Saudi Arabia has reported its first civilian deaths since the war involving Iran began. A military projectile fell on a residential area, killing two people — an Indian citizen and a Bangladeshi national. Twelve other Bangladeshis were injured, according to a Saudi statement issued on Sunday evening.
Iran on Sunday indicated it had chosen Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s son Mojtaba as his successor.The development comes as tensions rise across the Middle East after hundreds of Iranian missiles and drones were launched at Gulf and other regional targets during the nine‑day conflict.
Arab League chief Ahmed Abouel Gheit, speaking at a diplomatic meeting on Sunday, criticised Iran for a “reckless policy” of attacking Arab countries. The fighting has widened across the region.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, in his latest threat, backtracked from conciliatory comments a day earlier in which he apologized for attacks on Gulf neighbors’ soil.Iranian
Iranian hard-liners had swiftly contradicted him, saying war strategy wouldn’t change.Israel carried out strikes in southern Lebanon and Beirut and targeted oil storage facilities in Tehran.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there would be “many surprises” in the next phase of the conflict.Iran also hit a desalination plant in Bahrain.Earlier on Sunday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said a US airstrike damaged an Iranian desalination facility on Qeshm Island, adding that “the US set this precedent, not Iran.”Desalination plants are key sources of drinking water across the Gulf.An
An Israeli strike on oil storage sites in Tehran sent flames into the night sky on Saturday, according to Associated Press video.Pezeshkian said Iran’s military response would only strengthen.”The more pressure they impose on us, the stronger our response will naturally be,” Pezeshkian said. “Our Iran, our country, will not bow easily in the face of bullying, oppression or aggression – and it never has.”A day earlier, Pezeshkian said Iran regretted regional concerns and urged neighboring states not to take part in U.S. and Israeli attacks.
He accused the U.S. of trying to pit countries against one another.
