Iran suggests MoU ‘suspended’ as 50 killed in US strikes in July

What the report says

Al Jazeera reported on July 18, 2026, that Iran’s Health Ministry said at least 50 people had been killed and more than 500 wounded in United States strikes since July 6. The report said the latest overnight raids were announced by US Central Command, which described targets including surveillance sites, logistics infrastructure, weapons storage and maritime capabilities.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Tehran now regarded the Islamabad memorandum of understanding with Washington as effectively suspended, according to comments carried by the semi-official Fars News Agency. He accused the US of breaching its commitments and said Iran had halted its own implementation while defending itself. Al Jazeera said both countries accuse the other of violating terms linked to commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

The fighting has expanded around civilian services and Gulf infrastructure. Iranian officials said a desalination facility in Jask was damaged, leaving villages without water. Al Jazeera also reported Iranian strikes on Kuwait, where authorities closed airspace and said power and desalination plants were hit; sirens sounded in Bahrain, and Jordan said it intercepted Iranian ballistic missiles. Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed attacks on US-linked military sites in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.

The escalation follows US President Donald Trump’s declaration 10 days earlier that the MoU was “over” after alleged Iranian attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway is a critical route for global energy shipments, making the widening conflict a direct concern for regional security, civilian infrastructure and international markets.