Middle East Conflict Escalates: Missile Attacks, Drone Strikes, and Oil Refinery Damage Reported
The Bahrain Defence Force has said that Iran fired 141 missiles and 242 drones since the start of the war on February 28. The country’s security forces, the BDF said, “continue to confront successive waves of the sinful Iranian terrorist aggression targeting the Kingdom of Bahrain”. Israel has charged a reservist for passing sensitive information about the Iron Dome system and other classified information to Iran. The accused received $1,000 in crypto currency in return, according to Times of Israel. - After Israeli strikes targeted Iran’s South Pars gas field, Tehran retaliated with attacks on Haifa in Israel and Ras Laffan in Qatar. Iranian officials warned of “zero restraint” if energy infrastructure is hit again, adding that only a “fraction” of their military capability has been deployed so far. - The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced a fresh wave of missile and drone strikes targeting US bases as well as key Israeli cities, including Tel Aviv, Haifa and Jerusalem, signalling a widening scope of operations. - According to the Iranian Red Crescent Society, more than 18,000 civilians have been injured in Iran since the conflict began on February 28, including 204 children. The overall death toll has crossed 1,400. - Tehran has sought clarification from Berlin regarding the role of the Ramstein Air Base, a critical US military hub linked to Middle East operations. Iran’s ambassador to Germany said its involvement in the conflict remains unclear. - Emmanuel Macron has proposed consulting UN Security Council members on a framework to secure navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly 20% of global oil and gas supplies pass, once hostilities ease Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi has warned the United Kingdom against allowing the United States to use British military bases for strikes on Iran. Araqchi said that such actions would be viewed as direct participation in aggression. In a phone call with UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper, Araqchi condemned recent US and Israeli attacks, calling them violations of international law and accusing the UK and some European nations of adopting a “biased approach”. Araqchi emphasised that Iran reserves the right to defend its sovereignty and independence. In response, Cooper expressed concern over the conflict’s wider political and economic impact, particularly rising tensions in the Strait of Hormuz. According to a Reuters update, Israeli oil refineries have confirmed that Iranian missiles hit electrical infrastructure in Haifa that was supplying a service facility. "Iranian strike on Haifa refinery damaged external infrastructure owned by a third party that is essential to operations, expected to return to operations within a few days. Most production facilities are operating; the remainder are in the process of being restarted. Company examining impact on operations and on financial results," Reuters quoted Israeli oil refineries as saying. Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has reportedly sidestepped calls from US President Donald Trump to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz. She joins a growing list of NATO countries and allies who have refused Trump's repeated calls to action. According to the Kyodo News Agency, he had broached the subject with Takaichi at a White House meeting on Thursday. But she reportedly explained “in detail what Japan can do and cannot do” from a legal perspective. The Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force is one of the largest navies in the world, but its scope of operations is restricted by the country’s pacifist constitution. Takaichi appeared to have offered support in other ways, with Trump telling reporters that Japan was meeting its obligations, unlike NATO countries. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has asked all Indian air operators to refrain from operating within the affected airspace over Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, UAE and Saudi Arabia, in view of the ongoing West Asia conflict. https://twitter.com/ANI/status/2034896258591289587 Heavy explosions shook Dubai as air defences intercepted early incoming fire over the city, where people were observing Eid al-Fitr, the end of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, and mosques made the day's first call to prayers. Bahrain's Interior Ministry said a fire broke out after shrapnel from an intercepted projectile landed on a warehouse, and Saudi Arabia reported shooting down multiple drones targeting its oil-rich Eastern Province. The renewed attacks came after an intense day that saw Iran hit energy infrastructure around the region and launch more than a dozen missile salvos at Israel following the attack on South Pars. “In the coming days, we may un-sanction the Iranian oil that’s on the water. It’s about 140m barrels. That’s about 10 days to two weeks of supply that the Iranians had been pushing out that would have all gone to China. In essence, we will be using the Iranian barrels against the Iranians to keep the price down for the next 10 to 14 days as we continue this campaign," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Fox News. Iranian state television reported that Revolutionary Guard spokesman Gen. Ali Mohammad Naeini was killed in an airstrike early on Friday. This came soon after he released a statement insisting Tehran was still able to build missiles despite the attacks coming from Israel and the United States. Iran’s new Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei called Friday for the enemies of his nations to have their “security” taken away, his latest message to the public. Khamenei made the remarks in a statement issued on his behalf to President Masoud Pezeshkian after Israel killed Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib. He has not been seen since he was named as the Supreme Leader of Iran. Gene. Ali Mohammad Naeini made the comments in a report quoted by Iran’s s saying that Tehran was still building missiles. The comments came soon after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed Iran had lost the capability. He also said the war would go on. "Our missile industry score is 20, and there is no concern in this regard because we are producing missiles even during war conditions, which is amazing, and there is no particular problem in stockpiling," said General Ali Mohammad Naeini. “These people (the Iranian public) expect the war to continue until the enemy is completely exhausted. This war must end when the shadow of war is lifted from the country," he added. Israel’s military said Friday it struck sites in Syria in response to attacks against the Druze.The army said it struck infrastructure belonging to Syria in response to attacks on Druze population in Sweida in southern Syria. Syria’s state-run SANA news agency did not immediately acknowledge the attack, which marks the first Israeli attack on Syria as its war with the United States targeting Iran continues. Israel has a significant Druze population. Israel previously has intervened in defense of the Druze in Syria, launching dozens of airstrikes on convoys of government fighters and even striking the Syrian Defense Ministry headquarters in central Damascus. According to a report by Lloyd's List, Iran has created a 'safe' shipping corridor through the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for significant payment or following negotiations. One tanker operator reportedly paid Tehran approximately $2 million for safe passage through a negotiated "approved" corridor amid the conflict. Other transits have occurred after vetting or through diplomacy without confirmed fees. Kuwait said Friday that its Mina Al-Ahmadi oil refinery again came under attack by Iranian drones, which sparked a fire at several of its units. Iranian state television later acknowledged the attack without claiming responsibility. Mina Al-Ahmadi can process some 730,000 barrels of oil per day. It is one of three oil refineries in the tiny, oil-rich nation. President Donald Trump drew a parallel on Thursday between US strikes on Iran and Japan's 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, as he defended the war he launched against Tehran while meeting Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in Washington. "We wanted surprise. Who knows better about surprise than Japan? Why didn't you tell me about Pearl Harbor?" Trump replied when a journalist asked why he had not told allies about his war plans. "You believe in surprise, I think much more so than us." Takaichi's eyes widened and she shifted in her chair as Trump, seated beside her in the Oval Office, evoked the moment that drew the US into World War II. China's long fight with deflation risks morphing into something harsher, with economists warning the war in Iran could spark "bad inflation" at a time when chronically weak consumption and fading external demand leave the economy with little cushion. Beijing's deep strategic oil reserves, diversified energy mix and tightly regulated energy market give it a buffer few developed economies enjoy, particularly in Europe, where stagflation risks are rising. Nonetheless, an input-cost shock to the world's largest manufacturing base, which employs hundreds of millions, threatens to squeeze already thin margins, piling pressure on jobs and wages. Kuwait's state oil firm KPC said its Mina Al-Ahmadi refinery was hit by multiple drone attacks early on Friday, causing a fire in some units, with no initial casualties reported, the state news agency said. Firefighters responded immediately, with several units shut down as a precaution to ensure workers' safety. Oil prices fell on Friday as leading European nations and Japan offered to join efforts to secure safe passage for ships through the Strait of Hormuz and the U.S. outlined moves to boost oil supply. Looking to curb soaring oil prices, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. may soon remove sanctions from Iranian oil stranded on tankers, and said a further release of crude from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve was possible. Brent futures fell $1.36, or 1.3%, to $107.29 a barrel as of 0330 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell $1.92, or 2.0%, to $94.22. The United States is reportedly gearing up to send thousands of marines and several warships to “reinforce its troops fighting against Iran”. The source-based report from Newsmax came days after the US sent US sent some 2,500 Marines and the USS Tripoli amphibious assault ship to the Middle East. According to Newsmax, the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group is being deployed from the US West Coast with 4,000 marines and sailors. It also includes F-35 fighter jets, missiles, and amphibious vehicles that can be used to carry out land invasions. The Israeli Defence Force said it had launched a new wave of airstrikes in the Iranian capital. The IDF said the missiles are targeting “infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime across Tehran.” This comes soon after Iran fired a round of ballistic missiles targeting northern Israel. Top Iranian soccer player Sardar Azmoun has been expelled from the national team for a perceived act of disloyalty to the government. Meanwhile Iranian authorities accorded a hero's welcome to the national women's football team upon their return from Australia, where several members had briefly sought asylum before withdrawing their applications. According to Al Jazeera, six players and one staff member had applied for asylum during the Women's Asian Cup earlier this month, drawing criticism from hardliners in Iran after the team did not sing the national anthem before their opening match. Iranian state media has released what appears to be an archived video of Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei. The date of the video is unknown. In the video, the supreme leader can be seen teaching religious science to a bunch of pupils who are listening attentively. The IRIB said that the video of Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei was published for the first time. Mojtaba Khamenei took over as the Supreme Leader after his father Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was 86, was killed in an American strike on February 28. In recent strikes, National Security Advisor Ali Larijani and Minister of Intelligence Esmail Khatib were also eliminated. Israel launched a fresh wave of attacks on Iran on Friday, a day after President Donald Trump told it not to repeat its strikes on Iranian natural gas infrastructure, which sharply escalated the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. The conflict has killed thousands of people, spread to neighbouring nations and hit the global economy since the United States and Israel launched strikes on February 28, after talks about Tehran's nuclear program failed to yield a deal. "The IDF has just begun a wave of strikes against the infrastructure of the Iranian terror regime in the heart of Tehran," a spokesperson for the Israeli Defense Forces said, without providing details. Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates said they were dealing with missile attacks in the early hours of Friday, following days of Iranian strikes on regional energy infrastructure that has roiled global markets. According to the Saudi Ministry of Defence, authorities have intercepted and destroyed three drones to the east of the country over the past hour. Al Jazeera quoted a ministry spokesperson to add that 10 more drones had also been destroyed earlier on Friday morning. Meanwhile the Kuwait military said its air defences were currently confronting “hostile missile and drone attacks”. The military said if explosions are heard, they are “the result of air defence systems intercepting the hostile attack”. The Ministry of Interior in Bahrain has reported a fire at a company warehouse due to falling shrapnel from “Iranian aggression”. The ministry said civil Defence workers have the fire under control “without any injuries”. The Interior Ministry did not say whether the attack involved Iranian drones or missiles. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has broached the possibility of a "ground component" to the US-Israel war against Iran. “You don’t want to replace one ayatollah with another... it is often said that you can’t do revolutions from the air...There has to be a ground component as well. There are many possibilities for this ground component and I take the liberty of not sharing [those] with you," the Israeli prime minister said on Thursday. The remarks came even as US President Donald Trump appeared to backtrack --- insisting that the US had no plans to put boots on the ground. According to a report by the Wall Street Journal, oil officials in Saudi Arabia are projecting that oil prices could soar past $180 a barrel if disruptions due to the Iran war persist until late April. Israeli missiles struck a critical Iranian gas field on Thursday and triggereda barrage of retaliatory strikes across the Middle East. The Iranian attacks have caused extensive damage to leading energy sites --- refineries, gas fields and more --- in Qatar, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Kuwait. President Donald Trump had taken to Truth Social amidst the strikes to insist Israel had acted alone without informing the US and other allies. His account differs drastically from the retelling by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu --- marking their most notable difference of opinion since the start of the 21-day war against Iran. Trump told reporters on Thursday evening that he neither agreed with nor approved of the Israeli attack. "I told him, 'Don't do that. We get along great. It's coordinated, but on occasion he'll do something. And if I don't like it -- and so we're not doing that anymore," Trump said. Netanyahu said that Israel "acted alone" and that he's agreed to Trump's request that Israel hold off on any further attack on Iran's giant gas field. The prime minister also sought to downplay any space between him and Trump. "It's been said that for 40 years I've been saying that Iran is a danger to Israel and a danger to the world. That is true. You know who else said that? President Trump...Look, I don't think any two leaders have been as coordinated as President Trump and I. He's the leader. I'm his ally. America is the leader," Netanyahu said. Brent crude surged to $115 a barrel and US crude topped $97 after Israel struck Iran’s South Pars gas field on Thursday. The price of Brent crude oil, the international standard, has spiked more than 60% since Israel and the United States started the war with Iran.
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