Intelligence · Conflict
Middle East conflict
Where it stands
The war that the United States and Israel launched against Iran in February remains unresolved, with Qatar and Pakistan mediating. Iran says it will reopen the Strait of Hormuz only if the US lifts its naval blockade of Iranian ports and its sanctions and frees Iranian assets abroad, and if fighting stops on all fronts, including Lebanon and Gaza; on Nov. 3 its security chief called the latest US reply unconvincing. On Nov. 2 US forces hit targets on Iran's Qeshm Island in what officials called limited, defensive strikes, and President Donald Trump has threatened to resume major strikes after the midterm elections. The UK Maritime Trade Operations centre reported a record 30 attacks on commercial ships in the region in October.
Israel's Oct. 27 election gave neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc nor the opposition bloc led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot a majority, and Arab-led parties won a record 19 seats. In Gaza, Israeli strikes have continued despite the ceasefire: Gaza's Health Ministry says 1,559 Palestinians had been killed since the truce took effect, as of Oct. 26, according to the UN humanitarian office. Israeli forces still occupy parts of southern Lebanon; a June framework agreement links their phased withdrawal to Hezbollah's disarmament, which the group rejects.
In Yemen, fighting between Houthi and government forces escalated in September, ending a four-year truce, and the UN refugee agency says more than 280,000 people have been displaced. The Houthis have also struck Saudi airports, and the Saudi-led coalition has answered with air strikes in Yemen.
Sources:CBS News(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)AP via PBS News(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)UN OCHA(Primary source)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)UN News(Primary source)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
Latest developments
Iran calls latest US response unconvincing as Qatar awaits replies on new plan
Mohsen Rezaei said the latest US response was not convincing and that Iran's conditions, including an end to the US naval blockade and sanctions and a halt to fighting on all fronts, must be met before the Strait of Hormuz reopens. Qatari mediators expected feedback from both sides on new ideas within 36 hours, Reuters reported, and Qatar said it remained hopeful of an interim deal.
US carries out limited strikes on Iran's Qeshm Island near Hormuz
US forces struck Iranian targets on Qeshm Island in what multiple US officials told CBS News were limited, defensive strikes after Iran's Revolutionary Guard fired on a US aircraft. Iran's state news agency IRNA said the Guard had shot down a US MQ-9 drone east of the strait. Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Iran kept its right to self-defence.
CBS News(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
Israeli strike in Gaza's al-Mawasi kills five men identified as police
Five men described by Gaza's Interior Ministry as police officers were killed in an Israeli drone strike on al-Mawasi in Khan Younis, on a day when at least eight Palestinians were killed across the territory, hospital sources told Al Jazeera. Israel said, without offering proof, that many of the week's dead were Hamas fighters. Gaza's Health Ministry put the toll since the ceasefire at 1,593 as of Nov. 2.
Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
Iran says Vance letter shows a changed US tone as mediators shuttle
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, said a letter from US Vice President JD Vance, delivered by Qatari mediators, showed a completely changed tone. Axios reported that the letter said talks to head off new US strikes would have to cover Iran's nuclear program. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said an Iranian delegation had travelled to Doha to meet the mediators.
Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)The Jerusalem Post(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
UN rights office says Israeli forces are pushing Gazans into shrinking areas
The UN human rights office said Israeli forces were squeezing Palestinians in Gaza into a shrinking share of the territory, amid concerns of ethnic cleansing. It cited reported attacks on displacement camps, the westward expansion of Israeli deployment areas and Israel's stated aim of extending its military deployment to 70% of Gaza, and said the shrinking space had caused new displacement next to the yellow line.
UN News(Primary source)
Lebanese military court charges 13 over seized Hezbollah explosives
A Lebanese military court charged 13 people linked to Hezbollah over a truck carrying 780 kg of explosives that was seized earlier in October, according to state media and judicial officials. Hezbollah said the explosives were meant for use against Israeli forces occupying parts of southern Lebanon and called the charges unjust. The group rejects disarmament and calls the June Israel-Lebanon framework void.
Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
Netanyahu's bloc falls short of a majority in Israel's election
With the vote count complete, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's bloc had 53 of the Knesset's 120 seats, short of the 61 needed to govern. The opposition bloc led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot won 48 and Arab-led parties a record 19, leaving both camps to seek partners. Netanyahu's Likud alleged, without evidence, that Arab-led parties won through fraud backed from abroad.
AP via PBS News(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)CNBC(Outlet not rated yet)
UN warns Gaza families face a fourth winter in tents as aid is held up
UN agencies said aid operations in Gaza remained obstructed, noting that Israel closed the Kerem Shalom crossing for its election day and that the UN project services agency reported three incidents affecting its convoys and premises over three days. Humanitarian agencies estimate that some 950,000 displaced people are sheltering in sites with a medium or high flood risk.
Two Israeli soldiers killed near Hebron; Israel seals the city
Gunmen killed two Israeli soldiers and wounded at least four at an Israeli checkpoint in the Hebron area before both attackers were killed, according to UN reports. Israel sealed the city and carried out raids; Hebron's municipality estimated that about 3,000 people were displaced, OCHA said. The governor said on Nov. 2 that Israeli forces had withdrawn and displaced families could return.
UN News(Primary source)UN OCHA(Primary source)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
Houthi missile strike on Riyadh airport kills at least 12, Saudi officials say
A Houthi missile strike hit King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. AFP reported 13 people killed; Saudi officials, cited by Al Jazeera, said at least 12 were killed and 300 injured. The airport closed temporarily, and Saudi Arabia pushed its flagship investment conference back to 2027.
CBS News(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
Trump rejects Iran's seven-day plan for a ceasefire and Hormuz reopening
President Donald Trump rejected Iran's seven-day plan to restore a ceasefire and reopen the Strait of Hormuz in phases, saying "that deal would not be acceptable" even though he wanted an agreement. The plan had been handed to US officials during the UN General Assembly in New York, a source told Reuters. The day after Trump's rejection, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran was ready for either diplomacy or renewed fighting.
CBS News(Outlet not rated yet)Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)
Houthis take Yemen's port of Mocha as fighting with government forces resumes
Houthi forces captured the Red Sea port city of Mocha during a new wave of fighting with Saudi-backed government forces, leaving the group in control of Yemen's Red Sea coast up to the Bab al-Mandeb strait, Al Jazeera reported. Saudi forces fired missiles at Houthi-held areas, including Mocha, and the UN later said the escalation had ended a four-year ceasefire.
Al Jazeera(Outlet not rated yet)UN News(Primary source)
Israeli official says effort to reach a security pact with Syria has failed
A senior Israeli diplomatic official told The Jerusalem Post that talks on a security agreement with Syria failed because Israel would not give up the buffer zone it has held since late 2024, which it regards as a security asset. The official said channels with Damascus remained open. Syrian state media had reported that the two sides met in Jordan under US mediation on Aug. 23.
Anadolu Agency(Outlet not rated yet)
US strikes Revolutionary Guard sites on Iran's southern coast, ending a month of relative calm
US Central Command said it hit Revolutionary Guard air defence, radar, maritime, mine-laying and communications sites; explosions were reported in Bandar Abbas and Chabahar, and Qeshm Island was also targeted. The US military said it was responding to renewed attacks on commercial ships and a ballistic missile attack on a US base in Jordan. The Revolutionary Guard said it struck back at US facilities at Erbil air base in Iraq.
Al-Monitor(Outlet not rated yet)