DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran and Iran-backed militias fired missiles at Israel and Arab states on Monday as fighting widened, with Israel and the United States attacking targets in Iran and issuing statements of defiance and warning the United States would inflict more casualties.
As U.S. and Israeli airstrikes continue, Iran’s top security official Ali Larijani defiantly vowed on X that “we will not negotiate with the United States.”
In Iraq, a pro-Iranian militia claimed a drone strike on U.S. troops at Baghdad airport, a day after the group said it fired at a U.S. base in Erbil in the north; Cyprus said a drone attack hit a British base on the Mediterranean island nation.
Israel and the United States have bombed Iran’s missile bases and targeted its navy, claiming to have destroyed its headquarters and several warships. According to Iranian leaders, more than 200 people have died since the attacks began.
As bombing continued, Hezbollah said it fired missiles from Lebanon into Israel early on Monday in response to the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and “repeated Israeli aggression,” the first time the armed group has claimed responsibility for the attack in more than a year. There were no reports of casualties or property damage, and Israel said it intercepted one projectile while several landed in open areas.
Israel retaliated for the attack in Beirut and urged civilians in nearly 50 villages in eastern and southern Lebanon to evacuate ahead of the possibility of more attacks, sending people fleeing.
Iran has been firing missiles at Israel and Arab states in a counterattack since Saturday’s joint U.S.-Israeli attack that killed Khamenei and many senior Iranian officials.
Gulf states have warned they may retaliate against Iran after attacks hit key locations and killed at least five civilians, and US President Donald Trump promised Washington would “avenge” the killings of three US troops in Kuwait.
“Sadly, there may be more to come before it’s over,” Trump said. “That’s just the way it is.”
Trump has urged the Iranians to “take over” their government, and while he also said he would talk to new leadership after Khamenei’s death, he said on Sunday there was no end in sight for the military campaign.
“At this time, combat operations are still in full swing and will continue until all our objectives are achieved,” he said in a video message. “We have very determined objectives,” he added without elaborating.
The U.S. military said a B-2 stealth bomber used a 2,000-pound bomb to attack an Iranian ballistic missile facility. Trump said on social media that nine Iranian warships were sunk and the Iranian Navy headquarters was “mostly destroyed.”
Britain, France and Germany said they were ready to work with the United States to help deter Iranian attacks, a sign that the conflict could spill over into other countries, while some Gulf Arab states said they reserved the right to respond to Iranian attacks.
The weekend attack was the second joint attack by the United States and Israel on Iran in eight months. In a 12-day war last June, Israeli and U.S. strikes significantly weakened Iran’s air defenses, military leadership and nuclear programme. But the killing of Khamenei, who had ruled Iran for more than three decades, created a leadership vacuum and increased the risk of regional instability.
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Rising reported from Bangkok and Abou AlJoud from Beirut.
