Conflict Widens Across Middle East As US, Israel, And Iran Trade Strikes
US and Israeli forces continued to strike Iran as the conflict broadened across the Middle East, with Tehran launching attacks on neighboring countries, including Azerbaijan, and Israel pursuing a "buffer zone" in southern Lebanon.
With the United States and Israel currently engaged in a sixth day of war against Iran, the number of countries in the region to suffer Tehran's retaliatory strikes, which have targeted both military and civilian infrastructure, grew again on March 5.
Neighboring Azerbaijan, which has longstanding ties with Israel, reported attacks launched from Iranian territory on March 5.
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NATO Says Activating Article 5 Not On the Agenda
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on March 5 that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is closely monitoring the situation in the Middle East, but that in the current situation, activating the Article 5 defense clause is not on the agenda.
Article 5 of the NATO Treaty states that in the event of an attack on a member country, other members must rush to the aid of the attacked country.
"Nobody's talking about Article 5," Rutte said in Brussels, where NATO is headquartered, even as he described the incident as "serious."
Rutte's comment comes in response to the launch of a ballistic missile from Iran toward Turkey, which Ankara officials say was intercepted in Turkish airspace and destroyed by NATO air defenses.
The Islamic republic denied on March 5 that a missile had been fired into Turkish territory.
In another part of his speech, Rutte confirmed that NATO supports the US attack on Iran, saying that Iran "was close to becoming a threat to Europe as well."
However, several leaders of NATO countries such as Spain and Turkey have criticized the military campaign, warning that it constitutes a dangerous violation of international law.
With reporting by Reuters
Michael Knights: Gulf Region On The Precipice Of Fundamental Change
With the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran now into its sixth day, both sides continue to launch attacks amid fears the war could spill over into a broader regional conflict.
Michael Knights, head of research at Horizon Engage, a New York–based strategic advisory firm and an adjunct fellow at The Washington Institute, spoke with RFE/RL's Vazha Taberidze about the likely objectives in the conflict for both sides and what may happen if those aren't achieved.
"Iran is a house with no roof right now. The Israelis and the US will have full freedom of movement for the foreseeable future, maybe forever at this point.
"Once it's at this point, the Israelis will never stop going back on a monthly basis until that regime is gone," he tells RFE/RL. "It is bigger than Lebanon, but it's also very important to the Israelis. And they now have the capability to keep intervening for the foreseeable future.
"What's at stake here is really the whole future of the region. We're at a dividing line right now where the post-1979 experience of the region can be fundamentally changed," he says.
To read the full interview, click here.
EU Foreign Policy Chief Says Iran 'Exporting War'
Ahead of an informal video conference with the EU foreign ministers and the ministers from the Gulf states, the European Union's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said on March 5 that "Iran is exporting the war, trying to expand it to as many countries as they can to sow chaos."
"When we talk to the countries in the region, they are also worried about civil wars inside Iran because of the regime's leadership and what is going on there," Kallas told reporters in Brussels.
"Well, usually the regimes are trembling from inside, not from attacks from outside. But, of course, the regime has been considerably weakened, so it gives also the opportunities for the Iranian people to actually decide their own future," she added.
"The same drones that are attacking Kyiv are now attacking our partners in the Middle East. So we will explore how we can support drone interceptor production," Kallas wrote in a post on X.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that countries in the Middle East have asked Ukraine to share its expertise in response to the use of Iranian drones against civilians in those countries.
"They are seeking our expertise. We are open. If their representatives come, we will provide the expertise," he wrote on X.
Tehran's Azadi Stadium Destroyed In Strike
Hours after reports emerged of attacks on a location in western Tehran near Azadi Stadium, Iranian news agencies published images showing the total destruction of the indoor 12,000-seat Azadi Sports Complex.
These news agencies wrote, "In this morning's American and Israeli missile attack on the 12,000-seat Azadi Stadium in Tehran, all parts of the stadium and the surrounding buildings were destroyed."
The Azadi Stadium is the largest indoor sports hall in Iran, which opened prior to the 1979 revolution, at the time of the 1974 Asian Games. Most futsal, volleyball, wrestling, basketball, skating, and horse jumping competitions were held at this stadium.
The sports venue was also used for public ceremonies during religious and political occasions.
Italy To Send Air Defense Aid To Gulf Countries
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni announced her country's intention to send air defense assistance to Persian Gulf countries to counter Iranian air attacks.
Meloni said on March 5 said that Italy -- like Britain, France, and Germany -- "intends to send aid to the Persian Gulf countries, especially in the field of defense, and specifically air defense."
"This is not only because they are friendly countries, but above all because tens of thousands of Italians live in the region and around 2,000 Italian military personnel are stationed there," she said.
Drones Hit Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan Region Near Iranian Border
Drones launched from neighboring Iran have struck Azerbaijan's Nakhchivan autonomous region, injuring two people, according to Azerbaijan's Foreign Affairs Ministry. One drone struck Nakhchivan Airport on March 5, damaging the facility. A second drone landed near a school building in the Shekerabad area, the ministry said.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry condemned the attack, saying it would only increase tensions in the region linked to the ongoing conflict involving Iran, Israel, and the United States Iran's ambassador to Azerbaijan has been summoned to the ministry in Baku to explain the incident.
"Azerbaijan reserves the right to respond," the ministry said.
Azerbaijan is one of the main oil suppliers to Israel, while Israel has been a key defense partner for Baku for years. Many in Azerbaijan see Israel as a reliable ally that supplied critical military equipment during the country's campaign to regain control of the Nagorno-Karabakh region from Armenia.
To read the full report, click here.
Strikes On Iran Continue As IRGC Claims Attack On Oil Tanker
On March 5, there were reports of continuing attacks on Iranian locations, including Tehran and Alborz. This comes as the Israeli Army carried out a wave of air strikes on Iranian government infrastructure "all over Tehran" overnight.
Iranian news agencies confirmed attacks on areas in Tehran, including "the Mehrabad airport area, several points west of Azadi Square, Tehransar, and Chitgar," as well as a military garrison near Qom.
Images posted on social media showed strikes occurring in the cities of Marivan and Saqqez.
Targets in Yazd were also attacked on the evening of March 4, and according to unofficial reports these targets include a "missile site near Yazd Mountain Park."
Iranian state media does not publish reports on attacks on its territory. At the same time, the national Internet blackout -- enforced as part of the crackdown on widespread protests in January -- has made it difficult to obtain accurate and detailed information.
Iran retaliated early on March 5 fired several missiles at various areas of Israel, including Jerusalem.
According to the British Maritime Safety Agency, an oil tanker in waters near Kuwait also witnessed a "large explosion" on March 5.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the attack. The IRGC’s public relations department released a statement saying that a missile had been fired at an oil tanker in the Gulf.
The IRGC called the tanker "American" and announced that the IRGC Navy targeted it on March 4.
The official IRNA news agency, citing the IRGC, wrote that the tanker "is currently burning."
The United States has yet to comment on the attack.
Iranian Proxy Commander Killed In Southern Iraq
Kataib Hezbollah, one of Iran's main and most powerful proxy groups in the region, announced on March 5 the killing of one of its commanders in southern Iraq.
The group confirmed in a statement that Ali Hussein al-Freiji, who joined the group two decades ago, was killed in a bombing raid by American and Israeli forces on March 4.
The AFP news agency, citing two sources close to the group, reported that a vehicle carrying three members of Kataib Hezbollah was targeted near the group's main base in southern Iraq.
Last week, two days before the start of the US and Israeli military operation against Iran, Kataib Hezbollah announced to its members that they should prepare for a long and attritional war "in the event of an attack" on Iran.
The group also announced that in the event of a US attack, Kataib would "most likely" also enter the war in defense of the Islamic republic.
The Kataib Hezbollah base in Jurf al-Nasr, 60 kilometers southwest of Baghdad, was the "first target" reportedly hit by the US and Israel, according to AFP. Several locations in Baghdad and Erbil were then targeted on March 4.
Zelenskyy: Ukraine Ready To Help Counter Iranian Drones
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the Iranian regime threatens regional and global stability, adding that Ukraine is ready to deploy experts to counter Iranian drones and missiles.
"The Iranian regime, which is striving to survive at any cost, poses clear threats to all states in the region and to global stability. No country close to Iran can feel secure," he wrote in a post on X.
Zelenskyy said that the attack drones Iran launched in the Middle East are the same Shahed drones that have attacked Ukrainian cities, villages, and infrastructure throughout Russia's full-scale invasion, now in its fifth year.
"Ukraine can contribute to protecting lives and stabilizing the situation. Partners are reaching out to us," he stated.
"Our military possesses the necessary capabilities. Ukrainian experts will operate on-site, and teams are already coordinating these efforts. And we are ready to help protect lives, defend civilians, and support real efforts to stabilize the situation and, in particular, restore safe navigation in the region," Zelenskyy added.