Dubai, Mar 8 (AP) Israel on Sunday struck southern Lebanon, Beirut and oil storage facilities in Tehran as the war in the Middle East keeps escalating, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised “many surprises” for the next phase of the conflict.
Iran also hit a desalination plant in Bahrain. Earlier Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said a US airstrike damaged an Iranian desalination plant on Qeshm Island, warning that in doing so “the US set this precedent, not Iran.” Such infrastructure is critical for drinking water supplies in the parched deserts of the Gulf.
An Israeli attack on oil storage sites in Tehran sent up pillars of fire that could be seen in Associated Press video as a glow against the Saturday night sky. It appeared to be the first time a civil industrial facility has been targeted in the war.
The war, which erupted on Feb. 28 after joint US-Israeli strikes hit Iran, has so far killed at least 1,230 people in the Islamic Republic, more than 300 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials.
Here is the latest: Arab League chief calls out Iran’s reckless attacks on its Arab neighbours ———————————————————————————– Arab League chief on Sunday lashed out at Iran for attacking Arab countries during its war against the US and Israel.
Secretary-General Ahmed Abouel Gheit told a virtual meeting of Arab foreign ministers that Iran’s strikes against its Arab neighbours “can’t be justified,” and reflect a “reckless policy.” He said Arab countries haven’t been part of the US-Israel war against Iran, and declared that their territories wouldn’t be used as launching pads for US attacks.
“This unjustified Iranian aggression reflects a confused understanding and further isolates Iran during this difficult and delicate period,” he said.
UK will not outsource foreign policy, foreign secretary says ——————————————————————– Britain’s top diplomat said the UK government will not outsource its foreign policy following further criticism over the country’s position on the Iran war from President Donald Trump.
Yvette Cooper told BBC News that it was important to “learn the lessons” from the Iraq war in 2003 and its aftermath, when British forces fought alongside their US counterparts.
She said, “It is our job as the UK government to decide what’s in the UK national interest, and that doesn’t mean simply agreeing with other countries or outsourcing our foreign policy to other countries.” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer opted against granting the US military permission to use British bases for the first wave of military action, but then said the UK would engage in defensive operations after Iran attacked countries throughout the Middle East.
On hearing that the UK was reducing the time it would take one of its two aircraft carriers, the HMS Prince of Wales, to set sail for any deployment, Trump said: “We don’t need them any longer.” Iran’s Revolutionary Guard vows to step up missile and drone attacks ——————————————————————————- Iran’s Revolutionary Guard on Sunday vowed to step up attacks against Israel and the US assets in the Middle East as Israel continues to bomb Iran with devastating strikes, the Iranian state-run news agency reported.
The guard said “the scale and depth” of its missile and drone attacks will increase following what it called “the brutality” of US and Israeli strikes, according to the IRNA news agency.
Bangladesh faces a fuel crisis amid tensions in the Middle East ———————————————————————– Car owners and drivers in Bangladesh waited for hours in long queues on Sunday to collect fuel for their vehicles amid fear that the ongoing war in the Middle East involving Iran would create a serious fuel crisis.
Many even waited overnight in many fuel stations in Dhaka, the capital, to get fuel under a government rationing system allowing cars and bikes to collect a limited amount of fuel. Others have even resorted to panic-buying as fuel pump owners say they were under severe pressure due to higher demand.
Bangladesh imports roughly 95 per cent of its fuel oil and 70 per cent of its gas, predominantly from the Middle East. Authorities say five of the country’s six fertiliser factories have been closed until March 18 because of the gas crisis.
The government said Sunday six vessels carrying liquefied natural gas, furnace oil, liquefied petroleum gas and condensate have already arrived at the country’s main Chattogram seaport from the Middle East and East Asian countries to ease the crisis. Separately, another five vessels, carrying LNG, LPG and diesel, are en route to Bangladesh.
Pope appeals for peace as Vatican rejects preventive war’ —————————————————————— Pope Leo XIV called for an end to the US-Israeli war in Iran and the opening of dialogue, warning that the conflict was spreading throughout the Middle East and sowing “a climate of hatred and fear.” For the second Sunday in a row, Leo expressed his “profound consternation” about the war and how it was destabilising Lebanon, a bulwark for Christians in the predominantly Muslim region.
During his traditional noontime prayer, the American pope prayed for an end to the bombs and the opening of dialogue “to hear the voice of the people.” The Holy See has a tradition of diplomatic neutrality, but has nevertheless rejected the Trump administration’s justification for attacking Iran preventively.
“If states were to be recognised as having a right to preventive war,’ according to their own criteria and without a supranational legal framework, the whole world would risk being set ablaze,” the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, told Vatican Media this week.
Parolin demanded the respect of international law and multilateral diplomacy.
Iran says attacks have damaged about 10,000 civilian buildings ————————————————————————- US and Israeli strikes in Iran have damaged about 10,000 civilian structures across the country, the Iranian Red Crescent Society said.
In a social media post, the Red Crescent said the structures include 7,943 residential units and 1,617 commercial units, along with several medical and educational facilities.
Iranian Red Crescent warns the public about the dangers of smoke from oil facility fires ————————————————————————————————– The Iranian Red Crescent warned people in Tehran to take extra precautions to avoid toxic amounts of pollutants in the air stemming from a fire that broke out after Israel struck multiple oil storage depots late Saturday. Heavy, black smoke from the fires blocked out the sun on Sunday morning.
The Red Crescent advised the public to avoid turning on air conditioners or going outside immediately after rainfall due to concerns about toxic acid rain.
The Red Crescent also encouraged people to protect exposed food and to gargle salt water to clean their throats from oily soot particles they may have inhaled. Tehran’s governor recommended everyone wear masks outside.
A second Pakistani national was killed by missile debris in Dubai ————————————————————————– A Pakistani driver was killed overnight when debris from an aerial interception fell on a vehicle in Dubai, authorities said Sunday. It’s the second death of a Pakistani national there in recent days.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed grief over the deaths of the two Pakistanis in Dubai.
Two other civilians, from Nepal and Bangladesh, have been killed by missile debris in Dubai since the US and Israel launched a war against Iran on Feb. 28, triggering Iranian missile and drone attacks on its Gulf neighbours. (AP) SKS SKS
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