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Iran live updates: Egypt confirms Mediterranean port fire was caused by drone

A fire broke out at the Damietta Port on Wednesday, authorities said.

Last Updated: July 30, 2026, 5:07 PM EDT

President Donald Trump announced "major combat operations" against Iran on Feb. 28, with massive joint U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting military, government and infrastructure sites.

Delegations from the U.S. and Iran entered negotiations in June aimed at a war-ending deal based on a memorandum of understanding signed by both countries.

The U.S. and Iran have nonetheless continued to exchange strikes, with the strategic Strait of Hormuz the primary flashpoint.

2:28 PM EDT

Iran says parents, 2-year-old were killed in overnight strike

A man, woman and their two-year-old child were killed in an airstrike that struck a residential house on Qeshm Island, Iran, early Thursday morning, local officials said.

The deputy governor of the province of Hormozgan, where Qeshm is located, told Iranian state media around 4:30 a.m. local time that rescuers were searching for people trapped in the rubble of a residential house that was hit by an "enemy projectile."

The Iranian Red Crescent Society posted an update later Thursday morning, saying that the parents of a family and their two-year-old child were killed and found in the rubble. Two children ages 7 and 9 were injured and taken from the residence to hospital.

ABC News has reached out to CENTCOM for comment.

2:28 PM EDT

Saudi Arabia announces formation of multinational maritime defense alliance

Saudi Arabia and 13 other countries agreed on Thursday to establish a multinational maritime defense alliance aimed at "enhancing maritime security, protecting freedom of navigation, securing international trade and energy supply routes, and safeguarding shared maritime interests" in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the Saudi defense ministry said.

The announcement came after Saudi Arabia hosted a meeting on Thursday with representatives of 43 countries and the European Union to discuss its proposal to establish the coalition.

Saudi Arabia is set to be the founding and leading country and will host the coalition’s headquarters, the Saudi ministry said.

The 13 countries joining the coalition are Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, Bangladesh, Nigeria, Sudan, Djibouti and Somalia.

-ABC News' Ayat Altawy

4:17 AM EDT

Jordan intercepts 5 Iranian missiles

The Jordanian Armed Forces said in a statement that its air defenses shot down five missiles launched from Iran early on Thursday morning.

-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy, Ghazi Balkiz and Clark Bentson

4:01 AM EDT

Egypt confirms drone caused fire at Damietta Port

The Egyptian cabinet confirmed in a statement posted to social media on Thursday that Wednesday's fire at the Damietta Port in the north east of the country was caused by a drone, though did not say who was responsible.

"The preliminary investigations into the incident" indicated that the fire was caused by a drone, the statement said. "No party has announced its responsibility for the incident," it added.

The fire at the port, which sits along the Mediterranean coast, affected two ships -- a storage tanker and a vessel used to turn liquid fuel into gas -- Egyptian authorities said.

"The relevant authorities continue to conduct investigations to determine the circumstances of the incident and take the necessary measures to protect Egypt's interests and national security," the cabinet statement said.

Smoke rises from a gas tanker after a drone strike, maritime security firm Ambrey said, at Damietta port, Egypt, July 29, 2026, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video.
Social Media/SOCIAL MEDIA via Reuters

-ABC News' Ayat Al-Tawy

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