Shafaqna Pakistan: Current Developments Following Israel-US Strikes on Iran:
Iran warns of wider strikes following Trump’s power plant threat
Iran’s military renewed threats on Sunday against the region’s infrastructure after the US president vowed to “obliterate” power plants in the Islamic republic if the Strait of Hormuz is not swiftly reopened.
“Following previous warnings, if Iran´s fuel and energy infrastructure is violated by the enemy, all energy, information technology, and desalination infrastructure belonging to the US and the regime in the region will be targeted,” the Iranian military´s operational command Khatam Al-Anbiya said in a statement carried by Fars news agency.
The statement comes after Donald Trump gave Iran a 48-hour deadline to open the vital route in the Gulf to shipping traffic after it was effectively closed in response to the Middle East war.
Iran fires missiles at Diego Garcia, fails to hit base amid escalation: report
Iran fired two intermediate-range ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia but did not hit the US-UK military base in the Indian Ocean, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing multiple US officials.
One of the missiles failed in flight, while a US warship fired an SM-3 interceptor at the other, although it could not be determined if the interception succeeded, the newspaper said.
The Journal did not specify when the missiles were fired.
The White House, the British embassy in Washington, and the Ministry of Defence did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
In first, Iran launches long-range missiles beyond region, claims Israel
Iran has for the first time fired long-range ballistic missiles since the conflict began, Israeli officials said, in a move that widens the potential threat beyond the Middle East, even as a separate strike wounded dozens near Israel’s nuclear site.
Iran launched two 4,000-kilometre-range ballistic missiles at the US-UK military base Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir said. The Israeli military said it was the “first time” Iran had used long-range missiles since the United States and Israel began attacking Iran on February 28.
“These missiles are not intended to strike Israel. Their range reaches European capitals — Berlin, Paris, and Rome are all within direct threat range,” Zamir said in a statement.
A source at Britain’s defence ministry said the attack had occurred before the government gave specific authorisation on Friday for the US to use British military bases to carry out strikes on Iranian missile sites.
Saudi forces intercept missile as two others land outside Riyadh
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defence said Sunday three ballistic missiles had been detected around the capital.
“One missile was intercepted, while the other two fell in an uninhabited area,” a spokesperson for the ministry posted on social media.
Early Sunday morning, the Saudi Civil Defence issued a warning, before cancelling it seven minutes later after determining the danger had passed.
Trump issues 48-hour ultimatum to Iran over Strait of Hormuz
Donald Trump said on Saturday that Iran must fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours or face strikes on its power infrastructure, warning that the United States would target and “obliterate” major facilities if access to the key shipping route is not restored.
Britain deploys nuclear-powered submarine to Arabian Sea
A Royal Navy nuclear-powered submarine has arrived in the Arabian Sea as the United States and its allies maintain a significant naval presence in the region amid rising tensions with Iran.
The deployment comes alongside multiple US warships, including aircraft carriers and destroyers operating across the Arabian Sea and surrounding waters as part of a broader buildup of military assets in response to the escalating conflict.
Military analysts say the UK submarine is capable of carrying cruise missiles and is designed for long-range deployments, allowing it to operate quietly in contested waters.
The US Navy has also expanded its footprint in the region, with carrier strike groups and supporting vessels positioned to conduct air and maritime operations if required, according to recent defence movements reported in open sources.
The overall naval posture reflects heightened alert levels in and around the Arabian Sea as regional tensions continue to build.
Israel says 100 injured in Arad, Dimona strikes; Turkish media report 6 fatalities
Iranian missile strikes on two southern Israeli towns wounded more than 100 people on Saturday, medics said, after Israeli air defence systems failed to intercept the projectiles.
However, the Turkish media have reported at least six fatalities.
The two direct hits tore open the fronts of residential buildings and carved craters into the ground.
First responders said 75 people were injured in the town of Arad, 10 of them seriously, hours after 33 were wounded in nearby Dimona.
Iranian state TV said the missile attack on Dimona, which houses a nuclear facility, was a “response” to an earlier strike on its own nuclear site at Natanz.
Firefighters said that in “both Dimona and Arad, interceptors were launched that failed to hit the threats, resulting in two direct hits by ballistic missiles with warheads weighing hundreds of kilogrammes”.
The Israeli military said it would investigate the issue.
“The air defence systems operated but did not intercept the missile, we will investigate the incident and learn from it,” military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin wrote on X.
Israeli military says air defences failed to intercepted Arad missile strike
Israeli military officials said air defence systems were activated after a missile targeted the southern town of Arad, but the projectile was not intercepted and struck the area directly.
Firefighters said that in “both Dimona and Arad, interceptors were launched that failed to hit the threats, resulting in two direct hits by ballistic missiles with warheads weighing hundreds of kilograms”.
The Israeli military said it would investigate the issue.
“The air defence systems operated but did not intercept the missile, we will investigate the incident and learn from it,” military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin wrote on X.
After Iran missile attack on Arad, Netanyahu says battle will continue on all fronts
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed Saturday to continue striking Iran after what he called a “very difficult evening”, as two direct missile hits in southern Israel left scores wounded.
“This is a very difficult evening in the battle for our future,” Netanyahu said in a statement. “We are determined to continue striking our enemies on all fronts”.
Iranian missile slams into Israel’s Arad near Dimona, scores injured
Israeli firefighters said a “direct hit” by an Iranian missile on the southern Israeli town of Arad on Saturday caused extensive damage, with medics reporting around 30 people wounded.
Israeli media showed badly damaged buildings in Arad, about 25 kilometres (15 miles) northeast of Dimona, a town struck hours earlier, which houses a nuclear facility.
“In both Dimona and Arad, interceptors were launched that failed to hit the threats, resulting in two direct hits by ballistic missiles with warheads weighing hundreds of kilograms,” firefighters said.
The local fire service said there was “extensive damage”, with three buildings affected and a blaze sparked in one of them.
Magen David Adom first responders said they were taking 33 wounded people to the hospital, including four seriously injured, 12 moderately injured, and 17 lightly injured.
“This is a very severe scene,” emergency medical technician Yakir Talkar said in a statement, adding there were “many wounded with varying degrees of injury”.
The casualties in Arad came after an Iranian missile strike on Dimona left around 30 people wounded.
Iranian state TV said the missile attack on Dimona in the Negev desert was a “response” to an earlier strike on its own nuclear site at Natanz.
Israel plans bigger push in south Lebanon to crush Hezbollah
Israeli army Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir said the military’s war in Lebanon is aimed at disarming Hezbollah, with forces to serve as a “buffer between the enemy and the settlements”, Al Jazeera reports.
New plans have been approved for ongoing operations under Northern Command, pointing to an expansion of fighting in southern Lebanon.
Zamir tied the wider regional effort to Hezbollah’s role, stating, “Our actions in Iran are weakening Hezbollah. In Iran’s service, Hezbollah is destroying Lebanon and dragging it into war.”
The comments come as Israel keeps up airstrikes on southern Lebanon and Beirut’s Dahiyeh district, where more than 1,000 people have been killed, including over 100 children.
Iran fires missiles at Diego Garcia but misses base: WSJ
Iran fired two intermediate-range ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia but did not hit the US-UK military base in the Indian Ocean, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday, citing multiple US officials.
One of the missiles failed in flight, while a US warship fired an SM-3 interceptor at the other, although it could not be determined if the interception succeeded, the newspaper said. The Journal did not specify when the missiles were fired.
The White House and the British embassy in Washington and Ministry of Defence did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.
Tehran warns tourist sites could be targeted worldwide
Iran has threatened to expand its retaliatory attacks to include recreational and tourist sites worldwide, Al Jazeera reported citing a statement.
Iran’s top military spokesman, General Abolfazl Shekarchi, warned “parks, recreational areas and tourist destinations” worldwide won’t be safe for the country’s enemies.
The threat renewed concerns Iran may revert to using asymmetric attacks beyond the Middle East as a pressure tactic.
Iran open to allow Japan bound vessels to pass via Strait of Hormuz
Iran is ready to let Japanese-related vessels pass through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil supplies, Kyodo news reported, citing Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi.
Tehran has started talks with Tokyo about possibly opening the strait, Araqchi told the Japanese news agency in a phone interview on Friday.
Japan’s foreign and trade ministries and the Prime Minister’s Office did not pick up calls from Reuters seeking comment on the report.
Japan gets around 90% of its oil shipments via the strait, which Tehran has largely closed during the US-Israeli war on Iran. A spike in global oil prices sparked by the war, which enters its fourth week, has prompted Japan and other countries to release oil from their reserves.
Japan PM Takaichi told reporters after the Washington summit that she had briefed Trump on what support Japan could and could not provide in the strait under its laws.
New wave of strikes reported across Tehran, Karaj and Isfahan regions
At least two explosions were heard in the early hours of Saturday in the Iranian capital Tehran, Al Jazeera reported, citing a report from Iran’s Fars news agency.
Air strikes also hit Shahr-e Ray, a city just south of Tehran, and in Karaj, to the west of the city, Fars news said.
Further south, in the historic central city of Isfahan, a separate air strike was also reported.
There were no immediate reports of casualties on what damage was inflicted by the attacks.
Saudi Arabia says six more drones shot down
Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry has said that it intercepted and destroyed six more drones in the country’s eastern region.
US authorises temporary delivery, sale of oil originating from Iran
The United States on Friday gave a 30-day authorisation for the delivery and sale of crude oil and petroleum products of Iranian-origin loaded vessels, according to the US Treasury Department.
Qatar, Jordan, Egypt condemn Israeli attack on southern Syria
Qatar, Jordan and Egypt have expressed their strong condemnation of an Israeli attack on military infrastructure in southern Syria.
In a statement shared on social media, Qatar’s Foreign Ministry said Doha considered the attack “a flagrant violation of its sovereignty and a clear breach of international law and the Charter of the United Nations”.
Loud sounds in Dubai due to ‘successful interceptions’, say officials
Authorities in Dubai have confirmed that loud sounds heard in parts of the emirate were the result of “successful aerial interceptions”.
In a statement shared by the Dubai Media Office on social media, officials said the noises reported by residents were linked to air defence activity.
Trump calls for China, Japan to aid security in Strait of Hormuz
US President Donald Trump said on Friday a “lot of help” was needed to get safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz and that it “would be nice” if countries like China and Japan got involved.
Iran warns of self-defence as UK allows US to use bases for Hormuz strikes
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said the country will “exercise our legitimate right to self-defence” in response to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s decision to allow the US to use UK bases to carry out strikes on Iranian missile sites targeting shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump on Iran war: ‘I don’t want to do a ceasefire’
US President Donald Trump said on Friday he did not want a ceasefire in the US-Israeli war on Iran.
“Look we can have dialogue but I don’t want to do a ceasefire. You know, you don’t do a ceasefire when you’re obliterating the other side,” Trump told reporters.
Drone attack triggers fire at Kuwait oil refinery: state media
Drone attacks hit Kuwait’s Mina Al-Ahmadi oil refinery on Friday, causing several fires but no casualties, state media said, citing the national oil company.
“The Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery… was subjected early today to several hostile drone attacks, causing fires in some of its units,” the official Kuwait News Agency said, adding that “several refinery units were shut down”.
The Kuwaiti army later said that the fire was brought under control without any casualties.
“Two drones targeted one of the units in a refinery of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, resulting in a fire that was brought under control by the specialised teams, without any injuries,” it said on X.
Czech police launch probe after anti-Israel group claims arms company fire
Czech police are investigating a fire at an arms company on Friday as a potential terrorist attack, the interior minister said, after an anti-Israel group claimed responsibility.
The blaze, which did not cause injuries, broke out at a warehouse in a business park in the central city of Pardubice before dawn, the fire brigade said.
“We are examining all available information. There is a likely link to a terror attack,” Interior Minister Lubomir Metnar said on X.
Arms producer LPP Holding said in a statement that the fire was at its premises.
The Czech news agency CTK said LPP had recently unveiled plans to produce drones with Israel’s Elbit Systems, which has been the target of attacks in Europe.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Ali Khamenei denies Iran, allied forces carried out attacks on Turkiye, Oman
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Ali Khamenei has said that attacks against Turkiye and Oman were not carried out by Iran or its allied forces
In a statement posted on his Telegram channel, Khamenei said his country “firmly believe in strengthening relations with neighbouring countries”.
Hezbollah says it targeted Israeli soldiers across six south Lebanon villages
Hezbollah on Friday said it has targeted Israeli soldiers in six south Lebanon villages, in a series of statements, as Israeli ground forces attempt to push into southern Lebanon.
The group said it targeted a “gathering of Israeli enemy soldiers” in each of the six border villages, and a Merkava tank, as its war with Israel neared the three-week mark, having started on March 2 when the group launched rockets towards Israel in retaliation for the US-Israeli attack on Iran that assassinated Iran´s supreme leader.
China urges halt to Middle East conflict, voices concern about economic impact
China on Friday called for an end to the war in the Middle East, warning of the impact on global energy, shipping and trade, with the nearly three-week-old conflict showing no sign of slowing.
“History and reality have repeatedly shown the world that force is not the solution to problems and armed conflict will only breed new hatred,” Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry said when asked whether Beijing had a message for Muslim communities as they mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
The “still widening war” in the Middle East harms the common interests of all countries, Lin said, repeating Beijing’s position that all sides in the Gulf conflict should cease fighting and that energy flows from the region should be unimpeded.
Iran threatens to pursue US, Israeli officials anywhere, even on holiday
Iran’s military on Friday threatened to hunt down officials and army commanders from the United States and Israel even while they were vacationing or visiting entertainment centres.
“We are watching your cowardly officials and commanders, pilots and wicked soldiers,” armed forces spokesman Abolfazl Shekarchi said, quoted by state TV.
“From now on, based on the information we have on you, the promenades, resorts and tourist and entertainment centres in the world will not be safe for you either.”
France’s FM sees no near-term end to Middle East conflict
France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said he did not see an obvious end to the conflict in the Middle East in the short-term, but that France and its allies would continue to work towards trying to find a lasting solution.
“There is no obvious short-term way out of the ongoing regional escalation, which has in some ways been unfolding since October 7, 2023. But this must in no way serve as a pretext for inaction,” Barrot told reporters after meeting with Israeli counterpart Gideon Saar in Tel Aviv.
Over 100 arrested in Abu Dhabi for ‘posting misinformation’ during Mideast war
Police in the UAE’s Abu Dhabi emirate on Friday said that they arrested more than 100 people for filming and posting misinformation during the Middle East war.
The arrests come as Gulf countries crack down on footage and posts related to Iran’s attacks during the conflict triggered by US and Israeli strikes on the Islamic republic.
“Abu Dhabi Police announced the arrest of 109 individuals of various nationalities who filmed sites and incidents and circulated incorrect information via social media platforms during current events,” it said in a statement on X, adding that some had shared “misleading information”.
“Such actions are liable to incite public opinion and spread rumors among members of the community,” it added.
Ukraine deploys interceptor unit to protect civil infrastructures in Mideast
Ukraine has deployed interceptor units to protect critical and civil infrastructure in five Middle Eastern countries, Ukraine’s security council secretary Rustem Umerov said after a visit to the region.
“Work is also underway to expand coverage areas,” Umerov wrote on X.
Easing Iran oil curbs could ease supply crunch, says US official
Removing oil sanctions on stranded Iranian oil would get supplies to Asia within three or four days, US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Friday.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Thursday the US may soon remove sanctions on Iranian oil stranded on tankers at sea, as Washington seeks to curb prices soaring over Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
“Within days, within three or four days, that oil will start to arrive at ports,” Wright said in an interview with Fox Business Network.
Israeli military says striking Iranian region on Caspian Sea
Israel’s military said it was launching strikes in Iran’s Noor region on the shores of the Caspian Sea, as it kept up its bombing campaign after almost three weeks of war.
“The IDF has begun striking targets belonging to the Iranian terror regime,” the army said in a statement.
The fresh strikes come after Israel’s military said Thursday its jets had hit several Iranian naval vessels in the Caspian Sea.
Iran claims Israel plans to strike major regional energy facilities
The United States and Israel struck 16 Iranian cargo vessels in port towns on the Gulf on Friday, local media reported, saying the ships were burnt.
“Following the American-Zionist air attack, at least 16 cargo vessels belonging to citizens of the towns of Bandar Lengeh and Bandar Kong were completely burnt in the fire,” a local offical from the southern Hormozgan province said, quoted by the Tasnim news agency.
US, Israel strike 16 Iranian cargo vessels in port towns: Iran media
The United States and Israel struck 16 Iranian cargo vessels in port towns on the Gulf on Friday, local media reported, saying the ships were burnt.
“Following the American-Zionist air attack, at least 16 cargo vessels belonging to citizens of the towns of Bandar Lengeh and Bandar Kong were completely burnt in the fire,” a local offical from the southern Hormozgan province said, quoted by the Tasnim news agency.
Iran’s parliament speaker calls F-35 strike ‘moment of collapse of order’
Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said that the US F-35 was not just a fighter jet but a “statue of the US military’s invincibility and arrogance”.
“A theological symbol claimed to be invisible to any eye and superior to any power; but the hand of God is above their hands. This symbol was struck for the first time in the world, yet God cast. And this was the moment of the collapse of an order,” he posted on X.
Iran’s supreme leader honours martyred intelligence minister
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei has extended his sympathies to President Masoud Pezeshkian following the martyrdom of Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib in an Israeli attack earlier this week.
According to a Tasnim News Agency, Khamenei honoured Khatib as a “dedicated intelligence minister” and emphasised the need for officials to address the void left by his passing.
He also called on the intelligence ministry to reinforce measures against both domestic and foreign threats.
Iranian missile strikes oil refineries in Israel
Israel’s oil refineries reported that an Iranian missile struck electrical infrastructure in Haifa on Thursday, impacting a service facility.
The strike damaged external infrastructure owned by a third party that is essential to refinery operations. The company said operations are expected to resume within a few days.
Most production facilities are currently operating, while the remainder are in the process of being restarted. The company is examining the impact of the attack on both operations and financial results.
Allowing US to use bases is ‘participation in aggression’, Iran warns UK
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his British counterpart Yvette Cooper in a phone call that any US use of British bases would be seen as “participation in aggression” against the Islamic republic.
“These actions will certainly be regarded as participation in aggression and will be recorded in the history of relations between the two countries,” said Araghchi, according to a statement released Friday by the foreign ministry.
Macron says France to push UN framework for Strait of Hormuz security
French President Emmanuel Macron said his country planned to talk with permanent members of the UN Security Council about establishing a UN framework — once the ongoing exchange of fire had ended — to secure navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.
“We have initiated an exploratory process, and we will see in the coming days whether it stands a chance of succeeding,” he told reporters in Brussels following a European summit.
Israel begins wave of strikes on Tehran, targets regime infrastructure
The Israeli military said it launched a wave of strikes on Tehran early Friday, following Iranian missile fire at Israel overnight.
A military statement said Israeli forces had “begun a wave of strikes targeting infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime across Tehran”, without elaborating.
US quietly approves $7bn arms package for UAE, says report
The Trump administration has approved about $7 billion in weapons for the United Arab Emirates that the State Department is not required to announce to the public under rules governing US arms exports, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
That is in addition to arms sales to three Middle East countries worth more than $16.5 billion announced earlier on Thursday, the Journal said.
The unannounced deals include the sale of Patriot PAC-3 Missiles worth about $5.6 billion and CH-47 Chinook helicopters costing about $1.32 billion to the UAE, the Journal said, citing US officials, adding that those sales were not announced publicly because they expanded previously agreed arms deals.
EU urges moratorium on strikes on energy, water sites in Middle East
European Union leaders called on Thursday for a moratorium on military strikes on energy and water facilities in the Middle East, amid growing concerns about the impact of the Iran war on the global economy.
“The European Council calls for de-escalation and maximum restraint, the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure and full respect of international law by all parties,” the leaders of the EU’s 27 countries said in written conclusions of a summit in Brussels.
“In this regard, it calls for a moratorium on strikes against energy and water facilities,” they said.
Pezeshkian condemns US moves, calling them a turning point in global disputes
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has warned of a dangerous shift in international disputes following recent developments involving the United States and Iran.
“The nature of what he described as the Zionist regime amounts to state terrorism, and such developments mark a dangerous shift in international disputes,” he said in an X post.
He added that such developments could undermine global legal norms and set a precedent that weakens established rules, warning that if the international community fails to respond firmly, the consequences could spread beyond the region and affect stability worldwide.
Iran’s uranium enrichment capacity obliterated, says Netanyahu
Iran no longer has the capacity to enrich uranium or make ballistic missiles after 20 days of US-Israeli air attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a news conference on Thursday.
“We are winning, and Iran is being decimated,” Netanyahu said, noting that Iran’s missile and drone arsenal is being massively degraded and will be destroyed.
“What we’re destroying now are the factories that produce the components to make these missiles and to make the nuclear weapons that they’re trying to produce,” Netanyahu said.
Netanyahu did not provide evidence for his claim that Iran no longer had the capacity to enrich uranium.
Iran’s nuclear programme was the focus of mediated talks that ultimately collapsed, with the US and Israel launching an air attack on Iran on February 28. Iran has fired missiles back at Israel and other Gulf countries while also limiting tankers from using the Straight of Hormuz.
Iran strikes Israeli oil facility in Haifa
An Iranian missile attack hit Israel’s Oil Refineries in the northern port city of Haifa but did not cause “significant damage”, Israel’s Energy Ministry said on Thursday.
Energy Minister Eli Cohen said power was briefly disrupted, with electricity restored to most of those who were affected.
“The damage to the power grid in the north is localised and not significant,” Cohen said. “Also, in the barrage towards the north, there was no significant damage to Israeli infrastructure sites.”
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had targeted refineries in Haifa, Israel’s third-largest city, and in Ashdod, in the country’s south, “along with a range of security targets and military support centres of the Zionist regime”, which it said “were hit by pinpoint missiles”.
There was no immediate word on whether the Ashdod refinery was hit.
Netanyahu agreed not to attack Iran’s energy fields: Trump
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday he had told Benjamin Netanyahu not to attack Iranian energy fields, adding that the Israeli Prime Minister had agreed not to.
“I told him, ‘Don’t do that’, and he won’t do that,” he told reporters in the Oval Office.
Not looking at deploying more soldiers to Middle East: Trump
US President Donald Trump suggested he was not looking at deploying more soldiers to the Middle East amid the Iran war.
“I’m not putting troops anywhere,” Trump said, asked by a reporter whether he was planning to send more service members to the region. “If I were, I certainly wouldn’t tell you. But I’m not putting troops. We will do whatever is necessary to keep the price.”
UK to continue standing with Qatar, Gulf allies: PM Starmer
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer told Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani Britain would continue to stand with Qatar and its gulf allies, during a call between the two following Iranian attacks on Qatar’s gas infrastructure.
“The prime minister began by condemning the Iranian strikes on Qatari energy facilities overnight,” a readout of the meeting issued by Starmer’s office said.
“He (Starmer) said that such reckless attacks on critical infrastructure risk pushing the region further into crisis and worsening the severe economic impacts being felt globally, including in the UK.
“Discussing the ongoing defensive support the UK is providing to our partners in the region, the prime minister was clear that the UK would continue to stand with Qatar and all our allies in the Gulf.”
US authorises billions in military equipment sales to Middle East countries
The US State Department on Thursday approved potential arms sales to three Middle East countries worth more than $16.5 billion as the war with Iran intensifies.
The State Department approved the potential sale of missiles, drones, radar systems and F-16 munitions and upgrades to the United Arab Emirates for a combined total of more than $8.4 billion, it said in statements.
Also approved were possible sales of lower-tier air and missile defense sensor radars to Kuwait for an estimated cost of $8 billion and aircraft and munitions support to Jordan for an estimated cost of $70.5 million.
The sales follow Iran’s attacks on energy infrastructure in response to Israeli attacks on its gas facilities, which marked the biggest escalation of the nearly three-week war, causing gas prices to surge and oil prices to rise further.
PM Shehbaz condemns recent attacks on Jordan
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday held a telephone conversation with King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan on the occasion of Eid ul Fitr.
During their warm conversation, the prime minister extended Eid greetings and felicitations to His Majesty, the Royal Family and the brotherly people of the Kingdom of Jordan. King Abdullah II reciprocated these sentiments.
The two leaders discussed the evolving situation in the Middle East. The prime minister expressed deep concern over the ongoing hostilities in the region.
Pakistan reaffirms strong solidarity with Turkiye, Gulf countries, says PM
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Thursday he reaffirmed Pakistan’s steadfast solidarity with Turkiye as well as with other brotherly Gulf countries, and conveyed readiness to support efforts aimed at de-escalation and dialogue.
In a post on X, he said, “Spoke with my dear brother, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of the Republic of Turkiye, this evening and conveyed warm Eid ul Fitr greetings to him, his family, and the brotherly people of Turkiye.
“During our most cordial exchange, we discussed the rapidly evolving situation in the Middle East.
“I strongly condemned the attacks on our brotherly country Turkiye as well as other brotherly countries in the region.
“We urged maximum restraint and stressed upon the need for resolving differences through dialogue and diplomacy, he added.
Turkish FM advices Iran to avoid spreading war
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Thursday that Turkiye was conveying “friendly” advice to Iran to avoid spreading its war with the United States and Israel to the Middle East, and added Tehran’s attacks on regional countries were unacceptable.
Speaking in Doha, Fidan said Israel was the main perpetrator of the war but that Iran had a “historic responsibility” not to attack regional countries.
He said Ankara was in contact with both Washington and Tehran to understand where they stood, and that Turkiye’s efforts to end the conflict would continue.
US, Israel have different objects behind Iran war, says US spy master
American and Israeli objectives for the war on Iran are not the same, US Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said on Thursday, with Israel focused on disabling Iran’s leadership and US President Donald Trump focused on destroying Iran’s ballistic missile program and navy.
“The objectives that have been laid out by the president are different from the objectives that have been laid out by the Israeli government,” Gabbard told the House intelligence committee’s annual hearing on worldwide threats to the United States.
“We can see through the operations that the Israeli government has been focused on disabling the Iranian leadership. The president has stated that his objectives are to destroy Iran’s ballistic missiles launching capability, their ballistic missile production capability, and their navy,” she said.
India condemns strikes on Gulf energy facilities as fears over supplies rise
India condemned strikes on energy facilities in the Gulf as “unacceptable” on Thursday, warning they risk worsening global energy flows.
Iran hit the world’s largest liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Qatar on Thursday in retaliation for an Israeli attack on its South Pars gas field.
The assault on Qatar’s Ras Laffan facility has stoked fears of wider disruptions to fuel supplies, including for India, which relies on Qatar for over 40% of its LNG needs — crucial for power generation, industry, fertiliser production and household cooking.
The latest strikes were “unacceptable and need to cease”, India’s foreign ministry said, reiterating New Delhi’s call to avoid targeting energy infrastructure.
“Recent attacks against energy installations in different locations across this region are… deeply disturbing and only serve to further destabilise an already uncertain energy scenario for the whole world,” it said in a statement.
China urges de-escalation, offers help on energy crunch
China called for an end to conflict in the Gulf and said the safety of waterways should not be disturbed on Thursday, adding that it was ready to work with Southeast Asia to address energy shortages as oil markets reel from supply shocks.
“The situation in the Middle East has disrupted global energy security,” Lin Jian, spokesperson at the Chinese foreign ministry, told a regular news conference when asked if Southeast Asian nations had reached out to China for help.
“The countries involved should immediately cease military operations to prevent regional instability from having a greater impact on global economic development,” Lin said, adding that the safety of waterways should not be “disturbed”, without naming the Strait of Hormuz.
“China is willing to strengthen coordination and cooperation with Southeast Asian countries to jointly address energy security issues,” Lin added.
Trump says Israel attacked Iran’s South Pars gas field without US and Qatari involvement
US President Donald Trump said late on Wednesday the attack on Iran’s South Pars gas field was carried out by Israel, and the US and Qatar were not involved in it.
“The United States knew nothing about this particular attack, and the country of Qatar was in no way, shape, or form, involved with it, nor did it have any idea that it was going to happen,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Iran state TV says Qatar gas facility struck again
Iranian state television said Thursday that a missile struck Qatar’s main gas facility again, hours after it was hit in a destructive strike that Doha said caused extensive damage.
“Qatar’s Ras Laffan refinery Hit by Missile Again, burning,” the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting posted on Telegram.
Riyadh condemns Iranian attack on energy infrastructure
Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud has said that Iran’s attack aimed at Saudi energy facilities was “a blatant attempt at blackmail”.
The country said earlier that it intercepted and destroyed four ballistic missiles that were launched towards Riyadh just ahead of a meeting of regional and Islamic foreign ministers in the Saudi capital.
FBI investigating US security official who quit over Iran war
Joe Kent, the top US security official who resigned over the war in Iran, is under an FBI investigation for allegedly leaking classified information, Semafor reported on Wednesday citing three sources.
The investigation pre-dates his departure as the head of the National Counterterrorism Center on Tuesday, Semafor added.
Macron urges moratorium on strikes hitting civilian infrastructure
France’s President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday he spoke with the emir of Qatar and US President Donald Trump following strikes on gas production facilities in Iran and Qatar.
Macron urged all parties to immediately implement a “moratorium on strikes targeting civilian infrastructure”, especially water and energy facilities.
UAE suspends Habshan gas operations
Operations were suspended at the United Arab Emirates’ Habshan gas facility as authorities responded to two incidents of fallen debris following the successful interception of a missile, Abu Dhabi’s media office said on Thursday.
The Bab oil field was also targeted, the office added. No injuries were reported.
Iran issued an evacuation warning for several oil facilities across Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, stating they could be targeted by strikes “in the coming hours”, according to Iranian state media on Wednesday.
Putin laments Larijani’s martyrdom, calls him ‘true friend’ of Russia
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has sent a message to Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei after the killing of Iranian security chief Ali Larijani, Al Jazeera reported, citing a news report.
The note relayed Putin’s condolences over Larijani’s assassination, Russia’s state-owned TASS news agency reported, noting that the Russian president “repeatedly” met Larijani.
“The bright memory of him as a true friend of our country, who contributed so much to the development of the comprehensive strategic partnership between Moscow and Tehran, will remain in our hearts,” Putin wrote.
Trump open to targeting more energy sites depending on Iran’s response
US President Donald Trump does not want any further strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure following Israel’s attack on the South Pars gas field on Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing US officials.
Iran’s president condemns attacks on Iranian energy infrastructure
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has strongly condemned attacks on the country’s energy infrastructure, describing them as aggressive acts that will achieve no gains for the “Zionist–American enemy and its supporters”.
Iran says Israel’s ‘recklessness’ risks escalation, urges global response
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, has said that Israel is showing disregard for the consequences of what he described as its “heinous methods of terror”, warning that such actions risk further escalation.
Iran unleashes revenge strikes after Larijani assassination
Iran on Wednesday warned of a “decisive and regrettable” response following the killing of security chief Ali Larijani in an Israeli air strike, as the Revolutionary Guards said they had launched missiles at central Israel.
Saudi Arabia to lead talks with Arab, Islamic states on security today
Saudi Arabia will host a consultative meeting this evening with foreign ministers from several Arab and Islamic countries to discuss ways to bolster regional security and stability, the kingdom’s foreign ministry said.
Australian troops safe after Iranian projectile strikes near UAE air base
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said an Iranian projectile on Wednesday hit near its Al Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, and that all Australian defence personnel were safe.
“There was minor damage to an accommodation block and a medical facility due to a small fire that was created as a result of that projectile hitting on a road leading up to that base,” Albanese told reporters in Tasmania.
Fire on US carrier Ford prompts port stop during Iran operations
The US aircraft carrier Gerald R Ford, deployed in operations against Iran, is expected to temporarily pull into port after a fire on board, US officials said on Tuesday, the 18th day of the war with Tehran.
The carrier, America’s newest and the world’s largest, is currently located in the Red Sea. It is expected to temporarily go to Souda Bay on the Greek island of Crete, the two officials said.
The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, did not say how long the Ford was expected to remain in Crete.
Bushehr nuclear plant hit, no damage reported, says IAEA
A projectile struck the premises of Iran’s Bushehr nuclear power plant on Tuesday evening, with no damage to the facility or injuries to staff reported, Iran told the UN nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency, which confirmed the incident on X.
Director General Rafael Grossi reiterated his call for maximum restraint during the conflict to prevent the risk of a nuclear accident.
Iranian missile strike kills two in Tel Aviv, say Israeli medics
Two people were killed near Tel Aviv during an Iranian missile barrage, Israeli emergency responders said on Wednesday, after police reported they were responding to “several” impact sites around the city and its surrounding areas.
“We saw smoke rising from a building with extensive damage and shattered glass. From among the debris, we saw two unconscious casualties, with no pulse and not breathing, with severe injuries to their bodies,” the Magen David Adom emergency responder said in a statement, adding medics had pronounced the two people dead at the scene.
The emergency responder had earlier released a statement saying the two patients were found in serious condition, while police had confirmed reports of “the fall of munition fragments in the Tel Aviv District.”
Drones target US embassy as explosions rock Baghdad
A drone attack targeted the US embassy in Baghdad, and an explosion was heard in the area, security sources said early on Wednesday, a day after a series of strikes.
Security sources had said on Tuesday that rocket and drone attacks had targeted the embassy, triggering sirens, with an explosion heard near the diplomatic compound.
At least three explosive drones also targeted a US diplomatic facility near Baghdad International Airport, activating C-RAM air defence systems, the sources said on Tuesday.
Tehran-backed militias have been attacking US interests in Iraq in retaliation for the US-Israeli war on Iran that began on February 28.
PIA stops Fujairah flights for 48 hours, cites security reasons
Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has suspended its flight operations to Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates for the next 48 hours due to security reasons, a company spokesperson said on Wednesday.
The airline will operate flights only to Al Ain in the UAE during this period, the spokesperson added.
Tarar says Pakistan ready to mediate Iran conflict, ensure stability
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar says Islamabad is ready to help mediate regional tensions and de-escalate the situation involving Iran, according to Al Jazeera.
He said Pakistan is willing to engage with regional partners to help maintain stability and promote dialogue.
Iran’s NSC confirms Larijani martyred alongside son, bodyguards
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council on Tuesday confirmed the death of its chief, Ali Larijani, after Israel said it had killed him in an air strike.
“The pure souls of the martyrs embraced the purified soul of God’s righteous servant, Martyr Dr Ali Larijani,” the council said, adding that his son and his bodyguards had died with him.
Russia boosting Iran war effort with satellite intel, drone tech: WSJ
Russia has been expanding its intelligence sharing and military cooperation with Iran, providing satellite imagery and improved drone technology.
It was reported by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The move is aimed at aiding Tehran’s targeting of US forces in the region, according to the WSJ report.
Reuters, however, said it could not immediately verify the report.
Iran calls US war ‘unjust’, labels nuclear claim a ‘big lie’
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei has accused the United States of spreading a “big lie” to justify its war against Tehran.
“The #UnitedStates authorities are repeating a ‘big lie’—namely, ‘#Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear weapon’—to justify their illegal war against Iran,” he said in a statement on X.
UN chief says diplomacy must prevail as Middle East violence continues
The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, has called for an immediate end to the war in the Middle East, urging all parties to prioritise diplomacy.
Trump condemns Western partners’ inaction as energy crisis worsens
Several US allies rebuffed Donald Trump’s call on Monday to send warships to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, drawing criticism from the US president, who accused Western partners of ingratitude after decades of support.
The US-Israeli war on Iran is in its third week with no end in sight. The critical Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flow, remains largely closed off, raising energy prices and fears of inflation.
The conflict has already imposed economic costs on US allies, who were not consulted before the airstrikes on Iran and who have endured months of harsh criticism and bellicose threats from Trump since he returned to office.
A number of US partners, including Germany, Spain and Italy, said they had no immediate plans to send ships to help reopen the strategic waterway, which Iran has effectively shut with drones and naval mines.
“We lack the mandate from the United Nations, the European Union or NATO required under the Basic Law,” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in Berlin, adding that Washington and Israel had not consulted Germany before launching the war.
Trump, speaking at a White House event in Washington, said many countries had told him they were prepared to help, but voiced frustration with some long‑standing allies.
“Some are very enthusiastic about it, and some aren’t,” he said, without offering specifics. “Some are countries that we’ve helped for many, many years. We’ve protected them from horrible outside sources, and they weren’t that enthusiastic. And the level of enthusiasm matters to me.”
Israel unleashes “wide-scale wave of strikes” Tehran, Beirut
Israel’s army said Tuesday it had launched a “wide-scale wave of strikes” in the Iranian capital, Tehran, as well as strikes against Hezbollah in the Lebanese capital, Beirut.
“The IDF (Israel Defence Forces) has begun a wide-scale wave of strikes against Iranian terror regime infrastructure across Tehran,” the military posted on Telegram.
“Additionally, the IDF has begun an additional wave of strikes on Hezbollah terror infrastructure in Beirut.”
US-China summit postponed as Trump prioritises Iran conflict
US President Donald Trump has asked China to delay his summit with Xi Jinping by around a month while he deals with the war in the Middle East.
Trump had been due to visit Beijing from March 31 to April 2 to reset ties and extend a US-China trade truce, but the trip has been upended by the Iran conflict.
“Because of the war I want to be here, I have to be here, I feel. And so we’ve requested that we delay it a month or so,” Trump told reporters at the White House when asked about the China trip.
The US leader insisted that he had a “very good relationship” with China and was not trying to play games by postponing the highly anticipated trip to the rival superpower.
“There’s no tricks to it either, it’s not like ‘oh gee, I’m waiting.’ It’s very simple. We got a war going on. I think it’s important that I be here,” added Trump.
Trump had first suggested the summit could be delayed in an interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, in which he said a decision could depend on whether China would help reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
“We’d like to know before (the summit),” Trump told the FT.
Trump says without US strikes, Iran nukes would have triggered WWIII
US President Donald Trump has claimed that if he didn’t “decimate” Iran’s nuclear programme, “they would have had a nuclear weapon within one month after that bombing took place, and they would have used it on first Israel and then the Middle East.”
“A nuclear war that would have evolved into World War III, and more important, this is a war that there would have been nothing left,” Trump has said, adding, “We’ve done a great thing.”
The US president has said Iran should not have a nuclear weapon, reiterating that Tehran has “no navy … no air force … no anti-aircraft weapons … no leadership”.
“My biggest problem is I have no idea who we’re talking to because nobody ever heard of any of these people, they’re all dead,” he has said, referring to Washington and Tehran speaking to each other amid the conflict.
“We did a job for the world, not a job for us, for the whole world,” he has emphasised.
Operations paused at UAE’s Shah gas field following drone attack
Operations at the Shah gas field in the UAE have been suspended following a fire caused by a drone attack, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said.
“Abu Dhabi authorities and relevant response teams have contained and brought under control a fire that broke out at Shah gas field, caused by a drone attack,” the government said on X.
It added that no injuries have been reported and that a damage assessment is underway.
‘Significant’ Israeli ground offensive in Lebanon ‘must be averted’: West
The leaders of five Western countries said in a joint statement Monday that a large-scale Israeli ground operation in Lebanon “must be averted”.
“A significant Israeli ground offensive would have devastating humanitarian consequences and could lead to a protracted conflict,” said the joint statement from the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom.
The statement said that the leaders were “gravely concerned by the escalating violence in Lebanon” and called for “meaningful engagement by Israeli and Lebanese representatives to negotiate a sustainable political solution”.
Earlier on Monday Israel´s military said it had launched “limited” ground operations against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon.
At least 200 US troops reported injured in over two weeks of war with Iran
The number of US troops wounded in the war against Iran has risen to about 200, the US military said on Monday, as the conflict entered its third week.
The US military’s Central Command said the vast majority of those wounded had suffered minor injuries and 180 troops had already returned to duty. Ten of the injuries are serious, it said.
Troops had been injured in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, Iraq, and Israel, Central Command added.
Thirteen US troops have been killed since Iran launched strikes against US military bases following the start of the conflict on February 28.
Iranian attacks have also struck diplomatic missions, hotels and airports, and damaged energy infrastructure in Arab Gulf states.
Last week, Reuters reported that as many as 150 US troops had been wounded in the conflict, highlighting the danger from Iranian strikes.
Araghchi denies recent contact with Witkoff, says last talk was pre‑war
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Monday that his last contact with US envoy Steve Witkoff was before the US and Israel launched their war on Iran, contradicting an earlier media report that a direct communications channel between the two men was reactivated in recent days.
“My last contact with Mr Witkoff was prior to his employer’s decision to kill diplomacy with another illegal military attack on Iran,” the Iranian foreign minister wrote on X.
“Any claim to the contrary appears geared solely to mislead oil traders and the public.”
Oil stocks may be released by IEA members if needed, says agency chief
Member countries of the International Energy Agency could release more emergency oil stocks later “as and if needed” as there will still be over 1.4 billion barrels remaining in their emergency oil stocks despite the largest release of reserves in history already agreed, Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Monday.
“Despite this huge release, we still have a lot of stocks left. This current stock release, once it is completed, will reduce the emergency stocks in IEA countries only by around 20%,” Birol said in a video statement.
Drone hits building in northern emirate of UAE
A drone attack caused a fire in a building in the north of the UAE on Monday, authorities said, amid a slew of nationwide attacks that disrupted Dubai’s airport, hit an oil hub and killed a civilian.
“A building in the emirate of Umm Al Quwain was targeted by a drone, causing a fire but resulting in no injuries,” the Umm Al Quwain Government Media Office said in a statement published by the official WAM news agency, without naming the building.
WHO evacuates six hospitals in Iran amid US-Israeli strikes
A World Health Organisation (WHO) official on Monday said that the US-Israeli war on Iran has led to the evacuation of six hospitals but that so far the system appeared to be holding up and authorities have not sought emergency relief from the global health agency.
“The primary healthcare and the health infrastructure of Iran is quite good and robust, and they’re able to accommodate the casualties as of now,” WHO regional director Hanan Balkhy told Reuters.
Balkhy said the WHO has contingency plans to move in emergency supplies should the situation deteriorate further.
One risk is that “black rain” caused by leaking toxic compounds from damaged oil facilities adds an additional burden on the healthcare system because of rising respiratory infections, she added.
UN mission declares Israeli airstrike on Iran prison a war crime
The head of a UN investigation on Monday said that an Israeli air strike on a prison last year was a war crime, and warned of risks of further repression following the current US-Israeli bombings.
More than 70 people were killed when Israel struck Tehran’s Evin prison last June during an air war with Iran, Iranian authorities have said. The jail, known for holding political prisoners, has also been damaged in the latest US-Israeli air strikes, raising fears for the detainees, who include a British couple.
“We found reasonable grounds to believe that, in carrying out the airstrikes on Evin prison, Israel committed the war crime of intentionally directing attacks against a civilian object…,” Sara Hossain, chair of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, told the UN Human Rights Council. She said 80 people including one child and eight women had been killed.
Her latest report, based on interviews with victims and witnesses, satellite imagery and other documents, was presented to the Council on Monday.
Iran asks release of oil tankers seized by India, say sources
Iran has asked India to release three tankers seized in February as part of talks seeking the safe passage of Indian flagged or India bound vessels out of the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz, three sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.
Indian authorities seized the three Iran linked tankers near Indian waters alleging they had concealed or altered their identities and were involved in illegal ship to ship transfers at sea.
Tehran has also sought supplies of certain medicines and medical equipment, according to one of the sources, an Iranian official.
US Treasury Secretary Bessent says more fuel ships passing through Strait of Hormuz
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said authorities are observing increased fuel tanker traffic moving through the Strait of Hormuz, including vessels linked to India and Iran. He also noted that some Chinese ships appeared to have exited the area.
In an interview to CNBC, Bessent believes that Iran may be allowing a “natural opening” in shipping flows through the strategic chokepoint and said the US is fine with that development for now.
On global energy markets, Bessent warned that oil supply could face a deficit of roughly 10 to14 million barrels, highlighting potential pressure on global supply. However, he added that the US has not intervened in oil markets and indicated uncertainty about the legal authority for such intervention.
Iran says ready to continue war ‘wherever it may lead’
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday said that Tehran had shown it was ready to take the war with Israel and the United States as far as necessary.
“I think by now they have learned a good lesson and understood what kind of nation they are dealing with, one that does not hesitate to defend itself and is ready to continue the war wherever it may lead, and take it as far as necessary,” said Araghchi during a weekly foreign ministry briefing.
UAE’s Fujairah port resumes oil loading following attack: sources
Oil loading operations have resumed at the United Arab Emirates port of Fujairah, two sources told Reuters on Monday, after it was halted earlier following a drone attack that triggered a fire in the emirate’s petroleum industrial zone.
Civil defence teams were working to control the blaze, the Fujairah government media office said in a statement, adding that no casualties were reported.
The suspension of loading operations marks the second major disruption at the vital bunkering hub in recent days. Operations at Fujairah had resumed on Sunday following a separate drone strike over the weekend.
Reopening Strait of Hormuz won’t be easy task, says Starmer
Britain is working with allies on a collective plan to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restore freedom of navigation in the Middle East but it will not be easy, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday.
“Ultimately, we have to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to ensure stability in the (oil) market. That is not a simple task,” Starmer told reporters.
“So we’re working with all of our allies, including our European partners, to bring together a viable collective plan that can restore freedom of navigation in the region as quickly as possible and ease the economic impact.”
In second call since Mideast war Saudia Arabia, UAE leaders discuss Iran attacks
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Emirati President Mohamed bin Zayed discussed on Monday Iran’s retaliatory strikes on the Gulf and expressed solidarity and sympathy in their second call since a public row in late December.
The de facto Saudi ruler and the UAE’s president discussed “the continued and blatant Iranian attacks targeting countries in the region,” according to a statement published by Emirati news agency WAM.
“Both sides stressed the need for the immediate cessation of military escalation… underscoring the importance of prioritising serious dialogue and diplomatic means,” it added.
Tehran warns Strait of Hormuz cannot be used against Iran
Iran has said the Strait of Hormuz will not remain open to any country seeking to use the waterway to launch attacks on the country, Al Jazeera reported.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said the passage of ships through the strait would take place under special conditions because of what he described as insecurity created by Israel and the United States in the region.
He said Iran’s armed forces controlled the passage and that no country would be allowed to use it to strike Iran.
Baghaei added that Iran, as a coastal state, had the right to take necessary measures in the Strait of Hormuz to safeguard national security and prevent what he described as aggressors from misusing the waterway.
He also said Iran had historically acted as the guardian of safe passage through the strait, but blamed the United States and Israel for creating the current situation.
Over 3,350 Israelis wounded since start of Iran war
At least 3,369 people, including civilians and military personnel, have been injured and hospitalised in Israel since the start of the US-Israel war on Iran, Al Jazeera reported.
According to Israel’s Health Ministry, the total includes 142 people injured in the past 24 hours.
IDF says launching new wave of strikes across Iran
Israel’s military said on Monday it had launched a broad wave of strikes on the Iranian cities of Tehran, Shiraz and Tabriz, more than two weeks into the US-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic.
“The IDF has just begun a wide-scale wave of strikes targeting infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime in Tehran, Shiraz, and Tabriz”, the military said in a statement.
Iranian FM Araghchi thanks the Pakistan for support as war against US, Israel rages
Iranian FM Araghchi thanks the Pakistani government for solidarity and support with Iran as the war between the US-Israel and Iran intensifies.
Flights temporarily stopped at Dubai airport after drone fire
Dubai Civil Aviation Authority has announced a temporary suspension of flight operations at Dubai International Airport “as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of all passengers and staff,” the Dubai Media Office said on X.
“Travellers are advised to contact their airlines for the latest updates, and further announcements will be made through official channels,” it said in the post.
The suspension follows a drone attack that hit a fuel tank near the airport. Civil defence teams have contained the blaze, and no injuries were reported.
Australia will not send warships to Strait of Hormuz, says minister
Australia will not send naval ships to assist in reopening the Strait of Hormuz, a government minister said on Monday.
“We won’t be sending a ship to the Strait of Hormuz. We know how incredibly important that is, but that’s not something that we’ve been asked or that we’re contributing to,” Catherine King, a member of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s cabinet, said in an interview with state broadcaster ABC.
Around a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been effectively shut for weeks since the US-Israeli war against Iran began on February 28.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that the Trump administration plans to announce as early as this week that multiple countries have agreed to form a coalition that will escort ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
Australia has already provided aircraft to assist with the defence of the United Arab Emirates after a request from the country.
Tehran warns Dubai, Doha residents to evacuate over alleged US troop hideouts
Iran’s Media Operations Centre warned Sunday that US forces are hiding in parts of Dubai and Doha and may be targeted, urging civilians to evacuate, Press TV reported.
The warning came hours after Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview that Tehran has “ample evidence” US bases in the Middle East have been used to target the country.
“We have ample evidence of this: satellite imagery and electronic surveillance demonstrate that US bases in this region are being used for attacks,” Araghchi told Arabic-language news outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, claiming that missiles had been launched from the UAE to attack Kharg Island, a vital Iranian oil hub.
Trump demands nations secure Strait of Hormuz as ‘Iran talks stall’
President Donald Trump said the United States is demanding that other countries help protect the Strait of Hormuz, adding that Washington is holding discussions with several nations about policing the vital shipping route for oil and gas.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said countries benefiting from the waterway should also play a role in ensuring its security.
The US president also said Washington is in contact with Iran but expressed doubt that Tehran is prepared for serious negotiations to end the conflict.
“We are talking to Iran, but I don’t think they are ready,” Trump said.
Trump says Nato allies must help unblock Hormuz or face ‘consequences’
US President Donald Trump has warned that Nato faces a “very bad” future if US allies fail to assist in opening up the Strait of Hormuz, in an interview with the Financial Times published on Sunday.
Trump told the FT he could also delay his summit with China’s President Xi Jinping later this month as he presses Beijing to help unblock the crucial waterway.
“It’s only appropriate that people who are the beneficiaries of the Strait will help to make sure that nothing bad happens there,” Trump told the newspaper.
UK PM speaks with Trump and Canada’s Carney on Strait of Hormuz
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer discussed the need to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to end disruption to global shipping with US President Donald Trump, a Downing Street spokeswoman said on Sunday.
Starmer also spoke with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, with the leaders discussing the impact of the strait’s continued closure on international shipping, the spokeswoman said.
Starmer and Carney agreed to continue talks on the Middle East conflict at a meeting on Monday, the spokeswoman added.
Macron tells Iran attacks on French interests ‘unacceptable’
French President Emmanuel Macron said Sunday he had told Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian it was “unacceptable” to target French interests, after an Iranian-designed drone killed a French soldier in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.
Arnaud Frion, 42, was killed and six other French soldiers were wounded on Thursday evening in a drone attack in the Erbil region of Iraqi Kurdistan.
He is the first French soldier to die since the start of the war in the Middle East.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard dares Trump to send US Navy to Hormuz
Brigadier General Ali Mohammad Naini, spokesman for the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), dismissed US claims that Iran’s naval capabilities had been destroyed.
“The Strait of Hormuz is under Iran’s full control, and any aggression will be met with a decisive response,” he said, according to the semi-official Tasnim News Agency.
Naini also challenged US President Donald Trump’s claim that Iran’s navy had been destroyed.
Iran warns neighbours over US bases as drone hits facility in Kuwait
Iran on Sunday warned other countries against getting involved in its war with the United States and Israel, as Rome reported a base in Kuwait hosting US and Italian troops was hit by a drone attack.
It also came after Tehran sent a stern message to its neighbours that it had “ample evidence” that US bases on their territory were being used to launch attacks.
Iran´s warning to keep out of the war came a day after President Donald Trump had called on other countries to work with the US to secure the vital Strait of Hormuz, whose closure since the conflict broke out has thrown energy markets into turmoil.
Arguing that the US security umbrella in the region was “inviting rather than deterring trouble”, Tehran’s top diplomat Abbas Araghchi on X urged neighbouring countries “to expel foreign aggressors”.
“This war will end when we are certain that it will not be repeated and that reparations will be paid,” Araghchi told Arabic-language news platform Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
The drone attack at the Ali Al Salem airbase in Kuwait destroyed an unmanned aircraft belonging to Italy, but caused no casualties, the Italian military said.
Rome’s foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, sought to play down the attack — the second on an Italian base in the Middle East this week — insisting: “We are not at war with anyone.”
Indian FM welcomes talks with Iran to restart Hormuz shipping route
Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has hailed direct talks with Iran as the most effective way to restart shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, in an interview published on Sunday.
“I am at the moment engaged in talking to them and my talking has yielded some results,” Jaishankar told the Financial Times, adding that talks are ongoing. “If it is yielding results for me, I would naturally continue to look at it.”
“From India’s perspective, it is better that we reason with Iran and we co-ordinate and we get a solution than we don’t,” he added.
India’s Jaishankar said there was no “blanket arrangement” with iran for indian-flagged ships and that “every ship movement is an individual happening”.
Hezbollah says advanced missile targets Israeli air base south of Tel Aviv
Iran-backed Hezbollah said its fighters targeted an Israeli air base south of Tel Aviv on Sunday, as Israel has kept up strikes on Lebanon.
In a statement, Hezbollah said it targeted the Palmachim air base, around 140 kilometres (85 miles) from the Lebanese-Israeli border, with “an advanced missile”, after claiming several other attacks on sites in northern Israel and on Israeli troops in Lebanon near the frontier.
Iran war to end in ‘next few weeks’, says US energy secretary
US Energy Secretary Christ Wright said in an interview with ABC News on Sunday that the Iran conflict will end in “the next few weeks” with a rebound in oil supplies and lower energy prices to follow.
Israel mulls terminating gas deal with Lebanon
Israel’s government is considering cancelling a gas agreement with Lebanon, GLZ radio reported on Sunday, citing the country’s energy minister.
EU weighs expanding Aspides naval mission to Strait of Hormuz
EU foreign affairs ministers will discuss potentially a widening of the EU Aspides naval mission to the Strait of Hormuz, reported Financial Times.
Iran claims ‘ample evidence’ US bases in Mideast used in strikes
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview published Sunday that Tehran has “ample evidence” US bases in the Middle East have been used to target the Islamic republic.
“We have ample evidence of this: satellite imagery and electronic surveillance demonstrate that US bases in this region are being used for attacks,” Araghchi told Arabic-language news outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, claiming that missiles had been launched from the UAE to attack Kharg Island, a vital Iranian oil hub.
Pope Leo decries ‘atrocious violence’ in Iran war, urges ceasefire
Pope Leo made an impassioned plea on Sunday for an immediate ceasefire in the expanding Iran war, lamenting “atrocious violence” that he said had killed thousands of non-combatants and caused suffering across the region.
“For two weeks, the peoples of the Middle East have been suffering the atrocious violence of war,” the pope said at his weekly Angelus prayer in St Peter’s Square.
“In the name of Christians in the Middle East and of all women and men of good will, I appeal to those responsible for this conflict: Cease fire!” Pope Leo said.
“Thousands of innocent people have been killed, and many more have been forced to leave their homes. I renew my closeness to all those who have lost their loved ones in the attacks,” he said.
Leo added that the situation in Lebanon — ravaged by a war between Israel and the Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah — was also a cause of “great concern”.
“I hope for paths of dialogue that can support the country’s authorities in implementing lasting solutions to the serious crisis currently underway, for the common good of all the Lebanese people,” the pope said.
Falling debris from Iranian missile hits US consul’s residence building in Israel
A fragment of an Iranian missile struck a residential building used by the US consul in Israel, Israeli media reported on Sunday.
The reports did not immediately provide further details on the incident.
Israel rejects reports of ceasefire talks with Lebanese government
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Sunday that the government was not planning to hold direct talks with Lebanon in the coming days and had not told the United States it was running low on missile interceptors.
Semafor also reported that Israel had informed Washington it was running critically low on ballistic missile interceptors.
Asked about the two reports, Saar said: “For the two questions, the answers is no.”
Israel approves funds for military purchases amid Iran war
Israel has approved an $827 million emergency budget allocation for military purchases, Israeli media reported on Sunday, as the war with Iran entered its third week.
The 2.6-billion-shekel package was approved over the weekend by cabinet ministers during a telephone meeting, the daily Haaretz reported.
It will be used for “security purchases” and to address “urgent needs”, it said, without providing further details.
“An urgent and immediate need has arisen to provide an operational response, including the acquisition of munitions, the procurement of advanced weapons systems and the replenishment of critical combat stocks,” the document said.
The document added that the move constituted “an exceptional emergency decision intended solely to address needs arising from the conduct of the fighting”.
Not ready to agree deal to end Iran war: Trump
Donald Trump warned that he is not ready to seek a deal to end the war with Iran, as US ally Israel launched a new wave of strikes Sunday and Tehran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened to hunt down and kill the Israeli leader.
The US president, in an interview with NBC News, said he thought Tehran was keen to come to the table but that Washington would fight on for better terms and might bomb targets on Iran’s oil hub Kharg Island once, again, “just for fun”.
“Iran wants to make a deal, and I don’t want to make it because the terms aren’t good enough yet,” Trump told NBC News, warning that US forces would step up strikes on the Iranian coast north of the strait to clear a path for oil shipments to resume.
Iran’s new supreme leader, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, has — in a written statement — vowed to keep Hormuz closed. But Trump dismissed this and suggested his foe might not even be in control, saying: “I don’t know if he’s even alive. So far, nobody has been able to show him.”
Iranian FM tells French counterpart countries must refrain from escalating conflict
Iran’s foreign minister told his French counterpart that countries must refrain from any action that could escalate the conflict in the Middle East, Abbas Araqchi said in comments posted on his Telegram account on Sunday.
This comes after US President Donald Trump called upon various states, including France, to deploy vessels to help secure shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been blocked by Iran following US-Israeli strikes on its territory.
About a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes through the strait, a narrow passage of water between Iran and Oman.
UK urges de-escalation of Middle East war
UK Energy Security Minister Ed Miliband on Sunday said it was essential to calm the situation in the Middle East after US President Donald Trump called for other nations to help protect world oil supplies passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
The “plan now has to be to de-escalate the conflict”, Miliband told the BBC.
Araghchi says Iran open for regional investigative panel to probe recent attacks
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that Tehran is ready to form an investigative committee with regional countries to examine the recent attacks on various targets, Reuters reported, citing Fars News Agency.
The minister said that Iran has not targeted any civilian or residential areas in regional nations, adding that it is possible Israel is behind attacks on civilian targets in Arab countries.
In addition, Iranian media cited Araghchi saying that a US-made drone, Lucas, may be behind some of the attacks on regional targets.
He said that diplomatic communications with Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman and neighboring countries continue.
“Tehran welcomes any initiative that leads to a complete end to the war.”
US-Israeli attacks martyr over 200 children, more than 220 women: ministry
Iran’s Fars news agency has said that more than 200 children have been martyred in US-Israeli attack, reported Al Jazeera.
The death toll includes at least 202 children and 223 women, including three pregnant mothers, said the health ministry.
Meanwhile, 12 of the children killed were less than five-year old.
Israel begins ‘wide-scale’ wave of strikes on western Iran: IDF
Israel’s military said it began a broad wave of strikes on western Iran on Sunday, more than two weeks into the US-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic.
“A short while ago, the IDF began a wide-scale wave of strikes targeting infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime in western Iran,” the army said in a statement.
South Korea to review Trump’s call to send warships to Strait of Hormuz
South Korea’s presidential office said that it would carefully review US President Donald Trump’s calls on allies to send warships to secure the Strait of Hormuz.
“We will communicate closely with the US regarding this matter and make a decision after careful review,” the office said in a statement.
Iran arrests 20 for attempting to cooperate with Israel
Twenty people were arrested in northwestern Iran for attempting to cooperate with Israel, reported Tasnim news agency, citing a statement by the West Azerbaijan province’s prosecutor office.
They are accused of sending location details on Iran’s military and security assets to Israel.
Israel has launched a new phase of its assault on Iran, targeting security checkpoints based on tip-offs from informants on the ground, a source briefed on Israel’s military strategy told Reuters last week.
IRGC says Strait of Hormuz not ‘militarily’ closed but firmly monitored
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards navy chief has rejected US claims about Iran’s naval capabilities and operations in the Gulf, saying the Strait of Hormuz remains under Tehran’s control.
Alireza Tangsiri, head of the naval arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), said American officials had previously made “false claims” about the destruction of Iran’s navy and about escorting oil tankers through regional waters.
US military identifies six personnel killed in refuelling aircraft crash
The Pentagon has released the identities of six US crew members killed during the crash of a refuelling aircraft in western Iraq earlier this week, which authorities said was not caused by “hostile fire.”
The KC-135 aerial refuelling aircraft crashed in western Iraq on Thursday, bringing the number of US troops killed in operations against Iran to at least 13. A second aircraft involved in the operation landed safely.
The Pentagon said the six members killed in the crash were: John Klinner, 33, of Auburn, Alabama; Ariana Savino, 31, of Covington, Washington; Ashley Pruitt, 34, of Bardstown, Kentucky; Seth Koval, 38, of Mooresville, Indiana; Curtis Angst, 30, of Wilmington, Ohio; and Tyler Simmons, 28, of Columbus, Ohio.
The first three were members of the US Air Force, while the latter three were stationed with the US Air National Guard.
IRGC claims missile attack on US troops stationed at Saudi Prince Sultan Air Base
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said late on Saturday they had launched a missile salvo at US forces stationed at a major base in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Kharj.
The Guards said the Prince Sultan Air Base was being used to equip “F-35 and F-16 fighter jets and is the storage place for fuel tankers”.
While there has been no immediate confirmation of the attack from Saudi Arabia, the kingdom´s defence ministry said earlier it intercepted six ballistic missiles headed towards Al-Kharj.
Saudi Arabia has previously said it has intercepted missiles and drones launched at the base during the ongoing Middle East war.
Riyadh is a close ally of the United States and hosts a large number of its troops. It has repeatedly been attacked by Iran, including strikes on its massive oil industry, but has so far not deployed its military against Iran.
Saudi authorities have previously condemned Iran’s attacks on its Gulf neighbours as “reprehensible”.
Amid Iran war, US orders non-emergency personnel to leave Oman
The US State Department said on Saturday it had ordered non-emergency government employees and the family members of government employees to leave Oman, citing safety risks as the US-Israeli war on Iran continues.
Iran warns UAE civilians to leave ports, docks amid US strike claims
Iran on Saturday called on civilians in the UAE to evacuate ports, docks and “American hideouts,” saying US forces had targeted Iran from those areas.
The UAE denied that strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island overnight Friday had come from its territory.
Calling any facility associated with the United States a “legitimate target,” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps urged all U.S. industries to move out of the region.
Strike on Isfahan refrigerator and heater factory kills at least 15: Fars
At least 15 were killed when an airstrike hit a refrigerator and heater factory in the central Iranian city of Isfahan, the semi-official Fars news agency said on Saturday.
Since Israel and the United States began air attacks on Iran on February 28, the war has killed more than 2,000 people, mostly in Iran, according to reports from governments and state media.
Trump signals more strikes on Kharg Island, says he’s not ready to make a deal
US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States may carry out more strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub, saying that while Tehran appears ready to make a deal to end the conflict, “the terms aren’t good enough yet.”
He said the US strikes had “totally demolished” most of Kharg Island, telling NBC News that “we may hit it a few more times just for fun.”
Iran warns US to move industries out of region
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned the United States on Saturday to move industries out of the region and urged people to stay away from factories in which the US holds shares, Iranian state media said.
The warning follows strikes over the past 48 hours that killed several civilian workers at non-military factories in Iran, Iran’s Press TV said.
Operations at refinery in Iraq’s Erbil suspended after drone strike
Operations at the Lanaz refinery in the northern Iraqi city of Erbil have been suspended until a fire caused by a drone strike on Saturday is extinguished, said provincial officials.
Work will remain suspended until the extent of the damage is assessed, officials at the Kurdistan Region’s Ministry of Natural Resources told Reuters.
Iran calls on neighbours to ‘expel foreign aggressors’
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called for neighbouring countries to expel US forces from the Middle East.
The US security umbrella in the region “has proven to be full of holes and inviting rather than deterring trouble,” the top diplomat posted on X, adding that Iran called on its neighbours “to expel foreign aggressors”.
Iran launches fresh wave of missiles at Israel
Iran has launched a new wave of missiles towards Israel, Iranian state TV reported.
Tehran has launched repeated salvos at Israel since the Middle East war began with US-Israeli strikes on Iran on February 28.
US citizens should leave Iraq immediately: embassy
US citizens should leave Iraq immediately, the US embassy in Baghdad said in an updated security alert, following an overnight missile attack on the embassy’s building.
“US citizens choosing to remain in Iraq are strongly encouraged to reconsider in light of the significant threat posed by Iran-aligned […] militia groups,” the embassy said.
Kuwait reports damage, injuries from drone attack near US base
Two drones targeted an airbase in Kuwait housing US military staff, injuring Kuwaiti personnel and causing damage, the defence ministry said on Saturday.
“Three members of the armed forces sustained minor injuries” after the attack on Ahmed Al-Jaber Air Base, spokesperson Brigadier General Saud Al-Otaibi said in a statement. The base is near Camp Arifjan, a major US facility.
‘No problem’ with Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, says Iran’s foreign minister
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told MS Now in an interview on Saturday that there is no problem with Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, after US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth claimed on Friday that he was wounded.
Iran says it will deploy missile with ‘greater destructive power’ against US, Israel
Iran’s defence ministry spokesperson said they will increase of usage of “upgraded weapons” during the ongoing war against US and Israel, reported state media.
Different types of ballistics and other missiles with “greater destruction power” and “greater precision” will be used in the near future.
‘Virtually no damage’ to planes targeted in Saudi Arabia, says Trump
US President Donald Trump on Saturday said four of five tanker planes targeted by an attack in Saudi Arabia suffered “virtually no damage.”
IRGC says it targeted US forces across Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Kuwait
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards navy chief, Admiral Alireza Tangsiri, said Iranian forces launched “several consecutive waves” of attacks targeting US forces at military bases across the region, Al Jazeera reported, citing Iranian state media.
Tangsiri said the targets included Abu Dhabi’s Al Dhafra Air Base, Kuwait’s Al-Adiri base and Bahrain’s Sheikh Isa base.
He added that the initial targets included Patriot radar systems, aircraft and aviation fuel storage tanks.
Trump urges other nations to send ships to secure Strait of Hormuz
US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged other nations to send ships to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, the critical chokepoint for global oil supplies disrupted by the Mideast war.
Trump, who has said the United States will soon start escorting tankers through the strait, posted on Truth Social that “Many countries, especially those who are affected by Iran’s attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait, will be sending War Ships, in conjunction with the United States of America, to keep the Strait open and safe.”
The US president added: “Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others, that are affected by this artificial constraint, will send Ships to the area.”
Iran issues evacuation orders for residents near major UAE port areas
Iran warned resident to leave areas near Jebel Ali port in Dubai, Khalifa port in Abu Dhabi, and the Fujairah port.
US military says it executed ‘large-scale’ strikes on Iran’s Kharg Island
United States forces executed a large-scale precision strike on Kharg Island in Iran on Friday night, the US Central Command said on Saturday.
“US forces successfully struck more than 90 Iranian military targets on Kharg Island, while preserving the oil infrastructure,” Centcom said.
The strike destroyed naval mine storage facilities, missile storage bunkers, and multiple other military sites, the US military said in a post on X.
President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to strike the oil infrastructure of Iran’s Kharg Island hub, unless Tehran stopped attacking vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
France says leadership is open to facilitate ceasefire between Israel, Lebanon
France is ready to facilitate ceasefire discussions between Israel and Lebanon in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said in a post on X on Saturday.
He said that the Lebanese leadership was open to direct discussions with Israel and called on Israel to “seize this opportunity to launch ceasefire discussions, to find a lasting solution and to allow the Lebanese authorities to put in place their engagements for Lebanon’s sovereignty.”
He called on Israel to stop its offensive and on Hezbollah to stop its actions.
“Everything must be done to stop Lebanon from descending into chaos,” he said.
War with Tehran escalating, entering ‘decisive phase’, says Israeli minister
Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz said the war with Tehran was entering a “decisive phase”, praising US strikes on what Washington called military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub.
“The global and regional struggle against Iran, led by US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is escalating and entering the decisive phase that will continue as long as necessary,” Katz told military top brass in a televised statement.
Indian vessels permitted to sail via Strait of Hormuz, says envoy
Iran has allowed some Indian vessels to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, Tehran’s Ambassador to India Mohammad Fathali said on Saturday, confirming a rare exception to the blockade that has disrupted global energy supplies.
Fathali did not confirm the number of vessels that have been provided safe passage. He was speaking at broadcaster India Today’s conclave in New Delhi.
Since the United States and Israel launched a bombing campaign on Iran, Tehran has largely halted traffic through the strait, which runs past its coast and through which around 20% of global oil and seaborne liquefied natural gas is supplied.
Macron expresses gratitude to Iraq’s PM for ‘measures’ to safeguard France forces
President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday said he had expressed gratitude to the Iraqi prime minister to taking measures to protect French forces, after a drone strike killed a French soldier in Iraq’s Kurdistan region.
“Yesterday, I spoke with the Iraqi prime minister, Mohammed Shia al-Sudani,” Macron said on X.
“I thank him for his commitment to getting to the bottom of this attack and to strengthening measures to protect our forces, who are present in Iraq to fight, alongside the Iraqis, against the scourge of terrorism.”
Smoke rises near energy facility in UAE
Smoke was rising from the direction of a major UAE energy installation hours after the US struck Iran’s Kharg Island oil hub.
Clouds of dark black smoke were seen coming from Fujairah, which is home to a major port where Iranian attacks have already targeted an oil storage and trading hub. The port is also home to a major oil export terminal.
Local authorities, in an online statement, said debris falling after a successful drone interception had caused a fire, without specifying the location.
Iran urges residents in UAE to keep away from ports
Iran’s military warned that it considers ports in the United Arab Emirates to be legitimate targets and urged residents to avoid them, in a statement carried by state TV.
Tehran “considers it its legitimate right to defend its national sovereignty and territory by striking American enemy missiles located in ports, docks and US military hideouts” in the UAE, the military’s central operational command, Khatam Al-Anbiya, said.
The statement urged civilians to “evacuate” port areas.
Iranian army chief issues warning on US attack on IRIS Dena
Commander-in-Chief of the Iranian Army Amir Hatami has said that the attack on IRIS Dena, sunk by US attack in the Indian Ocean, “will not go unanswered”, reported Al Jazeera.
“The crew of the Dena destroyer had completed a peaceful mission and were targeted while on their way back to Iran,” Hatami said as quoted by the IRNA news agency.
“The name of Dena and the sacrifice of its crew will remain a symbol of courage and dedication in Iran’s naval history. The army will defend Iran’s maritime borders and strengthen its naval power with even greater determination,” he added.
Iran decries damage to 56 cultural sites in US-Israeli attacks
Iran Culture Ministry has said that US-Israeli strikes have caused “serious structural damage” to at least 56 cultural sites, including museums and historic monuments, reported Al Jazeera.
In a statement carried by the ISNA news agency, the ministry also said Tehran province tops the list, with 19 damaged monuments.
It added that 12 prominent monuments have also been damaged in Iran’s Kurdistan province.
Oil loading operations suspended at UAE’s Fujairah
Some oil loading operations in the port of UAE’s Fujairah, outside the Strait of Hormuz, have been suspended after a drone attack and fire, reported Bloomberg News citing people familiar with the matter.
‘Iran to allow vessels to pass via Strait of Hormuz conditionally’
Iran is considering allowing oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz in limited numbers, subject to the condition that they trade in Chinese yuan, CNN reported, citing a senior Iranian official.
Iran threatens regional energy assets after Trump’s strike claim
The Iranian armed forces said Saturday that any attack on Iran’s oil and energy infrastructure will lead to attacks on energy infrastructure owned by oil companies cooperating with the United States in the region, Iranian media reported.
The warning came after President Donald Trump said that the United States destroyed military targets on Iran’s main oil hub of Kharg Island. The island serves as the export terminal for 90% of Iran’s oil shipments.
US strikes Iran’s Kharg Island, Trump warns against blocking Strait of Hormuz
US President Donald Trump said on Friday that the United States carried out strikes against “every military target” on Iran’s Kharg Island export hub.
“For reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.”
US media reports Trump rejected Putin offer to move Iran’s uranium to Russia
US President Donald Trump rejected an offer by Russian President Vladimir Putin to move Iran’s enriched uranium to Russia as part of a deal to end the US and Israel’s war against Tehran, Axios reported on Friday.
Putin made the proposal in a phone call with Trump this week, and the Republican president turned it down, the report added, citing sources.
2,500 US Marines en route to Middle East on three ships: reports
The United States is sending more Marines and ships to the Middle East two weeks into the US-Israeli campaign against Iran, US media reported on Friday.
The Wall Street Journal quoted US officials as saying the Japan-based USS Tripoli and its attached Marines are en route to the region, while The New York Times reported that some 2,500 Marines aboard as many as three ships were headed for the Middle East.
CNN said it was a Marine Expeditionary Unit — which typically includes some 2,500 Marines and sailors — that was being deployed.
The Journal said the request for the additional Marines was made by US Central Command, which is responsible for US troops in the Middle East, and approved by Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth.
There are already Marines in the region supporting operations against Iran, the newspaper added.
Brent crude rallies 11% weekly, climbs 42% since Iran war started
The price of a barrel of Brent crude has soared by more than 42% since US-Israeli strikes on Iran plunged the oil-rich Middle East into war, market data showed Friday.
The cost of Brent, the international benchmark for oil, has surged from $72.48 on February 27 to $103.14 at Friday’s close. This also marked an 11% rise over the week.
The West Texas Intermediate, meanwhile, has rocketed more than 47% since the start of the conflict, to $98.71.
B-2 stealth bombers launch mission under Operation Epic Fury, says CENTCOM
A video posted by United States Central Command shows B-2 Spirit stealth bomber aircraft taking off to carry out a mission under Operation Epic Fury.
In the post on X, CENTCOM said the bombers were launched to deliver long-range firepower aimed at eliminating what it called a threat from the Iranian regime and preventing it from rebuilding its capabilities in the future.
The video shows the stealth bombers departing a runway at night, though CENTCOM did not disclose the location or further operational details.
Qatar says strategic water reserves sufficient for four months, food reserves for 18 months
Qatar’s strategic water reserves are sufficient for four months while the Gulf country’s food security reserves are sufficient for 18 months, Qatar’s interior minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani said on Friday.
Sanaullah hopes PM’s Iran-Saudi talks will ease regional tensions
Stressing the need to defuse ongoing tensions in the Middle East, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif paid a brief emergency visit to Saudi Arabia following a telephone call with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian.
Speaking on Geo News programme Naya Pakistan, Sanaullah said: “The prime minister had a conversation with the Iranian president yesterday and went to Saudi Arabia in this regard.”
Pakistan has intensified diplomacy following the ongoing Middle East escalation — triggered by US and Israeli attacks on Iran, martyring its supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Responding to a question, Sanaullah said: “Our leadership is fully in contact with Muslim countries [to de-escalate the regional tensions].”
He noted that Islamabad and Riyadh had signed a defence pact, adding that Pakistan would comply with the agreement.
The PM’s aide hoped that the situation in the Middle East would improve following the prime minister’s contacts with Iran and Saudi Arabia.
To another query, Sanaullah asked: “If Saudi Arabia is not reacting itself, why would it express such a desire to others?”
Bodies of 84 Iranian sailors to be flown home from Sri Lanka along with crew stranded in India
The bodies of 84 Iranian sailors killed in a US submarine attack on a warship off Sri Lanka’s coast last week will be repatriated on a plane that an Indian source said will also stop in India to take home crew members from another ship.
Iranian warship IRIS Dena was sunk by a torpedo from a US submarine on March 4 while it was returning from a naval exercise in India amid the US-Israeli war on Iran.
Two other ships that also participated in the exercises sought shelter: the IRIS Lavan, which docked in India, and the IRIS Booshehr which docked in Sri Lanka.
Israel launches new phase of assault on Iran
Israel has launched a new phase of its assault on Iran, targeting checkpoints manned by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) based on tip-offs from informants on the ground, a source briefed on Israel’s military strategy told Reuters.
The targeting of checkpoints secured by IRGC personnel suggests an intensification of Israel’s efforts to weaken Iran’s elite forces as it carries out joint aerial bombardment with the United States.
Israel says its war objectives include destroying Iran’s military and nuclear capabilities but also “creating the conditions” for Iranians to overthrow their government, though Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said this is an uncertain prospect.
Explosions, smoke reported near Tel Aviv after alert of Iranian missiles
Smoke could be seen rising from two locations around Israel’s commercial hub Tel Aviv on Friday, AFP journalists said, after blasts were heard following a warning that missiles were fired from Iran.
Israel’s Magen David Adom first responders said they had “searched locations where reports were received; no casualties were located”.
An AFP journalist at the scene saw thick black smoke billowing into the sky from what appeared to be a burning warehouse at one of the locations near a motorway. Emergency crews were at the scene.
The explosions were heard after air raid sirens had been sounded in Tel Aviv.
Trump says he thinks Putin is helping Iran
US President Donald Trump said he thinks Russian President Vladimir Putin may be helping Iran a “little bit” in an interview with Fox News Radio that aired on Friday.
“I think he might be helping him (Iran) a little bit, yeah, I guess. And he probably thinks we’re helping Ukraine, right?,” Trump told “The Brian Kilmeade Show”.
UN’s Antonio Guterres requests $325m to support Lebanon aid efforts
The United Nations on Friday launched a flash appeal for $325 million to help Lebanon grapple with the humanitarian fallout of a war that has seen more than a seventh of its population flee their homes.
“Solidarity in words must be matched by solidarity in action,” said UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who announced the campaign from Beirut.
Trump warns more intense strikes on Iran next week
US President Donald Trump said in an interview aired on Friday US forces would be carrying out intense strikes against Iranian targets in the coming days, as the war that has cascaded throughout the Mideast region headed into its third week.
“We’re going to be hitting them very hard over the next week,” Trump told Fox News Radio.
UN chief lands in Beirut for ‘solidarity’ visit people of Lebanon
UN chief Antonio Guterres said he had arrived in Beirut on Friday for a “solidarity” visit to Lebanon, where the Middle East war has claimed more than 687 lives since March 2.
“I have just landed in Beirut for a visit of solidarity with the people of Lebanon. They did not choose this war. They were dragged into it. The UN and I will spare no effort in striving for the peaceful future that Lebanon and this region so richly deserve,” the United Nations secretary-general said on X.
US has burned through ‘years’ of munitions since start of Iran war, reports FT
The Trump administration has burned through “years” of critical munitions since the start of the war with Iran, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing sources.
The rapid depletion of weaponry included advanced long-range Tomahawk missiles, the newspaper said.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report.UK foreign secretary travels to Saudi Arabia to show support
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has arrived in Saudi Arabia after Iranian missiles attacks inside the Kingdom.
She said she was there “to demonstrate the UK’s steadfast support for our regional allies facing reckless Iranian aggression”.
The Foreign Office said she was expected to discuss “cooperation with regional partners to ensure continuity of oil supply” and “highlight the strength of the UK–KSA defence relationship”.
Russia and China slam US for blocking dialogue on Iran sanctions
The US and their Western allies have clashed with Russia and China over Iran’s nuclear intentions at a UN Security Council meeting on Thursday.
Russia and China unsuccessfully tried to block a discussion about a committee established to oversee and enforce UN sanctions on Iran. They were overruled 11-2 with two abstentions.
US envoy to the United Nations Mike Waltz accused Moscow and Beijing of seeking to protect Tehran by blocking the work of the so-called 1737 Committee.
“All member states of the United Nations should be implementing an arms embargo against Iran, banning the transfer and trade of missile technology, and freezing relevant financial assets,” Waltz said.
Russia’s UN ambassador, Vassily Nebenzia, accused the US and its allies of whipping up “hysteria surrounding supposed plans Iran had to get a nuclear weapon” that were never corroborated by IAEA reports.
China’s representative, Fu Cong, called Washington the “instigator” of the Iranian nuclear crisis and said it had “resorted to blatant use of force against Iran during the negotiation process, which rendered the diplomatic efforts futile”.
US military says aircraft lost in Iraq during conflict with Iran
US Central Command said on Thursday that it was carrying out rescue efforts after losing a military aircraft in “friendly airspace” in Iraq during the ongoing conflict with Iran.
“Two aircraft were involved in the incident. One of the aircraft went down in western Iraq, and the second landed safely,” the military said, adding that the incident was not the result of hostile or friendly fire.
IRGC urges Gulf people to report locations of US soldiers
The IRGC’s intelligence agency has called on citizens across the region to find the 11,000 US soldiers who are residing in hotels and private accommodations, Al Jazeera reported, quoting the Tasnim news agency.
The call claimed that the US wanted to “use our Arab brothers as human shields”.
“We are forced to identify and target the Americans. Therefore, it is better not to shelter them in hotels and to stay away from their locations,” it said.
“It is your Islamic duty to accurately report the hiding places of American terrorists and send the information to us on Telegram,” it added.
Six French troops injured in drone strike on joint base in northern Iraq
At least six French soldiers were wounded in a drone attack targeting a joint Peshmerga–French base in the Makhmour area of Iraq, Erbil Governor Omed Koshnaw said in a statement on Thursday.
A security source familiar with the incident also confirmed the attack.
Iranian missiles fired at Israel as alerts ring out
Iran has launched a series of missiles at Israel, with Haaretz reporting sirens sounding in central Israel and Tel Aviv, Al Jazeera reported, quoting local media reports.
The Israeli military said its defence systems were operating to intercept the threat.
Israel’s Home Front Command said a missile hit an open area in central Israel.
Iran military warns US, allies over attacks on energy infrastructure
A spokesperson for the Iranian military’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters has said that it will set fire to oil and gas facilities across the region in the event of even a “slight” attack on its energy infrastructure or ports, Al Jazeera reported, quoting Tasnim news agency.
“We warn the aggressor government and all its allies that the slightest attack on the energy infrastructure and ports of the Islamic Republic of Iran will be met with a crushing and devastating response from us,” the spokesperson said.
They added that in the event of such an attack, “all oil and gas infrastructure in the region,” which the US and its Western allies have interests in, will be “set on fire and destroyed.”
Netanyahu backs joint US assault on Iran, delivers warning to new supreme leader
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday issued a veiled threat to kill Iran’s new supreme leader as he sought to use his first press conference since the start of the war to defend his joint military assault with the US against Iran.
Netanyahu said that Iran was “no longer the same” after nearly two weeks of US-Israeli air bombardment and that Tehran had suffered blows to its elite Revolutionary Guards Corps and Basij paramilitary force.
Netanyahu vowed to keep hitting Lebanon’s Hezbollah after the Iran-backed group opened fire on March 2 to avenge the killing of Iran’s supreme leader at the start of the war.
US Navy may escort vessels through Strait of Hormuz with allies: Bessent
The US Navy, possibly alongside an international coalition, could escort vessels through the Strait of Hormuz when it becomes militarily feasible, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Sky News in an interview on Thursday.
Modi speaks on phone to Iran’s President Pezeshkian
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, he said in a post on X.
“The safety and security of Indian nationals, along with the need for unhindered transit of goods and energy, remain India’s top priorities,” he said in the post.
TotalEnergies output down 15% due to Middle East.war
TotalEnergies said it had shut down 15% of its total oil and gas production due to the war in the Middle East.
“Production has been shut down or is in the process of shutting down in Qatar, Iraq and UAE offshore, representing approximately 15% of our total output,” the French oil and gas major said.
It said however that higher oil prices were more than offsetting the loss of Middle East production.
Ships can pass through Strait of Hormuz if they coordinate with Iranian navy: ministry
Many ships can still pass through the Strait of Hormuz if they coordinate with the Iranian navy, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said in comments carried by Mehr news agency.
“After the current events, generally we cannot return to conditions before February 28 (start of current Iran war)… as we have understood how important the safety of the Strait of Hormuz is, and so did the others,” the spokesperson added.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei says Iran will seek compensation from enemy with destroying their assets
Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said Iran will seek compensation from enemies or destroy their assets accordingly.
In his first message after assuming the office as supreme leader, he said that the ‘resistance front’ is an inseparable part of the Islamic revolution’s values.
Iran believes in friendly ties with neighbours, says supreme leader
“We believes in friendship with neighbours and only targeted the bases, and we will inevitably continue,” says supreme leader
Iran’s supreme leader threatens to keep Strait of Hormuz closed
Iran’s leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, said in his first message that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz should be continued as a tool to pressure the enemy.
Trump says stopping a nuclear Iran more important than oil prices
US President Donald Trump on Thursday said that stopping Iran from getting nuclear weapons was more important to him than controlling oil prices.
“The United States is the largest Oil Producer in the World, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money. BUT, of far greater interest and importance to me, as President, is stopping an evil Empire, Iran, from having Nuclear Weapons, and destroying the Middle East and, indeed, the World,” said Trump in a post on his Truth Social platform.
Israel issues new evacuation orders for southern Lebanon
The Israeli military issued new evacuation orders for southern Lebanon on Thursday which nearly doubled the zone it said residents should leave, saying they should move north beyond the Zahrani river.
The new zones, marked in red in a map published on X by a military spokesperson, mean that the Israeli military has now ordered people out of 10% of Lebanese territory.
Germany urges diplomatic solution to Strait of Hormuz issue
A solution to security issues in the strategically important Strait of Hormuz can only be achieved diplomatically, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said on Thursday.
“A reliable and sustainable solution can only be achieved through diplomatic channels, and that is why I believe … that we should pool our common interests from the Gulf region, but also here in the neighbourhood,” he said during a visit to Turkiye.
Historical monuments struck in Israeli bombing in Iran, says Araghchi
Israel is bombing Iranian historical monuments dating as far back as the 14th century. Multiple UNESCO World Heritage Sites have been struck.
It’s natural that a regime that won’t last a century hates nations with ancient pasts. But where’s UNESCO? Its silence is unacceptable.
Turkish FM says Israel’s attacks must end before Lebanese state collapses
Turkiye’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan called Thursday for an end to Israel’s bombardment of neighbouring Lebanon “before it collapses”.
“The government of (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu is at the heart of every crisis in the region,” he told a news conference with his German counterpart Johann Wadephul.
“Israel, pursuing an expansionist policy, is exploiting the current war to bring its dirty war into Lebanon,” he added.
“Israel’s attacks must end before the Lebanese state collapses,” he said, warning that if that were to happen, it would “profoundly affect the entire region” especially the neighbouring countries.
US energy secretary says not yet ready to escort tankers through Hormuz Strait
The US military is currently “not ready” to escort tankers through the critical Strait of Hormuz because all its assets are focused on striking Iran, Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Thursday.
“It’ll happen relatively soon, but it can’t happen now. We’re simply not ready,” Wright told CNBC. “All of our military assets right now are focused on destroying Iran’s offensive capabilities and the manufacturing industry that supplies their offensive capabilities.”
He added that it was “quite likely” such escorts would be taking place by the end of the month.
IRGC says hit Israel and US sites in Middle East
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had targeted Israel as well as US sites in the United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Kuwait.
“The gathering place of American forces on Sheikh Zayed Road (Dubai) and the location of American forces at Ahmad Al-Jaber Airport (Kuwait) were targeted,” said the Guards’ Sepah News website.
“The residence of American marines at Al-Dhafra base (UAE) and the mobile American bases in Iraq, along with the gathering place of Zionist executioners in Tel Aviv have been struck,” it added.
UN says at least 3.2 million displaced in Iran amid Mideast war
Up to 3.2 million people have been displaced inside Iran since the Middle East war erupted nearly two weeks ago, the United Nations refugee agency said Thursday.
“Between 600,000 and one million Iranian households are now temporarily displaced inside Iran as a result of the ongoing conflict, according to preliminary assessments, representing up to 3.2 million people,” said Ayaki Ito, who heads UNHCR’s emergency support team and is refugee response coordinator for the Middle East emergency.
“This figure is likely to continue rising as hostilities persist, marking a worrying escalation in humanitarian needs,” he said in a statement.
Russia urges US, Israel to end attacks on Iran, resume talks
Russia on Thursday called on Israel and the United States to end their attacks on Iran and come to the negotiating table.
“Russia will continue to take steps to end the escalation in the Middle East as soon as possible and resolve any contradictions by peaceful means,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters.
“The number of victims of the illegal military action of Washington and Tel Aviv among the civilian population of Iran, according to the authorities, is in the thousands,” she said.
‘Not the time to leave’: Russia’s Rosatom to stay in Iran
Russia’s state nuclear corporation Rosatom will stay in Iran despite the conflict in the Middle East and is committed to its agreement to build two more units at the Bushehr nuclear plant, its head Alexei Likhachev said on Thursday.
Rosatom, which built the first 1‑gigawatt unit of Iran’s sole nuclear power plant at Bushehr, evacuated some of its staff and suspended construction work on the new units after the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran on February 28.
Around 450 Rosatom employees remain at the site, Likhachev said, after 150 returned to Russia via Armenia this week.
“The construction of the second and third units remains among the corporation’s priorities. It is definitely not the time to leave. What is happening in the Middle East is only part of a global mosaic,” Rosatom quoted Likhachev as saying.
On Monday, Likhachev said that the situation around Bushehr remained tense but that there had been no strikes on either the plant or the construction site.
Hezbollah announces another attack on Israel
The Lebanese group says that it attacked the town of Shtula in northern Israel, Al Jazeera reported, citing a statement.
It said that the attacks were in response to Israel’s strikes on Lebanon, especially those on the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Iran outlines prerequisites for peace as tensions with US, Israel escalate
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday outlined Tehran’s conditions for ending hostilities with the United States and Israel, saying any resolution must recognise Iran’s fundamental rights and guarantee protection against future attacks.
In a statement posted on social media platform X, Pezeshkian described the conflict as a war ignited by the “Zionist regime and the US”.
“The only way to end this war is recognising Iran’s legitimate rights, payment of reparations, and firm international guarantees against future aggression,” he wrote.
He added that he had shared this position in calls with the leaders of Russia and Pakistan as part of Tehran’s diplomatic outreach amid rising tensions.
Israeli attack kills 8 in southern Lebanon’s Bekaa valley
Lebanon’s Public Health Ministry has reported that at least eight people have been killed in an Israeli attack on the town of Shaath in the Baalbek district, Al Jazeera reported, quoting the NNA news agency.
Three people were also wounded in the attack.
Trump says US looking ‘strongly at the straits’
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Washington was in “very good shape” in its war on Iran and the US was “going to look very strongly at the straits.”
The war has rattled global markets. Raising the stakes for the global economy, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has said it would block oil shipments from the Gulf unless the US and Israeli attacks cease.
“We’re just riding free range over that country, and now we’re going to look very strongly at the straits. The straits are in great shape,” Trump told reporters on Wednesday.
Qatar works to keep life normal amid Iran strikes, says PM
Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani has said officials in Qatar are working hard to ensure that life for citizens and residents continues as normal despite attacks from Iran, Al Jazeera reported, citing a statement.
Sheikh Mohammed noted that Qatar Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani has called on officials to “work diligently to ensure that the normal course of life for citizens and residents remains uninterrupted”.
The prime minister also noted the “importance of perseverance”, adding that, while “Qatar has faced many difficult challenges in recent years”, that “each time”, the country has “emerged stronger”.
US to release 172m barrels of oil from strategic petroleum reserve
The United States will release 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum reserve beginning next week, the Department of Energy said in a statement on Wednesday.
Two tankers hit by unidentified attacks in Iraqi maritime zone
Two foreign tankers carrying Iraqi fuel oil ablaze after attack in territorial waters, Iraqi ports official says
Two foreign tankers carrying Iraqi fuel oil were subjected to unidentified attacks inside territorial waters, causing them to catch fire, Iraq’s director general of the General Company for Ports Farhan al-Fartousi told Reuters on Wednesday.
Iraq evacuated the 25 crew members from the two vessels and fire is still ablaze on both ships, he added.
Iran slams ‘misuse’ of UN Security Council after vote to stop Gulf attacks
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations on Wednesday criticised as politically motivated a resolution passed by the Security Council that demanded an immediate halt to Iranian attacks on Gulf states.
“Today’s action represents a blatant misuse of the Security Council mandate in pursuit of the political agendas of the certain members, the various states responsible for the brutal war of aggression against my country,” Amir Saeid Iravani told the Council.
Trump says IEA oil reserve release will substantially cut prices
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday a decision by the International Energy Agency to release oil from strategic reserves would substantially reduce oil prices.
“I’m pleased to report that earlier today the International Energy Agency agreed to coordinate the release of a record 400 million barrels of oil from various national petroleum reserves around the world, which will substantially reduce oil prices as we end this threat to America and the world,” Trump said.
Tehran rejects claims of attacking Oman’s Salalah port
Iran has denied any involvement in a recent incident at Oman’s Salalah port, describing the event as “suspicious” and under investigation.
A spokesperson for the IRGC Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters said Tehran fully respects the security and national sovereignty of its “friendly, neighbouring, brotherly” country.
“The incident at Salalah port looks very suspicious. The security and national sovereignty of Oman are fully respected by Iran’s armed forces,” the statement said.
The remarks come amid heightened regional tensions and reports of a fire at the port, with authorities in Oman confirming that emergency services are responding.
Trump claims victory in Iran conflict, vows US forces will remain
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the United States has “won” in the Iran conflict but would remain engaged to ensure the job is completed.
“You never like to say too early you won. We won,” Trump said, adding: “In the first hour it was over.”
He claimed that US forces had destroyed 58 Iranian naval ships during the operation.
Trump’s remarks highlight Washington’s intent to maintain a presence in the region, despite his assertion that the initial objectives of the campaign have been achieved.
The US continues to face regional scrutiny over its operations in the Gulf and the broader Middle East.
Kuwaiti air defences intercept missile and drone attacks
The Kuwaiti army has announced that national air defence systems are currently responding to hostile missile and drone attacks, Al Jazeera reported, citing a statement.
Military officials have noted that any explosions heard across the country are the direct result of defence systems intercepting these threats.
The army has requested that all citizens and residents strictly adhere to security and safety instructions issued by the competent authorities as the situation develops.
UAE tells UN Security Council to act decisively on Iran threat
The United Arab Emirates has called on the UN Security Council to take decisive action over Iranian attacks on Gulf countries.
Ambassador Mohamed Abushahab, speaking alongside Permanent Representatives from the GCC and Jordan during a media briefing, described the strikes as “unprovoked” and “indiscriminate”, aimed at spreading terror.
“Yet our people have defied it, facing these attacks with remarkable resilience and unity,” he said, highlighting the response of citizens in the affected countries.
Abushahab said the Security Council must now address the resolution before it, which he described as a “critical threat to international peace and security.”
The statement underscores growing concern among Gulf nations over Iran’s regional actions, with the UAE and its allies urging the international community to respond promptly.
G7 nations discuss measures to safeguard maritime traffic in Gulf
The leaders of the G7 group of nations – the United States, Canada, Japan, Italy, Britain, Germany and France – agreed to examine the option of providing escort for ships so they can navigate freely in the Gulf, said a statement from the G7 Presidency on Wednesday.
The statement was issued after French President Emmanuel Macron had convened a call with G7 leaders to discuss the US-Israeli war on Iran and its impact on rising energy prices.
“In this regard, a working group has been set up to explore the possibility of escorting ships when the right security conditions are in place, and this will also come along with approaches made to shipping companies, transport companies and insurers,” said the statement.
Oil storage facilities hit in Oman’s Salalah port, say Ambrey and state TV
Oil storage facilities were struck in Oman’s Salalah port on Wednesday, British maritime security firm Ambrey said.
Drones struck fuel tanks in the port, Oman TV reported.
No damage to merchant vessels had been reported, Ambrey said.
Hamas hails new Iran leader, hopes he counters Israeli‑US aggression
Hamas congratulated its “brothers in Iran” on Wednesday on the appointment of the Islamic republic’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, and wished him victory in the war with the United States and Israel.
“We wish him success in fulfilling the aspirations of the Iranian people to defeat the Israeli-American aggression and prevent the forces of arrogance from imposing their will on Iran,” Hazem Qassem, a spokesman for the Palestinian movement, said in a statement.
In a separate statement, Palestinian group Islamic Jihad also welcomed the selection of Khamenei and said “all the free peoples of the world stand with you”.
Iran Guards claim strikes on Liberia‑flagged and Thai ships in Hormuz
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said Wednesday they had struck a Liberia-flagged vessel, which they claimed was Israeli-owned, as well as a Thai bulk carrier in the Strait of Hormuz after they ignored warnings to stop.
“The Israeli-owned Express Rome ship, flying the Liberian flag, and the container ship Mayuree Naree, were hit by Iranian projectiles and stopped after ignoring the warnings of the IRGC naval forces,” the Guards said in a statement carried by Iran´s ISNA news agency.
Guards navy commander Alireza Tangsiri said in a post on X that “any vessel intending to pass must get permission from Iran”.
Projectiles hit three more vessels in Strait of Hormuz
Three more vessels have been hit by unknown projectiles in the Strait of Hormuz, maritime security and risk firms said on Wednesday, bringing the number of ships struck in the region since the Iran conflict began to at least 14.
The Thai-flagged Mayuree Naree dry bulk vessel was struck by “two projectiles of unknown origin” while sailing through the Strait on Wednesday, causing a fire and damaging the engine room, the ship’s Thai-listed operator Precious Shipping PSL.BK said in a statement.
“Three crew members are reported missing and believed to be trapped in the engine room,” Precious Shipping said.
“The company is working with the relevant authorities to rescue these three missing crew members,” it said, adding that the remaining 20 crew members had been safely evacuated and were ashore in Oman.
White House security breach triggers immediate shutdown
A van smashed into a security barricade near the White House early Wednesday, police said, forcing a shutdown of the area in downtown Washington during morning rush hour.
Police did not immediately release information on the driver of the vehicle that crashed into a gate at Lafayette Square, just north of the White House and typically filled with tourists and office workers.
Washington has been under heightened security amid the US-Israel war on Iran.
Mojtaba Khamenei reported ‘safe’ despite war injury speculation
Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei is “safe and sound” despite reports of an injury during the war with Israel and the United States, said the son of the Iranian president on Wednesday.
“I heard news that Mr Mojtaba Khamenei had been injured. I have asked some friends who had connections. They told me that, thank God, he is safe and sound,” said Yousef Pezeshkian, who is also a government adviser, in a post on his Telegram channel.
State television had called Khamenei a “wounded veteran of the Ramadan war” but never specified his injury.
Spain withdraws ambassador permanently as ties with Israel worsen
Spain permanently withdrew its ambassador to Israel on Tuesday as a diplomatic standoff worsened between the two countries over Spain’s opposition to the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.
The ambassador was summoned back to Spain last September amid a diplomatic row over Spanish measures banning aircraft and ships carrying weapons to Israel from its ports or airspace due to Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, which Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar denounced as antisemitic.
On Tuesday, Spain published an announcement in its official gazette that the ambassador’s position had been terminated. Spain’s Foreign Ministry said its embassy in Tel Aviv will be led by a charge d’affaires for the foreseeable future.
The move marks the latest escalation in diplomatic relations between the two countries, which have been heavily strained since Israel launched its assault on the Gaza Strip in October of 2023.
Mideast war: No question that Pakistan will come to Saudi Arabia’s aid, says PM’s spox
As the US-Israel war against Iran continues to keep the region on edge due to escalating tensions, Pakistan has said that it is ready to support Saudi Arabia “whenever needed”.
Speaking to Bloomberg TV, Prime Minister’s spokesperson for Foreign Media Mohsarraf Zaidi has said it is unquestionable that Islamabad will come to Riyadh’s aid “no matter what and no matter when”.
Elaborating on the Pakistan-Saudi relations amid heightened tensions in the Middle East, PM’s spokesperson Zaidi highlighted that Islamabad and Riyadh have always “operated on the principle of being there for the other”.
“The real question is what is Pakistan doing to make sure things don’t come to a point where any of its closest partners are further embroiled in a conflict that could potentially undermine stability and prosperity in the region,” he remarked.
He also revealed that Saudi Arabia has made arrangements to support Pakistan’s supply of oil and diesel since the start of the conflict — which has triggered a fuel shortage concern across the globe due to the closure of key shipping route of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran.
Israel launches new ‘wide-scale wave of strikes’ in Iran, Lebanon
Israel’s military has said it had begun a new “wide-scale wave of strikes” across Iran and was also hitting Hezbollah infrastructure in Lebanon’s capital Beirut.
The fresh strikes targeting what the Israeli army called “Iranian regime infrastructure” came on the 12th day of the US-Israeli war with Tehran.
Pope Leo laments death of civilians, children in Iran war
Pope Leo on has lamented the death of numerous civilians in the ongoing Iran war and also expressed closeness to people in Lebanon, saying the country, targeted by Israeli strikes, was going through a “great trial.”
Leo, the first US pope, called on pilgrims in his weekly audience in St Peter’s Square to pray for peace.
“Let us continue to pray for peace in Iran, and throughout the Middle East, especially for the many civilian victims, including many innocent children,” said the pontiff.
Italian PM Meloni condemns Iran school massacre in ongoing war
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned a deadly missile strike on a school in Iran early in the Middle East war, calling for those responsible to be identified.
“On behalf of the government, I express my firm condemnation of the massacre of girls at the school in Minab, southern Iran,” the far-right leader told the Italian Senate.
She offered her solidarity with the families of the “very young victims” and said she wanted “responsibility for this tragedy be swiftly ascertained”.
Iran has accused the USand Israel of conducting a deadly missile attack on a school. US President Donald Trump has blamed Tehran, while Israel has denied any connection to the strike.
Trump said the US was investigating the strike, which Iranian media said killed at least 165 people, “right now”.
It took place on the first day of the Middle East war, but AFP has been unable to access the location to independently verify the circumstances around it or the toll reported by Iranian media.
Senior Israeli official believes Iran’s new leader lightly wounded in attacks
Israel’s intelligence assessment is that Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, was lightly wounded in the Israeli-US joint air war against Iran, and that is why he has not been seen in public, a senior Israeli official told Reuters.
Four injured after drones crash near Dubai airport, says govt
Drones fell near Dubai airport on Wednesday, injuring four people, but air traffic continued as normal, Dubai’s government said.
“Authorities confirm that two drones fell in the vicinity of Dubai International Airport a short while ago, resulting in minor injuries to two Ghanaian nationals and one Bangladeshi national, and moderate injuries to one Indian national. Air traffic is operating as normal,” said a statement from the Dubai Media Office.
Iran warns of targeting economic, business interests of US, Israel
DUBAI: Iran will target economic and banking interests linked to the US and Israel in the region, a spokesperson of the Khatim ul Ambia joint command said on Wednesday, adding this threat follows an attack on an Iranian bank.
“Following their failed campaign, the terrorist US army and cruel Zionist regime (Israel] have targeted one of the country’s banks,” state media quoted Ebrahim Zolfaqari as saying.
“With this illegitimate and uncommon action, the enemy is forcing our hand to target economic centres and banks linked to the U.S. and Zionist regime in the region.”
‘No intention of getting into any conflict with other countries’: President Pezeshkian tells PM Shehbaz
PM Shehbaz Sharif has held a telephonic conversation with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, where the latter warned of a severe threat to the global system and security
if the international community does not pay attention to those responsible for the war.
Iran has no intention of getting into any conflict with other countries in the region, said President Pezeshkian as reported by the Iranian media.
Iran launches latest round of missiles, drones
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has announced the launch of the 37th wave of missiles and drones, amid reports that Tel Aviv has been hit, and with defence forces in Saudi Arabia battling incoming projectiles, Al Jazeera reported.
Iran rejects ceasefire as US-Israeli strikes continue to pound Iran
Iran remains defiant as fresh explosions thundered out in Tehran, insisting it is not seeking a ceasefire even as US President Donald Trump ups his threats surrounding the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
The conflict has engulfed the Middle East and roiled energy markets since the February 28 US-Israeli strikes that martyred supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and triggered the war, with Tehran on Tuesday vowing no crude exports would leave the Gulf if the bombardment continued.
The Pentagon had earlier announced its most intense strikes to date, but Iran has so far refused to bow to the pressure.
Iranian parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a former top Revolutionary Guards commander and key figure after Khamenei´s killing, said in an English-language post on X: “Certainly we aren´t seeking a ceasefire.”
“We believe the aggressor must be punished and taught a lesson that will deter them from attacking Iran again,” he added.
Russian consulate in Iran’s Isfahan damaged in strikes
Russia’s consulate in the Iranian city of Isfahan was damaged in shelling earlier this week, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Tuesday.
An attack on a diplomatic representation was a “blatant violation” of international conventions and all sides should observe the “inviolability of diplomatic sites”, she said.
“On March 8, in the Iranian city of Isfahan, as a result of an attack on the governor’s administration of the province of the same name located nearby, the Russian consulate was damaged,” Zakharova said in a statement on the ministry’s website.
“Windows were shattered in the office building and residential apartments, and several employees were thrown by the blast wave. Fortunately, there were no casualties or serious injuries.”
Rubio condemns Iran attacks in call with Riyadh counterpart
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke by phone with his Saudi counterpart, Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, to discuss “Iran’s reprehensible attacks,” the State Department said Thursday.
Rubio condemned Iran’s ongoing assaults on Saudi Arabia, and the two top diplomats talked about ways to reinforce Saudi Arabia’s defences as Tehran presses what Washington calls its baseless aggression against civilian targets.
Qatar calls for Iranian attacks to stop ‘immediately’
Qatar’s Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulaziz al-Khulaifi says attacks on the Gulf state and neighbouring countries “need to immediately stop”.
“We have condemned, in the strongest terms, the unjustified and outrageous attacks on the state of Qatar, that directly impact our sovereignty,” he said in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera.
Araghchi says Iran’s missiles causing ‘utter destruction’ in Israel
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has posted on social media claiming that Iranian forces are inflicting severe damage on Israel, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of preventing the public from seeing the scale of the strikes.
Araghchi’s posts included an image that carries a text from an AFP news story. The AFP reported that the Israeli army has prohibited live broadcasts of the skyline during alarms for incoming missiles or drones.
Coverage of air defences intercepting missiles, a major feature during the early stages of the conflict and in the June 2025 war, is now banned, says the report. Filming near security sites is also restricted, though civilian damage can be shown if locations are withheld, it says.
The Iranian minister claimed the strikes have caused “utter destruction,” with panicked Israeli leaders and air defences in disarray, adding: “And we’re just getting started.”
North Korea condemns US and Israeli ‘illegal’ strikes on Iran
North Korea has expressed support for the Iranian people’s selection of Mojtaba Khamenei as their new Supreme Leader, state media reported on Wednesday.
KCNA, the North Korean news agency, said Khamenei was named on Monday to succeed his father, who was killed during the initial strikes against Iran by the US and Israel.
The North Korean foreign ministry also strongly denounced the actions of the US and Israel, describing the attacks on Iran as “illegal” and warning that they were undermining peace and fuelling instability across the world.
The statement signals Pyongyang’s political support for Tehran while reinforcing its opposition to US and Israeli military actions in the region.
US-linked logistics camp hit by drone near Baghdad airport
A logistical support camp belonging to the US embassy near Baghdad International Airport has been targeted by a drone strike, Al Jazeera reported.
It’s unclear if there are any casualties or damage.
The area in Iraq’s capital has been repeatedly attacked over the past few days.
Trump warns of more strikes after US destroyed ten mine-laying boats of Iran
US President Donald Trump says American forces have destroyed a number of vessels believed to be capable of laying naval mines.
In a statement issued on his Truth Social platform, Trump said US forces had struck and “completely destroyed” ten inactive mine-laying boats or ships within the last few hours
Iran Guards say they will dictate war’s end, threaten escalation
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said they would decide the end of the war and that Tehran would not allow “one litre of oil” to be exported from the region if US and Israeli attacks continue, state media reported on Tuesday, citing IRGC’s spokesperson.
“It is we who will determine the end of the war,” the IRGC says in a statement.
“The equations and future status of the region are now in the hands of our armed forces; American forces will not end the war,” the statement adds.
The statement followed US President Donald Trump predicting that the war in the Middle East could be over soon, even as Iran’s hardliners staged a show of loyalty to new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
Trump ‘disappointed’ as Iran names Mojtaba Khamenei supreme leader amid war
US President Donald Trump said on Monday he was “disappointed” that Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his slain father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the supreme leader of the country.
“We think it’s going to lead to just more of the same problem for the country,” Trump told reporters at a press conference in Florida.
When asked whether the new leader had a target on his back, Trump said it would be “inappropriate” to say whether or not he does.
US closely monitoring potential Iranian sleeper cells
US President Donald Trump on Monday told reporters the United States is “very much on top” of tracking whether Iran has activated “sleeper cells” in the country.
US to ease select oil sanctions to boost supply and curb prices
President Donald Trump said on Monday that the United States is waiving certain oil-related sanctions to ensure an adequate oil supply and lower prices.
At a news conference at his Doral golf club, Trump said oil prices have not spiked as much as he had feared.
Trump said the United States is waiving certain oil-related sanctions to cut prices.
“We have sanctions on some countries. We’re going to take those sanctions off till the Strait (of Hormuz) is up,” Trump said.
He was not specific, but the United States last week issued a temporary, 30-day waiver to allow for the sale of Russian oil currently stranded at sea to India to alleviate pressure on the global oil market.
Iran offers strategic Hormuz passage to states expelling US, Israeli envoys
Iran’s military on Tuesday said that Arab and European countries that expel US and Israeli ambassadors will be allowed full passage through the Strait of Hormuz starting Wednesday, Iranian state media reports.
According to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) statement, the measure would apply to vessels from countries that take such diplomatic steps, without providing further details.
The Strait of Hormuz is a vital shipping lane for global oil supplies.
Pezeshkian, Erdogan speak after Iranian missile intercepted over Turkey
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian spoke by phone with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, on Monday, after an incoming Iranian missile was intercepted in Turkey’s airspace.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has always declared its readiness to reduce tension in the region, provided that the airspace, soil and waters of our neighbours are not used to attack the Iranian people,” Pezeshkian said in a statement about the call.
The missile was the second fired from Iran to be shot down in Turkish airspace in five days.
Trump says Iran war will be brief, vows ‘total and decisive’ victory
President Donald Trump said Monday that the war against Iran would be a “short-term excursion,” while insisting that the United States and Israel “haven’t won enough” against Tehran.
Trump’s comments at a gathering of congressional Republicans at his golf club in Doral, Florida, cast further uncertainty over his timeline after he said in a CBS News interview that the conflict was “very complete, pretty much.”
“We took a little excursion because we felt we had to do that to get rid of some people. And I think you’ll see it’s going to be a short-term excursion,” Trump said in a speech.
Trump floats Hormuz takeover as he warns Iran not to escalate
US President Donald Trump on Monday said he was considering stronger control over the Strait of Hormuz, a key global shipping route, as tensions with Iran continue.
In an interview with Weijia Jiang, senior White House correspondent for CBS News, Trump said: “Ships are still passing through the strait, but added that he is thinking about taking it over.”
At least 40 Iranians martyred in massive attack on eastern Tehran
Iranian authorities have said that at least 40 people have been martyred in the massive attack in the east of Tehran where residential buildings are located, Al Jazeera reported, citing Iranian media.
Just minutes ago, we heard a huge blast in the capital, but we don’t yet know the target or specifics on its impact. It’s been constant throughout the day, every hour or two we have several explosions such as that.
Iran says ready to form joint team to investigate ‘allegations’ of missile attacks on Turkey
Iran’ President Masoud Pezeshkian told Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan that Tehran is ready to form a joint team to investigate “allegations” of Iranian missile attacks on Turkey, Iranian media reported on Monday.
Turkey said on Monday that NATO air defences shot down a second Iranian ballistic missile that had entered its airspace and warned that it would move against any such threats.
The incident in southern Turkey marks the second intercepted missile from Iran in the last week.
Trump says US is ‘very far’ ahead of 4-5 week estimated war time frame
US President Donald Trump thinks the war against Iran “is very complete” and that Washington was “very far ahead” of his initial four to five week estimated time frame, according to a CBS News reporter on X, who cited an interview with him.
“I think the war is very complete, pretty much. They have no navy, no communications, they’ve got no Air Force,” Trump was quoted as saying by CBS News’ White House correspondent Weijia Jiang.
Qatari PM says Doha will resume full energy supply when conditions stabilise
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani has said that Doha will resume providing full energy supplies when regional conditions stabilise, the foreign ministry said on Monday.
“We remain firmly committed to our clients and the stability of global energy markets, but current circumstances, including attacks on our facilities and challenges to maritime navigation in the Gulf, necessitate temporary measures to protect the safety of personnel working on our energy infrastructure,” said the prime minister, who is also foreign minister.
Qatar, which accounts for about 20% of global exports of liquefied natural gas, declared force majeure last week, ceasing LNG production as the US-Israeli war on Iran rages.
Oman’s sultan, Iraqi PM felicitate new Iranian supreme leader
Omani Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said and Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani have congratulated Mojtaba Khamenei on his selection as Iran’s new supreme leader.
Oman has been calling for a de-escalation and dialogue to end a regional crisis triggered by a US-Israeli war on Iran.
Israel striking Iran’s ‘regime infrastructure’
The Israeli military said it launched a wave of strikes targeting “regime infrastructure” in central Iran on Monday, the first such announcement since the Islamic republic appointed a new supreme leader.
Israeli forces have “begun an additional wave of strikes on Iranian terror regime infrastructure in central Iran”, the military said in a brief statement, shortly after announcing strikes on Iran-backed fighter group Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Ending Iran war will be ‘mutual’ decision with Netanyahu, says Trump
US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that when to end the war with Iran will be a “mutual” decision made with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Speaking by phone with The Times of Israel, Trump said Netanyahu will have input on resolving the conflict.
“I think it’s mutual … a little bit. We’ve been talking. I’ll make a decision at the right time, but everything’s going to be taken into account,” said Trump.
Iran president praises Khamenei’s selection, calls it start of ‘new era’
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has praised the Assembly of Experts for selecting Mojtaba Khamenei as the country’s new supreme leader, saying the decision marks the beginning of a “new era of dignity and strength” for Iran.
“This valuable choice is a manifestation of the will of the Islamic nation to consolidate national unity; a unity that, like a solid barrier, has made the Iranian nation resistant to the conspiracies of the enemies,” Pezeshkian said in a statement carried by the Fars news agency.
UAE president, Trump review regional security amid Tehran’s attacks
UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan spoke by phone with US President Donald Trump to discuss recent developments in the Middle East and their impact on regional and global security.
The leaders also addressed Iran’s ongoing attacks targeting the UAE and other nations in the region, which they said violate national sovereignty and threaten stability.
Iran’s revolutionary guards pledge loyalty to Mojtaba Khamenei
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has extended its congratulations to Mojtaba Khamenei and recognised him as the country’s new supreme leader.
In a statement carried by state media, the IRGC declared its “sincere and life-long allegiance” to Khamenei, “emphasising that … they will listen to orders and be ready to implement” them.
The statement added that Khamenei’s election by the 88-member Assembly of Experts “proved to everyone that the movement of the Islamic system does not stop, and the revolution and the Islamic system do not depend on individuals.”
Mojtaba Khamenei elected Iran’s next supreme leader
Iran’s Assembly of Experts has named Mojtaba Khamenei to replace his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the country’s new supreme leader, state media reported on Sunday.
Nine days after US-Israeli strikes martyred the elder Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and plunged the Middle East into war, the clerical government’s Assembly of Experts convened to choose their next leader.
Mojtaba, 56, was appointed and introduced as the third leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran, following a decisive vote by the respected representatives of the Assembly of Experts, the clerical body said in a statement.
Iran not seeking ceasefire, ‘aggressors’ must be punished: Qalibaf
Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on Sunday that Tehran is not seeking a ceasefire, adding that “aggressors” should be punished.
“If the enemy attacks us from any country, Tehran will respond decisively,” he told Iran’s state TV.
7th US serviceman succumbs to wounds from Iran counter-attack
Another US military service member has died from wounds sustained during Iran’s initial counter-attack a week ago, bringing the number of US troops killed in action so far in the war with Iran to seven, the US military said on Sunday.
“Last night, a US service member passed away from injuries received during the Iranian regime’s initial attacks across the Middle East.
US Embassy in Islamabad halts visa appointments amid Iran conflict
The US Embassy in Islamabad has temporarily halted visa appointments from March 9 to 13, citing the evolving situation in the Middle East, but said services for US citizens will continue as usual.
“All immigrant and nonimmigrant visa appointments are cancelled for March 9–13,” the embassy said in a statement on X.
The statement also said that visa applicants affected by the suspension would receive instructions by email on how to reschedule their appointments.
‘Khamenei’s name as Iran’s leader will continue’
Iran indicated it has chosen Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s son Mojtaba as his successor, after Israel struck fuel depots in Tehran overnight and the conflict widened after Bahrain said an Iranian attack had damaged one of its desalination plants.
“The name of Khamenei will continue,” said Ayatollah Hosseinali Eshkevari, a member of the clerical council charged with electing a new leader, in a video published in Iranian media.
“The vote has been cast and will be announced soon,” Eshkevari said, without providing further details.
The council’s secretary, Hosseini Bushehri, would announce the successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – who was martyred earlier in the conflict – Ahmad Alamolhoda, another cleric, told state media.
Iran says it will target region’s oil sites if Israel keeps hitting energy infrastructure
Iran’s military warned it would target oil sites in the region if Israel continued to strike energy infrastructure in the Islamic republic.
“The governments of Islamic countries are expected to warn the criminal America and the savage Zionist regime of such cowardly, inhumane actions as soon as possible,” Ebrahim Zolfaghari, a spokesman for Iran’s central military command, told state TV.
“Otherwise, similar measures will be taken in the region, and if you can tolerate oil at more than $200 per barrel, continue this game.”
Two killed, 12 injured after projectile fell on residential location in Saudi Arabia
Two people were killed and 12 injured after a projectile fell on a residential location in Saudi Arabia’s Al-Kharj city on Sunday, the Saudi Civil Defence said.
The two people killed were of Indian and Bangladeshi nationalities, it added in a post on X
‘Toxic rain’ risks after US-Israel strikes on oil site, warns Iranian Red Crescent
Iran Red Crescent warns of toxic rain after US-Israeli attacks on fuel depots. The agency said contaminated rain could cause chemical burns to the skin and damage to the lungs.
It also advised anyone exposed to the rain to rinse their skin with running cold water.
Pope prays for peace amid ‘roar of bombs’ in Middle East
Pope Leo XIV on Sunday prayed the “roar of bombs” in the Middle East will cease, as the war triggered by US-Israeli air strikes on Iran extended into its ninth day.
News from the region “continues to arouse deep dismay”, the US-born pope said at the end of the Angelus prayer.
“Added to the episodes of violence and devastation and the widespread climate of hatred and fear, is the fear that the conflict will spread, and that other countries in the region, including beloved Lebanon, may once again sink into instability,” he said.
Leo said he prayed “that the roar of the bombs may cease, the weapons may fall silent, and a space for dialogue may open in which the voices of the peoples may be heard”.
Fatalities from Israeli strikes in Lebanon rise to 394: ministry
Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed 394 people in the past week, including 83 children and 42 women, the country’s health minister said on Sunday.
Rakan Nassereddine also said at a press conference that nine rescue workers were among the dead, condemning attacks on medical teams and ambulances.
Fatalities from Israeli strikes in Lebanon rise to 394: ministry
Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed 394 people in the past week, including 83 children and 42 women, the country’s health minister said on Sunday.
Rakan Nassereddine also said at a press conference that nine rescue workers were among the dead, condemning attacks on medical teams and ambulances.
At least 117 Iranian diplomats, embassy staff leave Beirut overnight on Russian plane
More than 100 Iranians, including some diplomats, were evacuated from Beirut overnight on a Russian plane, a Lebanese official told AFP on Sunday.
“A total of 117 Iranians, including diplomats and embassy staff, were evacuated on a Russian plane that left Beirut overnight from Saturday to Sunday,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
IRGC claims targeted Israeli cities, airbase in Jordan
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Sunday that they had launched missiles towards the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv and Bersheeva, as well as an airbase in Jordan.
“The 28th wave of the Operation Honest Promise 4 was launched by the next-generation missiles of the Guards aerospace force against the areas of Beersheva, Tel Aviv, and the Al-Azraq airbase,” the Guards said in a statement, according to state TV.
UAE reroutes food supplies as Hormuz shipping risks rise
The United Arab Emirates has activated alternative supply chains to ensure food availability across the country amid concerns over the security of shipping routes near the Strait of Hormuz, according to traders and sources involved in food imports.
Food importers and traders associated with maritime and air cargo logistics told The News that authorities are increasing the use of ports on the Gulf of Oman, including Khorfakkan and Fujairah, to maintain steady imports of food and commercial goods.
In parallel, emergency air cargo operations have also been expanded. Etihad Cargo has begun transporting food items on an urgent basis, while some hypermarket chains have reportedly chartered cargo aircraft to secure supplies.
Sources said cargo flights from India have already brought fresh fruit and other food products to Abu Dhabi, with one Indian business group transporting around 80,000 kilograms of food to the UAE in a single day.
US urging Sri Lanka not to send Iranian crew back home
The US is pressing Sri Lanka not to repatriate the survivors from an Iranian warship it sank this week or the crew of a second Iranian ship that is in Sri Lankan custody, according to an internal State Department cable seen by Reuters.
A US submarine sank the frigate Dena in the Indian Ocean about 19 nautical miles off Sri Lanka’s southern port city of Galle on Wednesday, killing dozens of sailors and dramatically widening Washington’s pursuit of the Iranian navy.
3 Indonesian crew missing as UAE tugboat sinks in Strait of Hormuz
Three Indonesian crew members are missing after the United Arab Emirates-flagged tugboat Musaffah 2 sank in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, Jakarta’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
“One Indonesian survivor is currently receiving burn treatment at a hospital in the city of Khasab, Oman. The other three Indonesians are still being searched for by the local authorities,” the ministry said Saturday.
Before it sank, the Musaffah 2 experienced an explosion that caused it to catch fire, the statement said, adding that an investigation is ongoing by local authorities.
Iranian state media reports explosions in Yazd province
Explosions hit Iran’s central Yazd province. It was not immediately clear what was hit in the strikes but the official IRNA news agency said the blasts occurred on the periphery of Yazd city.
Earlier explosions were reported in other parts of the country including the Iranian capital Tehran and the central Isfahan province.
IRGC claims attack on US Base in Kuwait
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it carried out drone and missile strikes on Kuwait’s Al-Adiri airbase, a US facility, Al Jazeera reported, citing Fars news agency.
According to the IRGC, the attack damaged US helicopter maintenance centers, fuel storage tanks, and the base’s command center.
“Following the strike, a massive fire erupted at the base, with thick black smoke still rising and visible from a long distance,” the report added.
Will pursue every successor of Khamenei: Israel
The Israeli military warned it would continue pursuing every successor of Iran’s next supreme leader.
In a post on X in Farsi, the Israeli military also warned it would pursue every person who seeks to appoint a successor for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, referring to the clerical body charged with choosing Iran’s supreme leader.
Two Kuwaiti officers killed in line of duty
Kuwait’s interior ministry said that two of its officers were killed “while performing duties,” according to a post on X.
It did not provide details on the circumstances of their deaths, but Kuwait has been intercepting drones and missiles launched from Iran following U.S. and Israeli attacks on the Islamic Republic.
Iranian oil facilities hit in overnight attack
The United States and Israel hit five oil facilities in overnight strikes in and near the Iranian capital, an official told state TV.
“Last night, four oil depots and a petroleum products transport centre in Tehran and the Alborz were attacked by enemy aircraft,” the CEO of the National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company Keramat Veyskarami told state TV.
He added that the five facilities “were damaged” but the “fire was brought under control”.
More Iranian missiles hit Israeli cities
Sirens have sounded in northern Israel, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv as Iranian missiles targeted the area, reported Al Jazeera, citing a statement.
The IRGC’s public relations announced it had successfully carried out a combined drone and missile operation against US and Israeli targets.
It said targets in Haifa were hit with “new solid-fuel ‘Kheibar Shekan’ missiles”, which it said were capable of guided strikes to the point of impact.
Drone targets fuel tanks at Kuwait airport
Kuwait’s government says there’s been a drone attack on fuel tanks at the Kuwait international airport.
“Competent authorities and firefighting teams are dealing with a fire at the site,” it added in a statement on X.
Loud blast heard near US embassy in Oslo, say Norway police
By: Reuters
A loud blast was heard near the US embassy in Oslo, Norwegian police said early on Sunday.
There were no reports of any injuries, the police said in a statement.
Israeli strike hits Beirut’s Ramada building, four dead
At least four people were killed when an Israeli strike hit an apartment in the Ramada hotel building in central Beirut, Lebanon’s health ministry said, the first strike to hit the heart of the capital since Israel-Hezbollah hostilities resumed last week.
Ten people were also injured in the strike in Beirut’s Raouche area, the health ministry said in a statement.
The hotel was housing displaced people fleeing the war in southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs, and some were seen leaving the building for fear of further airstrikes.
No further details were immediately available. There was no immediate comment from Israel.
Trump floats sending US troops to secure Iran’s uranium stockpiles
US President Donald Trump evoked Saturday the idea of sending ground troops into Iran to secure the country’s stockpiles of enriched uranium, as part of efforts to dismantle Tehran’s nuclear programme.
“At some point maybe we will. That would be a great thing,” he told reporters during a briefing aboard Air Force One.
“We haven’t gone after it but it’s something we could do later,” he said.
Some critics of the US-Israeli war on Iran, launched last Saturday, have said air strikes alone are unlikely to achieve the stated goals of destroying Iran´s military capacity and preventing it from developing a nuclear bomb.
Iran’s map may change after conflict, hints US president
President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he believes the map of Iran will “probably not” look the same once the war ends, signalling the scale of the conflict and its potential impact on the country’s leadership and territorial control.
The president faced a barrage of questions about the war, which has entered its second week and already included two major joint US-Israel strikes.
The initial attack on February 28 killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and, according to US and Israeli officials, dozens of top commanders and officials, throwing the country’s chain of succession into chaos.
CENTCOM refutes Larijani’s claim over US troop capture
The US Central Command (CENTCOM) denied on Saturday that any US service members had been taken hostage or captured by Iran.
In a post on X, Iranian security chief Ali Larijani said: “It has been reported to me that several American soldiers have been taken prisoner.”
US Navy Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for US Central Command, said: “The Iranian regime is doing everything it can to peddle lies and deceive. This is yet another clear example.”
Pakistani driver killed in Dubai after debris from intercepted projectile falls on his vehicle
A Pakistani driver was killed in Dubai’s Al Barsha area on Saturday evening after debris from an aerial interception struck his vehicle shortly after iftar, authorities confirmed.
The incident occurred near Sheikh Zayed Road behind the Mall of the Emirates. Officials said the impact sparked a brief fire, but no other injuries were reported.
Authorities have launched an investigation to determine whether the driver received an emergency alert on his mobile phone and if safety instructions were followed.
Netanyahu says states hit by Iran are in touch with Israel, warns IRGC
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has issued a direct warning to members of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), saying they are now “in Israel’s sights” as tensions between the two countries escalate.
In a televised statement, Netanyahu urged IRGC members to lay down their weapons, warning that Israeli forces were closely monitoring them and would take action against those involved in attacks.
Iran open to reducing tensions but warns over use of regional bases
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has expressed openness to de-escalation within the region, provided that its neighbours’ airspace, territory, and waters are not used to attack the Iranian People, according to the country’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi.
Iranian FM says he is in constant contact with Saudi counterpart
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Saturday he is in constant contact with his Saudi counterpart and Saudi officials.
Saudi officials said they were fully committed to not letting their territory, water and airspace be used against Iran, he said in an interview relayed by his Telegram channel.
IRGC says it struck Marshall islands-flagged tanker in Persian Gulf
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said its forces have targeted a Marshall-islands flagged oil tanker on Saturday in the Gulf as the war with Israel and the United States raged.
“An oil tanker with the trade name ‘Louise P’ with the flag of the Marshall Islands, one of the assets of the America, was hit by a drone in the middle of the Persian Gulf,” the Guards said on their website Sepah News.
Israel says missiles launched from Iran towards its territory
The Israeli military claimed that it has identified missiles launched from Iran towards Israeli territory, and interception systems are being activated to counter the threat, Al Jazeera reported.
Four children among six killed in Israeli attack on eastern Lebanon town
An Israeli air strike on a town in eastern Lebanon killed six people, including four children, the Lebanese health ministry said, in a separate incident from a nearby commando operation.
“The Israeli enemy raid on the town of Shmistar in the Baalbek district at dawn resulted in the killing of six citizens, including four children and a woman,” the ministry said in a statement.
The state-run National News Agency said that the six killed were from the same family, displaced from the city of Baalbek during the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah
At least 41 killed in Israeli air, ground assault on Nabi Sheet in Lebanon
At least 41 people have been killed in Israeli air and ground attacks on the Lebanese town of Nabi Sheet in the eastern Bekaa Valley, according to the country’s health ministry.
The ministry added that the number of injured people also surged to 40.
Hezbollah tells residents in Israel’s north to ‘evacuate’
Hezbollah on Saturday told residents of a northern Israeli city close to the border with Lebanon to evacuate and head south.
“Warning. All residents of Kiryat Shmona are asked to evacuate immediately. Head south,” it said in a statement.
At least 15 ballistic missiles, 119 drones intercepted, says UAE defence ministry
The United Arab Emirates said it intercepted 15 ballistic missiles and 119 drones on Saturday as Iran kept up its attacks on its Gulf neighbour.
“Today UAE air defence systems detected 16 ballistic missiles, of which, 15 were intercepted and destroyed, while one ballistic missile fell into the sea,” the ministry of defence said in a post on X.
“Air defence systems also detected 121 UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), of which 119 were intercepted, while two fell within the territory of the UAE.”
Dubai airport suspends flights after Iranian strikes hit Gulf
Dubai’s main airport, a key global transport hub, was forced to briefly close on Saturday as Iran launched missiles and drones at targets across the Gulf.
The barrage came despite Iran’s president apologising to neighbouring countries for its attacks, saying they would no longer be targeted unless strikes were launched from their territory.
Attacks were reported on Saturday in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, with the Emirates saying it was targeted with 16 ballistic missiles and more than 120 drones.
One unidentified object was intercepted near Dubai airport, the world’s busiest for international traffic, forcing it to briefly suspend operations.
Iran’s IRGC dares Trump to deploy US vessels to escort tankers in Hormuz
A spokesman for Iran’s Revolutionary Guards challenged US President Donald Trump to deploy US naval vessels to escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, Iranian state media reported on Friday.
The US Navy could begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz if necessary, President Donald Trump said on Tuesday.
US oil prices have risen 28% this week to above $86 a barrel as Iran’s attacks on tankers have disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude has climbed 22% this week to about $89 a barrel.
Analysts say global benchmark Brent could rise above $100 per barrel if the waterway remains closed for a long period. At that level, high oil prices could push the global economy into recession.
The strait is the only sea route for tankers entering and leaving the Persian Gulf. More than 14 million barrels of crude passed through the strait in 2025, accounting for about a third of global seaborne oil exports, according to energy consultancy Kpler.
Trump to attend ceremony for US soldiers killed in Kuwait attack
US President Donald Trump is scheduled on Saturday to attend the return of the remains of six US soldiers killed in an Iranian attack on Kuwait, reported Al Jazeera.
The ceremony will take place at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware.
The troops were killed on Sunday when a drone struck a key US command centre in Kuwait’s southern industrial hub of Port Shuaiba, a day after the US and Israel launched its attack on Iran.
Four drones shot down near Shaybah oil field, says Saudi defence
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defence said four drones were intercepted and destroyed in the “Empty Quarter” desert area in the south of the country as they flew towards the Shaybah Field, Al Jazeera reported, citing a statement.
The ministry provided no further details.
Earlier, the ministry said its forces intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched towards the Prince Sultan Air Base.
CENTCOM claims to have hit over 3,000 Iranian targets this week
The US military’s Central Command claims it has destroyed 43 Iranian warships since it launched its war on Iran with Israel one week ago in an update posted on X.
Israel launches new wave of strikes on Tehran
The Israeli army said on X that it is targeting government infrastructure in Iran’s capital, Al Jazeera reported.
US could lift sanctions on more Russian oil, says Bessent
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday said the United States could remove sanctions from more Russian oil, a day after Washington issued a 30-day waiver allowing the sale of Russian crude currently stranded at sea to continue to India.
Bessent made the comments in an interview with Fox Business network.
Iran’s UN envoy says 1,332 Iranian civilians martyred in war
Iran’s UN ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani on Friday said at least 1,332 Iranian civilians had lost their lives so far in the conflict with Israel and the United States and thousands more had been injured.
He made his comments while speaking to reporters at the United Nations in New York
UK to step up intelligence cooperation with Saudi Arabia, says PM Starmer
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke to Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman after Iran’s strikes on the kingdom amid a sprawling conflict in the region, Downing Street said in a statement on Friday.
“Additional British fighter jets, helicopters and a destroyer were being sent to the region, and the UK stood ready to support the defence of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia should it be needed,” Starmer told bin Salman.
The two leaders also discussed greater intelligence cooperation in support of defensive operations and civilians.
Iran says countries joining US-Israel attacks will face retaliation
European Union member states that join the US and Israel attacks on Iran would become “legitimate targets” for Iran, Deputy Foreign Minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi said in an interview with TV station France 24.
“Any country that joins in the aggression against Iran, joins America and Israel in the aggression against Iran, definitely, they will be also legitimate targets for Iran retaliation,” Takht-Ravanchi said.
While some EU countries such as France, Greece and Italy have sent warships towards the Middle East and most EU top officials have condemned Iranian strikes in the region, they have mostly called for an end to the conflict and called for a diplomatic solution.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Friday Berlin was working with partners to find an approach to end the fighting with Iran, while saying his country shared the aims of the United States and Israel.
Drone targets hotel in Iraq’s Erbil, security sources say
A drone targeted Erbil Arjaan by Rotana hotel in Iraq’s Kurdistan region on Friday, security sources said.
The US embassy in Baghdad has said earlier on Friday that Iran-aligned militia groups may seek to target hotels frequented by foreigners in Iraq’s Kurdistan region, according to a post on X.
Erdogan conveys sympathies to Saudi crown prince over attacks
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan held a telephone conversation with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman to discuss the ongoing conflicts and the latest developments in the region, according to a statement shared on social media.
During the call, President Erdogan said he had continued diplomatic efforts to give dialogue a chance despite the escalating tensions.
He stressed the importance of resolving disputes through negotiations and reiterated Ankara’s support for diplomatic solutions to regional crises.
Erdogan also conveyed his sympathies to the Saudi crown prince over the recent attacks targeting Saudi Arabia.
US files $15.3m forfeiture complaints over alleged Iranian oil network
The United States on Friday filed two civil forfeiture complaints for more than $15.3 million used to allegedly fund an illicit Iranian oil distribution network, the Justice Department said in a statement.
The complaints by the Justice Department allege that the funds were being used by Mohammad Hossein Shamkhani to “operate multiple distribution companies” engaged in selling and shipping Iranian oil and other commodities in violation of US sanctions.
Hossein Shamkhani is the son of Ali Shamkhani, it said, a top adviser to the former Supreme Leader of Iran Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Hezbollah prepares for fresh conflict with Israel, say sources
Lebanese armed group Hezbollah spent months restocking its arsenal of rockets and drones, using support from Iran and its own weapons factories to prepare for a new war with Israel, six sources familiar with the group’s preparations said.
Down but not out after its devastating 2024 conflict with Israel, Hezbollah had concluded that another round of fighting was inevitable – and that this time, it could face an existential threat, according to the sources.
Reuters spoke to three Lebanese sources briefed on Hezbollah’s activities, two foreign officials in Lebanon and an Israeli military official, who all spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak to the press.
The details of Hezbollah’s recent efforts to rearm have not been previously reported.
The head of Hezbollah’s media office, Youssef al-Zein, told Reuters that Hezbollah would not comment on its military operations, though he said the group had decided to “fight to the last breath.”
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards pledge painful strikes in prolonged war
The spokesperson for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Tehran is prepared for a prolonged war, warning that “painful blows” will come in every operational wave.
New military initiatives and weapons are being readied but have not yet been deployed on a large scale, he said.
The IRGC spokesperson said that Iran’s capabilities have only been partially used so far and pledged further responses against the aggression.
Qatari forces foil drone strike targeting Doha airbase
The Qatari Ministry of Defence has announced that its air defence forces successfully intercepted a drone attack targeting the Al Udeid airbase in Doha, Al Jazeera reported.
Earlier, authorities issued an alert warning that the security threat level had been elevated, requiring people to remain indoors and to stay away from windows and other exposed areas.
New Israeli strike wave hits Tehran infrastructure
The Israeli military has confirmed that its warplanes are engaged in a new “wave of strikes on infrastructure” in the Iranian capital, Al Jazeeera reported.
In a statement, Israel described the strikes as “broad” but gave no other details.
Malaysia’s Petronas relocates staff from Abu Dhabi and Dubai
Petronas, Malaysia’s state energy company, has announced the temporarily relocation of staff from its Abu Dhabi and Dubai operations due to the conflict in the Middle East, Al Jazeera reported.
“All operations in the UAE continue to be managed through alternate arrangements. Operations outside of the UAE across the region continue as usual,” the company said in a statement.
Loud explosions rock Kuwait as air raid sirens activated
Air raid sirens have begun wailing across Kuwait, coinciding with the sounds of powerful explosions, Al Jazeera reported.
US defence department warns Anthropic poses supply chain risk
The US defence department has informed Anthropic that the artificial intelligence laboratory is considered a supply chain risk, the company’s chief executive Dario Amodei said on Thursday.
“Yesterday (March 4) Anthropic received a letter from the Department of War confirming that we have been designated as a supply chain risk to America’s national security,” Amodei said.
“We do not believe this action is legally sound, and we see no choice but to challenge it in court,” he added.
US evacuating embassy staff from Kuwait City
The United States is evacuating its embassy in Kuwait, Al Jazeera reported, citing CBS, the American broadcaster.
Citing anonymous government sources, the CBS said that the embassy had already been shut after it had been targeted in an Iranian strike.
The US embassy in Riyadh and the US consulate in Dubai have also been targeted.
US defence chief says claims of regional instability ‘false’
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has also pushed back on criticisms that the US and Israel have created regional instability, saying “nothing could be further from the truth”.
Countries including the UAE, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are saying, “‘We’ll shoot with you, we’ll fly with you, we’ll defend with you’”, the defence secretary claimed.
“It’s firming up the unity of the resistance,” he said, adding of the war’s scope: “This idea that it’s expanding … it’s actually simplifying in a number of ways.”
US weighs oil futures market action to combat rising energy prices: WH official
The US Treasury Department is expected to announce measures aimed at combating rising energy prices, including potential action involving the oil futures market, a senior White House official said.
Pakistanis flee Iran, describe witnessing explosions
Pakistanis fleeing Iran described explosions and missile strikes across Tehran shaking the ground under their feet and engulfing buildings in fire and smoke in a city emptied of many of its residents.
“I was in the classroom when a powerful explosion rocked our university building,” Hareem Zahra, 23, a student at the Tehran University of Engineering, told Reuters after crossing Pakistan’s land border with Iran.
France allowing US aircraft on some Mideast bases: military
France has allowed US aircraft on some of its bases in the Middle East during the conflict opposing the United States and Israel with Iran, the French military said Thursday.
“As part of our relations with the United States, the presence of their aircraft has been temporarily authorised on our bases” in the region, a spokeswoman for the military general staff told AFP.
“These aircraft contribute to the protection of our partners in the Gulf.”
Iran has not requested Russian arms supplies: Kremlin
Iran has not approached Moscow with a request for arms supplies, the Kremlin said on Thursday.
Russia has condemned US-Israeli strikes and called for an immediate ceasefire against a country it has drawn closer to in recent years.
Iran last year sealed a 20-year strategic partnership agreement with Moscow, Russia is building two new nuclear units at Bushehr, the site of Iran’s only nuclear power plant, and Iran supplied Russia with shahed drones for use against Ukraine.
Asked by a reporter on Thursday whether Russia intends to provide material help to Iran, including arms deliveries, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters:
“In this case, there were no requests from the Iranian side. Our consistent position is well known to everyone, and there have been no changes in this regard.”
US, Israel ‘deliberately provoked Iran into’ wider Middle East conflict: Russia
Russia on Thursday accused the United States and Israel of trying to drag Arab countries into a wider Middle East conflict by provoking Iran into striking at targets across the region.
“They deliberately provoked Iran into retaliatory strikes against targets in some Arab countries, which led to human and material losses, which the Russian side deeply regrets,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“In doing so, they (Washington and Tel Aviv) are trying to drag the Arabs into a war for someone else’s interests”.
The only way to prevent the Middle East from being further destabilised was to stop the “aggression” of the US and Israel, the ministry added, saying there were no signs for now that the two “aggressors” would halt their strikes.
Eight
killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon
Israeli strikes killed eight people in Lebanon as Israel renewed its evacuation call for vast areas of the country’s south.
The group said it had launched missiles at positions in the Galilee area.
The National News Agency (NNA) reported that the mayor of a village in the Nabatieh region of south Lebanon and his wife were killed in one strike, while in a nearby village another strike killed two children and their parents.
The Lebanese health ministry said two people were killed by a strike on a car near the city of Zahle in the east of the country.
There were new strikes on the southern suburbs of the capital early on Thursday, NNA reported, with AFPTV footage showing smoke coming from the area.
Azerbaijan claims injuries from drones launched from Iran
Azerbaijan accused Iran of firing two drones at its territory, injuring two people, and said it had summoned the Iranian ambassador in order to issue a strong protest.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said one drone fell on an airport in Nakhchivan, near the border with Iran, and another landed near a school.
In a statement, it condemned the attacks, demanded an explanation from Iran, and said Azerbaijan reserved the right to take “appropriate response measures”.
There was no immediate comment from Iran.
South Korean bans citizens from Iran travel
South Korea has banned travel to Iran for its citizens starting at 6pm (0900 GMT) due to heightened safety risk from the war, its foreign ministry said in a statement.
Iran internet still ‘around 1% of ordinary levels’: monitor
Iran’s internet is “around 1% of ordinary levels” with a communication blackout sparked by the war with Israel and the United States entering a fifth day, monitor Netblocks said on Thursday.
“Iran’s internet blackout has now exceeded 120 hours with connectivity still flatlining around 1 percent of ordinary levels,” Netblocks said in a message posted on social media platform X.
“Meanwhile, an increasingly Orwellian environment is emerging as telcos threaten users who try to connect to the global internet with legal action.”
Italy intends to send assistance to Gulf countries: PM Meloni
Italy is planning to send air defence aid to Gulf countries in the face of Iranian air strikes, said Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
“Like the UK, France and Germany, Italy intends to send assistance to Gulf countries, specifically in the field of defence and in particular air defence,” Meloni told radio station RTL 102.5.
“This is not only because they are friendly nations, but above all because tens of thousands of Italians live in the region and around 2,000 Italian troops are deployed there — people we want, and must, protect,” she added.
Blasts heard in Doha, Manama
Explosions echoed over the Qatari capital Doha and Bahrain’s Manama today, AFP journalists reported.
The Gulf countries have been targeted by repeated waves of Iranian drone and missile attacks following in retaliation for the massive US-Israeli air campaign against Iran.
Iran to control passage through strait of Hormuz during war, says IRGC
Iran’s revolutionary guards said that they have hit a US tanker in the northern part of the Gulf and the vessel is on fire.
The Guards said in the statement carried by state media that, in time of war, passage through the Strait of Hormuz will be under the control of the Islamic Republic.
Iran lauches new rounds of missiles at Israel
Iran launched several rounds of missiles at Israel early Thursday, the Israeli military said, triggering alerts in several areas and explosions heard in Jerusalem but there were no immediate reports of casualties.
After a lull of more than seven hours, Israel’s military issued three separate alerts warning of Iranian missile fire in under two hours.
Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB also reported the launches.
AFP reporters in Jerusalem heard explosions following the third reported launch.
Qatar evacuates residents near US embassy as ‘precautionary measure’
Qatar is evacuating residents living in the vicinity of the US embassy in Doha as a “temporary precautionary measure”, the Gulf country’s interior ministry said early on Thursday.
“Suitable accommodation has been provided for them as part of necessary preventive measures,” the ministry said in a statement.
US charter flight bringing Americans from Middle East, says State Department
A US government charter flight was bringing Americans to the United States from the Middle East, and additional flights were being arranged for locations across the region, the US State Department said on Wednesday.
Iran had no choice but to defend itself after aggression: President Pezeshkian
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran had sought to avoid war through diplomacy but was left with no option other than self-defence following what he described as American-Zionist military aggression.
In a social media statement addressed to regional leaders, Pezeshkian said Iran had “strived alongside you and through diplomacy to avoid war,” but argued that recent attacks had compelled Tehran to respond.
His remarks come against the backdrop of Iranian strikes on US assets across several Middle Eastern countries.
Pezeshkian emphasised respect for the sovereignty of neighbouring states and said regional security and stability should be achieved through collective efforts by countries in the region.
Large explosion hits oil tanker in waters off Kuwait
A tanker was hit by a “large explosion” in the waters off Kuwait, causing an oil spill, the British maritime security agency UKMTO said Thursday.
“The Master of a tanker at anchor reports witnessing and hearing a large explosion on the port side, then seeing a small craft leave the vicinity off the Gulf state’s Mubarak Al-Kabeer area, the agency posted on X.
“There is oil in the water coming from a cargo tank, which could have some environmental impact”.
Saudi Arabia shoots down multiple missiles from Iran
Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Defence said that three cruise missiles were intercepted and destroyed outside Al-Kharj city, according to a social media statement.
The successful interceptions prevented any reported casualties or damage.
Turkey ‘not target of missile’ launched from Iran: source
Turkey “was not a target” of a missile launched from Iran, heading toward Turkish airspace that was destroyed by NATO air-defence systems, a Turkish official told AFP on Wednesday.
“We believe it aimed at a base in Greek Cyprus but veered off course,” the official said, wishing to remain anonymous.
Hegseth says US sub sank Iranian warship off Sri Lanka
A US submarine torpedoed and sank an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Wednesday.
“An American submarine sunk an Iranian warship that thought it was safe in international waters. Instead, it was sunk by a torpedo,” Hegseth told reporters.
Nearly 150 were missing and several dead after the frigate IRIS Dena sank on Wednesday off Sri Lanka, officials said.
Death toll from US-Israel strikes in Iran crosses 1,000: state media
Iran’s official IRNA news agency on Wednesday said that US-Israeli strikes have killed more than 1,000 people nationwide since Saturday.
AFP was not in a position to independently verify the toll.
“During the military aggression… 1,045 of our dear military personnel and civilians” were killed, IRNA said, citing a statement from Iran’s Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs.
IAEA says no radiological risk despite damage near Iran’s Isfahan nuclear site
Damage is visible at two buildings near the Isfahan nuclear site in Iran, but there is no damage to facilities containing nuclear material and no risk of radiological release at this time, the International Atomic Energy Agency said on Wednesday.
Iran still has ‘significant fire missile capacity’, says Israel military
The Israeli military said on Wednesday that Iran still has significant capacity to launch missiles at Israel, even as it continues to strike missile launchers in the Islamic republic.
“We have destroyed dozens of missile launchers that posed significant threats to the Israeli front,” military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said in a televised briefing.
“We will continue to strike the missile launchers and reduce the firing, but the regime still has significant capacity, and I would like to remind you that our defence is not impenetrable.”
Saudi defence ministry says drone targeting huge refinery intercepted
Saudi Arabia intercepted a drone attack in targeting its massive Ras Tanura refinery, the defence ministry said, following an earlier hit on the complex along its Gulf coast this week.
“Initial estimates indicate that the attack was carried out by a drone and did not result in any damage,” the ministry said in a statement posted on X.
On Monday, some operations at the Ras Tanura refinery were halted following an attack that caused a fire at the complex.
Iran’s judiciary warns of decisise, severe response against those who aid enemies
The Iranian judiciary said that those who aid the country’s enemies “will be dealt with decisively and severely” during the Middle East war sparked by joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran.
“Given that we are in a state of war, individuals who act in any way, in word or deed, in line with the illegitimate desires and interests of the aggressor enemy, will be dealt with decisively and severely in accordance with existing laws and regulations,” judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei was quoted as saying by the judiciary’s Mizan online news portal.
Mojtaba Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader son, survives attack: sources
Mojtaba Khamanei, the son of Iran’s late Supreme Leader, has survived the assault on the country by US and Israeli air strikes that martyred Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several military and other influential figures, two Iranian sources told Reuters on Wednesday.
He is seen by the establishment as a possible successor to his father, the sources said.
Russia slams US for using ‘imaginary threat’ from Iran as pretext for regime change
Russia accused the US on of using an imaginary threat from Iran as a pretext to overthrow its constitutional order.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the US had used negotiations with Iran as a cover to disguise its plan for regime change there.
Iran claims complete control of Strait of Hormuz
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they control the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route for oil and gas, and any vessels seeking to pass through the waterway risk damage from missiles or stray drones.
“Currently, the Strait of Hormuz is under the complete control of the Islamic Republic’s Navy,” said Guards Navy official Mohammad Akbarzadeh in a statement issued on Fars news agency.
South Africa expresses readiness to mediate Middle East conflict
South Africa is willing to play a mediating role in the Middle East conflict if asked, President Cyril Ramaphosa told local media on the sidelines of an energy conference in Cape Town.
“South Africa is always ready to play a contributing role, either in mediation or whatever. And if a gap opens or if we are asked, we always live up to our obligations,” Ramaphosa said, according to comments broadcast on local broadcaster Newzroom Afrika.
“If the opportunity were to open, we would talk and say: there must be a ceasefire. Dialogue is always the best way of ending conflict and then ending the war. And we want this war to come to an end immediately,” he said.
Spanish PM slams Trump for playing ‘Russian roulette with destiny of millions’
Spain is against the “disaster” of the ongoing war in the Middle East, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said following President Donald Trump’s threats to cut trade with Madrid over its position on the conflict.
“This is how humanity’s great disasters start … You cannot play Russian roulette with destiny of millions,” Sanchez said in a televised address to the nation.
Tensions between the two Nato allies increased after Sanchez denounced the US and Israeli bombings of Iran as reckless and illegal, and later banned US aircraft from using naval and air bases in southern Spain for the offensive against Tehran.
Israel launches fresh wave of strikes on Tehran
The Israeli military said it had begun a fresh wave of strikes on Tehran, as an AFP journalist reported an explosion in the northeast of the Iranian capital.
“The Israeli Air Force has begun a broad scale strikes targeting Iranian regime targets in Tehran, details to follow,” a brief army statement said.
France to operate repatriation flights for its nationals from UAE
France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said several repatriation flights for French nationals in the Middle East were planned for today.
“One will depart from the United Arab Emirates, another from Egypt… and one from Israel,” Barrot told France 2 TV.
Barrot declined to say how many people would be on the flights. Around 400,000 French nationals are currently in the region.
Sri Lanka rescues at least 30 people aboard sinking Iranian ship
The Sri Lankan military has rescued at least 30 people on board a sinking Iranian ship near Sri Lankan waters, the country’s foreign minister told parliament.
The Sri Lankan navy dispatched a rescue mission after a distress call from the Iranian ship, a defence ministry spokesperson said earlier on Wednesday.
Foreign minister Vijitha Herath did not give further details but said Sri Lanka would take appropriate action.
Local media reported the ship reported distress off the coast of Galle in the southern part of the country, and that the injured had been admitted to a hospital in Galle.
Israel to target Khamenei’s successor: Defence Minister Katz
Israel Katz says the Israeli military will attempt to kill any Iranian leader appointed as a successor to martyred Supreme Leader Khamenei, reported Al Jazeera.
“Any leader appointed by the Iranian regime […] will be an unequivocal target for elimination,” Katz said in a statement.
“It does not matter what his name is or where he hides.”
Furthermore, the Israeli defence minister said that Israel will continue to act with the US to destroy Iran’s capabilities and “create the conditions for the Iranian people to overthrow” their government.
CIA facility reported hit as Iranian drone attack targets US embassy in Riyadh
The Washington Post reported that two Iranian drones struck the US embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Monday, with one of them reportedly hitting a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) facility inside the embassy complex.
The US and Saudi governments confirmed the attack, but neither has confirmed that the CIA facility was hit.
According to the report, an internal State Department alert said the building suffered “structural damage” and instructed embassy staff to “continue to shelter in place.”
French president condemns US-Israeli strikes on Iran, sends carrier to Mediterranean
President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday condemned recent US and Israeli military operations as “outside international law” and announced France is sending its aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle to the Mediterranean to help secure maritime traffic amid the Middle East crisis.
In a televised address to the nation, Macron said that action needed to be taken with the Straits of Hormuz closed and the Suez Canal and Red Sea shipping routes threatened by the widening conflict.
“We have economic interests to protect, because oil prices, gas prices and the international trade situation are being profoundly disrupted by this war,” Macron said.
Macron said Iran itself “bears primary responsibility” for the US-Israeli action, but added: “The United States of America and Israel have decided to launch military operations; they were conducted outside international law, which we cannot approve.”
Hezbollah says Haifa naval base targeted amid widening Israel-Lebanon conflict
Lebanese group Hezbollah said it targeted northern Israel’s Haifa naval base on Tuesday in response to the Israeli military’s ongoing strikes against the Iran-backed movement’s strongholds in Lebanon, including the southern suburbs of Beirut.
Israel carried out successive air raids for a second day in the south of the country, as well as some suburbs in its capital, after issuing evacuation warnings to residents.
In a statement, Hezbollah said it targeted the Haifa naval base with “a barrage of high-quality missiles” at 8:00 pm local time (1800 GMT).
The Israeli military said shortly after 8:00 pm that several incoming projectiles were detected, and most were shot down.
US military ramps up strikes on Iran, hitting nearly 2,000 targets
The US military commander in the Middle East said Tuesday that American forces had struck nearly 2,000 targets so far in Iran as part of the largest firepower buildup in the region in a generation.
“We’ve already struck nearly 2,000 targets with more than 2,000 munitions. We have severely degraded Iran’s air defences and destroyed hundreds of Iran´s ballistic missiles, launchers and drones,” Admiral Brad Cooper of US Central Command said in a video message.
“The first 24 hours of this operation were nearly double the scale” of the first day of shock-and-awe strikes on Iraq in 2003, “and we continue with 24/7 strikes into Iran,” he added.
Trump, Rubio tell different stories about why America went to war with Iran
President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he ordered US forces to join Israel’s attack on Iran because he believed Iran was about to strike first, contradicting the rationale offered a day earlier by his secretary of state for how the war began.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on Monday that the US launched the attack because of fears that Iran would retaliate in response to planned Israeli action against Tehran.
“We knew that there was going to be an Israeli action; we knew that that would precipitate an attack against American forces, and we knew that if we didn’t preemptively go after them before they launched those attacks, we would suffer higher casualties,” Rubio said.
Trump rejected suggestions that Israel pushed the U.S. into the conflict, as his administration gave varying accounts and faced criticism from some supporters and Democrats who accused him of launching a “war of choice.”
Mojtaba Khamenei elected as successor to Iran’s leadership, say sources
Iran’s martyred Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has reportedly been selected as his successor, according to Iranian media.
The report said Iran’s Assembly of Experts has chosen 56-year-old Mojtaba to replace his father as supreme leader.
The claim was published by Iranian International early on Wednesday and was later picked up by some Israeli media outlets, though it has not been confirmed by Iranian state media.
Mojtaba was earlier reported among the 40 senior figures killed in the Saturday strike that killed Iran’s supreme leader.
US may deploy Navy escorts for tankers in Strait of Hormuz, says Trump
US President Donald Trump has announced measures aimed at restoring maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz amid growing regional tensions.
In a post on TruthSocial, he said he had ordered the United States Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to provide political risk insurance and financial guarantees for maritime trade, particularly energy shipments passing through the Gulf.
Iran says Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will be buried in Mashhad
Iran’s martyred supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei will be buried in the holy city of Mashhad, the Fars news agency said Tuesday.
Khamenei, who led the country for 36 years, was killed at 86 during a wave of US-Israeli attacks on Saturday.
He was originally from Mashhad, Iran’s second-largest city, where his father is buried at the Imam Reza shrine.
Before the burial, a “large farewell ceremony” will be held in Tehran, the Revolutionary Guards said on their Telegram account.
Smoke seen near US consulate in Dubai amid strike reports
An area near the US consulate in Dubai was seen with smoke rising into the sky, two witnesses told Reuters on Tuesday.
The US State Department did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
Unconfirmed reports suggest the US embassy in the Al Seef area may have been hit and that the strike was not intercepted.
Iran rejects US intelligence claim, calls conflict ‘a war of choice’
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has responded to comments by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who said Washington carried out strikes on Iran over the weekend after receiving intelligence that its assets in the region would be targeted following an Israeli attack.
“Mr. Rubio admitted what we all knew: US has entered a war of choice on behalf of Israel. There was never any so-called Iranian ‘threat,’” Abbas Araghchi posts on X.
“Shedding of both American and Iranian blood is thus on Israel Firsters,” he claims. “American people deserve better and should take back their country.”
Trump vows retaliation after US embassy in Riyadh hit
US President Donald Trump told NewsNation that you’ll find out soon what the retaliation will be in response to an attack on the US embassy in Riyadh and over the deaths of US military personnel during the Iran conflict, a reporter at the media outlet posted on X on Monday, citing an interview with him.
EU states expected to discuss mutual defence after Cyprus strike
The EU is expected to discuss potentially activating a mutual assistance clause in view of an escalation of the Iran war touching one of its nations, Brussels said Monday.
“This question […] is certainly going to be discussed in the coming days, in the various meetings that are foreseen,” commission spokeswoman Paula Pinho told a press conference.
“For the moment no such discussion has taken place.”
Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen stressed earlier that, while Cyprus was “not the target” of the drone attack, the EU was solidly behind its member states.
“We stand collectively, firmly and unequivocally with our Member States in the face of any threat,” she wrote on X.
US sends more refuelling aircraft, fighter jets to the Middle East: Report
The US is bolstering its forces in the Middle East by deploying an additional 15 refueling aircraft, according to the Israel Hayom news outlet, Al Jazeera reported.
These aircraft allows for air-to-air supply to fighter jets and other military aircraft without having to land allowing for faster fuel transfer.
Israel Hayom also reported that the refueling aircraft were accompanied by fighter jets.
It did not say how many fighter jets were deployed.
Qatar defence ministry says intercepted two ballistic missiles
Qatar’s military intercepted two ballistic missiles early Tuesday morning, the country’s defence ministry said in a statement, after AFP reporters heard loud explosions across Doha.
Qatar was able to “intercept and neutralise two ballistic missiles that targeted several areas within the country,” the ministry said in a statement adding the “threat was dealt with immediately upon detection”.
Australia Confirms Defence Personnel Safe After Drone Attack Near Dubai
Australia said on Tuesday that all of its defence personnel stationed at the Al Minhad Air Base near Dubai were safe following a drone attack at the site over the weekend.
“All the Australians who are there are safe and accounted for. There were no injuries to Australians,” Defence Minister Richard Marles told reporters in Canberra.
“We’ve got more than 100 personnel, actually, across the Middle East. Most of them are in the UAE where we’ve had an operational headquarters at Al Minhad for many, many years now.”
Explosions heard over Doha
In the past few minutes, Al Jazeera’s correspondent has reported hearing multiple explosions in the skies over Doha.
Earlier, Qatar, in letters to the United Nations, detailed how its military had intercepted dozens of ballistic missiles and several drones from Iran since the US and Israel launched their attacks on Iran last Saturday.
On Monday, Qatar’s air force also shot down two Iranian jets headed towards the country.
DPM Dar, EU VP express concerns on regional developments in Iran, wider Middle East
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Ishaq Dar on Monday spoke with EU High Representative and Vice President Kaja Kallas.
The two expressed deep concern about the recent regional developments in Iran and the wider Middle East. DPM Dar underscored the need for dialogue, diplomacy, and de-escalation, the Foreign Office said.
The foreign minister also briefed the HRVP on Pakistan-Afghanistan tensions and appreciated the EU’s constructive engagement.
Both sides agreed to maintain close contact on the evolving regional situation.
Kremlin says Putin will raise UAE’s concerns about Iranian strikes with Tehran
Russian President Vladimir Putin told UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in a phone call on Monday that he was ready to relay his complaints about Iranian strikes against UAE territory to Tehran, the Kremlin said.
“Vladimir Putin, for his part, expressed his readiness to convey these signals to Tehran and, in general, to provide all possible assistance in stabilising the overall situation in the region,” the Kremlin said in a statement after the phone call.
It also cited Putin lamenting that work to find a solution to concerns about Iran’s nuclear programme had been derailed by “an unprovoked act of armed aggression” by the United States and Israel.
Dubai is a popular destination for Russian tourists and the Kremlin said Putin has thanked the UAE president for his efforts to help Russian nationals in the current situation.
Hezbollah intelligence headquarters head ‘martyred in airstrike’: Israeli military
The Israeli military said that it had carried out a strike in Beirut killing Hussein Makled, who served as the head of Hezbollah’s intelligence headquarters.
Qatar says Iranian drones hit power plant, energy facility
Two Iranian drones targeted a power plant in Qatar and a separate energy facility on Monday, the Qatari defence ministry said, on the third day of Iranian retaliatory strikes against countries in the region.
One drone targeted a water tank belonging to a power plant in Mesaieed south of Doha and another targeted an energy facility in Ras Laffan on the north coast, Qatar’s main site for production of liquefied natural gas, the ministry said.
There were no reports of casualties, it added.
Fourth US service member succumbs to injuries: Centcom
A fourth US service member has died of injuries sustained in the US operation in Iran, Central Command said on Monday.
The service member had been seriously wounded during Iran’s initial attacks and eventually succumbed to their injuries, it said in a statement.
Wife of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei martyred after attack
Mansoureh Khojasteh, the wife of martyred Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has died of her injuries after an attack, Iranian state media reported.
Israel to intensify attacks against Iran
Israel’s military has said it was intensifying its campaign against Iran and would step up strikes on “key elements of the regime”.
“We will increasingly strike the key elements of the regime and continue to intensify the damage,” military spokesman Brigadier General Effie Defrin said during a televised briefing.
Iranian media claims US jet ‘shot down’ near Kuwait border
Iranian Media are reporting that Iran has successfully shot down three American fighter jets near the border with Kuwait. CNN has confirmed the news, citing Kuwaiti officials.
No sign that Iran’s nuclear sites hit, cannot reach Iranian authorities: IAEA
The International Atomic Energy Agency has no indication that Israeli and US attacks on Iran have hit any nuclear facilities, but it has not been able to reach Iran’s nuclear authorities, its chief Rafael Grossi told the agency’s Board of Governors on Monday.
“We have no indication that any of the nuclear installations … have been damaged or hit,” he said in a statement to the 35-nation board, adding: “Efforts to contact the Iranian nuclear regulatory authorities … continue, with no response so far.”
Beijing confirms one Chinese citizen killed in Tehran
The Iran conflict killed one Chinese citizen in Tehran, the capital, while more than 3,000 were evacuated, China’s foreign ministry said on Monday, as its embassies and consulates in nearby countries swung into action to help the affected.
Work groups set up by Chinese embassies and consulates in neighbouring countries will receive and assist those evacuated, ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a regular press briefing, but did not say how the evacuated would return home.
China was not informed in advance about the US military actions against Iran, Mao added.
She denied a report that Iran and China were close to reaching a deal to buy supersonic anti-ship missiles, saying China was a responsible major power that “always fulfilled its international obligations”.
Mao reiterated condemnation of the attacks and the martyrdom of Khamenei, urging all parties involved to immediately cease military action to prevent escalation.
Iran Red Crescent says 555 people killed in Iran since start of war
A total of 555 people have been killed across Iran in US and Israeli strikes that began two days ago, the Iranian Red Crescent said Monday.
“Following the Zionist-American terrorist attacks carried out in various regions of our country, 131 cities have been affected to date and, regrettably, 555 of our compatriots have been killed,” the humanitarian group said in a post on Telegram.
Israeli army tells southern Lebanese towns to evacuate amid escalation
The Israeli military told residents of about 50 towns and villages in Lebanon to evacuate on Monday, warning of imminent attacks against Hezbollah militants, following rocket fire at Israel.
“For your safety, evacuate your homes immediately and move at least 1,000 metres (0.6 miles) away from your village to open areas,” an army spokeswoman said in a statement on X, listing localities in the country´s south and east.
The Israeli military launched strikes on Lebanon, including the capital Beirut, to target fighters, it said on Monday, after Tehran-backed Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel in response to the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
The Israeli military said that “in response to Hezbollah’s projectile fire “Israeli forces had “begun striking targets of the Hezbollah terrorist organisation across Lebanon”.
Lebanese group Hezbollah claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it fired rockets and drones “in retaliation for the pure blood of… Ayatollah Imam Sayyid Ali al-Husseini Khamenei… and in defence of Lebanon and its people, and in response to the repeated Israeli attacks”.
Former President Ahmadinejad unharmed, says close aide
Former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is alive and unharmed despite earlier reports claiming he was killed in joint US-Israeli airstrikes, according to a close aide.
The adviser said a building linked to his security detail was struck, killing three members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, while Ahmadinejad’s residence nearby was not targeted.
“I am in touch with him. All is good,” said the adviser, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
“A building related to his security detail was struck yesterday. Three of his bodyguards— members of the IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps) —- have been killed. His own residence remained unaffected and was not targeted 100 meters away from that building,” the source added.
Ahmadinejad, who served from 2005 to 2013, remains safe as attacks reportedly target senior Iranian leadership and military infrastructure.
Trump commits to avenging US service members killed in Iran conflict
President Donald Trump has vowed to avenge the first US deaths in the war he launched to topple the Iranian regime, which fired missiles across the Middle East.
Trump said he was planning for around four weeks of conflict after Saturday’s massive US and Israeli strikes that killed Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iranian forces have responded with missiles and drones hitting targets across the Middle East, causing deaths in Israel and the United Arab Emirates as explosions shattered the peace of glitzy Gulf Arab economic hubs.
“I once again urge the Revolutionary Guard, the Iranian military and police to lay down your arms and receive full immunity or face certain death,” Trump said in a video address from his Florida mansion.
“It will be certain death. It won’t be pretty,” Trump said.
The Pentagon said that three US service members were killed in the operation and five were seriously wounded in the operation, which it has called “Epic Fury.”
“Sadly, there will likely be more before it ends,” Trump said.
“But America will avenge their deaths and deliver the most punishing blow to the terrorists who have waged war against, basically, civilisation.”
Casualties are politically sensitive in the United States, and Trump, who campaigned denouncing foreign interventions, has done little to explain the case for war to the US public.
UN agency says school strike violates international protections
The United Nations education agency, UNESCO, has condemned the bombing of a girls’ primary school in southern Iran, calling it a grave violation of international humanitarian law.
According to reports, missiles struck the school in Minab on Saturday during US and Israeli military operations, killing around 150 people and injuring nearly 100 others. Many of the victims are believed to be students.
In a statement shared on social media, UNESCO expressed deep alarm over the continued attacks and emphasised that educational institutions are protected under international humanitarian law.
“Attacks against educational institutions endanger students and teachers and undermine the right to education,” the agency said.
Iran says will defend itself ‘whatever it takes’ after Trump warning
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi strongly rejected a warning from US President Donald Trump that Tehran should avoid retaliation or face overwhelming force, insisting that Iran is acting in self-defense amid rising tensions.
In remarks responding directly to Trump’s statement, Araghchi said Iran has a “legitimate right” to defend itself and described US actions as “an act of aggression.” He stressed that there is a fundamental difference between initiating force and responding to it.
“We are defending ourselves, whatever it takes,” Araghchi said, adding that no country can be told it does not have the right to protect its sovereignty.
Eight people killed after missile strike on Israeli town of Beit Shemesh: responders
The death toll from an Iranian missile attack on Sunday in the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh rose to at least eight people, first responders said, in the deadliest strike in the country since the war began.
The Magen David Adom emergency service said: “In the Beit Shemesh area, MDA EMTs and paramedics have pronounced the deaths of eight” people, as well as 28 others injured, with police saying it was a direct hit on a building.
Dozens of Israeli rescue personnel were deployed to the site of the impact, and an AFP photographer saw teams removing a body from the rubble of the building that bore the brunt of the missile strike.
“They are bringing all kinds of equipment to try to locate people,” said another AFP photographer at the scene of the attack.
“Apparently, there are still people underneath,” he added, as rescue teams continued their search.
China denounces assassination of Iran’s supreme leader
China said it “strongly condemns” the United States and Israel’s assassination of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling again for a halt to military actions.
The assassination was “a serious violation of Iran’s sovereignty and security, a trampling on the aims and principles of the UN Charter and the basic norms of international relations”, Beijing’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
“China firmly opposes and strongly condemns this,” it added, calling for an “immediate halting of military operations”.
More explosion reportedly heard in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Manama
AFP correspondents and residents heard fresh explosions across the Gulf cities of Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Manama on Sunday, as Iran pressed on with its retaliatory campaign for a second day.
Journalists heard several blasts in Dubai, with Abu Dhabi residents reporting loud bangs. Sirens sounded in Manama, where correspondents also heard an explosion, while in the Qatari capital a journalist heard a blast faintly.
OPEC+ increases oil production after Middle East tensions
OPEC+ announced a greater-than-expected increase to the cartel’s oil production quotas, after US and Israeli strikes on Tehran triggered Iranian retaliation across the Middle East.
The group, which includes key oil producers Saudi Arabia and Russia — as well as several Gulf states bearing the brunt of Tehran’s strikes — “agreed on a production adjustment of 206 thousand barrels per day”.
“This adjustment will be implemented in April,” the cartel said in a statement, which did not mention the outbreak of the Iran conflict but cited “a steady global economic outlook and current healthy market fundamentals” as reasons for the increase.
‘Iran’s armed forces chief of staff, defence minister martyred’
According to Iranian TV, the country’s armed forces chief of staff, Abdolrahim Mousavi, was martyred in strikes on Iran, Reuters reports.
Mousavi was among the some 30 key Iranian regime leaders and military chiefs reportedly targeted in yesterday’s joint US-Israel strikes.
Death toll in joint US-Israeli military strike on Iran primary school rises to 148
The death toll from a joint US-Israeli military strike on a primary school in southern Iran has risen to 148, most of them schoolgirls, Iranian authorities said on Sunday, according to the Financial Times.
The strike occurred on Saturday as US and Israeli forces launched coordinated military operations against Iran, beginning in Tehran and extending to other parts of the country. Mohammad Ashouri, governor of Hormozgan province, stated that Shajareh Tayebeh primary school in the coastal city of Minab was hit at approximately 10:45am.
Ashouri said around 170 schoolgirls were inside the school at the time of the attack and expressed hope that rescue teams might find survivors beneath the rubble.
Kazakhstan condemns attacks, urges diplomacy in outreach to Gulf states
Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has sent personal messages to the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait, expressing solidarity with their governments and peoples amid the current regional tensions.
According to an official statement, President Tokayev strongly condemned any military actions that undermine the sovereignty and security of states considered friendly and brotherly to Kazakhstan. He reiterated that Kazakhstan consistently advocates resolving international disputes and armed conflicts through diplomatic means.
Iraq announces three-day mourning on Khamenei’s martyrdom
BAGHDAD: Iraq has announced a three-day mourning period after the martyrdom of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Government spokesman Bassem al-Awadi said in a statement that “with deep sorrow, we extend our condolences to the noble people of Iran and the entire Muslim world” after Khamenei was martyred in “a blatant act of aggression”.
He said the government had announced three days of mourning.
Fresh explosions heard across, Dubai, Doha and Manama
DUBAI: Fresh blasts were heard across Dubai, Doha and Manama on Sunday morning as Iran carried out strikes in retaliation for US and Israeli attacks that killed the supreme leader and other top officials.
AFP reporters heard blasts in Dubai, Bahrain’s capital Manama and Qatar — where correspondents saw thick black smoke rising on the clear morning horizon in the south of Doha. Shortly after, another wave of blasts reverberated through Dubai.
Iran Confirms Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s martyrdom
Iranian state media on Sunday confirmed that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was martyred in the US and Israel strikes. (Inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji’un)
Iranian nation will make aggressors regret their action: Larijani
Ali Larijani, Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, says the Iranian nation will make the United States and Israel regret their aggression against the country.
Iranians fill streets in anger at US-Israeli aggression
People hold Iranian flags during a rally in the capital, Tehran, to protest the US-Israeli aggression against the country. Tehran, IRNA – People in different Iranian cities have held spontaneous gatherings to vent their anger at the ongoing war of aggression by the United States and Israel against their country.
Crowds of people filled the streets and iconic squares in at least a dozen cities, including the capital Tehran. Protesters chanted “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” in a show of anger at the two regimes over their aggression on Iran.
“We will make the Zionist criminals and the despicable Americans regret their actions. The valiant soldiers and the great nation of Iran will teach an unforgettable lesson to the tyrannical international devils,” Larijani said on his X account on Saturday.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump and Israeli officials had claimed that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was martyred, which Iran had denied, saying he was steadfast and well.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that there were signs that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been martyred in an attack on his compound as part of US-Israeli strikes.
“This morning, in a powerful surprise strike, the compound of Ali Khamenei was destroyed in the heart of Tehran… and there are many signs that he is no longer alive,” Netanyahu said in a televised statement.
President Donald Trump said Iranian Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was martyred in massive US and Israeli attack, which Trump said will continue with heavy bombing throughout the week. Iran has claimed its leaders are “safe and sound.”
There was no immediate Iranian confirmation of his fate. The United States and Israel carried out military strikes on Iran on Saturday, targeting its top leaders and plunging the Middle East into a conflict that President Donald Trump said would end a security threat to the US and give Iranians a chance to topple their rulers.
The US president has told ABC News that he believes “a lot” of Iranian leadership has been killed in US and Israeli strikes.
When asked directly if the administration believes that Iranian leadership were killed, Trump replied: “A lot of it is, yeah. But we don’t know all, but a lot of it is. Was a very powerful strike.”
He said the attacks will continue “as long as we wanted to”.
Khamenei’s daughter, grandchild killed: state media
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s daughter, grandchild, daughter-in-law and son-in-law were martyred in US-Israeli strikes, Iranian state media reported on Sunday.
Seven high-ranking Iranian officials martyred: Israel
Effie Defrin, the spokesperson for the Israeli military, has just made a televised address in which he claimed Israel has martyred several top Iranian officials in attacks on Iran.
The most prominent of those Israel claims to have martyred is Ali Shamkhani, former secretary of Iran’s National Security Council and close adviser to Supreme Leader Khamenei.
Defrin also claimed to have killed Mohammad Pakpour, a commander in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Amir Nasirzadeh, Iran’s defence minister.
He added that Israeli warplanes targeted several locations across Iran, especially missile launcher sites.
Defrin did not define a timeframe when a reporter asked how long military operations would continue.
IRGC claims strikes on 27 US bases across Middle East
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has announced a sixth wave of retaliatory attacks following US and Israeli bombardment of Iran, according to state media reports.
The IRGC said it launched “extensive missile and drone” strikes targeting Israel and US military installations in the region. It claimed that 27 US bases were targeted, along with Israel’s Tel Nof Airbase, the Israeli military’s command headquarters at HaKirya in Tel Aviv, and a major defence industrial complex in the same city.
The statement added that Iranian forces would carry out further “different and harsh” retaliatory measures, warning of successive and severe reprisals.
Iran’s presidency calls Khamenei’s assassination a ‘great crime’
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has strongly condemned the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, calling it “a great crime” and vowing that it will be answered, according to a statement issued by his office.
“This great crime will not go unanswered and will mark a new chapter in the history of the Islamic world and Shiism. The pure blood of this senior leader will flow like a roaring spring and will wipe out American-Zionist oppression and crimes,” the statement said.
President Pezeshkian, two officials to lead transition after Khamenei’s martyrdom
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and two other top officials will lead Iran in the transitional period following the martyrdom of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, state television reported on Sunday.
Judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei and another official from the country’s legal council will be part of the trio overseeing the transition, according to state television, which cited Mohammad Mokhber, one of Khamenei’s advisors.
Earlier The United States and Israel carried out strikes against Iran on Saturday, according to confirmations from President Donald Trump and Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz.
In a video address, Trump announced that the US had initiated “major combat operations” in Iran.
“Our goal is to protect the American people by eliminating imminent threats posed by the Iranian regime. We will destroy their missiles and dismantle their missile industry,” he said.
Trump also accused Iran of developing long-range missiles that he said threaten the United States and its allies. “Iran sought to revive its nuclear programme. We will ensure that Iran does not acquire a nuclear weapon,” he added.
The Pentagon stated that the US military campaign has been designated “Operation Epic Fury.”
Meanwhile, Defence Minister Israel Katz said, “The State of Israel launched a pre-emptive strike against Iran to remove threats to the State of Israel.”
Israel’s military reported that air‑raid sirens were sounded across the country “to prepare the public for the possibility of missiles being launched towards Israel” in retaliation.
Several explosions were heard in multiple cities in Iran following blasts in the capital, Tehran, the Fars news agency reported.
Explosions were reported in the Iranian capital, Tehran, on Saturday, Iranian media reported. After the strikes, the Israeli military announced the closure of its airspace to civilian flights and a “prohibition on educational activities, gatherings, and workplaces”.
An Israeli official said that the US and Israel targeted Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian with their attacks, but the results of the strikes were unclear. The official did not provide additional details.
A source told Reuters that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was not in Tehran and had been transferred to a secure location. Internet service in Iran has been suspended.
Bahrain schools to switch to distance learning ‘until further notice’: govt
Bahrain has announced that all schools and universities would switch to long-distance learning until further notice following Iranian missile attacks, AFP reports.
“The ministry of education announces that, as a precautionary measure and to ensure the safety of students in educational institutions, it has been decided to switch to distance learning starting tomorrow and until further notice,” it said in a statement.
“This applies to all early childhood education institutions, public and private schools and higher education institutions,” it added.
20 of Iran’s 31 provinces ‘affected in attacks’: Iran’s Red Crescent Society
More than 20 of Iran’s 31 provinces have been impacted by US and Israeli strikes launched on Saturday, Iran’s Red Crescent Society said.
“Up until now, more than 20 provinces have been affected in attacks,” spokesman Mojtaba Khaledi said, according to state media.
Israel believes its attacks killed several senior Iranian officials, source briefed on operations says
Israel believes its attacks have killed several senior Iranian officials, a source briefed on the military’s operations told Reuters.
Dar, Saudi FM express concern over ‘unfolding regional developments’
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar called Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Faisal in Farhan Al Saud.
“Both leaders expressed deep concern over the unfolding regional developments, and agreed to remain in close contact on the evolving situation,” the Foreign Office said.
Five killed in Iran
Five people have been killed following an Israeli strike on an elementary school in Iran, Al Jazeera reported, citing the country’s official IRNA news agency. The report stated that the attack targeted a girls’ elementary school in Minab, a city in Hormozgan province in southern Iran, resulting in the deaths of five students.
Israel’s military reported that air‑raid sirens were sounded across the country “to prepare the public for the possibility of missiles being launched towards Israel” in retaliation.
Several explosions were heard in multiple cities in Iran following blasts in the capital, Tehran, the Fars news agency reported.
Explosions were reported in the Iranian capital, Tehran, on Saturday, Iranian media reported. After the strikes, the Israeli military announced the closure of its airspace to civilian flights and a “prohibition on educational activities, gatherings, and workplaces”.
An Israeli official said that the US and Israel targeted Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian with their attacks, but the results of the strikes were unclear. The official did not provide additional details.
A source told Reuters that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was not in Tehran and had been transferred to a secure location. Internet service in Iran has been suspended.
‘Iran launches missiles, drones towards Israel’
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said that it has launched the first wave of missile and drone attacks against in response to the attacks, Reuters reported, citing Tasnim news agency.
“A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran toward Israel,” the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said and added that defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat.
“In the past few minutes, the Home Front Command has sent a precautionary directive directly to mobile phones in the relevant areas.”
Israel closed its airspace to civilian flights the airport’s authority said.
“Following the security developments, the Minister of Transportation has ordered the Director of the Israel Civil Aviation Authority to close the airspace of the State of Israel to civilian flights,” the minister, Miri Regev, announced.
‘Iran will respond decisively’
“The Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran will respond decisively to the aggressors,” a foreign ministry said in a statement, insisting Iran had done “everything necessary to prevent war”.
“Just as we were ready for negotiations, we are now more prepared than ever to defend the Iranian nation,” it said.
‘US bases in Kuwait, UAE, Qatar, Bahrain targeted’
Iran’s Fars news agency has said that the IRGC has targeted multiple US bases in Kuwait, UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain.
Loud explosions have been heard in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh, reported AFP correspondents.
The Iraqi transport ministry also announced the closure of its national airspace. Meanwhile, the US embassies in Qatar and Bahrain told their staff to seek shelter on Saturday and advised US citizens to do the same.
The embassies said in two separate statements they were “implementing a shelter-in-place for all personnel. We recommend all Americans do the same until further notice,” and urged US citizens to “find a secure location within your residence or another safe building”.
Pakistanis advised to avoid non-mandatory travel to Iran
Separately, Pakistan’s Foreign Office advised its citizens to avoid all non-essential travel to Iran to ensure their safety and security.
“For their safety and security, Pakistani nationals are advised to avoid all non-mandatory travel to the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the FO said in a statement.
Pakistani nationals currently residing in Iran have been advised to exercise caution, remain vigilant, minimise non-essential travel, and stay in regular contact with the Pakistani Missions.
Attacks follow 12-day Iran-Israel war last year
The attack, coming after Israel and Iran engaged in a 12-day air war in June, follows repeated US-Israeli warnings that they would strike again if Iran pressed ahead with its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
The US and Iran renewed negotiations in February in a bid to resolve the decades-long dispute through diplomacy and avert the threat of a military confrontation that could destabilise the region.
Israel, however, insisted that any US deal with Iran must include the dismantling of Tehran’s nuclear infrastructure, not just stopping the enrichment process, and lobbied Washington to include restrictions on Iran’s missile programme in the talks.
Iran said it was prepared to discuss curbs on its nuclear programme in exchange for lifting sanctions but ruled out linking the issue to missiles.
Tehran also said it would defend itself against any attack.
It warned neighbouring countries hosting US troops that it would retaliate against American bases if Washington struck Iran.
In June, the US joined an Israeli military campaign against Iranian nuclear installations, in the most direct American military action ever against the Islamic Republic.
Tehran retaliated by launching missiles toward the US Al Udeid air base in Qatar, the largest in the Middle East.
Western powers have warned that Iran’s ballistic missile project threatens regional stability and could deliver nuclear weapons if developed. Tehran denies seeking atomic bombs.
