War returns to Iran with Israel, US strikes

The deputy to the chief commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), Brigadier General Yadollah Javani, has warned that Iran may target undersea internet cables passing through the Strait of Hormuz if the country’s infrastructure is attacked, state broadcaster Press TV reports.

In an interview with Iran’s Arabic-language Al-Alam TV channel, he addresses the possibility of strikes against undersea Internet infrastructure, noting that Iran will use its full capabilities if the country’s own infrastructure comes under attack.

“The United States and its allies have substantial investments,” he says.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says any interference in the Yemen war by Egypt or any other country will make the situation “more difficult”, AFP reports.

“Egypt has sufficient experience to avoid entangling itself in such a highly complex conflict,” Iran’s top diplomat says in an interview with Iraqi state broadcaster Al-Iraqiya. “We believe that any foreign presence or interference will only make resolving this issue more difficult.”

He adds that Egypt has said it “will not enter Yemen or engage in a war against Yemen”.

Ebrahim Azizi, the head of the Iranian parliament’s National Security Commission, says that the country is prepared to rid the region of evil “once and for all” in response to the slightest operational error.

“Whatever the outcome of your elections may be, we have no doubt about your enmity,” he wrote on X. “We are prepared to rid the region of your evil once and for all in response to the slightest operational error on your part.”

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei has said that the US cannot launch the war of choice, nor can it evade responsibility by turning the aggressor into the accuser.

In a post in X, he wrote: “They attacked Iran twice in less than nine months — while negotiations were underway. They massacred our children in Minab, murdered our daughters in Lamerd, assassinated our leaders, and intensified sanctions on our people.”

“They destroyed the very MoU (memorandum of understanding) they signed on 17 June, and now they demand that the world condemn Iran!” Baqaei added.

The world was paying the price of your unlawful aggression through regional instability and global economic insecurity, he contended.

“You cannot launch a war of choice, set the region ablaze, unleash global chaos, and then play the victim,” he warned, saying, “You cannot evade responsibility by turning the aggressor into the accuser and the victim into the culprit.”

The Dakar Rally will return to Africa for its 49th edition due to the situation in the Middle East and in particular in Saudi Arabia, where the race has been held since 2020, three people involved in the World Rally-Raid Championship tell Reuters.

According to the sources — two drivers and a team manager — the race will start in Europe with a prologue either in Spain or Portugal, before heading to Morocco for the remainder of the event, which is expected to feature around 12 stages.

The Dakar Rally is scheduled to run from January 9 to 22.

Race organisers Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), the International Automobile Federation and the International Motorcycling Federation have not immediately responded to Reuters requests for comment.

The Middle East situation has forced organisers to adapt their plan amid escalating hostilities between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Houthi movement, which has stepped up attacks on Saudi cities, airports and energy infrastructure.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that threats and sanctions must be “practically lifted in action, so that the ground for dialogue can be provided”.

“One cannot increase the intensity of sanctions and pressures every day, close the paths of interaction, and simultaneously speak of negotiation,” he said in an X post.

“Dialogue with the language of threats and pressure has no meaning.”

French President Emmanuel Macron has landed in Riyadh, according to an AFP reporter, for a surprise stop on his Gulf tour after weeks of Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.

He is the first Western head of state to visit since the Yemeni rebel group intensified their attacks on the kingdom this month.

Saudi Arabian crude oil exports in August rose by about 7.9 per cent from July to 4.451 million barrels per day (bpd), the highest level since March, Reuters reports citing data from the Joint Organisations Data Initiative (JODI).

Exports rose even as oil production fell to a record low of 6.24 million bpd from 8.135 million bpd in July, the data shows.

As exports increased, Saudi refinery crude throughput dropped by 181,000 bpd to 2.297 million bpd in August from 2.478 million bpd the previous month, it further indicates. Direct crude-burning increased by 43,000 bpd to 604,097 bpd.

Shipments from the Middle East have been severely disrupted since the US-Israeli war with Iran, begun at the end of February, led Iran to block exports through the Strait of Hormuz.

French President Emmanuel Macron says his country will organise a conference to support the Lebanese armed forces after the Israeli elections this month, as truce talks between the two sides stall, AFP reports.

“We will also coordinate to carry out this work of support for the Lebanese armed forces and a conference will be set up in the coming weeks by France … I think it is useless to do it before the Israeli elections, but we will organise such a conference because it is unavoidable,” he tells reporters in Qatar.

Oil prices have jumped by more than $2 after Iran said there was little reason to expect diplomatic progress with the US, leaving the Brent benchmark hovering near five-month highs, with further market support from falling US crude and product inventories, Reuters reports.

Brent crude futures are up $2.06, or 1.9 per cent, to $110.85 a barrel as of 1048 GMT (3:48pm PKT). US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude is up $2.13, or 2.2pc, at $99.95.

Yemen’s Houthis have targeted a military base at an airport in the southern city of Al Mukalla, which is controlled by Yemen’s Saudi-backed government, AFP reports, citing two military officials.

“The Houthis used missiles and drones to target a military base housing forces from the Saudi-led coalition at Al Rayyan airport,” said one of the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity.

French President Emmanuel Macron says France is holding talks with all parties in an effort to de-escalate tensions in the region, Al Jazeera reports.

Speaking to reporters in Doha, he also said discussions would be held on providing support to the Lebanese army, which he said enjoys the backing of international forces.

French President Emmanuel Macron has said that he had secured gas from Qatar during his Gulf tour, AFP reports.

“We secured during the winter period the equivalent of two terawatt-hours per month of LNG, which was important for us and which will allow us to move forward,” he told reporters in the Qatari capital Doha.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has said that the US cannot expect dialogue with Iran while blockading and threatening it, according to Al Jazeera.

“It is unacceptable to block all avenues and issue threats while simultaneously demanding talks,” he said.

“I believe that one should not enter into a pact lightly, but once a pact is made, one must remain committed to it until the end — even if it proves disadvantageous,” Pezeshkian added.

A ship was struck by “an unknown projectile” off the coast of Oman, near the Strait of Hormuz, sparking a fire, a British maritime security agency said, Reuters reports.

The tanker, 11 nautical miles (around 20 kilometres) off the town of Bukha, is “now at anchor”, the UKMTO reported.

“All crew are reported as safe. There is no reported environmental impact at this time,” it said.

The US is pressuring Iraq to close more border crossings to tighten pressure on Tehran after Baghdad closed the Sheeb crossing to all passengers, vehicles and commercial trucks, AFP reported, citing two anonymous sources.

A source at Iraq’s border crossings authority told AFP that the al-Sheeb crossing “has been closed since this morning until an unspecified date”, without specifying the reason.

The Iranian judiciary’s Mizan Online website confirmed the closure, adding that it came “following a decision by the Iraqi prime minister’s office”.

Yemen’s Houthis said they have not launched any drones towards the Saudi holy city of Madina and have not conducted any military operations towards Saudi Arabia either, denying earlier comments from the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, according to Reuters.

The comments by the group’s military spokesperson Yahya Saree follow the coalition saying that it had intercepted drones over Madina and the Eastern region.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has welcomed “mediation efforts” being made by countries regarding the US-Iran war.

“Obviously, these are countries that we have strong alliances and partnerships with. In the case of Qatar in specific, they’ve been involved on this topic for a very long time,” he said, according to a transcript by the Department of State.

“I understand that Field Marshal Munir was actually in Tehran yesterday,” he further noted.

“But in the end, any decision on what would be acceptable is on – is in the hands of the President of the United States, and I think he’s been abundantly clear at the core of all of this is something very simple to understand, is the United States will not support any deal that creates a pathway for Iran to ever have a nuclear weapon. As long as President Trump is in office, they will never have a nuclear weapon.”

The Houthis said they attacked a Saudi-run military camp near the airport in the Yemeni city of Aden on Wednesday, after a police official and an AFP journalist reported seeing smoke rising in the area.

“Our armed forces were able to target the Saudi enemy’s operations room in the Badr camp in Aden with a ballistic missile,” Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said in a statement.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says Washington is engaging with several countries over possible negotiations with Iran, but any agreement must prevent Tehran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, Al Jazeera reports.

Iran has received no response from Saudi Arabia or Yemen’s Houthis to its offer to mediate an end to the fighting, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says.

He also warns that Egypt’s entry into the conflict would “further complicate the situation”, Al Jazeera reports.

Iraq has closed the Sheeb border crossing with Iran to passengers, vehicles and commercial trucks until further notice, two sources at the crossing said, Reuters reports.

Another source said the decision has been taken to reconsider the security arrangements inside the crossing.

Iranian Armed Forces control the battlefield in the Strait of Hormuz, which will continue for as long as the Islamic Republic desires, says Major General Mostafa Izadi, Deputy Commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), IRNA reports.

In a gathering of people in the central city of Khomain on Tuesday, Major General Izadi stressed the IRGC Navy and Aerospace Forces’ operational and intelligence superiority over the strategic area.

Noting that the enemies seek to push the people away from the scene, he said the people’s presence and support for the country are key to safeguarding achievements and thwarting the enemies’ plots.

The Saudi-led coalition fighting Yemen’s Houthis said it had intercepted five drones launched towards the kingdom, including in the Madina region home to one of Islam’s holiest cities.

“Four drones launched toward the Kingdom have been intercepted and destroyed,” coalition spokesman Turki al-Malki posted on X, adding in a second post that the interceptions took place in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern region as well as Madina.

Al-Malki, who did not specify who was behind the launches, later said another drone had been intercepted, also in the Eastern region.