Morning recap

Good morning Middle East Eye readers, President Donald Trump has stated his intention to declare the Strait of Hormuz as U.S. territory following Iran's alleged defeat. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, has responded by asserting that Tehran will not be cowed by threats or military displays from Washington.

Trump's comments were made as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi announced that a decision regarding the resumption of negotiations with the United States has not yet been reached. Araghchi further disclosed that Qatar and Pakistan are currently reaching out to Iran via communication exchanges, yet this does not equate to formal negotiations.

Here is a rundown of the latest happenings across the region:

- Early Saturday morning, Israeli air strikes in southern Lebanon resulted in at least seven casualties. Concurrently, Israeli forces razed homes in Bint Jbeil.

- A container ship was struck by an unidentified projectile in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).

- Yemen's government reported that a minimum of four civilians were killed when Houthi rebels launched six ballistic missiles at the Red Sea port of al-Mokha on Friday.

- The UAE's Abu Dhabi National Oil Company disclosed that one of their vessels faced an attack while passing through the Strait of Hormuz on Friday.

- Yahya Saree, the Houthi military spokesperson, stated that the rebels targeted "concentrations and weapons belonging to the Saudi enemy".

- Three Palestinians sustained injuries after being hit by Israeli army and settler fire in the West Bank on Friday evening, as reported by Wafa.

- Maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz rose on August 13, with 13 vessels confirmed to have crossed, marking a 44 percent increase compared to the nine crossings recorded the previous day, as per maritime tracking firm Kpler.