Dubai: Explosions sent up clouds of dark smoke in the Iranian capital city early Saturday, and Tehran retaliated by firing missiles at Israel as the United States warned of a forthcoming bombing campaign that officials said would be the most intense yet in the weeklong conflict.
There was no foreseeable end to the fighting. US President Donald Trump’s administration approved a new USD 151 million arms sale to Israel after Trump said he would not negotiate with Iran without its “unconditional surrender.” Iran’s UN ambassador said the country would “take all necessary measures” to defend itself.
Associated Press video showed explosions flashing and smoke rising over western Tehran as Israel said it had begun a broad wave of strikes. Also early Saturday, the Israeli military said it was moving to intercept a new salvo of missiles launched from Iran.
In a sign of the widening nature of the conflict, sirens sounded early Saturday in Bahrain as an Iranian attack targeted the island kingdom. And Saudi Arabia said it destroyed drones headed toward its vast Shaybah oil field and shot down a ballistic missile launched toward Prince Sultan Air Base, which hosts US forces.
The US and Israel have battered Iran with strikes, targeting its military capabilities, leadership and nuclear program. The stated goals and timelines for the war have repeatedly shifted, as the US has at times suggested it seeks to topple Iran’s government or elevate new leadership from within.
Meanwhile, Russia has provided Iran with information that could help Tehran strike the US military, according to two officials familiar with US intelligence on the matter. Russian President Vladimir Putin had a call Friday with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, expressing his condolences over the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Kremlin said.
In other developments, evidence emerged suggesting that an explosion that killed scores of Iranian students at a school was likely caused by US airstrikes that also hit an adjacent compound associated with the regime’s Revolutionary Guard.
Qatar’s energy minister, Saad al-Kaabi, warned in an interview with the Financial Times that the war could “bring down the economies of the world,” predicting a widespread shutdown of Gulf energy exports that could send oil to USD 150 a barrel.
The price for a barrel of benchmark US crude rose above USD 90 Friday for the first time in more than two years.
Russia is providing information to Iran, officials say
Russia has provided Iran with information that could help Tehran strike American warships, aircraft and other assets in the region, according to two officials familiar with US intelligence on the matter.
The people, who were not authorised to comment publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity, cautioned that the US intelligence has not uncovered that Russia is directing Iran on what to do with the information.
Still, it’s the first indication that Moscow has sought to get involved in the war.
Trump says US will help rebuild Iran once it has ACCEPTABLE’ leaders
In a social media post Friday, Trump said “There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!” After a surrender, “and the selection of a GREAT & ACCEPTABLE Leader(s),” he wrote, the US and its allies will help rebuild Iran, making it “economically bigger, better, and stronger than ever before.”
Those comments were likely to raise further questions about the endgame of the war. The fighting has killed at least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 200 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials in those countries. Six US troops have been killed.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on social media that “some countries” had begun mediation efforts, without elaborating.
Trump has also told media outlets that he should be involved in choosing a replacement for Khamenei, who was killed in the opening strikes of the war. Trump spoke dismissively of Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei – a front-runner to replace his father – calling him “a lightweight.”
Iran’s UN ambassador, Amir Saeid Iravani, condemned Trump’s statement and said Iran “does not accept and will never allow any foreign power to interfere in its internal affairs.”
Iranian state television reported Friday that a leadership council had started discussing how to convene the country’s Assembly of Experts, which will select the new supreme leader.
US official warns that the biggest bombing’ is coming
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a television interview that the “biggest bombing campaign” of the war was still to come.
Israel has said that over the past week it has heavily bombed an extensive underground bunker that Iranian leaders had planned to use during the hostilities.
New information surfaced suggesting that a deadly Feb. 28 explosion at a school in the Iranian city of Minab, some 1,100 kilometres southeast of Tehran, was likely caused by US airstrikes. The information included satellite images, expert analysis, a US official and public information released by US and Israeli military forces.
Iranian state media has said more than 165 people were killed in the blast, most of them children.
Iran has blamed Israel and the US for the explosion. Neither country has accepted responsibility, though Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the US is investigating.
Fighting with Israeli troops reported in eastern Lebanon
Lebanon’s state-run news agency reported that local fighters clashed early Saturday with an Israeli force that landed near the town of Nabi Chit, a Hezbollah stronghold in eastern Lebanon. There was no word on casualties. The Israeli military did not immediately respond to the AP’s request for comment.
Israel has carried out waves of airstrikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Hezbollah has a large presence, but which is also home to hundreds of thousands of civilians.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry said 217 people had been killed by Israeli strikes since Monday and 798 wounded.
Roads in the Lebanese capital were choked with evacuating traffic as smoke rose over the city’s southern districts. Two hospitals evacuated patients and staff.
“What can we do? We prayed here under the tree. During the night, we slept in the car because there is no place to stay,” Jihan Shehadeh, one of the tens of thousands of displaced, said.
