According to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), at around midday a group of small, armed boats attempted to intercept a tanker flying a US flag roughly 16 nautical miles north of Oman in the inbound Traffic Separation Scheme of the Strait of Hormuz. The armed boats hailed the vessel on very high frequency radio and requested that it stop and prepare to be towed. The ship ignored the communications and continued on its planned course. Iran’s semiofficial Fars news agency later cited unnamed Iranian officials claiming a vessel had entered Iranian territorial waters without the required permits, was warned, and subsequently left without any significant security event. Later in the day, at around 7:15 pm local time, a US F35 aircraft shot down an Iranian Shahed 139 drone that got too close to the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln.

U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi will resume nuclear talks on 6 February in Turkey, with the participation of regional representatives from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Iranian officials have been sending mixed messages regarding the upcoming negotiations. While Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said that Tehran is reviewing a range of diplomatic options to ease the ongoing escalation and expressed hope that the talks could yield results, Iran’s leader Khamenei blamed the U.S. CIA and Israeli Mossad for organizing deadly protests in which more than 30,000 people are believed to have died, and his senior adviser, Ali Shamkhani, said Iran is ready for war, stating that “those who start this war may not be the United States.” Iran’s outreach comes amid heightened tensions over its nuclear program and regional security, as a U.S. military buildup coincides with ongoing disputes over sanctions and uranium enrichment. Iran’s leadership is increasingly concerned that a U.S. attack could undermine its grip on power by pushing an already angry public back onto the streets.

At about 2 pm local time, several explosions were reported in multiple cities across Iran, including the southern port city of Bandar Abbas, Ahvaz, Tabriz, and Karaj, the holy city of Qom, and, according to some reports, also in the Parand suburb of Tehran. Iranian authorities rejected reports that the explosion in Bandar Abbas targeted and killed the commander of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) Navy, Ali Reza Tangestani, and stated that the blasts were caused by gas leaks at residential buildings. The explosions caused at least one fatality and injured at least ten other people. In an earlier explosion in the city of Ahvaz, near the border with Iraq, four people were killed. The explosion in the city of Qom also occurred at a residential building in the Pardisan neighborhood and injured seven people. Iranian officials also claimed that at least one other explosion was caused by the detonation of old military ammunition. Israel officially denied any involvement in the explosions, which were likely carried out by opposition elements in an attempt to revive anti-regime protests and draw the US into military intervention.

Security forces in the southwestern province of Balochistan killed 145 militants over a 40-hour period following a series of coordinated gun and bomb attacks that began on 31 January, the province’s chief minister said. The assaults across multiple districts, including Quetta, Gwadar, Mastung and Noshki, left 48 people dead, including 17 law enforcement personnel and 31 civilians and involved gunfire at hospitals, schools, banks and markets, with militants reportedly using civilians as human shields, officials said. The most active separatist faction, the Baloch Liberation Army, claimed responsibility, calling the offensive “Operation Herof,” and said it targeted both state forces and non-locals, including workers from other provinces and foreign energy firm staff, whom it accuses of exploiting the region’s resources. The group claimed to have taken hostages, claims that could not be independently verified. Pakistan’s military credited pre-operation intelligence with enabling a robust response, repelling attempts to seize strategic sites and killing 92 militants on 31 January and 41 on 30 January. According to the Pakistani military’s media affairs wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), terrorists belonging to India-sponsored Fitna al Hindustan (FAH) carried out the attacks, an allegation rejected by neighboring India. The United States condemned the violence, reaffirming its support for Pakistan and noting the Baloch Liberation Army’s designation as a terrorist group, while authorities tightened security and restricted movement in affected areas as they continued counter operations. The violence occurs against the backdrop of a long-running insurgency in Balochistan, where economic underdevelopment and grievances against central authorities have fueled unrest for decades.

At approximately 9:30 pm local time, 84-year-old Nancy Guthrie, the mother of Today Show co-host Savannah Guthrie, was last seen at her residence near East Skyline Drive and North Campbell Avenue in the Catalina Foothills area north of Tucson, Arizona. Family members dropped her off following an outing, according to the Pima County Sheriff’s Department. The following morning, a church friend alerted the family after she failed to arrive for a scheduled service, and relatives discovered she was missing, prompting them to contact authorities around noon on 1 February. Law enforcement found evidence of a crime at the home, including signs of forced entry and blood, leading investigators to treat the residence as a crime scene and to believe she was kidnapped from the property against her will, possibly during the night. The victim has limited mobility and requires daily medication, which she did not have with her, heightening concern for her safety. No suspects have been publicly identified, and no ransom demand has been reported. A search and criminal investigation involving local and federal agencies is ongoing, and authorities are asking the public for tips to help locate her (foxnews.com, 2 February 2026)