The US military said on Tuesday that it had intercepted and defeated a series of Iranian missile and drone attacks targeting regional neighbours, including Kuwait and Bahrain, while also carrying out self-defence strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island, according to US Central Command. Follow our liveblog for the latest developments.
Oil rises on Middle East tensions as AI-fuelled stock rally continues
Oil prices extended gains on Wednesday as Middle East peace talks stuttered, though stocks mostly rose on the back of continued demand for all things linked to artificial intelligence.
Uncertainty about a peace deal pushed oil prices up more than one per cent, with both main contracts up around five per cent this week.
However, stocks extended their breathtaking rally, fuelled by the tech sector and AI demand.
Tokyo climbed more than two per cent, helped by a more than 11 per cent surge in chipmaker Tokyo Electron, while Advantest also jumped.
Taipei was up a similar amount thanks to Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company’s strong advance.
Shanghai, Sydney, Singapore and Manila were also up, though Hong Kong, Wellington and Jakarta retreated. Seoul was closed for a holiday.
“Equity markets are once again taking their cue from the technology sector rather than the geopolitical headlines,” said IG chief market analyst Chris Beauchamp.
Iranian Revolutionary Guards say they attacked US Fifth Fleet and regional bases
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps has attacked the US Fifth Fleet headquarters and an airbase and helicopters in a regional country using missiles and drones, Iranian media reported on Wednesday, in response to what the IRGC described as a US attack on a communications tower south of Qeshm Island.
IRGC navy also targeted a vessel it identified as Panaya with missiles in response to what it said was a US attack on an Iranian tanker near the Strait of Hormuz with a projectile that damaged the engine room, Iranian media reported.
“Disrupting the security of the Strait of Hormuz will carry a heavy price for the US military,” local media cited the IRGC as saying.
US military says it intercepted Iranian missile and drone attacks
The US military said on Tuesday that it had “successfully defeated” a series of Iranian missile and drone attacks on its regional neighbours, and conducted self-defence strikes on Iran’s Qeshm Island.
“Iran launched several ballistic missiles towards regional neighbours; however, all failed to hit their intended targets,” US Central Command said in a statement.
“Two Iranian missiles fired at Kuwait fell short or broke apart en route, and three missiles launched at Bahrain were immediately intercepted by US and Bahrain air defence forces.”
Welcome to the France 24 liveblog covering events in the Middle East. Catch up on yesterday’s events here.
• US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said President Donald Trump’s negotiating team has not offered Iran any sanctions relief in exchange for reopening the Strait of Hormuz.
• The first day of direct talks between ambassadors of Israel and Lebanon in Washington made no headway, after President Donald Trump said he had received commitments to de-escalation from both sides.
• Israel kept up strikes on southern Lebanon just a day after Trump asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to attack Beirut to avert further escalation in the three-month-old war.
