CAIRO, EGYPT | Xinhua | The U.S.-Israel-Iran conflict entered its 16th day on Sunday, with U.S. and Israeli officials vowing prolonged attacks against Iran, Tehran warning of killing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and targeting Ukraine in retaliation, and many regional countries reaffirming calls for de-escalation and dialogue.
Tehran also suggested that the United States and Israel are launching attacks on regional states and framing them on Iran.
The following is a brief overview of the latest developments on the escalating crisis affecting nearly all regional countries and beyond.
The United States
— U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told ABC News that the U.S. military only struck Iranian military infrastructure on Kharg Island, and did not target Iranian energy infrastructure there. The remarks came after U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat on Friday night to target the strategic island’s oil infrastructure if shipping through the Strait of Hormuz is disrupted, and after the U.S. Central Command’s claim on Saturday of striking over 90 Iranian military targets on the island.
— Trump told NBC News on Saturday that he is not ready to make a deal to end the military campaign against Iran “because the terms aren’t good enough yet.” He added that any terms will have to be “very solid.”
Israel
— Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Israel does not intend to hold direct talks with the Lebanese government in the coming days, contradicting a Saturday report by the Israeli daily newspaper Haaretz, which said representatives from Israel and Lebanon were expected to meet for a round of talks within days amid the intensified fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
Saar also said that “Israel and the United States have a shared determination to continue the fight against Iran until our goals are achieved.”
— Israeli military spokesperson Effie Defrin told CNN that the military is planning for at least three more weeks of its campaign against Iran, with “thousands of targets ahead.”
— The Israeli military said in a statement that it struck more than 200 targets across western and central Iran over the past day. Among the targets were command centers, defense systems, and weapon storage and production sites.
Iran
— Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guard Corps vowed to pursue and kill Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as fighting with Israel and the United States continues.
— Pan-Arab news outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed published parts of its interview with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi, who said Tehran has information that the United States and Israel are launching attacks from certain locations against Arab states in the West Asia region.
Araghchi also said Iran is ready to meet with regional states and form a joint committee to investigate the nature of the attacked targets.
He said the Strait of Hormuz is open to all except U.S. and U.S.-allied ships, adding that there have been no defections in Iran’s state or military institutions, and that Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is in good health and fully in charge.
Araghchi also spoke by phone Saturday night with his French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot to discuss the regional situation.
— Ebrahim Azizi, head of Iran’s parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy, said Saturday that Ukraine has become a target for Iran because of its involvement in the U.S.-Israeli war against the Islamic republic, by providing drone support to Israel.
Iraq
— A drone struck the United Arab Emirates (UAE) consulate in Erbil, capital of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, on Saturday, wounding two security guards and damaging the building, a security source said. The Kurdistan regional presidency strongly condemned the strike.
— Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi urged the international community to take actions to halt ongoing military operations and prevent the expansion of regional conflict, according to a statement by al-Sudani’s media office.
— The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella body for Iraq’s pro-Iranian militias, announced on Sunday evening that it had carried out 24 military operations against “enemy bases” in Iraq and the broader region over the past 24 hours.
Kuwait
— Italy’s military reported a drone attack in the morning on the Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait hosting Italian and U.S. forces, noting that the attack destroyed a remotely-piloted aircraft of the Italian Task Force Air, but that all its personnel are safe.
— Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah held a phone call on Saturday with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty to address the ongoing regional military escalation.
— Several drones struck Kuwait International Airport on Saturday, damaging its radar system but causing no injuries, the country’s civil aviation authority said.
Bahrain
— Aluminium Bahrain, the world’s largest single-site aluminum smelter, said it has started to shut down three primary production lines amid the regional crisis, which represent 19 percent of its total production capacity of 1,623,000 metric tonnes per annum.
— The Bahrain Defence Force said it has intercepted 125 missiles and 211 drones since the conflict began.
— Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani held a phone call on Saturday with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty to address the ongoing regional military escalation.
The United Arab Emirates
— Six nationals of the UAE, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh have been killed and 142 residents of multiple nationalities have suffered minor to moderate injuries in the UAE amid the recent escalating regional tensions, the UAE’s Defense Ministry said, adding that its air defense systems have intercepted 298 ballistic missiles, 1,606 drones and 15 cruise missiles since the start of the latest conflict.
Saudi Arabia
— The Ministry of Defense of Saudi Arabia announced in a post on social media platform X the launch of a service enabling citizens and residents in the kingdom to report drones or missiles through the mobile phone app “Tawakkalna.”
Lebanon
— The death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon has risen to 850 since March 2, including 107 children, with 2,105 people injured, the Lebanese Health Ministry said.
Britain
— British Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said ending the ongoing conflict is the “best and most conclusive way” to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, warning that the situation is harming the global economy.
“The spike in oil and gas prices that we’re seeing is caused by the closure of the Strait,” Miliband told British media, adding that Britain wants to work with allies to seek to get the Strait reopened. ■
