The recent conflict in the Middle East continues to spiral in the days after Israel and the United States launched a joint operation against Iran, triggering retaliatory attacks on Israel and neighboring Gulf states and plunging the region into fear and anxiety.
US and Israeli leaders have issued confident statements that Iranian forces have been battered and outnumbered with nearly 2,000 targets hit. But Iranian missiles and drones continue to fly in, targeting U.S. assets across the region.
A Senate vote on President Donald Trump’s war powers is scheduled for Wednesday, with U.S. lawmakers still divided at home.
The war disrupted global travel, stranded foreigners and families, and sent global commodity prices soaring. Meanwhile, civilian casualties are rising in Iran and Lebanon.
Here’s what you need to know on day 5.
New attacks: Additional U.S. and Israeli strikes targeted other Iranian leaders, U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday. He praised the operation and claimed that Iran’s military facilities, from its navy to its air force, had been virtually “annihilated”. More than 1,700 targets have been attacked in joint operations so far, according to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM).
Death toll rises: More than 1,000 people, including children, have been killed in Iran since Saturday, according to the US-based Human Rights Defenders News Agency. The group said the report was preliminary and the number could rise further.
New supreme leader: Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency said a group of senior Iranian officials are meeting virtually to elect a new supreme leader after Khamenei was killed in the first airstrike by the United States and Israel. Khamenei’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, is one of the few clerics considered to be a likely successor. However, it is unknown where they are or if they are even alive.
Traffic cameras: The Financial Times has revealed new details about the operation that Israel has been using for years to hack into Tehran’s street cameras and set up a complex surveillance system.
Attacks on Lebanon: Israel has also attacked Lebanon, targeting the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah and issuing evacuation orders for dozens of villages.
Iran’s counterattack: Arab states in the Persian Gulf are bearing the brunt of Tehran’s ferocious retaliation. Countries including Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have intercepted hundreds of missiles and drones in recent days, raising questions about how long their air defenses can sustain themselves and how much weaponry remains in Iran’s depleted arsenal. For decades, these countries have been preparing for such a potential attack by arming themselves with American-made weapons and stationing American troops — despite urging the Trump administration just weeks ago not to attack Iran.
Targeted US facilities: The US closed its embassies in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Lebanon after several of them were attacked by Iran. A CIA base in Saudi Arabia and a US military base in Qatar, the largest in the Middle East, were also attacked. Non-emergency U.S. government personnel in several Middle Eastern countries have been ordered to leave.
Stranded travelers: Disrupted travel has created confusion among thousands of tourists and expatriates with few options for evacuation. Much of the region’s airspace remains closed and thousands of flights have been cancelled. President Trump said Tuesday that there were no evacuation plans for Americans in the Middle East before launching the airstrikes, but that his administration was working to secure flights to help stranded people. European countries are also rushing to evacuate their citizens.
The cost to U.S. troops: Six U.S. service members have been killed in Iranian attacks since Saturday, and President Trump has already warned that number could rise.
Senate vote: The Senate is expected to vote on a resolution Wednesday asking President Trump to seek Congressional approval to continue military operations. The House is scheduled to vote on a similar bill on Thursday.
Oil trade shakes: Oil and gas prices are soaring while stock markets are falling. The Middle East is a major producer of oil and natural gas, but its energy exports are now largely cut off from the rest of the world due to the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Why did America and Israel attack Iran?
U.S. and Israeli claims: Officials from both countries have issued differing statements in recent days about why they launched the attacks, including a need to stop Iran from developing nuclear weapons and claims they were responding to a potential first strike by Iran.
Fact check: The United Nations nuclear watchdog refutes these claims, telling CNN that Iran is not expected to have a nuclear weapon in days or weeks. President Trump himself has repeatedly said that Iran’s nuclear program was “annihilated” by the U.S. attack on Iran last summer. And US intelligence suggests that if Iran chooses to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile, it would have until 2035 to do so.
