Newsman: The Iranian Government condemned the US-Israel attacks as a breach of the UN charter and said it would exercise the right to self-defence for as long as the attacks continue. Iranian officials said that Israel and US bases across the region would be targeted in response.
Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Aragchi, has said that “we are not attacking our neighbours in the Persian Gulf countries” but rather “targeting the presence of the US in these countries”.
The Iranian counter-strikes have targeted Israel and US forces, but also neighbouring Arab states. These include Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Oman, Iraq and Jordan. US military assets in these countries have been targeted, alongside civilian sites such as airports. The number of missile, drone and other attacks is estimated to number in the several hundreds.
Gulf states (Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain) have all condemned Iranian strikes but also, in the case of Oman, criticised US-Israel action. They have accused Iran of a breach of the UN charter and said they reserve the right to respond to its attacks.
Iranian threat to close Strait of Hormuz
The IRGC-affiliated state news agency, Tasmin, has reported that the Strait of Hormuz is to be closed to shipping. The strait runs between the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, and an estimated 20% of global petroleum flows annually through it. It has long been a site of US-Iran tensions.
Some ships have been attacked in the strait. Multiple Iranian naval ships have reportedly been destroyed by the US, limiting their ability to restrict access to the strait, while some oil tankers have also been damaged.
