The US and Israeli war with Iran showed no signs of slowing following US President Donald Trump's TV address to the nation, with a series of reported air strikes, defiant messaging from Tehran, and a US warning in Iraq of an imminent attack in Baghdad by Iranian proxy forces.
Images on social media showed plumes of smoke at the international airport in Mashhad, a city in northeast Iran, on April 2, RFE/RL's Radio Farda reported.
There were also diplomatic moves, with Britain hosting an international online summit on non-military means to end Iran's near total blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, and further signs of an intensifying crackdown within Iran.
Amid ongoing combat, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced it had struck a base in Tehran used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which is designated as a terrorist group by Israel and the United States.
"Additionally, a ballistic missile storage site belonging to the missile unit in the Tabriz area was also struck," the IDF said in a statement on social media.
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Iranian Human Rights Lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh Arrested AgainEmergency services reported rocket fire from Iran's Lebanon-based Hezbollah proxy group that caused shrapnel injuries to an 85-year-old Israeli man and a 34-year-old foreign worker.
A spokesman for the Saudi Defense Ministry said four drones and a ballistic missile launched from Iran had been intercepted, while the United Arab Emirates said it had "engaged 19 ballistic missiles and 26 UAV's launched from Iran."
The US government has issued a warning to its citizens in Iraq, saying that "Iraqi terrorist militia groups aligned with Iran may intend to conduct attacks in central Baghdad in the next 24-48 hours."
The Mood In Iran
In Iran, there was defiant messaging from the authorities following Trump's speech, in which he threatened to bomb Iran "back to the stone ages where they belong" and said military operations would continue for another two or three weeks.
Military spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari told local media that US and Israeli knowledge of Iran's nuclear and military installations was "incomplete" and that Iran would deliver "crushing" blows.
Ruslan Suleymanov, a Middle East expert at the NEST Center who recently visited Iran amid US and Israeli air strikes, told Current Time he had observed a wide range of attitudes among the Iranian people and that there are currently both supporters and opponents of the regime.
"The opponents are in the majority. But even the opponents of the regime don't fully understand where this war is heading," he said on April 2.
The Iranian regime appeared to be tightening an already brutal crackdown on its opponents, as prominent rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh was arrested at her home in Tehran last night, her daughter said on Instagram.
This news came after it was reported that Iran had executed an 18-year-old man, Amirhossein Hatami, arrested during mass protests in January.
Meanwhile the health of Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi has significantly deteriorated in prison, according to her husband, Taghi Rahmani.
Rahmani spoke with RFE/RL's Radio Farda by telephone on April 1 from Paris, where he is based.
Diplomacy
On the diplomatic front, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper condemned Iran's "recklessness" for stopping nearly all shipping through the Strait of Hormuz -- causing global economic chaos as flows of oil, gas, and other vital commodities have come to a halt.
"Alongside today’s discussions, we are also convening military planners to look at how we marshal our collective defensive military capabilities, including looking at issues such as de-mining or reassurance once the conflict eases,” she told an online conference convened by London.
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Coral And Crude: Life On Iran's Kharg islandFrance, Germany, Australia, and the Gulf states were expected to attend, but not the United States, which has called on its allies to secure the strait.
In comments shared by a state news agency, Russian President Vladimir Putin said "we all hope that this conflict will be resolved as quickly as possible. President Trump spoke about this yesterday. I repeat, we, for our part, are ready to do everything possible to bring the situation back to normal."
In China, which like Russia has close ties to Iran, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning responded to Trump's speech by calling on all sides to cease military operations, while also criticizing Washington.
"The root cause of obstruction to navigation through the Strait of Hormuz is the illegal military actions by the United States and Israel against Iran. Only through a cease-fire and the achievement of peace and stability in the Gulf region can the security and smooth operation of international shipping lanes be fundamentally safeguarded," she told a news conference.
China has presented a five-point plan with Pakistan, calling for an immediate cease-fire and talks.
Pakistan has emerged as a potential key mediator for passing messages between the United States and Iran, which have presented wildly different visions for peace.
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How Iran's Hormuz Blockade Chokes Global Trade Beyond Oil And GasTehran is demanding, among other things, reparations and recognition of its control over the Strait of Hormuz. Washington's plan has not been made public but is believed to include a demand that Iran will agree to not develop nuclear weapons, limits on Iran's missile capabilities, and an end to Iran's support for regional proxy forces.
Trump has said Iran is "begging to make a deal" while Iran has denied any talks are taking place.
A former Iranian foreign minister, Kamal Kharrazi, believed to be involved in contact with Pakistani mediators was reported to have been seriously injured in an air strike overnight. Kharrazi was taken to a hospital while his wife died in the attack.
"Reports of diplomatic contacts alongside the targeting of figures such as Kamal Kharrazi, believed to have been linked to potential negotiations, have fueled speculation that cease-fire pathways may be actively disrupted by Israel," Hamidreza Azizi, a visiting fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, wrote on social media.
"This reinforces Iranian narratives that the Israeli side seeks to prolong the war," he added.
Meanwhile, the prospect of the war continuing for at least a few more weeks saw oil prices again rising and stock markets falling.
Speaking to Reuters news agency, Russel Chesler, head of investments and capital markets at VanEck Australia, summed up the mood.
"The key question in all investors' minds is 'When is this going to be over?'" he said.