Spain has denied that the White House is cooperating with US military operations
Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albarez, contrary to a White House spokesman, denied that the government had changed its position on supporting US military operations against Iran.
“I can deny (the White House spokesman),” Albarez told Spanish radio station Cadena Ser. “The Spanish government’s position on the war in the Middle East, the bombing of Iran and the use of our bases has not changed one iota.”
Albarez spoke in Madrid shortly after White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said Spain had changed its position and “they have agreed to cooperate with the US military.”
France’s Macron has warned of a major flaw in Hezbollah’s escalation strategy in the Middle East
French President Emmanuel Macron has spoken to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and discussed the situation in Lebanon, urging him to step down.
In a post on social media platform X, Macron said Hezbollah’s escalation strategy is a major flaw that puts the entire region at risk.
Macron says Netanyahu has urged him to ‘refrain from ground invasion’ in Lebanon
Pentagon, US power scrap plan to secure oil tankers transiting Strait of Hormuz
Both the Pentagon and the US Energy Department are hammering out plans to secure maritime traffic, particularly oil tankers, in the Strait of Hormuz, the White House said.
White House says Trump is ‘actively considering’ US role in post-war Iran
About 100,000 people fled Tehran in the first two days of the war, the UN said.
The White House said Spain has agreed to cooperate with the US military
Spain has agreed to cooperate with the US military, White House press secretary Caroline Leavitt said on Wednesday, a day after President Donald Trump suggested imposing trade sanctions on Madrid and the US refused to use joint naval operations. Air bases in southern Spain.
The White House said Trump believed Americans would support an Iran war
White House press secretary Carolyn Leavitt said on Wednesday that US President Donald Trump believes Americans will support US military strikes against Iran.
“The president is smart enough to read so many fake news headlines that people in this room have made up that his action is indefensible,” Leavitt told a news briefing. “This is a rogue terrorist regime that has been threatening the United States, our allies and our people for 47 years, and the American people are smart enough to know that.”
Three divisions of forces operating in southern Lebanon, the IDF says
The military said three divisions of Israeli forces, including infantry, armored and engineering units, were operating in southern Lebanon.
“The troops of the 91st Division are operating in the east of South Lebanon, the forces of the 210th Division are operating in the Mount Dove area, and the forces of the 146th Division are operating in the west of South Lebanon,” the military said.
Video footage shared by the army showed soldiers carrying large backpacks and sleeping mats, as well as tanks, in southern Lebanon.
The Israeli defense minister on Tuesday ordered his forces to seize additional positions inside Lebanon, as the military sought to establish what it described as a buffer zone against Hezbollah.
New drones have been grounded near Baghdad airport
Two drones were shot down near Baghdad’s international airport, hours after a similar attack on the facility, two security sources told AFP.
“Two drones were shot down near Baghdad airport, with no casualties or material damage reported,” Iraqi security sources said. Another security source in Baghdad confirmed the incident.
The airport includes a military base that houses a US diplomatic facility and formerly housed US-led coalition forces.
Fresh explosions were heard in Erbil, Iraq
AFP journalists reported that new explosions were heard in Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s northern Kurdistan region.
An AFP journalist said a loud bang was heard mostly near Erbil airport, which hosts US-led coalition forces.
Since the start of the war in the Middle East, drones have been repeatedly intercepted over Erbil, home to a major US consulate complex.
The UN watchdog said there was no damage to Iran’s nuclear sites
The UN nuclear watchdog IAEA said there was no damage to facilities containing nuclear material in Iran and no risk of radiation leakage in the latest US-Israeli strikes.
“Based on an analysis of the latest available satellite imagery, the IAEA does not see any damage to facilities containing nuclear material in Iran and therefore there is no risk of any radiological release at this time,” the agency said in X.
Near the Natanz site near the central city of Isfahan, it said “no additional impact was detected” after reports on Tuesday of “visible damage to two buildings” and “damage to entrances”.
IAEA inspectors do not have access to the key Natanz site because it was bombed in June during the 12-day war triggered by an Israeli attack.
Hezbollah says the fighters are engaged in clashes with Israeli forces in Lebanon
Hezbollah said its fighters were engaged in “direct” clashes with Israeli forces in the southern Lebanese town of Khiyam, six kilometers from the border.
It was the first claim of direct confrontation between the two sides since the fighting began on Monday.
The pro-Iranian group said in a statement: “After monitoring the movements of Israeli enemy forces that tried to advance” inside the town of Qiyam, “Islamic resistance fighters detonated an explosive device and engaged in direct clashes with the force”.
The US Embassy tells Americans to leave Iraq now
The US Embassy in Baghdad has told its citizens to leave Iraq immediately.
“US citizens in Iraq are strongly encouraged to leave as soon as it is safe to do so and to seek shelter in place until conditions allow safe departure,” the embassy in X said.
An explosion occurred in a city in Iran’s Kurdistan province
An explosion occurred in a city in Iran’s western Kurdistan province on Wednesday, according to video reviewed by AFP.
According to the images reviewed, huge plumes of smoke rose over the city of Baneh in the morning. Videos of an explosion that hit a base belonging to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) have been shared on social media.
Strikes broke out across the border in Iraqi Kurdistan on Wednesday as the war in the Middle East escalated on multiple fronts.
An exiled Iranian Kurdish group in Iraq told AFP around 11:30am (0830 GMT) that Iranian forces killed one of its fighters and the IRGC later confirmed that it had fired missiles at armed opposition groups in Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region.
Last month, five groups, including PDKI and PAK, announced a political alliance to topple the Iranian government and ultimately seek Kurdish self-determination.
The CIA is working to mobilize Kurdish forces and Washington is in talks with Kurdish leaders with a view to providing them with military support, US outlet CNN reported, citing several people familiar with the plan.
Israel’s military says new missiles have been fired from Iran
The Israeli military says it has detected new missiles fired from Iran on the fifth day of a US-Israeli military operation against the Islamic Republic.
“A short time ago, the IDF detected missiles fired from Iran towards the territory of the State of Israel,” the military said in a statement, adding that air defenses were working to intercept them.
Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed 72 people since Monday, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health
Lebanese officials announced that Israeli attacks on Lebanon have killed 72 people and displaced more than 83,000 since the start of a new round of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.
In a statement, the Health Ministry said “the toll of the Israeli offensive since early Monday morning … was 72 martyrs and 437 wounded,” while the Minister of Social Affairs announced that the number of those displaced under official shelter was 83,847.
Israel is carrying out airstrikes in several areas of Lebanon after pro-Iranian groups began firing rockets and drones on Monday in retaliation for a US and Israeli strike that killed Iran’s supreme leader.
Iraq reported an electrical grid blackout across all provinces
Iraq’s Ministry of Electricity said all provinces were experiencing a total blackout.
The cause of the blackout is under investigation, it said in a statement.
Lebanese officials say more than 83,000 people have been displaced by Israeli attacks
(tags to translate)Middle East
