France, Germany, and the UK warned they are prepared to take defensive action after Iran’s regional strikes intensified conflict across the Gulf
France, Germany, and the United Kingdom said on Sunday they were prepared to defend their interests and those of their allies in the Gulf after a wave of Iranian missile strikes across the region. In a joint statement, the three governments said they were “appalled by the indiscriminate and disproportionate missile attacks launched by Iran against countries in the region, including those who were not involved in initial US and Israeli military operations”.
The leaders said Iran’s “reckless attacks” had
targeted allies and endangered civilians and service personnel.
They warned that they could take steps to “defend our interests and those of our allies”, including supporting “necessary and proportionate defensive action” aimed at stopping Iran’s ability to fire missiles and drones. They added that they would work with the United States and regional allies on the issue.
Iran attacks allies
Iran stepped up its retaliatory strikes on Sunday, targeting sites across at least nine countries in the Persian Gulf and Israel following the launch of the joint US-Israeli attack.
Iran’s retaliatory missile and drone attacks on Gulf cities prompted the United Arab Emirates to close its embassy in Tehran and recall its ambassador. The strikes killed four people and injured dozens more, marking the strongest reaction from a Gulf state since Tehran began targeting the region following the US-Israeli air campaign that killed its supreme leader and senior officials.
The UAE foreign ministry said the attacks on civilian sites, including residential areas, airports and ports, constituted “a serious and irresponsible escalation”.
Blasts reported in Bahrain and strikes hit Oman
Explosions were heard in Manama, with witnesses reporting at least four loud blasts. No immediate information on damage or casualties was available.
Later in the day, Oman’s official news agency said the Duqm commercial port in Al Wusta Governorate had been hit by two drones, injuring an expatriate worker. The attack was condemned by the Gulf Cooperation Council. A spokesperson for Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Majed al-Ansari, said the strike on Oman “is an attack on the very principle of mediation”.
The explosions followed further Iranian strikes on locations linked to the US military and other American assets across the Gulf.
The United States military hit hundreds of targets across Iran, while Israel expanded its bombing into Lebanon on Monday. President Donald Trump vowed to avenge the first American deaths in the conflict he launched to remove Tehran’s ruling clerics.
Iranian forces fired missiles and drones across West Asia, killing people in Israel and the UAE, in retaliation for the war that began with the death of the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
US says IRGC headquarters destroyed
US Central Command said its operations destroyed the headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the unit responsible for protecting Iran’s theocracy since 1979. “The IRGC no longer has a headquarters,” its statement said.
The Israeli military said it carried out “large-scale strikes” in central Tehran on Monday and extended bombing across Lebanon against Hezbollah. Explosions were heard in Beirut by an AFP journalist. Hezbollah said it had launched rockets and drones at Israel “in retaliation for the pure blood” of Khamenei.
Calls for regime change and warnings of prolonged conflict
Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have backed the removal of Iran’s government, which has been in power since the 1979 Islamic revolution. Speaking to the New York Times, Trump said the US and Israel could sustain their level of attacks for “four to five weeks”.
“It won’t be difficult. We have tremendous amounts of ammunition,” he said, adding he had a shortlist of three unnamed figures he favoured to lead Iran after the conflict.
In a video message, Trump urged Iranian security forces “to lay down your arms and receive full immunity or face certain death”. He repeated: “It will be certain death. It won’t be pretty.
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