Iran peace talks remain paused as Tehran holds days-long funeral for slain supreme leader

A cargo ship came under attack Sunday near a Yemeni region controlled by Iran-backed Houthi rebels, according to the British military.

The incident happened in the Red Sea near the port city of Hodeidah, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said.

The vessel was roughly 30 nautical miles southwest of the city when unidentified armed attackers approached the crew, according to officials.

“A cargo vessel has triggered a distress alert stating that they are under attack by unknown armed assailants,” UKMTO said.

The Associated Press (AP) said the assailants, operating from a small skiff, opened fire on the bulk carrier and prompted armed security guards aboard to return fire.

The attackers then retreated toward a larger vessel nearby with its automatic identification system turned off, according to reports. The cargo ship and its crew were later reported safe.

Tehran is widely accused of using the Houthis as a proxy to exert pressure on Western and Israeli interests, including through attacks that disrupt global shipping near the Suez Canal.

The group’s operations in and around the Bab al-Mandab Strait — a key chokepoint feeding into the Suez Canal — have raised concerns over broader economic instability and risks to global trade routes.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied a rift with President Donald Trump while drawing a hard line on Iran as Washington pursues a broader nuclear agreement with Tehran.

Netanyahu said Israel and the U.S. shared the same goal on Iran, even as Trump pressed ahead with talks that have drawn criticism from some Israeli officials.

"But I can tell you this, deal or no deal, as long as I’m prime minister, Iran will not have a nuclear weapon," Netanyahu told host Jacqui Heinrich on "The Sunday Briefing.”

Asked whether his relationship with Trump had frayed over Iran, Netanyahu said any disagreements between the allies were being handled directly.

"I don’t think there’s a rift," Netanyahu said. "I think America has no greater ally than Israel, and Israel has no greater ally than the United States."

Netanyahu said Trump acts in U.S. interests while he acts in Israel's interests, but argued the two leaders usually align.

"President Trump is the leader of the United States. He does what’s good for America. I am the leader of Israel, the one and only Jewish state. I do what’s good for Israel," Netanyahu said. "Ninety-nine percent of the time we see eye-to-eye."

Click here to read more.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' CJ Womack.

Former President Bill Clinton took a swipe at President Donald Trump in a statement posted to X marking the nation's 250th birthday, urging Americans to reject division and embrace the country's founding ideals without mentioning Trump by name.

In the statement, released Saturday, Clinton reflected on the nation's founding and warned that the United States was experiencing another period of deep political division.

"Today, we celebrate this milestone amid another period of deep division, renewed questions about America's future and role in the world, and serious threats to our own institutions and to our democracy itself," the former president wrote.

Clinton, whose wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, was defeated by Trump in the 2016 presidential election, did not mention the president by name during his remarks.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Amanda Macias.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he is worried about anti-Israel trends in the U.S. on Sunday and defended his country's military actions.

Netanyahu made the statement in an interview with Fox News' Jacqui Heinrich. Heinrich pressed Netanyahu to respond to accusations that Israel exists in a permanent state of war.

"Well, we're not in a permanent state of war. I myself, with President Trump, we brought forth four peace deals," Netanyahu responded.

"The Lebanon deal has shown that we have more cards to play. Lebanon would like to free itself of Hezbollah, these Hezbollah terrorists who are, you know, making their life miserable. And it's not only the Christians in Lebanon who ask for our protection, it's the Druze, it's Muslims, or the, Sunni Muslims. And quite a few of the Shiite Muslims too," Netanyahu said.

"I hope we can get more peace deals. And I can tell you, you know, if you want to have peace, you better be able to protect yourself against those who want to annihilate you. We do that. But in defending ourselves, we're defending our common civilization," he argued.

Oil prices hovered near pre-conflict levels Sunday after OPEC+ agreed to increase production again, adding to global crude supplies as exports through the Strait of Hormuz continued to recover following months of disruption.

The oil-producing alliance said it will raise output targets by 188,000 barrels per day beginning in August, marking its third consecutive monthly increase as it gradually unwinds production cuts implemented in 2023.

The decision reflects easing concerns about a lingering global supply crunch. Oil exports from the Persian Gulf have begun rebounding after the Strait of Hormuz — a critical shipping lane for global energy supplies — reopened after it was disrupted during the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. 

A U.S.-brokered memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran has also helped calm markets and reinforced expectations that supplies will continue to normalize.

Brent crude traded near $72 per barrel Friday, down sharply from highs above $120 reached during the conflict and roughly back to levels seen before the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran in late February.

Oil prices have also faced pressure from weaker-than-expected crude demand in China, increased production from countries outside the Middle East and a coordinated release of strategic petroleum reserves by the International Energy Agency.

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Bradford Betz.

Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst joined "Fox & Friends" to report on President Donald Trump’s July 4 speech touting the U.S. military’s strength as well as break down the funeral for Iran's slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Yingst, reporting live from Tel Aviv, covered Trump's remarks on U.S. military strength and its success in Operation Epic Fury. The celebrations for America's 250th birthday contrasted heavily with scenes from Iran, where many attended the supreme leader's funeral, chanting "Death to America" and declaring a "blood feud" with the U.S.

Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume joined "America Reports" to discuss the economy, including recent drops in oil and gas prices relating to the Iran conflict.

Gas prices have been on a consistent downward trend in recent days thanks to apparent progress in peace talks with Iran.

The two sides have agreed to a 60-day ceasefire that allows oil to flow through the Strait of Hormuz during that window.

Gen. Jack Keane, retired, predicted that Iran will seek to drag out talks with the U.S. and said the likely won't conclude before the ceasefire's 60-day deadline is up.

"Certainly Iran's objectives from the beginning, when we first did negotiations with the the Obama administration, Iran, they dragged out negotiations for two years," Keane told Fox News. "It is one of their strategies. They believe, by dragging it out, it wears us down and likelihood we'd make more concessions. The the reality is the Trump administration has gone into this with their eyes wide open. We're obviously in a major diplomatic phase here, and it will likely take some time. I suspect it will go past the 60 day deadline that we currently have."

The U.S. Navy suspended the active search for a sailor missing since Wednesday.

The sailor was reported missing after an MH-60S helicopter went down in the Arabian Sea. The efforts concluded following an extensive search by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force under the U.S. Central Command. 

"The efforts concluded following an extensive search by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility," the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command said in a social media post. "The Sailor’s name is being withheld until at least 24 hours after next-of-kin notification is complete in accordance with Navy policy."

Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reflected on America's military power on the nation’s 250th birthday and also reacted to Iran holding a funeral for former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Khamenei ruled the country for 37 years before being killed in a wave of strikes by the U.S. and Israel.

The IDF's Chief of General Staff deployed to Southern Lebanon on Sunday amid continued tensions with Hezbollah.

Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir called on the Lebanese military to "fulfill their commitments" regarding promises to deploy against Hezbollah upon Israel's departure.

"The Beaufort area is dominant terrain saturated with terrorist infrastructure. The Hezbollah terrorist organization, funded and directed by Iran, spent decades constructing underground tunnels throughout the area to threaten northern Israeli communities. Now, our troops have operational control of this key terrain both above ground and of these underground tunnel networks," Zamir wrote.

"The Lebanese Armed Forces are required to fulfill their commitments under the historic agreement that was signed, as well as act to clear the area of Hezbollah terrorists. At the same time, the IDF will continue to operate decisively to remove threats from Lebanese territory and is prepared to transition rapidly to offensive operations should the ceasefire be violated," he added.

Former U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander Tom Sauer joined Fox News on Saturday to discuss the challenges facing the U.S. Navy amid the war in Iran as well as a new focus on China.

One of the leading American institutes devoted to research on the Islamic Republic’s nuclear program sounded an alarm this week over the regime's uninspected underground site in the Zagros Mountains.

Inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have not been allowed to visit the secret site, known as Pickaxe Mountain.

The highly fortified facility is casting serious doubt on Iran’s willingness to abide by the terms of the memorandum of understanding (MOU) reached with the Trump administration. The United States, together with Israel, launched Operation Epic Fury Feb. 28, 2026, targeting Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities.

Experts from the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) argue that halting work at Pickaxe Mountain and allowing IAEA inspectors access would be a key good-faith measure to test whether Iran is prepared to abandon its pattern of deception.

Spencer Faragasso, a senior fellow with the group who covers Iran, North Korea, illicit trade, and nuclear issues, wrote on X: "Important update by us at @TheGoodISIS. The ongoing work at Pickaxe Mountain is deeply concerning. This work has continued steadily since at least 2020. In my view, this is a hedge by Iran in case negotiations fail — they will then have a nuclear facility in a late stage of construction. We assessed that Pickaxe is likely large enough to hold an enrichment plant."

Iran has used facilities at Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan to enrich uranium, the key material for a nuclear weapons program.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz scolded Iran during this week's U.N. Security Council meeting, saying Tehran "will not silence" the body following claims by the Islamic Republic's representative that council members were spreading falsehoods about its recent attack targeting neighboring Gulf states.

"Let me remind you where you are," Waltz told Iranian diplomat Amir Saeid Iravani. "This is the United States of America. This is the United Nations Security Council. You will not silence this body."

Waltz's remarks came during an emergency meeting of the council in response to drone and missile attacks targeting Bahrain and Kuwait Sunday after new U.S. airstrikes against Iran.

During his remarks, Iravani argued the council should not have met, while accusing the U.S., Bahrain and other members of lying.

"Once again, the representative of the United States has resorted to lies and disinformation against Iran in a desperate attempt to justify the US's unlawful acts of aggression," Iravani said.

He also rejected the "unfounded accusations made by certain Western members of the Council and the representative of Bahrain."

"Instead of addressing the root cause of the current crisis, they have ignored the unlawful aggression committed against Iran and sought to shift blame onto the victim," he added. "Their double standards and hypocritical behavior have deprived them of any credibility to lecture others."

This is an excerpt from an article by Fox News' Louis Casiano.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty urged the United States and Iran to maintain momentum behind their recently signed memorandum of understanding, saying continued diplomacy is key to preserving regional stability.

Speaking during a meeting in Cairo with European Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica, Abdelatty said implementing the agreement would help reinforce the recent de-escalation between Washington and Tehran, according to Al Jazeera.

His remarks come as the United States has paused nuclear negotiations with Iran while the country observes a weeklong mourning period for former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Egypt has positioned itself as a supporter of diplomatic efforts to ease tensions across the Middle East, repeatedly calling for dialogue to prevent further escalation.

The comments underscore continued regional support for keeping U.S.-Iran negotiations on track despite the temporary pause in talks.

Fox News' Brittany Miller contributed to this report.