Gulf war: US warns of hitting 'deeper' Iran targets, conflict spreads to Azerbaijan
India Today
The US and Israel ramped up air strikes on Iran for the sixth day as Tehran retaliated by raining drones and missiles in Qatar, UAE and Azerbaijan. Here's how the conflict unfolded on Thursday.
Fresh explosions rocked Tehran on Thursday after Israel and the US launched their 11th wave of attacks, even as the Donald Trump administration warned Iran of hitting targets "deeper" in the country. Separately, Israel struck command centres of Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah in Beirut, Lebanon, as Tehran continued its missile and drone barrage across the Gulf, targeting Qatar and Bahrain and expanding it as far as Azerbaijan.
The conflict, however, has not remained confined to the Middle East after a US submarine torpedoed an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean. It invited a tit-for-tat move from Iran as it struck a US tanker in the Persian Gulf. Meanwhile, the death toll continued to mount, with a US-based human rights agency claiming over 1,200 people have been killed since the war began six days ago.
Meanwhile, back home, India officially reacted to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's death, four days after he was killed in joint US-Israel strikes. On Thursday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri signed the book of condolence for Khamenei at the Iranian Embassy in Delhi.
The offensive against Iran entered the sixth day as Tel Aviv and Tehran continued to fire missiles, sending millions of residents into bomb shelters. Parallely, Israel also carried out strikes on Beirut targeting Hezbollah. The fresh strikes in Lebanon have left eight dead.
The war spread beyond the Gulf as Azerbaijan became the first country in the Caucasus region to be targeted by Iran. Two people were injured after a drone hit a building at an airport in Nakhchivan, an Azerbaijani exclave bordering Iran.
Meanwhile, Iran targeted Doha once again, with a dozen to twenty explosions heard as Qatar's defence systems intercepted the missile attack. The UAE also reported attempted drone strikes in Abu Dhabi, which were successfully repelled. However, shrapnel from the drone interceptions injured six people.
Over the past week, social media has been abuzz with rumours claiming that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was killed in an Iranian missile strike. However, there remains no credible evidence. It coincided with his reported absence from cabinet meetings. However, Israel has released videos and images to assert that Netanyahu is alive.
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