Iran’s overseas minister mentioned Thursday that America “will come to bitterly regret (the) precedent it has set” after a U.S. submarine sank an Iranian frigate off the coast of Sri Lanka.
The remark by Abbas Araghchi represents the primary Iranian authorities acknowledged of the sinking of the IRIS Dena within the Indian Ocean.
Araghchi made the touch upon X, saying “the U.S. has perpetrated an atrocity at sea, 2,000 miles away from Iran’s shores.”
“Frigate Dena, a guest of India’s Navy carrying almost 130 sailors, was struck in international waters without warning,” he wrote. “Mark my words: The U.S. will come to bitterly regret (the) precedent it has set.”
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows beneath.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran launched new wave of assaults Thursday morning at Israeli and American bases following a menace to destroy army and financial infrastructure throughout the area, which got here after the U.S. and Israel intensified their bombardment of Iran and a U.S. Navy submarine sank an Iranian warship within the Indian Ocean.
Israel introduced a number of incoming missile assaults and air sirens sounded in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Iranian state tv mentioned extra strikes additionally focused U.S. bases. The Israeli army mentioned it launched focused strikes in Lebanon at Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Beirut’s southern suburbs.
The U.S. and Israel launched the battle Saturday, focusing on Iran’s management, missile arsenal and nuclear program whereas suggesting that toppling the federal government is a aim. But the precise goals and timelines have repeatedly shifted, signaling an open-ended battle.
The tempo of American and Israeli strikes on Iran was so intense Wednesday that state tv introduced the mourning ceremony for Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at first of the battle, can be postponed. Millions attended the funeral of his predecessor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in 1989.
President Donald Trump praised the U.S. army for “doing very well on the war front, to put it mildly.” Fellow Republicans within the U.S. Senate stood with Trump on Iran as they voted down a decision in search of to halt the battle.
Iran fired on Bahrain, Kuwait and Israel because the battle spiraled. Turkey mentioned NATO defenses intercepted a ballistic missile launched from Iran earlier than it entered Turkey’s airspace.
The battle has killed greater than 1,000 individuals in Iran, greater than 70 in Lebanon and round a dozen in Israel, in response to officers in these nations. It has disrupted the provision of the world’s oil and gasoline, snarled worldwide transport and stranded lots of of hundreds of vacationers within the Middle East.
Threats increasing throughout the Middle East
Countries across the area braced for potential risks Thursday, a day after Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard threatened “the complete destruction of the region’s military and economic infrastructure.”
Qatar’s Interior Ministry mentioned authorities had been evacuating residents close to the U.S. Embassy in Doha as a brief precaution, with out offering additional particulars.
Fighter jets could possibly be heard overhead within the United Arab Emirates metropolis of Dubai and Saudi Arabia mentioned it destroyed a drone in its province bordering Jordan.
A brand new assault off the coast of Kuwait appeared to broaden the realm the place industrial transport was in peril.
An explosion rocked the realm early Thursday, in response to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Center run by the British army. It mentioned a tanker apparently got here beneath assault, however the company didn’t supply a trigger. Iran previously has attacked ships by attaching limpet mines to them.
Prior assaults since preventing started Saturday have occurred within the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz, which connects it to the Persian Gulf and thru which a couple of fifth of the world’s oil is shipped.
Brent crude costs are up 15% because the begin of the battle as Iranian assaults have disrupted site visitors by the strait, with the present worth the very best since July 2024.
Buildings of Iranian army and safety forces focused
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth mentioned a torpedo from an American submarine sank an Iranian warship Tuesday night time within the Indian Ocean.
Sri Lankan authorities mentioned 32 crew members had been rescued, whereas its navy recovered 87 our bodies.
Israel mentioned it hit buildings related to Iran’s inner safety command in addition to the Basij, an all-volunteer drive of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard whose bloody crackdown on protesters in January left hundreds useless.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has mentioned his nation’s forces have decentralized management, with models performing largely on their very own, which might blunt the impact of assaults on prime command and management hubs.
Shifting timelines for US operations
During his Pentagon briefing, Hegseth didn’t give a definitive timeline for U.S. operations, which Trump has mentioned might final for a month or longer.
“You can say four weeks, but it could be six. It could be eight. It could be three,” Hegseth mentioned. “Ultimately, we set the pace and the tempo. The enemy is off balance, and we’re going to keep them off balance.”
U.S. and Israeli army officers say launches from Iran have declined as their assaults have taken out ballistic missiles, launchers and drones. Israel’s Homefront Command introduced it was easing restrictions that closed workplaces nationwide. It mentioned workplaces might reopen Thursday if there’s a shelter close by. Schools would stay closed.
Still, explosions sounded early Thursday in Israel, which mentioned its defensive methods had been shifting to intercept a minimum of three waves of Iranian missiles.
At least 1,045 individuals have been killed in Iran, the nation’s Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs mentioned Wednesday. Eleven individuals have died in Israel. Six U.S. troops have been killed, together with a significant whose id was launched Wednesday.
Another eight individuals had been killed in Lebanon, together with two in a constructing struck by the Israeli army within the Beddawi refugee camp within the coastal metropolis of Tripoli on Thursday and three on a coastal freeway, authorities mentioned. The Israeli army didn’t instantly say who it focused within the strikes.
In two near-simultaneous Israeli drone strikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs late Wednesday, two autos had been hit, killing three individuals and wounding six, the well being ministry mentioned. The Israeli army mentioned it focused a Hezbollah member, including that additional particulars would comply with.
Israel says its offensive had been deliberate for midyear
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz mentioned the offensive in opposition to Iran was initially deliberate for mid-2026, however “the need arose to bring everything forward to February.”
He listed occasions inside Iran, Trump’s positions and the potential of “creating a combined operation” as causes.
The protests in Iran put unprecedented strain on its management. Trump threatened army motion in response to the crackdown earlier than shifting his consideration to Iran’s disputed nuclear program.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt mentioned Wednesday that the U.S. launched its operation partly out of concern Iran would possibly strike U.S. personnel and belongings within the area first. A telephone name between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier than the airstrikes started additionally was “important with respect to the timeline,” she mentioned.
Iran’s clerics are selecting a brand new supreme chief
Iran’s leaders are scrambling to switch Khamenei, who dominated the nation for 37 years. It is simply the second time because the 1979 Islamic Revolution {that a} new supreme chief is being chosen.
Potential candidates vary from hard-liners dedicated to confrontation with the West to reformists who search diplomatic engagement. Mojtaba Khamenei, Khamenei’s son, has lengthy been thought of amongst them, although he has by no means held a authorities place.
In an indication that Iran’s management will solely search to consolidate its energy, the pinnacle of the judiciary warned that “those who cooperate with the enemy in any way will be considered an enemy.”
Israel’s protection minister, Katz, mentioned on X that Iran’s subsequent supreme chief “will be a target for elimination” if he continues to threaten Israel, the U.S. and others.
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Rising reported from Bangkok, Becatoros from Athens, Greece, and Magdy from Cairo. Associated Press writers Sally Abou AlJoud in Beirut, Lebanon, Melanie Lidman in Tel Aviv, Israel, Julia Frankel in Jerusalem and Giovanna Dell’Orto in Miami contributed to this report.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/iran-dubai-united-arab-emirates-ayatollah-ali-khamenei-israeli-b2932340.html