War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

A drone of the “US-Zionist enemy” was targeted and destroyed by Iran’s air defence in the skies over Tehran, Al Jazeera reports, citing Mehr news agency.

The sound of explosions was also heard in the city of Isfahan, it said.

The Gulf crisis expanding to other areas could create new problems and be worrying, Indian Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told local broadcaster CNN-News18, adding that New Delhi has total oil and gas reserves to last 76-80 days, Reuters reports.

“It may remain a conflict not confined to that theatre… you know you could have problems elsewhere. Maybe some other theatre starts off. That would be worrying,” Puri said, referring to the crisis in the Gulf.

A huge blast has rocked central Tehran, an AFP journalist reports, followed by repeated explosions believed to be from air defence systems in the capital.

The initial explosion shook the premises of the foreign ministry in central Tehran, where an AFP journalist was attending a weekly press conference.

“It appears that the source of some of the noises is the activation of air defence systems in Tehran,” Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency said.

Iran has said that Pakistan’s mediation efforts to end the war with the United States were continuing even after fighting resumed with Israel, AFP reports.

“Diplomatic consultations are naturally continuing in all circumstances,” said Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) announced that Iran has retaliated against US-Israeli attack on one of its petrochemical facilities, According to IRNA.

Iranian forces struck similar industrial targets in Haifa with missiles a short time ago.

Iran has said that the resumption of hostilities in the Middle East war will have consequences for ongoing talks with the United States to reach peace in the region.

“It is perfectly natural that the diplomatic process initiated to put an end to this imposed war would be affected,” Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said at a press conference in Tehran attended by AFP.

Brent crude prices surge more than five per cent after Israel and Iran exchanged strikes, testing a fragile truce and threatening hopes for a deal to end the Middle East crisis, according to AFP.

The contract for August jumps 5.1pc to $97.83 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate climbs 4.8pc to hit $94.85.

The Israeli military has claimed it struck and dismantled Iranian defence systems deployed across several areas in the country, AFP reports.

It said dozens of Air Force fighter jets, guided by Military Intelligence, completed “an extensive strike against strategic defence systems” of Iran a short while ago.

“Recently, defence systems were deployed in numerous areas across Iran as part of the regime’s efforts to restore its detection and defence capabilities, which were degraded during Operation Roaring Lion,” the military said.

“The strike led to the dismantling of these systems,” it insisted, adding that dozens of warplanes participated in the operation.

Esmail Baqaei further stressed that it had “been frequently repeated by us together with the Pakistani mediator that Lebanon is part and parcel of the [ceasefire] agreement”, according to Al Jazeera.

“We cannot allow the Zionist entity or the United States to undermine this part of the part of the deal,” he was quoted as saying.

“These events [of the past day] will definitely intensify suspicions. We were already exchanging messages with the American side in an atmosphere of extreme suspicion,” he noted.

“The US’s contradictions to date – whether intentional or unintentional – have caused enough chaos in the diplomatic process. The incidents that have occurred in the past 24 hours will only fuel this chaotic situation in the diplomatic process,” the foreign ministry spokesperson added.

China says it is “deeply concerned” by fresh attacks between Israel and Iran, expressing hope that a fragile truce in the Middle East war would be respected, AFP reports.

“Resuming hostilities is not in any party’s interest,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a news briefing, adding: “It is hoped all relevant parties will fulfil their commitment to a ceasefire.”

Iran’s semi-official Mehr news agency is reporting that there were no casualties following two Israeli strikes on the Karun petrochemical plant in Mahshahr, according to Al Jazeera.

It said the extent of the damage is still being assessed.

The Mahshahr Port Governorship has said it will decrease the number of office staff by 30 per cent.

“Employees will be present in all city-level offices at 30 per cent capacity starting today, and citizens should consider this issue in their inquiries,” Mehr news agency reported.

It added that emergency services and electricity, water, and gas relief centres would be exempt from this directive.

Foreign ⁠⁠ministry ⁠⁠spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei has reiterated Iran’s stance that IAEA chief Rafael Grossi continues to disregard the realities of the conflict and holds biased views, harming the UN agency’s legitimacy.

“The director general of the agency is acting with bias. He is acting with deliberate bias against Iran and the Iranian nuclear issue,” Al Jazeera quoted Baqaei as saying.

Iran’s ‌‌foreign ⁠⁠ministry ⁠⁠spokesperson ⁠⁠Esmaeil Baqaei has said ⁠⁠the US holds ‌‌direct responsibility for the ⁠⁠current ceasefire ⁠⁠breaches and that ⁠⁠Israel’s actions ⁠⁠cannot ⁠⁠be ‌‌separated ‌‌from ‌‌US policies, Al Jazeera reports.

“The actions of the Zionist entity within the region cannot be looked at in isolation from the United States,” Baqaei said at a live press conference.

“No one believes that the Zionist regime will take any action without coordination with the United States,” the spokesperson was quoted as saying by IRIB.

The Israeli military said that it had detected a new barrage of missiles launched from Iran, the sixth salvo since the latest flare-up in fighting began the previous day, AFP reports.

“A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran towards the territory of the State of Israel. Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat,” the military said.

A military update said it is possible to leave shelters after a new wave of Iranian missiles targeted Israel, Al Jazeera reports.

The Israeli Army Radio is reporting that Israel’s military has assessed that the campaign against Iran could last several days, according to Al Jazeera.

The military is preparing for a “large-scale mobilisation of reserves” and is expected to mobilise a number of reserve battalions, according to Israeli Army Radio reporter Doron Kadosh.

A former defence minister of Iran has stated that all combat and operational units of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are in a state of complete readiness to conduct extensive operations across multiple fronts.

In a post on X, the former minister said that “operational plans have already been developed and finalised in accordance with a range of possible enemy scenarios”.

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group ⁠⁠said that they would ban Israeli maritime navigation in the Red Sea, AFP reports.

They also said in a statement that they had attacked Israel.

Qatar’s prime minister has held a phone call with Iran’s foreign minister Abbas Araghchi to discuss the conflict in Lebanon and containing escalation in the region, Doha’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani told Abbas Araghchi the importance of reaching an agreement for “last peace” in the region, the statement said.

EU top diplomat Kaja Kallas urged calm after Iran and Israel traded strikes, testing a fragile truce and threatening hopes for a deal to end the Middle East war, AFP reports.

“Overnight, we have seen escalation again. I think the region does not need an escalation, but actually that parties sit down to a negotiation table and agree,” Kallas said.

The IRGC says it launched attacks on the Israeli air bases of Nevatim and Tel Nof a few minutes ago, Al Jazeera reports.

It said the strikes were in response to Israel’s attacks on several radar sites in three parts of the country.

The Strait of Hormuz will be open but under new conditions to be set by Iran and Oman, including a transit fee, Iran’s ambassador to Moscow has been quoted as saying.

“Of course, this strait will be open, but with new conditions to be determined by the Iranian and Omani authorities,” Ambassador Kazem Jalali told the Russian newspaper Izvestia in an interview published on Monday.

“We understand that Iran and Oman provide certain services related to this strait. And fees will be charged for those services,” he said without elaborating.