The West Asia conflict has intensified over the past six hours, with Israel reporting fresh strikes inside Iran and expanding operations across Lebanon.
Israeli officials say their forces carried out a wave of attacks in the central Iranian city of Isfahan and confirmed the killing of Alireza Tangsiri, a senior commander in Iran’s Revolutionary Guard navy, describing him as a key figure behind attempts to disrupt shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Israeli forces also struck targets in southern Lebanon, including Tyre and Kfar Roummane, while issuing evacuation warnings to residents south of the Zahrani River. One Israeli soldier was reported killed during combat operations. Rescue operations also continue across southern Lebanon, where airstrikes have damaged infrastructure and displaced residents amid ongoing clashes.
Lebanon’s Health Ministry says at least 1,094 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since the second of March, including more than 120 children, as fighting continues in southern areas. Israeli officials have indicated plans to establish a security zone extending up to 30 kilometres into Lebanese territory.
Meanwhile, the Syrian army has reportedly reinforced positions along the Syrian-Lebanese border to prevent spillover, though shelling from Lebanon has already landed in Syrian territory near Damascus.
In Washington, the United States has stepped up pressure on Tehran, warning of further consequences if negotiations fail. Iranian officials have rejected a U.S. ceasefire proposal, calling it maximalist, and instead presented their own conditions for any deal.
Iranian state media also reported fresh missile and drone launches toward Israel and Gulf targets, while health authorities in Iran updated the death toll from the conflict to at least 1,937. Oil prices have surged 5% amid reports of backchannel negotiations between the US and Iran.
In the United Arab Emirates, air defences intercepted 15 ballistic missiles and 11 drones launched from Iran today. This brings the total number of intercepted threats since the start of the conflict to 372 ballistic missiles, 15 cruise missiles and more than 1,826 drones. Two people were killed in Abu Dhabi after debris from an intercepted missile fell onto a main road.
One of the victims was identified as an Indian national. The latest incident brings the UAE’s total death toll from falling debris to 11, with 166 others injured since hostilities began. Officials say air defence systems remain on high alert across the UAE as tensions continue to escalate across West Asia.
Meanwhile, Gulf Cooperation Council officials have called for urgent diplomacy, warning that attacks on shipping and threats to close the Strait of Hormuz have crossed all red lines and could disrupt global energy markets.