US, Israel step up strikes; Tehran vows retaliation

The United States and Israel have stepped up attacks, targeting a century-old medical research centre in Tehran, a bridge near the capital and steel plants after President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Iran back to “the Stone Ages”.
During his address to the nation on Wednesday, Trump said the US is close to completing its core objectives in Iran, but didn’t offer a firm timeline for when the conflict might end. Iran says Tehran will continue to “fight back”.
IRGC claims attack on Oracle data center in Dubai
The IRGC’s navy command claims it launched an attack on a data center belonging to US technology firm Oracle in Dubai, according to state media.

Earlier, the IRGC said it had targeted an Amazon cloud computing centre in Bahrain.
Iran’s FM says US strikes on infrastructure are a sign of ‘moral collapse’
Iran’s Foreign Minister Araghchi says recent US strikes on civilian infrastructure will not force Iran to back down.

“Striking civilian structures, including unfinished bridges, will not compel Iranians to surrender,” Araghchi said in a post on X, accompanied by an image of a destroyed bridge.

He said such actions instead “convey the defeat and moral collapse of an enemy in disarray”.

Earlier today, a US-Israeli strike targeted the B1 bridge in Karaj, west of Tehran, killing at least two people and injuring several.

UN warns of dangerous signs amid fragile Lebanon situation and escalating conflicts
The UN Undersecretary-General for Human Rights Tom Fletcher has told Al Jazeera that:

We are pushing for de-escalation and a cessation of hostilities, but the signs are dangerous.
Lebanon’s situation is extremely fragile, the displacement movement is leading to dangerous conditions, and the conflict must be stopped immediately.
We are closely monitoring the situation in Iran and have concerns about the situation of the displaced people, and we are prepared to increase the level of aid.
Yemen’s Houthis claim missile strikes on Israeli targets
Earlier, we reported the Israeli army saying a missile launch was detected from Yemeni territory.

The Houthi group has now put out a statement regarding attacks carried out on Israeli targets, as reported by Houthi-affiliated media Al Masirah:

Carried out a military operation using a barrage of ballistic missiles targeting “vital Israeli enemy targets”.
The operation was conducted in coordination with groups in Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon, and it “successfully achieved its objectives”.
Military intervention in this “important and exceptional battle” is gradual.
Will not stop at the current level of intervention and will respond to future developments.
‘We cannot afford to lose another critical trade route’: EU’s Kallas
The EU’s foreign policy chief says the bloc supports “work by the UN on humanitarian corridors in the Strait [of Hormuz] to get food and fertilisers out”, claiming that the EU “has tools to track and facilitate transit that could help with that”.

She said in a post on X the EU’s Aspides naval mission has “assisted 1,700 ships in the Red Sea and must be scaled up”.

“We cannot afford to lose another critical trade route,” Kallas stressed, after attending a meeting initiated by the UK on the Strait of Hormuz.
Pakistan raises petrol price by 43%
Pakistan has raised the price of petrol to 458.4 rupees per litre ($6.20 per gallon) – a 43 percent rise – and of diesel to 520.35 rupees per litre ($7.03 per gallon).

Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik made the announcement while adding that the crisis has “not just engulfed the entire region but the entire world”.Iraq’s Foreign Ministry committed to keeping Iraq out of the conflict
Iraq’s Foreign Ministry says it is committed to keeping Iraq out of the circle of conflict in the region.

It added that:

Some entities or individuals may attempt, contrary to the state’s directives, to carry out actions that do not represent official policy.
The government continues to take the necessary steps to ensure that Iraqi territory is not used as a launching pad for any hostile acts.IOM chief says prospects ‘very alarming’ for prolonged mass displacement in Lebanon
The International Organization for Migration chief Amy Pope says the prospect for prolonged mass displacement in Lebanon, where Israel and Hezbollah are at war, were “very alarming”.

“I think those prospects are very alarming because you look right now at the level of destruction that’s happening and … the further destruction that has been threatened,” she said when asked about the possibility of prolonged mass displacement, adding that “even if the war ends tomorrow, that destruction remains and there needs to be a rebuilding”.