Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the war against Iran will be swift and decisive, rejecting comparisons to prolonged Middle East conflicts as US and Israeli strikes widen across the region.
“I said it could be quick and decisive. It may take some time, but it’s not going to take years. It’s not an endless war,” Netanyahu says during an interview on Monday.
The conflict enters its fourth day as explosions shake Tel Aviv, where Israeli air defences intercept incoming Iranian missiles. Israel strikes the complex housing Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB in Tehran and targets Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters across towns in Lebanon.
The United States joins Israel in a sweeping air campaign that begins with attacks on Tehran on Saturday, killing Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, according to US and Israeli officials. Iran and its proxy Hezbollah retaliate, dragging the wider Gulf region into the fighting and killing hundreds of civilians in Iran, Israel and Lebanon.
US President Donald Trump initially projects the war could last four to five weeks but later frames the offensive as open-ended. In his most detailed public remarks so far, Trump says he orders the assault to thwart Tehran’s nuclear and rapidly expanding ballistic missile programmes.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio warns that “the hardest hits are yet to come from the US military,” saying Washington acts preemptively to limit casualties after learning of Israel’s plans and anticipating Iranian retaliation against American bases.
Rubio says current objectives destroying Iran’s ballistic missile launch and manufacturing capabilities can be achieved without deploying ground troops, though he does not rule out that option. “Right now we are not postured for ground forces. But obviously the president has those options and he is not going to rule out anything,” he says.
Early Tuesday, two drones apparently launched from Iran strike the US embassy in Riyadh, causing minor damage and a fire, while Saudi air defences intercept at least eight more drones, the kingdom’s defence ministry says. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says it destroys the main command building of a US airbase in Bahrain during what it calls the 14th wave of “Operation Promise of the Truth 4,” launching 20 drones and three missiles.
The US military says it strikes more than 1,250 targets in Iran and destroys 11 Iranian ships. Six US service personnel are killed in retaliatory Iranian attacks on Kuwait. In a separate incident, Kuwait mistakenly shoots down three American F-15E fighter jets during an Iranian assault, though all six crew members eject safely and are recovered, US Central Command says.
The war disrupts global air travel and energy markets. Major Gulf hubs, including Dubai International Airport, remain closed for a fourth straight day, stranding tens of thousands of passengers in what aviation analysts describe as the industry’s biggest test since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz a vital chokepoint for roughly one-fifth of global oil trade slows sharply after Tehran targets vessels transiting the route. Oil prices surge, supertanker rates in the Middle East hit record highs, and Asian airline stocks extend losses as carriers grapple with rising fuel costs and rerouted flights.
Iran denies seeking nuclear weapons and calls the US and Israeli strikes unprovoked, saying they come while Tehran and Washington are negotiating over a potential nuclear accord. Trump withdraws from a previous international agreement limiting Iran’s nuclear programme during his first term in 2018.
The conflict draws condemnation from Russia, China and Turkey, while opinion polls in the United States show limited public support for the escalating war, raising political stakes ahead of midterm elections.
Erizia Rubyjeana
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