A reported US strike on Iran's strategic Qeshm Island is raising fresh questions over the fragile standoff between Washington and Tehran. The Wall Street Journal reports that the US secretly carried out an attack, while Iranian state media outlet IRNA reported explosions on the island, located near the strategically important Strait of Hormuz. In a separate development, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy claims it has captured a fourth US reconnaissance and decoy drone intact. Iranian officials say their electronic warfare unit took control of an MQM-170 drone near the Strait of Hormuz, alleging it was deployed to identify Iranian air defence systems along the Persian Gulf coast and over Qeshm Island. The developments come as US President Donald Trump signals that a deal with Tehran remains possible. Meanwhile, reports of the attack have pushed oil prices higher amid concerns over disruptions to global energy supplies.

China's military capabilities are back in the spotlight after footage showing a DF-26B ballistic missile striking a mock-up of a US aircraft carrier circulated widely online. The CCTV-branded video appears to show a missile launch followed by a massive explosion at a desert testing facility. The weapon has been identified online as China's DF-26B, an anti-ship variant of the Dongfeng-26 intermediate-range ballistic missile, capable of carrying conventional or nuclear warheads.