United News of Bangladesh

Sri Lanka’s navy and air force have launched rescue operations after an Iranian naval vessel began sinking near the island’s southern coast, authorities said Wednesday. Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath told parliament that a distress signal was received at dawn from the vessel identified as IRIS Dena. According to initial reports, around 180 people were on board at the time of the incident. Herath said 30 injured sailors have been transported to a hospital in the port city of Galle for treatment. Rescue efforts are ongoing to account for the remaining crew members. The cause of the sinking remains unclear. During the parliamentary session, an opposition lawmaker questioned whether the vessel may have been bombed as part of the ongoing US-Israeli attacks against Iran. Authorities have not provided any official confirmation regarding the circumstances surrounding the incident. Further details are expected as rescue operations continue. Source: BBC

Israel’s military announced a new wave of strikes on government infrastructure in Tehran Wednesday, following reports of a heavy explosion in the eastern part of the city. Meanwhile, France has deployed Rafale fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates to intercept Iranian drones targeting French forces stationed there, Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said, reports Al Jazeera. The jets, based at Dhafra Air Base near Abu Dhabi, were tasked with protecting hundreds of French navy, air force, and army personnel from Iranian attacks. President Emmanuel Macron also announced that France is sending its flagship aircraft carrier to the Mediterranean in response to the widening conflict in the Middle East. Barrot emphasized that the deployments aim to safeguard French personnel and facilities in the UAE while maintaining regional stability amid escalating hostilities following Israeli and US strikes on Iranian targets.

Iran has ruled out negotiations with the United States and warned citizens against any cooperation with Washington or Israel as the conflict intensifies. Mohammad Mokhber, a senior aide to the late supreme leader, said Iran has no intention of engaging in talks with the US and maintains no form of contact with Washington, report Al Jazeera. “We have no trust in the Americans, and we have no basis for any negotiations with them,” Mokhber said on Iranian state television. He added that Tehran is prepared to continue the war “as long as we want.” Mokhber previously served as Iran’s acting president and first vice president. Separately, Iran’s judiciary chief Gholam Hosseini Mohseni Ejehe warned the public against expressing support for the United States or Israel during the ongoing war. “We have announced that those who cooperate with the enemy in any way will be considered an enemy,” Ejehe said in remarks broadcast on state television. He stressed that individuals who “say or do anything in line with the will of America and the Zionist regime” would be treated as siding with the enemy and dealt with under what he described as “revolutionary, Islamic principles” appropriate to wartime conditions. The warnings come after both the US and Israel publicly called on Iranians to rise up against their government. Former US President Donald Trump said the conflict could represent the Iranian people’s “only chance for generations” to overthrow the leadership. Earlier this year, nationwide protests in Iran resulted in thousands of deaths, according to UN officials and international human rights organizations, which documented widespread use of deadly force against demonstrators. The latest statements signal Tehran’s firm stance against external pressure and suggest continued domestic crackdowns as hostilities with the US and Israel persist.

Israel’s Defense Minister Israel Katz warned Wednesday that whoever is chosen as Iran’s next supreme leader will be “a target for elimination.” In a post on X, Katz said, “Every leader appointed by the Iranian terror regime to continue and lead the plan to destroy Israel, to threaten the United States and the free world and the countries of the region, and to suppress the Iranian people — will be a target for elimination.” The warning comes as Israel struck a building linked to Iran’s Assembly of Experts on Tuesday. The assembly is responsible for selecting the country’s next supreme leader following the death of 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in an Israeli strike on Saturday, which marked the beginning of the current conflict.

The escalating Middle East conflict is affecting nearly every country in the region, causing casualties, property damage, and major disruptions to airspace, shipping routes, and diplomatic operations. Governments are urging citizens to leave as commercial flights are canceled, Gulf airspace closes, and ports such as the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted. The U.S. has evacuated personnel from six nations, including the UAE, and advised citizens from 14 countries to leave. Iran: The country has suffered the highest casualties, with at least 787 killed, including over 160 in a strike on an elementary school in Minab. U.S.-Israeli operations have targeted nuclear facilities, missile launchers, government buildings in Tehran, and leadership compounds, reportedly killing Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and senior military officials. Airspace is closed. Israel and Palestinian Territories: Iranian missile attacks have killed 11 people. The extent of damage to military installations remains undisclosed. Commercial airspace is closed. Lebanon: Israeli airstrikes targeted Hezbollah sites in Beirut following missile and drone attacks. At least 52 people were killed and 154 wounded. The U.S. Embassy has closed temporarily, though flights are partially operational. Saudi Arabia: Iranian drones targeted the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh and Ras Tanura oil refinery, causing minor damage. Airspace is partially closed. Kuwait: U.S. Embassy attacks and Iranian strikes killed several personnel, including six U.S. soldiers. Civilian casualties include one dead and 32 injured migrant workers. Airspace is closed. United Arab Emirates: Three foreign workers were killed in strikes. Dubai’s airport and hotels along the coast sustained damage, and Iranian drones hit two Amazon data centers. Airspace is closed. Egypt: Shipping disruptions through the Suez Canal are impacting the economy. Commercial flights operate with some cancellations. Jordan: Intercepted Iranian projectiles injured five people. Airspace is restricted at night. Qatar: Iranian attacks targeted energy facilities. Airspace is closed. Senators to vote on limiting Trump’s military authority after Iran strikes Iraq: U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iranian proxy sites killed militia members. Drone and missile attacks targeted U.S. bases in Irbil. Oil production at Rumaila fields halted due to shipping disruptions. Airspace is closed. Bahrain: A strike killed one Asian worker and injured two others; drone debris impacted an Amazon data center. Airspace is closed. Syria: Iranian missile debris caused minor injuries in southern provinces. Airspace is closed. Oman: Drone attacks struck major ports at Salalah and Duqm, and at least one vessel was hit offshore. Airspace remains open, though many flights are canceled. The conflict continues to escalate, with civilian casualties mounting and regional economies and travel networks under severe strain.

A suspected Iranian drone struck the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) station located at the US Embassy in Saudi Arabia, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. The source added that there was no indication the CIA station was the intended target. The Washington Post reported that a State Department alert said the building sustained structural damage. The attack comes amid escalating strikes across the Middle East following US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran on Saturday. The US Embassy in Riyadh, the Saudi capital, is among several American facilities affected. Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry said two drones hit the embassy, causing a small fire and some material damage. Following the incident, the US mission in Saudi Arabia warned American citizens to avoid the embassy until further notice due to the threat of attacks. Routine and emergency consular services were also cancelled on Tuesday. In a separate alert, the mission cautioned that “there is a threat of imminent missile and UAV attacks over Dhahran” and advised people not to visit the US Consulate.   #With inputs from TRT World

The US military has destroyed 17 Iranian naval vessels, including its most operational submarine, as part of the ongoing Operation Epic Fury, a senior US commander said Tuesday. Admiral Brad Cooper, head of US Central Command, said in a video posted on X that the campaign, now in its fourth day, has targeted nearly 2,000 sites using over 2,000 munitions. More than 50,000 US troops and over 200 fighter aircraft, including B-1 and B-2 bombers, are involved, reports CNN. “Today, there is not a single Iranian ship underway in the Arabian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, or Gulf of Oman, and we will not stop,” Cooper said. He added that Iran has retaliated with over 500 ballistic missiles and more than 2,000 drones, though its ability to strike US forces is “declining.” Cooper described the strikes as “uncontested surgical” operations aimed at neutralizing threats to US forces and international shipping. The operation comes amid the broader US-Israel campaign against Iran, which has drawn international scrutiny over its scale and potential consequences for regional stability.

An Iranian drone struck a parking lot outside the U.S. consulate in Dubai on Tuesday, causing a small fire but no injuries, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. Rubio told reporters at the U.S. Capitol that all consulate personnel in Dubai were safe and accounted for, reports Al Jazeera. He added that U.S. authorities had begun drawing down staff from diplomatic facilities in the region in anticipation of potential attacks. The incident underscores that, despite a slowdown in Iranian missile and drone strikes, Tehran still possesses the capability to get munitions past U.S. defensive systems. No further details on the damage or the type of drone used were immediately available. U.S. officials continue to monitor the situation closely.  

Israel said Tuesday it carried out fresh airstrikes targeting Iranian missile launchers and a nuclear research facility in Tehran, as Iran broadened its counterattacks against Israel and across the Gulf, including drone strikes on U.S. diplomatic missions and disruptions to energy supplies and air travel. On the fourth day of the conflict, which US President Donald Trump indicated could continue for weeks, the death toll in Iran has climbed to nearly 800. Among those killed, Trump said, were individuals the United States had viewed as possible future leaders of the country. Blasts were reported Tuesday in Tehran and in Lebanon, where Israel said it launched retaliatory strikes against Hezbollah fighters. Drone attacks targeted the U.S. Embassy in Saudi Arabia and the U.S. Consulate in the United Arab Emirates. Iran has fired dozens of ballistic missiles at Israel since the fighting began, though Israeli defenses have intercepted most of them. Eleven people have been killed in Israel. The Pentagon also confirmed that four U.S. Army Reserve soldiers were killed in a drone strike Sunday on a command facility in Kuwait. Two additional service members died in the same attack. The escalating exchanges have fueled uncertainty over how and when the conflict might conclude. US officials have outlined a range of objectives, including dismantling Iran’s missile capabilities, destroying its naval assets, preventing it from acquiring nuclear weapons and halting its support for allied armed groups in the region. Although the initial US-Israeli assault killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and Trump at one stage encouraged Iranians to rise up against their government, senior officials have since clarified that regime change is not an official goal of the campaign. Speaking from the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump appeared to temper expectations that the war would bring an end to Iran’s clerical leadership. He suggested that a successor emerging from within the existing system might be the most viable option once military operations conclude. Trump also said that Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s former shah living in exile, has not been seriously considered by his administration as a potential leader. Regarding possible alternatives inside Iran, Trump said, “The people we had in mind are dead,” adding that there was a risk that any replacement could prove as hardline as the previous leadership. Iranian authorities are now moving to select a new supreme leader following Khamenei’s 37-year rule. It marks only the second such transition since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Those seen as potential successors range from staunch hardliners advocating continued confrontation with the West to reformists favoring diplomatic engagement.

US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said 1,097 civilians have been killed in Iran since February 28. According to HRANA, 181 of those killed were children under the age of 10. The rights group said the number of civilian injuries has reached 5,402, including 100 children. It added that at least 104 attacks were recorded in the past 24 hours alone, hitting military bases, medical centres and residential areas. HRANA said hundreds more reported deaths are currently being reviewed. Israel and Hezbollah continued to exchange fire as tensions escalated across the region following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Hezbollah says it targeted northern Israel's Haifa naval base at 20:00 local time (18:00 GMT). The Israeli military said shortly afterwards that several incoming projectiles were detected, and most were shot down. Hours later, a loud explosion was heard in the Lebanese capital Beirut shortly after midnight (22:00 GMT). Hezbollah later claimed it had also fired rockets at Israeli forces in the northern Israeli town of Metula. The claim came after it announced carrying out the missile strike on the Haifa naval base. Meanwhile, the Israeli military issued new forced displacement orders for residents of 16 villages and towns in southern Lebanon. The affected areas include Majdal Selm, Houla and Shaqra. Lebanon’s Al Mayadeen television reported that an Israeli airstrike on Aramoun and Saadiyat in the Mount Lebanon area killed at least six people. The broadcaster cited the Lebanese Ministry of Health as saying eight others were wounded in the attack. Earlier, Lebanese authorities said the death toll from what they described as Israel’s “aggression” had risen to 50, with 335 people wounded. #With inputs from Agencies