Morning update

Live Blog Update| War on Iran 25 August 2026 06:38 BST Good morning Middle East Eye readers, Here are the latest developments: President Donald Trump's administration on Monday formally removed Syria from the State Sponsor of Terrorism (SST) blacklist, in a landmark move that unlocks export restrictions and allows for the US to supply military aid to the country. Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa applauded the move, thanking Trump for the "historic decision". US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday announced a new wave of sanctions against Iran and its "enablers", towards what he described as an "asphyxiation of this regime" amid the standoff in the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that Trump's administration was not ruling out using further military force against Iran, even as Washington unveiled an "economic D-Day" of new sanctions against Tehran. The Colonization and Wall Resistance Commission said that Israeli settler attacks in the occupied West Bank rose sharply during the first seven months of 2026, reaching 4,113 compared with 2,524 during the same period in 2025, an increase of 1,589 attacks, representing a 63 percent rise, Wafa news reported. The UK Maritime Trade Operation late on Monday that it received a report from an oil tanker that it had been "struck by an unknown projectile" nine nautical miles northeast of Oman's Ash Shishah. The projectile reportedly caused damage to the engine room and disabled the vessel, with the environmental impact unknown, but all the crew are reported safe.