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Mysterious Airstrikes Target Iran 07/10 06:15
A series of mysterious, unclaimed airstrikes that hit Iran after the U.S.
said it finished its attacks have again raised questions of who else may be
targeting the Islamic Republic.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- A series of mysterious, unclaimed
airstrikes that hit Iran after the U.S. said it finished its attacks have again
raised questions of who else may be targeting the Islamic Republic.
The strikes Thursday, just as Iran prepared to bury the late Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, hit areas across southern Iran. The country's theocracy
hasn't directly blamed anyone for the strikes, though one lawmaker issued a
warning to the United Arab Emirates over allegedly providing support to the
United States in its campaign against Iran.
Gulf Arab states, which repeatedly have been targeted by Iran since the war
began Feb. 28, did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday over
the strikes. The attacks come as they and the U.S. insist the Strait of Hormuz
must be open and free to ships to transit. Iran insists the strait, through
which about a fifth of all oil and natural gas passes, must now be under its
sole control and that vessels should begin to pay fees to Tehran -- even though
the world for decades has considered it an international waterway.
Iran's grip on the strait during the conflict led to an global energy
crisis, though oil prices have sharply dropped since wartime highs of $120 a
barrel.
Israel, which took part in the Iran war, also has not claimed any recent
attacks on Iran.
Unclaimed strikes came after US ended its attacks
The U.S. military's Central Command said Thursday around 6:30 a.m. local
Iran time that it had concluded a round of strikes that saw some 90 targets
hit. Shortly after that, Iranian news outlets and state media reported a series
of airstrikes and explosions targeting the country's Bushehr and Sistan and
Baluchestan provinces, the cities of Ahvaz and Chabahar and other areas.
Central Command did not respond to a request for comment over the additional
strikes.
Iran responded to the strikes Thursday by launching a wider volley of
attacks across the Mideast, targeting Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and Qatar.
Missile alert sirens sounded in the four countries, sending people to seek
shelter. One person was reportedly hurt in Kuwait as air defense systems
targeted the incoming fire across the region.
The leader of the UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, traveled to
Kuwait immediately after the Iranian attack for a meeting with the small,
oil-rich nation's ruling emir. Gulf Arab countries also held calls with Qatar's
foreign minister, who has been deeply involved along with Pakistan in mediating
talks between Iran and the U.S. over the interim deal now in place to halt the
return of open warfare.
During the Iran war, officials say both Saudi Arabia and the UAE launched
airstrikes targeting Iran, after Tehran struck energy sites in their countries.
Israel, which under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has engaged in an
intense campaign against Iran, has not attacked the Islamic Republic since
June. Israel also broadly immediately claims its attacks on Iran.
Israel's government said Netanyahu spoke with Trump on Thursday night, with
Trump updating Netanyahu "on American moves in the Gulf."
Israel Katz, Israel's defense minister, also renewed threats that his nation
stood ready to confront Iran if needed.
The Israel military "is on alert and ready to renew the campaign, to
reestablish aerial superiority, and to carry out a blue-white (Israeli) strike
in Iran to remove threats, even for a third time," Katz told a military
ceremony. "If we will have to return, we will return with even greater force."
Iran keeps up its threats
On Friday, Iranian state media quoted Esmail Kousari, a member of the
Iranian parliament's national security committee and a former commander in the
paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, as warning the UAE would "pay the price for
its cooperation with the United States." He accused the Emirates of having a
"behind-the-scenes" role in the recent U.S. attacks.
Iran repeatedly accused Gulf Arab states of actively supporting the U.S. war
effort, something they denied during the war. The U.S. since the 1991 Gulf War
has maintained a broad footprint of military bases across the Gulf Arab states,
including in Bahrain, which is home to the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet headquarters.
Meanwhile, Iran insists it must be the sole controller of the Strait of
Hormuz. But the U.S. is continuing to urge mariners to travel on a southern
route through Oman's territorial waters to avoid Iran.
The Joint Maritime Information Center, a multinational body overseen by the
U.S. Navy, issued a new advisory Friday urging ships to travel that route. A
similar message for ships to use that route sparked an Iranian attack on
Tuesday that saw three vessels hit.
"Notwithstanding recent unprovoked attacks on merchant vessels, mariners are
reminded that the southern route of the (strait) has been expanded and remains
available for all traffic," the maritime center said.
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