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THE Middle East is witnessing a sharp escalation of hostilities as Israel carried out intense airstrikes on Tehran and Beirut, and the United States reportedly destroyed an Iranian drone carrier at sea, marking the latest chapter in a conflict that has spread across the region and beyond.
AP reported on Friday that Iran retaliated with new missile and drone attacks targeting U.S. forces stationed in Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, following a week of intensive bombardment by Israel and the United States.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth warned that the offensive was “about to surge dramatically.”
The Israeli military said Friday that it had launched “a broad-scale wave of strikes” on Tehran, destroying most of Iran’s air defences and missile launchers.
Witnesses reported explosions shaking homes across the Iranian capital and around Kermanshah, a region hosting multiple missile bases.
In Lebanon, Israeli airstrikes hit the southern suburbs of Beirut late Thursday into Friday. Motorists jammed roads seeking to flee, while two hospitals evacuated patients and staff.
The Lebanese Health Ministry reported at least 123 deaths since hostilities resumed between Israel and the Iran-aligned Hezbollah militants.
The United States said it had struck the IRIS Shahid Bagheri, an Iranian drone carrier with a 180-metre runway capable of long-range drone operations.
Admiral Brad Cooper of U.S. Central Command described the vessel as “roughly the size of a World War II aircraft carrier” and confirmed that it was “on fire.”
Earlier in the week, an American submarine sank an Iranian frigate off Sri Lanka, killing at least 87 sailors.
B-2 stealth bombers deployed by the U.S. targeted deeply buried Iranian ballistic missile launchers and Iran’s equivalent of Space Command, aiming to degrade the country’s ability to threaten U.S. forces.
“We’ve also struck Iran’s equivalent of Space Command, which degrades their ability to threaten Americans,” Cooper said.
Iran’s missile and drone strikes have hit twelve countries, according to Cooper, who invited them to play a more active role in the ongoing conflict.
Qatar intercepted an attack on Al Udeid Air Base, Saudi Arabia destroyed three ballistic missiles heading for Prince Sultan Air Base, and air raid sirens sounded in Bahrain and Kuwait, where U.S. troops were stationed.
The war has killed at least 1,230 people in Iran, more than 120 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel. Six U.S. troops have also died.
U.S. President Donald Trump addressed the Iranian public, urging them to “help take back your country,” promising unspecified “immunity” for those who comply while warning of “absolutely guaranteed death” for non-compliance.
In an interview with Axios, Trump controversially stated he should have a role in selecting Iran’s new supreme leader, dismissing Ayatollah Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba, as “a lightweight.”
Iranian state television reported that a leadership council, including President Masoud Pezeshkian, judiciary chief Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejehi and cleric Ayatollah Ali Reza Arafi, is deliberating on convening the Assembly of Experts to choose a new supreme leader. No timeline was provided for the selection process.
The United Nations has urged all parties to de-escalate the conflict.
Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the world urgently needed “steps to contain and extinguish this blaze,” warning that ongoing bombings and rhetoric were fuelling further destruction and loss of life.
As airstrikes continue, the conflict shows no signs of abating, with regional civilians facing displacement, infrastructure damage, and rising insecurity across multiple nations. - March 6, 2026
