Day 152 of the WarWednesday, July 29, 2026
Day 152 — U.S. and Saudi Jets Hit IRGC Proxies in Iraq After Missiles Target Jordan; Trump Vows 'a Very Severe Blow'
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IraqJordanStrait of HormuzEvin Prison
Voices From Evin — 'The War Is a Cover for Repression'
Iran- Evin political prisoners Abolfazl Ghadyani, Reza Valizadeh, and Mohammad Najafi issued a statement accusing the regime of using the war as cover to intensify repression, condemning 'mass executions,' 'show trials,' and widespread arrests meant to spread fear, per Iran International.source
- Lawyers for Varisheh Moradi (Mirzaei), held in Evin for three years, say the political prisoner has been denied hospital transfer for over nine months despite intestinal disease, severe neck disc problems, and injuries from the fight against ISIS, with a ban on calls and visits still in force.source
Missiles on Jordan, Drones on Damietta — Trump Vows 'a Very Severe Blow'
US / Coalition- After six nights of relative calm, ballistic missiles were fired from Lorestan Province toward Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan; the U.S. says all were intercepted, the Jordanian army reported downing five, and the regime claimed responsibility, per LiveIranNews.source
- Babak Taghvaee reports Iranian-made one-way attack drones launched by Hezbollah from Lebanon struck a U.S.-owned floating LNG storage facility at Egypt's Damietta Port, which he sees as the IRGC showing it can hit U.S. shipping far beyond the Gulf.source
- Trump, citing the Jordan salvo and the tanker attack at Damietta, said 'we are going to hit them with a very severe blow, because now it's our turn,' adding that Iran knows it is coming and its officials 'are asking us not to do this,' RadioFarda reports.source
- IRGC-linked Fars quoted West Azerbaijan's crisis management chief as saying an 'enemy' missile hit an area without buildings or residents, causing no casualties, as local media reported an explosion near Piranshahr, per Iran International.source
Three Tankers Halted as CENTCOM Rejects the IRGC's 'Routes'
Gulf & Naval- The IRGC Navy said it targeted and halted three oil tankers moving along an 'unsafe and illegal route' and warned U.S. 'interventions and orders' to ships will not go unanswered; per RadioFarda, WTI rose 3.67% to $82.17 and Brent 3.39% to $86.94.source
- CENTCOM countered that Hormuz is an international waterway and the IRGC has no authority to dictate routes, saying U.S. forces have helped about 1,000 vessels and 500 million barrels of crude pass since early May; as of July 29, 20 ships have been redirected under the blockade.source
- Deputy Speaker Ali Nikzad said Iran 'will not yield' Hormuz under any circumstances and that no MP opposed the Strait management bill, while the WSJ reports Tehran rejected Oman's joint-management proposal — a setback in mediators' eyes, per LiveIranNews.source
- The Houthis said they fired ballistic missiles at the Saudi tanker 'NCC Gazelle' in the Red Sea for violating their 'blockade of Saudi ports'; UKMTO said a tanker captain heard an explosion but the ship and crew are safe, RadioFarda reports.source
U.S. and Saudi Jets Strike IRGC-Backed Militias Across Iraq
Global- CENTCOM says U.S. and Saudi fighter jets carried out precision strikes on July 28 against logistics and weapons sites across eastern Iraq used by Iran-aligned militias the IRGC directed to attack U.S. forces and Saudi energy infrastructure — a response to over 30 drone attacks in 72 hours.source
- Per AFP, cited by RadioFarda, the strikes hit Baghdad, Wasit, Nineveh, Basra, Kirkuk, Karbala, and Diyala, and the Popular Mobilization Forces said 20 of their fighters were killed; Babak Taghvaee reports Kataib Hezbollah and Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada bases and depots were destroyed.source
- Two PMF sources told AFP that five Iranian 'advisers' were killed in Diyala, and coffins draped in Iranian flags were carried at a funeral in Baghdad; IRGC-linked outlets named four IRGC members killed in Karbala, while Iran's consulate there denied anyone died, per Iran International.source
- Muqtada al-Sadr urged the IRGC not to target Iraq and called the militias 'renegade,' while Saudi Arabia's Foreign Ministry said the kingdom does not seek escalation but will respond to any attack, per RadioFarda and Iran International.source
What Israel Told Trump — Mojtaba Alive but Unseen, 1,500 Missiles Left
- A senior Israeli diplomatic source said after the Netanyahu–Trump meeting that Israel knows 'for certain' Mojtaba Khamenei is alive but that no one has seen him since Operation Rising Lion — and that Israel told Trump it has serious doubts a nuclear deal can be reached, per Open Source Intel.source
- The source said Iran has only 1,500–1,600 missiles left after much of its production capability was destroyed, that enrichment is not assessed to be taking place at Pickaxe Mountain, and that eliminating 29 nuclear scientists 'removed a critical mass of knowledge.'source
- Per Iran International, Israeli officials say Trump is weighing three options — a nuclear deal, maintained or intensified economic pressure, or resumed military strikes — with both sides sharing the same goal and the final decision resting with Trump.source
- X suspended Tasnim News Agency's Persian, English, and Arabic accounts after the IRGC-linked outlet published a video amounting to an operational guide for killing First Lady Melania Trump, Iran International reports.source