Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Intense Iranian fire targeted Gulf Arab states early Saturday, as Israel and the United States continued air strikes targeting the Islamic Republic.
There was no expected end to the fighting. The administration of US President Donald Trump approved a new arms sale to Israel worth $151 million after Trump said he would not negotiate with Iran without its “unconditional surrender” and US officials warned against this. The upcoming bombing campaign They said it would be the fiercest yet in the week-long conflict.
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations said the country “will take all necessary measures” to defend itself.
An Associated Press video showed explosions and smoke rising over western Tehran as Israel said it had begun a wide wave of strikes. Also early Saturday, loud explosions were heard in Jerusalem, and rockets coming from Iran sent people running for shelters across Israel.
There were no immediate reports of injuries from Israeli emergency services.
In a sign of the widening scope of the conflict, sirens sounded early on Saturday In Bahrain The Iranian attacks targeted the island kingdom. and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia It said it destroyed drones heading towards the huge Shaybah oil field and shot down a ballistic missile launched towards Prince Sultan Air Base. Hosts American forces.
The United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran, targeting its military capabilities, leadership, and nuclear program. Declared goals and timetables for the war I switched over and over againThe United States has also at times indicated that it seeks to overthrow the Iranian government Or raise the bar for new leadership from within.
The Qatari Minister of Energy, Saad Al-Kaabi, warned in an interview with the Financial Times that the war could “bring down the world’s economies,” anticipating a widespread cessation of Gulf energy exports, which could lead to a rise in the price of oil to $150 per barrel.
The price of a barrel of US crude rose above $90 on Friday for the first time In more than two years.
Russia has provided Iran with information that could help Tehran strike US warships, aircraft and other assets in the region, according to officials familiar with US intelligence on the matter.
The people, who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, cautioned that U.S. intelligence had not revealed that Russia was directing Iran on what to do with the information.
However, this is the first indication that Moscow sought to participate in the war.
“There will be no agreement with Iran except unconditional surrender!” Trump said in a social media post on Friday. After giving up “and a great choice & “Acceptable leaders,” he wrote, the United States and its allies will help rebuild Iran, making it “bigger, better, and economically stronger than ever before.”
These comments are likely to raise more questions about the end of the war. The fighting led to the deaths of at least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 200 in Lebanon, and about a dozen in Israel, according to officials in those countries. Six American soldiers They were killed.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian wrote on social media that “some countries” had begun mediation efforts, without elaborating.
Iranian state television reported on Friday that the Leadership Council has begun discussing how to convene the country’s Assembly of Experts, which will be held Choosing the new supreme leader.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Besent said in a television interview on Friday that the “largest bombing campaign” of the war was yet to come.
Israel said that over the past week it had heavily bombed a large-scale underground bunker that Iranian leaders intended to use during the hostilities.
New information has emerged suggesting that the deadly February 28 explosion at a school in the Iranian city of Minab, about 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) southeast of Tehran, was likely caused by US airstrikes. The information included satellite images, expert analysis, official US information and public information published by the US and Israeli military forces.
Iranian official media said that more than 165 people were killed in the explosion, most of them children.
Iran accused Israel and US To explode. Neither country accepted responsibility, although Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the United States was investigating.
The Iranian-backed Hezbollah group said its fighters clashed with an Israeli force that landed late Friday in the mountains of eastern Lebanon. The Lebanese Ministry of Health said that at least three people were killed.
Israel did not acknowledge the fighting, and its army did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Israel launched waves of air strikes on the southern suburbs of Beirut, where Hezbollah has a significant presence but also includes hundreds of thousands of civilians.
The Lebanese Ministry of Health said that at least 217 people were killed in Israeli raids since Monday and 798 others were injured.
Roads in the Lebanese capital were choked as traffic evacuated as smoke billowed over the city’s southern neighborhoods. Two hospitals evacuated patients and staff.
“What can we do? We prayed here under the tree. At night, we slept in the car because there is no place to stay,” said Jihan Shehadeh, one of tens of thousands of displaced people.
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Metz reported from Ramallah in the West Bank, Rising from Bangkok and Abu Al-Joud from Beirut. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed.