Paris (France) (AFP) – Here are the latest events in the Middle East war on Friday:
– **US crew killed**
Four US crew members died when a KC-135 aerial refueling aircraft crashed in western Iraq, the US military said. “Four of six crew members on board the aircraft have been confirmed deceased as rescue efforts continue,” US Central Command (CENTCOM), responsible for American forces in the Middle East, said in a statement on X, adding “the loss of the aircraft was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire.” A second plane involved in the incident had landed safely.
– **Iraq kidnapping warning**
The US embassy in Baghdad has warned of a “risk of kidnapping” of its citizens in Iraq. “Iran and Iran-aligned terrorist militia groups pose a significant threat,” the embassy said in a statement, adding that US citizens, interests and infrastructure have been attacked and that “Americans also face risk of kidnapping.”
– **Massive Tehran blasts**
Massive explosions shook Tehran, according to Iranian television, which said they hit not far from the site of a pro-government demonstration. Earlier, the Israeli military said it would hit two areas, Villa and Moniriyeh, and urged residents to evacuate, posting maps of affected neighborhoods on its Persian-language account on X. The fresh blasts came a few hours after unusually intense explosions rumbled the homes of AFP journalists located several kilometers apart in the north and center of the capital.
– **Sri Lanka repatriates remains**
Sri Lanka said it would repatriate the remains of 84 Iranian sailors killed when a US submarine torpedoed their frigate off its coast on March 4. The 32 sailors who were rescued after the sinking will remain in Sri Lanka, a spokesman for the foreign ministry said.
– **Guards warn against protests**
Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned that if protests broke out in the country, their response would be “stronger” than in January, when thousands were killed.
– **Two dead in Oman**
Two people died after security forces intercepted a drone near an industrial area in northern Oman, state media said.
– **200 Iran targets hit**
The Israeli military said it had struck more than 200 targets in western and central Iran over the past day, including missile launchers and defense systems.
– **Embassies in Saudi targeted**
Saudi forces intercepted a drone targeting Riyadh’s diplomatic quarter housing foreign embassies, the defense ministry said.
– **Beirut strikes**
An Israeli strike hit a member of Iran-backed group Hezbollah in Lebanon’s capital, the military said. Israel continued striking Beirut early Friday as it threatened to expand operations and seize territory in Lebanon if the militant group Hezbollah did not stop its attacks.
– **Dubai building hit**
A building in central Dubai was hit by debris from an intercepted attack, the government media office said, after blasts shook the Middle East financial hub. Explosions rattled buildings in Dubai and a large cloud of smoke hung over a central area of the city, AFP correspondents said.
– **French soldier killed**
A French soldier was killed in an attack in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region, President Emmanuel Macron said, marking the first French military death in the war. Since the start of the war, multiple attacks attributed to pro-Iranian factions have targeted the region where foreign forces are based as part of an international anti-jihadist coalition.
– **New attacks on Israel**
The Israeli military said that Iran fired a new barrage of missiles towards Israel, with emergency services reporting that two people were injured in the country’s north.
– **Saudi intercepts drones**
Saudi Arabia intercepted dozens of drones entering its airspace, the defense ministry said, as Iran kept up attacks on oil-rich Gulf countries in response to US-Israeli strikes. “Twelve drones were intercepted and destroyed after entering Saudi airspace,” a ministry spokesperson posted on X, after authorities reported at least 16 other drones were also shot down.
– **Iran vows vengeance**
Iran’s new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei, whose father and other family members were killed in the opening strikes of the war on February 28, vowed to avenge the Iranian casualties in the conflict, according to a statement read by a presenter on state television on Thursday. Khamenei himself was wounded in the strikes, according to some Iranian officials and state TV. His whereabouts and details of his physical condition are unknown, prompting Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu to call on him to “show his face.”
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© 2024 AFP
