The Middle East war entered a new and dangerous phase. A fresh wave of Iranian drone and missile attacks struck multiple Gulf countries, with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait all reporting new strikes. Saudi Arabia said its air defenses intercepted 15 drones, while Bahrain reported “material damage” to a crucial desalination plant. Kuwait’s national oil company announced a “precautionary” cut to crude production after drones hit fuel tanks at Kuwait’s international airport, killing two firefighters.
Iranian authorities said U.S.‑Israeli overnight strikes damaged five oil sites around Tehran, although the fires were eventually brought under control. U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters he is not interested in negotiations and suggested the war will only end when Iran’s military is destroyed and its leadership removed. Trump said U.S. and Israeli forces had “decimated” the Iranian regime but offered only a vague description of what unconditional surrender would mean. He also refused to rule out sending American troops into Iran and attended a ceremony at Dover Air Force Base for six U.S. service members killed earlier in the conflict.
Reports indicate Iran’s clerical leadership council is close to agreeing on a successor to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and Israel’s military warned it would pursue any successor. Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian, facing backlash after earlier remarks to Gulf nations, said Iran would be “forced to respond” to any invasion from a neighboring country. Meanwhile, at least 16 people were killed in Lebanon when Israeli strikes hit southern Lebanon and a hotel in Beirut.
The escalation underscores how rapidly the war has spread across the region and threatens to draw Gulf monarchies, Lebanon, and Iran’s succession crisis deeper into the conflict.