Israel says economic pressure could push Iran into ‘desperate steps’
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said Thursday that US economic sanctions against Iran have proven to be effective, but the pressure might lead Tehran into extreme measures.
“We see signs indicating that the heavy economic pressure they are under, and the fear of an uprising and the collapse of the regime, may push them to desperate steps,” Katz said at a ceremony for defence ministry employees.
Israel launched the Middle East war alongside the United States in late February, but has stayed on the sidelines militarily since President Donald Trump sealed a ceasefire deal in April — even after that truce later fell apart.
Last month, the US Treasury announced a new series of sanctions to “asphyxiate” the Iranian economy, and the US airforce resumed raids on Iran on Sunday.
In retaliation, Iran attacked US military targets in the Gulf and in Israel’s eastern neighbour Jordan, but has refrained from targeting Israel.
“The ayatollahs’ regime in Iran knows very well why it does not attack Israel after we struck them powerfully twice, destroyed their nuclear programme, eliminated (supreme leader Ali) Khamenei, and severely damaged their strategic capabilities,” Katz said Thursday, referring to previous rounds of confrontation last year and earlier this year.
The hawkish minister reiterated the threats against the Islamic Republic that he has made in recent months.
“An Iranian attack on Israel will free Israel from any existing constraint,” he said.
“We will strike all of Iran’s national military and civilian infrastructure — including energy infrastructure — and push Iran deep back into the Stone Age,” he added.
Israel’s Katz threatens broad retaliation if Iran attacks Israel
Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday that Israel would strike Iran’s energy and civilian infrastructure if Iran were to attack Israel, the country’s latest threat to Tehran amid a sudden recent escalation of US-Iran fighting.
Fears of renewed escalation gripped the Middle East this week after the US and Iran exchanged their biggest barrage since July, with Washington striking Iran’s southern coast and Tehran firing at US bases across the region.
Britain’s King Charles to host Oman’s Sultan for October state visit
Britain’s King Charles and his wife Queen Camilla will host Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq at Windsor Castle for a state visit next month, Buckingham Palace said on Thursday.
The visit from October 20 to 22 will come against the backdrop of escalating tensions in the Middle East since US-Israeli attacks on Iran in February, which prompted retaliatory strikes on Israel and Gulf states that host US bases.
US President Donald Trump has also threatened to bomb Oman – which has been in talks with Iran aimed at restoring commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz – if it “gets in the way”.
Iran’s army says it attacked US bases in Kuwait, UAE
Iran’s army on Thursday said it targeted US bases in the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, despite threats of further strikes by US President Donald Trump.
“This morning, the army hit the satellite communication systems, equipment depots and fighter aircraft hangars of the terrorist US army at the Ahmad al-Jaber Air Base in Kuwait with missiles and drones,” the army said in a statement carried by state TV.
It added that “the location of forces and radar systems of the child-killing US army at the Al Minhad Air Base in the UAE were also attacked by missiles and drones of the army”.
Iran warns US against
Iran warns US against Israeli attack on south Lebanon ridge held by Hezbollah, sources say
Iran has warned the United States that it would respond forcefully to an Israeli offensive on a mountainous ridge in southern Lebanon where Iranian military personnel are holed up alongside Hezbollah fighters, three officials briefed on the message told Reuters.
The message, delivered last month, highlights Iran’s continued direct involvement in the ground fighting in southern Lebanon and its readiness to retaliate against Israeli attacks there as the regional war enters its seventh month.
Hezbollah is believed to have built an underground command centre and weapons stores within the Ali al-Taher ridge, which has a commanding view of southeastern Lebanon, according to Lebanese security sources, and has become one of the most contested pieces of ground in the Israel-Hezbollah war.
UAE president and Trump discuss Middle East developments in phone call, UAE state news agency says
UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and US President Donald Trump discussed Middle East developments and bilateral cooperation during a phone call, UAE state news agency WAM said on Thursday.
Gulf shipping traffic via Hormuz below 10-day average, data shows
Six commodity vessels transited the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, down from 11 a day earlier and well below the 10-day average of around 13, preliminary shipping data showed on Thursday.
The vessels included two very large gas carriers, two long-range tankers, one Supramax tanker and one Panamax tanker, Kpler data showed as of 04:05 GMT.
The number of vessels transiting the waterway could change, as some ships typically switch off transponders during the voyage.
🎥 Old videos falsely claim to show new attacks on American bases
As US-Iran hostilities flare up and strikes have resumed, so has a wave of misinformation online. Old and unrelated videos are flooding social media, falsely presented as footage of new attacks.
As tensions escalate, lips filmed in Dubai, Russia and the US have been misrepresented as Iranian strikes on US bases in the Gulf.
Another 68-year-old video of a US nuclear test has been falsely claimed to show Iran detonating mines in the Strait of Hormuz.
Vedika Bahl fact-checks in Truth or Fake.
Kuwait army says intercepting missile, drone attack from Iran
Kuwait’s army said Thursday it was intercepting a missile and drone attack from Iran.
“Kuwaiti air defenses are currently engaging hostile missile and drone attacks following the heinous Iranian aggression,” the army wrote on X.
Iranian state TV confirmed Tehran was targeting US bases in Kuwait “in response to America’s crimes against the Iranian people”.