Lebanese Prime Minister Says IRGC Commanding Hezbollah Fighters
Lebanon's prime minister said members of Iran's hard-line Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) are commanding pro-Tehran Hezbollah fighters in the country in the group's war against Israel.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, in an interview with the Al Hadath network on March 22, slammed Hezbollah for dragging Lebanon into the Middle East war by firing rockets toward Israel.
"It was declared that this war was in retaliation for the assassination of Khamenei, so this means this war was imposed upon us," he said, referring to the Iran's late supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of US-Israeli air strikes on Iran.
Salam said an incident in which an Iran-made drone hit a British sovereign base in Cyprus earlier this month was initiated by the "Revolutionary Guard, which is present and, unfortunately, is managing the military operation in Lebanon."
"These people have forged passports and entered the country illegally," he added.
Lebanon has banned the activities of the IRGC in the country and has imposed a ban on Hezbollah military activity.
The United States has designated Hezbollah a terrorist organization, while the EU has sanctioned the group's military wing but not its political organization in the country.
With reporting by AFP
Pentagon Considers Next Steps On Iran, Axios Reports
The Pentagon is reportedly preparing a range of military options for a potential "final blow" against Iran, according to Axios, which cited two US officials and two additional sources familiar with the discussions.
In interviews, the sources outlined four major scenarios that US President Donald Trump could consider. These options include:
- invading or blockading Kharg Island, Iran's primary oil export hub
- invading Larak Island, which plays a key role in Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz
- taking control of Abu Musa and two nearby smaller islands, currently held by Iran but also claimed by the United Arab Emirates
- Blocking or seizing vessels transporting Iranian oil on the eastern side of the Strait of Hormuz
Axios also reports that US military planners have developed potential ground operations targeting Iran's interior, aimed at securing highly enriched uranium stored within nuclear facilities.
Israel Says It Killed IRGC Navy Commander Alireza Tangsiri
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz says an Israeli air strike killed Alireza Tangsiri, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy.
"Last night, in a precise and lethal operation, the IDF eliminated the commander of the Revolutionary Guards' navy, Tangsiri, along with senior officers of the naval command," Katz said in a video statement on March 26.
He described Tangsiri as the man "who was directly responsible for the terrorist operation of mining and blocking the Strait of Hormuz to shipping."
Iran has not commented and the claim has not been picked up by mainstream Iranian media.
Some Israeli outlets say Tangsiri was killed in a strike on Bandar Abbas, a port city in the southern Hormozgan Province on the shores of the Persian Gulf.
Since the start of the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran on February 28, Israel killed several top Iranian officials. Those have included Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and security chief Ali Larijani.
Trump Warns Tehran To 'Get Serious Soon' On Talks, Blasts NATO Over Iran
US President Donald Trump says Iranian negotiators should "get serious soon" on talks to end US-Israeli air strikes "before it is too late."
"They are 'begging' us to make a deal, which they should be doing since they have been militarily obliterated, with zero chance of a comeback, and yet they publicly state that they are only “looking at our proposal,” Trump said in a social media post on March 27.
"They better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t be pretty!" he added.
A day earlier, Iran said it was reviewing a 15-point US peace plan and put forward what it said were five conditions that needed to be met in order for the conflict to end.
In a separate post, Trump chided the NATO military alliance for not helping the United States in the campaign, adding that "the USA needs nothing from NATO."
Last week Trump asked NATO to help secure the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil and gas transit route. Shipping in the waterway has ground to a virtual halt due to Iranian strikes on some vessels and threats of more from Tehran.
Several European countries that are in NATO said they were willing to consider helping once the conflict had ended, while others outright rejected the request, which came with no specifics.
Human Rights Watch Warns That Dangerous Rhetoric Risks Enabling War Crimes
The geographic spread, speed of escalation, and open disregard for international norms by all parties one month into the Middle East conflict are a critical stress test for the international legal order created to protect civilians during armed conflict, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a March 26 news release.
The New York-based human rights group warned that rhetoric and actions by leaders in the United States, Israel, and Iran show disregard for humanitarian law and risk enabling war crimes.
According to HRW, serious violations of the laws of war during the first month of conflict include a strike on a school in Minab, Israel's use of white phosphorus in Lebanon, and Iranian attacks on civilian sites and ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
A US investigation into the strike in Minab, a city in southern Iran, is ongoing, although preliminary assessments indicated that US forces were likely responsible.
HRW also warned that attacks -- as well as the threat of attacks -- on commercial ships in the crucial Strait of Hormuz and on oil and natural-gas facilities in Iran and the Gulf states have driven up global energy prices and could raise costs for food, transport, and agriculture worldwide.
Arab States Condemn Direct, Proxy Iranian Attacks
Six Arab states strongly condemned Iran's direct and proxy attacks as violations of sovereignty, international law, and the UN Charter.
In a joint statement on March 25, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan condemned attacks by Iran-backed Iraqi factions targeting regional countries and infrastructure.
The states urged the Iraqi government to take the necessary measures to stop militias operating from its territory and to avoid further escalation.
The statement also denounced Iran-linked sleeper cells and Hezbollah-affiliated groups, reaffirming the right to self-defense in order to protect sovereignty, security and stability.
German Defense Chief Calls Iran War 'Catastrophe' To Global Economies
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on March 26 said a diplomatic solution to the Iran war was needed "as soon as possible," calling the conflict a "catastrophe."
"This war is a catastrophe for the world's economies. The impact is absolutely evident already now..." he said during a meeting with Australian counterpart Richard Marles in Canberra.
"We have not been consulted before, nobody asked us before, it's not our war, and therefore we don't want to get sucked into that war, to make it crystal clear," Pistorius said.
Pistorius said if a cease-fire is agreed, Germany would discuss an operation to secure the peace, especially the freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, the important oil transit waterway that Iran has effectively blocked, although Tehran is now allowing selection countries to pass through.
While assailing Tehran's hard-line regime, Germany has also been unusually critical of the United States for its war with Iran.
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier this week called US President Donald Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran a “disastrous mistake” that violates international law.
Trump Says Iranians Negotiating -- But They're Afraid To Admit It
US President Donald Trump on March 25 said Tehran was taking part in peace talks, despite official denials, because Iranian negotiators are afraid they will be killed by their "own people."
"They are negotiating, by the way, and they want to make a deal so badly. But they're afraid to say it, because they figure they'll be killed by their own people," Trump told a dinner for Republican members of Congress.
"They're also afraid they'll be killed by us."
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi earlier in the day said that "we do not intend to negotiate," although he acknowledged Tehran was reviewing a US proposal passed along by Pakistan.
Trump again said Iran was being "decimated" by US and Israeli forces in the war, now in its fourth week.
The White House said earlier that Trump was ready to "unleash hell" if Tehran did not admit defeat and accept the terms of the US peace proposal.
Read more here.
Australia To Ban Visitors From Iran For 6 Months Amid War At Home
Australia is banning visitors from Iran from entering the country for the next six months, saying the war in their home country would increase the chances of them not returning when their visas were up. Some 7,200 Iranians hold tourist visas and could be affected by the decision, officials said.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke said the order would apply to all Iranians on tourist visas for the next six months, a move the government said was in the national interest amid rapidly changing global conditions.
Russia Sending Drones, Medicine, Food To Iran: FT
The Financial Times reports that Russia is close to completing a phased shipment of drones, medicine, and food to Iran as the Kremlin looks to keep its ally afloat amid its war with the United States and Israel.
The FT on March 25 cited Western Intelligence reports that detailed Moscow's secret collaboration with Tehran.
"Senior Iranian and Russian officials began secretly discussing delivering drones days after Israel and the US attacked Tehran, two officials briefed on the intelligence said. The processing of deliveries began in early March and was expected to be completed by the end of the month," the report stated.
Asked about the situation, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “There are a lot of fakes going around right now. One thing is true — we are continuing our dialogue with the Iranian leadership.”
"A senior western official said Moscow was stepping in to shore up not only the Iranians’ fighting capabilities but also to underwrite the broader political stability of Tehran’s regime," the FT added.
Gulf States, Jordan Demand Iraq To Crack Down On Armed Pro-Iran Groups
Five Gulf countries and Jordan have issued a joint statement demanding that Iraq act to stop attacks from its territory by armed pro-Iran groups. The statement was signed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan. Some groups in Iraq belonging to the pro-Tehran Islamic Resistance in Iraq claim to have carried out "dozens" of drone and rocket attacks against "the enemy" in Iraq and the Middle East, without identifying their specific targets. Iraq has been drawn unwillingly into the Iran war across its border. Pro-Iran groups have been launching attacks against US-linked sites while the Tehran-backed fighters have themselves been hit by airstrikes they blame on Israel and the United States.