”, the US president wrote on Truth Social Thursday. Earlier, Trump said he was seriously considering restarting major combat operations in Iran, including strikes that would be bigger than the ones carried out earlier this year.He told Axios: “They haven’t received enough pain yet.”He has already threatened a “major military punishment” of Iran after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels bombed two Saudi oil tankers off the coast of Saudi Arabia.The attacks threaten to further disrupt oil supply as the Houthis warn they will cut off the Bab al-Mandab strait.Trump has also accused Iran of having “some evil intentions”, repeating his insistence that the regime must not have a nuclear weapon.The president hinted that Tehran wanted to make a deal, saying at an event Thursday, “They're not ready yet”.Jane Dalton24 July 2026 03:00ICYMI: Iran 'flew IRGC commanders and missile gear to Yemen's Houthis'Iran flew Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders, military advisers and missile- and drone-related equipment into Yemen this month, according to four sources, in a move that suggests Tehran is seeking to strengthen the ability of its Houthi allies to threaten Red Sea shipping.Four sources, two of them Iranian, Yemen's information minister and a regional security analyst, said Iran transferred the IRGC personnel and military-related equipment on a flight from Tehran to Yemen 10 days ago.The two Iranian sources told Reuters that between 10 and 21 IRGC personnel, including senior commanders, were on the Mahan Air flight.The plane was originally bound for the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa, but diverted to the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah after the airport came under attack by the Saudi-backed Yemeni government."The IRGC commanders travelled there to support Houthi operations and provide training on new missile systems," one of the sources said, adding that Iran also sent gold on the aircraft to fund Houthi activities.Jane Dalton24 July 2026 01:30Trump warns damage to ships will be paid for by Iranian moneyDonald Trump has warned Tehran that any damage to ships will be paid for by Iranian money that the US has in its possession. “Please let this statement serve to represent, until further notice, that from this point forth, any and all damages done to Ships, Cargo, or anything related thereto, will be paid for by Iranian Money that the United States has in its possession, and controls. “These damages may be very substantial but, nevertheless, this is the fair and equitable thing to do”, Trump wrote on Truth Social Thursday evening, Washington time. The US has accused Iran of targeting civilian vessels in the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, Yemen’s Iranian-backed Houthi rebels bombed two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea. Rachel Dobkin24 July 2026 00:44Jane Dalton23 July 2026 23:59US House votes to curb Trump's Iran war powersThe Republican-led US House ​of Representatives backed a resolution on Thursday directing President Trump to halt military action against Iran unless he obtained Congress' approval, but the Senate voted hours later to block a separate, ⁠similar measure.The House vote, the latest rebuke of Trump from Congress, was 214-208 in favour of the war powers resolution as four Republicans joined Democrats in voting for it.But the Senate voted 49 to 47 to block its own ⁠war powers measure within hours of the ​House ⁠vote.The House resolution was largely symbolic. Lawmakers ​have ⁠passed similar resolutions repeatedly in ‌recent months.Jane Dalton23 July 2026 23:00The latest: Trump threatens ‘major military punishment’ on Iran after Houthis attack Saudi shipsDonald Trump has threatened a “major military punishment” against Iran after Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels bombed two Saudi oil tankers off the coast of Saudi Arabia.The attacks threaten to further disrupt oil supply in a sign that the war is spreading across the region, as the Houthis warn they will cut off the Bab al-Mandab strait, one of the critical waterways through which oil flows. “The U.S. will hold Iran responsible, in that the Houthis are a Surrogate and/or Proxy of Iran, and major military punishment will be inflicted upon Iran,” the US president wrote on Truth Social. Trump also threatened punishment fore the Houthis, who he said he is “very disappointed with in that they have, until now, acted very professionally and smart”. It comes as US secretary of state Marco Rubio has claimed Iran is “begging for a deal” amid escalating tensions across the Middle East, while warning that Tehran will face intensifying US strikes “every night until they come to their senses”.The US military said it had carried out a 12th straight night of strikes against Iran in the early hours of Thursday, including the first use of B-1 long-range bombers in weeks.James Reynolds23 July 2026 22:00Trump warns of Iran's 'evil intentions'Iran has evil intentions, US president Donald Trump has claimed, hinting he may step up military attacks on the country.Repeating his insistence that the regime must not have a nuclear weapon, he said: “We’re doing very well against the Islamic Republic of Iran.”He added: “They need more of the same. They're not ready yet. They got some evil intentions. We cannot let them have a nuclear weapon.” Jane Dalton23 July 2026 20:40Trump boasts of lower US death toll than in VietnamDonald Trump has boasted that the death toll in Iran of 18 Americans is much lower than the numbers killed in Vietnam and Afghanistan, where thousands were killed.“One is too many,” he said, “but it's 18, whereas in Vietnam we lost 200,000, we lost thosuands and thousands in Afghanistan, we lost thousands in every war, the Korean War, thousands, and these wars all lasted for years.”Insisting the US could not let Iran have nuclear weapons, he said: “We're doing very well against the Islamic Republic of Iran. We're doing extremely well.”Jane Dalton23 July 2026 19:58James Reynolds23 July 2026 19:00Jane Dalton23 July 2026 18:30