The United States launched a new series of strikes in Iran on Friday, while Iran-backed Houthi rebels opened a second front in the conflict, attacking Saudi tankers in the Red Sea and sending oil prices skyrocketing. Follow our liveblog for the latest developments.
Explosions, smoke near Iraq’s Erbil airport, AFP correspondent reports
Several blasts sounded near Erbil airport, which hosts US-led coalition troops in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region, an AFP journalist said.
Explosions were heard after air defences were activated, according to the journalist who also saw drones hovering over the city and smoke rising in the airport area.
Since hostilities resumed in the Middle East, drones have repeatedly been intercepted over Erbil, which is also home to a major US consulate complex.
Iran says US attacks Revolutionary Guards base in country’s north
Iranian authorities said that the US struck a Revolutionary Guards’ base in the northern province of Gilan, state media reported.
“This morning, an IRGC naval forces headquarters in Zibakenar was targeted by American enemy projectiles, which damaged some of the equipment in the complex,” said Ali Bagheri, deputy governor for the province, quoted by the official IRNA news agency.
Iran warns countries against assisting in US attacks
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that Iran would hold accountable any country assisting the United States in an attack on the Islamic Republic.
“Any participation, cooperation or assistance in committing aggression against Iran will create international responsibility for the relevant parties,” Araghchi said at a meeting in Kyrgyzstan, adding that Iran “reserves its right to take all necessary measures within the framework of self-defence”.
Iran says US attack on southwest kills at least four people
An overnight US attack on Iran’s southwestern province of Khuzestan killed at least four people and wounded several others, Iranian state media reported.
“Following the missile attack by the terrorist US enemy on areas around the city of Ahvaz, four of our compatriots were martyred and five others were injured,” Valiollah Hayati, deputy governor of the province, was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency.
Iran army says it attacked US military facilities at Jordan’s al-Azraq base and Bahrain’s Sheikh Isa air base
Iran’s army said it carried out drone strikes against several American military facilities and bases in Bahrain and Jordan in retaliation for the latest US attacks against the Islamic Republic.
“This morning, the fuel tanks, large equipment warehouses and silos and the barracks of the US terrorist army forces at the Isa Air Base in Bahrain were targeted by Arash kamikaze drones,” the army said in a statement carried by state TV.
An AFP journalist in Bahrain reported an explosion and the sounding of warning sirens in the country on Friday morning, though it was not immediately clear if the two events were linked.
The Iranian army also claimed drone attacks against Jordan, targeting “aircraft hangars, aviation maintenance hangars and a barracks” at al-Azraq base.
Jordan has not reported any strikes in the past few hours.
Tehran argues that any facility or base in the Middle East that the US military uses for strikes on Iran is considered a legitimate target for retaliation.
Air raid sirens sounds in Bahrain, interior ministry says
Iran calls Trump’s asset seizure threat an ‘incendiary precedent’
Tehran said on Friday that US President Donald Trump’s threat to use frozen Iranian assets to pay for damage to ships and cargo was an “incendiary precedent”.
“Seizing another nation’s assets to pay for unrelated future claims is an incendiary precedent,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi posted on X.
Oil heads for weekly gains as Red Sea attacks fuel supply fears
Oil headed for weekly gains on Friday as Houthi attacks on tankers in the Red Sea raised fears over the disruption of a second major shipping chokepoint, while Kazakhstan temporarily cut output after its main export route was forced to shut.
Brent futures eased 72 cents, or 0.72 percent, to $99.97 a barrel as of 0126 GMT, but remained on course for a 13.5 percent gain this week. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures fell 70 cents, or 0.76 percent, to $91.49 a barrel, on track for a 10.9 percent weekly rise.
Brent settled up 7 percent and WTI rose 6.2 percent on Thursday, the first time since May that Brent closed above $100 a barrel after Iran-backed Houthis said they had struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.
US military completes 13th consecutive night of strikes on Iran
The US military said late on Thursday it had completed its latest round of strikes on Iran, marking a 13th consecutive night of American attacks.
The latest wave of strikes lasted more than two hours, according to US Central Command.
Welcome to the FRANCE 24 liveblog covering events in the Middle East. You can catch up on yesterday’s developments here.
• The US House narrowly passed a resolution to halt US military action in Iran, sending a warning to President Trump for the second time as the future of the conflict remains uncertain and has already cost the US $37.5 billion.
• Trump set a new condition to a US-Saudi nuclear deal signed the previous day by insisting the agreement was “totally subject to” the Gulf kingdom joining the Abraham Accords and normalising relations with Israel.
