Dubai, Mar 11 (AP) Iran fired missiles and drones at targets across the Gulf, including oil infrastructure in Saudi Arabia and a ship off the coast of the Emirates, while Israel and the United States struck targets across the Islamic Republic. Saudi Arabia and other states said they intercepted multiple drone attacks.
Six members of the Iranian women’s soccer team will remain in Australia, Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said on Wednesday, while one of the squad members who was previously granted asylum changed her mind and planned to return to Iran.
US President Donald Trump said in social media posts that there were no reports of Iran planting explosives in the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 per cent of the world’s oil is shipped. The US said it took out more than a dozen minelaying Iranian vessels on Tuesday to help prevent any attempt to close the waterway.
Iran’s vow not to allow any oil through the strategic strait has led to market volatility and fears of shortages, especially in Asia, which is dependent on oil shipped from the region.
Israel struck a building in the centre of the Lebanese capital, Beirut, as part of its campaign against Hezbollah. The Lebanese group has been carrying out attacks against Israel in support of Iran.
Here is the latest: Iran hosts public funeral for commanders killed Feb. 28 —————————————————————- Iran held a funeral on Wednesday for commanders and others killed at the start of the war with Israel and the United States.
Iranian state television aired footage of people gathered at Enqelab Square in Tehran, Iran’s capital, even as Israeli airstrikes targeted the city.
Among those being honoured were Lt. Gen. Abdolrahim Mousavi, the chief of staff of Iran’s armed forces, and Lt. Gen. Mohammad Pakpour, who led the country’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard.
Israel is carrying out strikes in Iran and against Hezbollah targets in Lebanon ————————————————————————————— The Israeli military said it is simultaneously carrying out strikes across Iran as well as Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut.
Pope Leo XIV pays tribute to a Lebanese priest killed in the latest fighting ———————————————————————————– Pope Leo XIV is praying for peace in Iran, Lebanon and the Middle East at large, saying he hopes prayers may “be a comfort to those who suffer and a seed of hope for the future.” Speaking at the end of his weekly general audience, Leo recalled that the funeral of a Maronite priest killed in southern Lebanon was being celebrated on Wednesday. He said the Rev. Pierre El Raii, who was killed Monday as he tried to rescue a wounded parishioner, was a true pastor.
“May the Lord grant that his shed blood be a seed of peace for beloved Lebanon,” he said.
The Vatican is particularly concerned about how the war is affecting Lebanon, a Muslim-majority country where about a third of the population is Christian.
Lebanon, where Leo visited late last year, has always been a priority for the Holy See since it stands as a bulwark for Christians in the region at a time when protracted conflicts have decimated Christian communities that date from the time of the Apostles.
Drones target Oman ————————– Oman said Wednesday that it shot down an Iranian drone and another crashed into the sea near its port at Duqm. The state-run Oman News Agency, quoting an anonymous security official, made the announcement. It said there were no human or material losses in Wednesday’s drone attack. Duqm has been a key resupply point for the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and its strike group amid the war.
China says it is focused on diplomatic mediation in the Iran war ————————————————————————- China’s government said its efforts in the Iran war have been focused on “diplomatic mediation,” hoping to help ease tensions, and that it is in communication with all parties, “including parties to the conflict.” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Wednesday that China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, has been holding phone conversations with different counterparts and that the special envoy to the region, Zhai Jun, is currently travelling across several countries.
“As a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and a sincere friend of Middle Eastern countries, China will not stop its efforts for peace, nor will it cease its voice in upholding fairness and justice,” he added.
Alerts sounded in Qatar for incoming Iranian fire ——————————————————— An Associated Press journalist in Doha, Qatar’s capital, saw air defences intercept incoming fire.
Israel targets Beirut’s southern suburbs ———————————————– Israel’s air force carried out three airstrikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs on Wednesday.
The strikes on the suburb of Haret Hreik and nearby areas came after the Israeli military warned that it would attack several buildings in the area.
Israeli strikes kill 14 and wound dozens in Lebanon ———————————————————— Lebanon’s Health Ministry says overnight Israeli strikes on eastern and southern Lebanon have killed 14 people and wounded more than two dozen people.
The ministry said seven were killed and 11 wounded in a strike on the southern village of Chehabiyeh, while seven were killed and 18 wounded in a separate strike on the village of Tamnine el-Tahta in the eastern Bekaa valley.
The ministry did not give further details, but the state news agency said that the strike on Tamnine el-Tahta hit a home where a Syrian family lived. A resident in the area said the area struck was a small concrete block factory.
EU says war is costing Europe billions in energy price hikes ——————————————————————– The European Union’s top official says the Iran war has already cost the 27-nation bloc’s citizens around 3 billion euros (USD 3.5 billion) in energy imports and warns Europe must resist the temptation to buy Russian oil and gas again.
Gas prices have risen by 50 per cent, and oil prices have risen by 27 per cent. If you translate that into euros, the 10 days of war have already cost European taxpayers an additional 3 billion euros in fossil fuel imports,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
“That is the price of our dependency,” she told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg, France, noting the price of European renewables and nuclear energy has remained steady.
Von der Leyen rejected calls for the EU to return to buying Russian energy, which the bloc has stopped doing since President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian troops into Ukraine in 2022.
Zelenskyy says Ukrainian delegation heading to the Gulf —————————————————————- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday that a Ukrainian is heading to Gulf countries.
The delegation, including military specialists and led by Defence Council secretary and chief negotiator Rustem Umerov, will help strengthen defences as tensions rise following Iranian attacks.
In his nightly video address, Zelenskyy said Ukrainian specialists could help protect lives and stabilise the situation in the region.
He added that it is impossible to predict how long the crisis will last, but stressed that protecting lives and restoring stability is urgently needed, including for Ukraine.
Bahrain sounds an air raid siren ————————————– Bahrain sounded its air raid siren late Wednesday morning.
Lebanon says Israeli airstrike on Beirut building wounded 4 ——————————————————————— Lebanon’s Health Ministry says an Israeli airstrike on an apartment building in central Beirut early Wednesday wounded four people.
The strike came without warning, and it was not immediately clear who was the target of the attack on an apartment in Beirut’s Aicha Bakkar neighbourhood.
The strike was the second in central Beirut in less than a week.
Lebanon minister says war has displaced 780,000 ——————————————————— Lebanon’s minister of social affairs says the war has displaced 780,000 people in the country so far.
Haneen Sayed told reporters after meeting President Joseph Aoun on Wednesday morning that 120,000 displaced people are staying in shelters around Lebanon.
They discussed the challenges of the response and the humanitarian aid arriving to support the displaced, Sayed said.
Sayed added that a European Union plane arrived Tuesday with aid that will be distributed in shelters.
She said additional aid shipments from Jordan, France and other countries are expected. (AP) SKS SKS
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