US-Israel Iran War Live Updates

The Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) has issued a scathing rebuke of Trump’s inflammatory comments towards Iran, labelling them as “anti-Muslim, racist, and dehumanising”. The organisation took particular umbrage with Trump’s assertion that the US would send Iran “back to the Stone Ages”, decrying it as a gross affront to human dignity.

CAIR went on to condemn the Trump administration’s handling of the conflict, accusing it of allowing Israel to precipitate a “war of aggression” against the will of the American people. In a call to action, the group urged lawmakers to take swift and decisive action upon their return next week, including the passage of a War Powers Resolution, the cessation of funding for military escalation, and a thorough investigation into Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s alleged involvement in war crimes.

Reports from Channel 12 indicate a sudden escalation in the region, with a barrage of rockets launched from Lebanon targeting the northern Israeli town of Metula. Although some of the incoming projectiles were successfully intercepted by Israel’s defense systems, others landed in open areas, sparking concerns among local residents.

The essence of Trump’s speech remains unchanged, striking a discordant note for Iranians who are accustomed to a similar tone. His use of a confrontational tone, a hallmark of his rhetoric, has become all too familiar for the Iranian people. Beyond the tone, Trump made sweeping assertions about the war’s trajectory and its duration, but these claims are met with skepticism by Iranians, who insist that Tehran will dictate the course of action and determine the length of the confrontation.

The ambiguity of Trump’s language has left many wondering whether it stems from a lack of strategic planning or a deliberate attempt to maintain a veil of uncertainty. For the majority of Iranians, the impression is that Trump’s administration has been lacking a clear plan from the outset. Furthermore, Trump’s comments about the destruction of Iran and its people have been interpreted as a form of collective punishment by the Iranian public. The ongoing airstrikes have targeted critical infrastructure, including power plants, which has had a devastating impact on the civilian population. It is the ordinary citizens, comprising more than 90 million people, who are bearing the brunt of the conflict, not the country’s political elite.

In a scathing rebuke to President Trump’s foreign policy, Joe Kent, a former top security official who resigned in protest over the US-Iran conflict, is now urging Trump to bring an immediate end to the war. Kent’s comments came in response to Trump’s national address, in which he emphasized the importance of perseverance in the face of adversity. However, Kent countered that the US should learn from past mistakes and only engage in military action when its own national security is at stake. “We must draw lessons from our fallen heroes and avoid further bloodshed by extricating ourselves from this conflict as soon as possible,” Kent stated. To achieve a swift exit, Kent believes that Trump must rein in Israeli military actions, which he sees as a major obstacle to a quick resolution. “Israel’s interests are at odds with our own, and we must act accordingly to bring an end to this war,” Kent emphasized. As the first high-ranking official to resign from Trump’s administration over the US-Iran conflict, Kent’s words carry significant weight and highlight the deep divisions within the administration over its foreign policy strategy.

The highly anticipated address by US President Donald Trump to the nation on the Iran conflict failed to yield any new information, despite the White House’s earlier announcement that a major development was imminent.
Trump’s 20-minute speech, delivered late on Wednesday, largely consisted of rehashed talking points that have been a staple of his daily rhetoric for weeks.
The US president reiterated four core arguments: the war is justified, the outcome has already been secured, the campaign must continue, and a swift conclusion is imminent – all sentiments he has consistently expressed.
Trump’s address did not provide any insight into the specifics of the war’s conclusion or the terms of a potential agreement with Iran.
In his remarks, Trump expressed confidence that the US was nearing the end of the conflict, stating, “We are on the cusp of completion.”

In a stark warning, the US embassy in Iraq has alerted that Iran-backed militia groups in Baghdad are poised to launch attacks within a 24- to 48-hour window. The potential targets, according to the embassy, include US citizens, businesses, educational institutions, diplomatic facilities, energy infrastructure, hotels, airports, and other locations perceived to be linked to the United States, as well as Iraqi institutions and civilian sites. The warning comes on the heels of a recent incident in which a US journalist was kidnapped in Baghdad, prompting the embassy to note that militias have a history of targeting Americans for abduction. In light of this developing situation, the embassy has urged US citizens to depart Iraq immediately.

Reports are emerging of widespread alarm in the Gulf region, where civilians are growing increasingly concerned that their institutions and infrastructure may be targeted.
Eyewitnesses in Dubai described the sound of alarms ringing out just hours ago, while in Bahrain, multiple alerts echoed through the night and into the morning.
According to Saudi Arabia’s Defence Ministry, its air defences have successfully intercepted four drones in recent hours, in addition to a missile intercepted earlier.
The Kuwait International Airport has been hit for the seventh time in recent days, with authorities confirming that a fire was brought under control late last night.
As tensions escalate across the Gulf, concerns are mounting that Iran-aligned factions in Iraq, which shares a border with Kuwait, may become more involved in the conflict.
Kuwaiti authorities have repeatedly warned of the threat posed by Iran and its affiliated armed groups, with the Kuwait National Bank taking the precautionary measure of closing its headquarters to ensure employee safety.
With the situation spiralling out of control, residents are calling for an end to the conflict, and expressing fears that civilian targets may be hit in the crossfire.

Iran’s Khatam-al Anbiya military command headquarters has dismissed the notion that the US and Israel have a comprehensive understanding of its military prowess, vowing to escalate the conflict until its adversaries surrender unconditionally.
A senior official at the command centre asserted that the US and Israel’s knowledge of Iran’s military capabilities is woefully inadequate, citing a lack of awareness about the country’s extensive and sophisticated military infrastructure.
The official, speaking through the Tasnim news agency, cautioned against underestimating Iran’s military might, pointing out that the US and Israel have failed to target its most critical facilities, including cutting-edge missile production sites, advanced drone capabilities, and state-of-the-art air defence and electronic warfare systems.
Iran’s military production, the official claimed, takes place in secure locations that remain unknown to the US and Israel, rendering their attacks ineffective and inconsequential. The official vowed that Iran’s response to the conflict will only intensify, with more devastating and far-reaching consequences for its enemies.

A photo released by Israel’s Channel 12 has revealed a faint plume of smoke billowing from a Galilee settlement, a consequence of a rocket barrage launched from Lebanese territory.
According to reports, more than 30 projectiles were fired into the area within a short time frame.
This marked the second such attack in the Galilee region within the past hour.

In a televised address to the American public on Wednesday, President Trump issued a warning to Iran, stating that the country would be reduced to a state of utter devastation if it failed to agree to a peace deal that met Washington’s demands to end the ongoing conflict, now in its fifth week. This threat, which has been interpreted as a veiled promise of widespread destruction, would result in the obliteration of a nation’s infrastructure, leaving no modern structures standing, including hospitals, schools, universities, businesses, hotels, skyscrapers, or parks.

Such an action would likely be classified as a war crime under international law, given its potential to cause widespread harm to civilians. However, this type of threat is not a new phenomenon. The phrase ‘reduced to ancient ruins’ is often associated with Curtis LeMay, a US Air Force officer who oversaw the destruction of Japanese cities during World War II. In the early 1950s, US-led forces conducted a campaign of carpet bombing against North Korea, resulting in the destruction of nearly 95 percent of its power generation capacity and over 80 percent of its buildings.

LeMay later advocated for the US to employ similar tactics against Vietnam during the war in Southeast Asia. In 1972, US President Richard Nixon ordered the carpet bombing of North Vietnam, which was marketed to the American public as the ‘Christmas bombing’ campaign. Following the September 11 attacks, the US threatened to reduce Pakistan to ‘ancient ruins’ if it did not join the war against the Taliban, according to then-Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf.