‘Expecting painful blows’: War enters seventh day, Iran hints at using ‘invisible’ weapons; US and Israel step up strikes – Highlights

(Press Trust photo)

The constant sound of explosions has become the default soundtrack in the game middle East as Donald TrumpThe mission-driven U.S. military, along with its “wonderful partner” Israel, continues its offensive against Iran. Tehran has been raging since the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, reacting strongly to military campaigns begun by the United States’ Operation Epic Fury and Israel’s Operation Lion’s Roar.Fierce military operations in the Middle East have entered their seventh day.The U.S. military used all-out force to attack multiple defense facilities and key locations across Iran, including the capital Tehran. Tehran responded with a powerful retaliatory strike, launching multiple missile strikes targeting U.S. military bases and other locations in the Middle East, marking the start of the 19th wave of Operation Real Commitment 4 on Thursday morning.

Donald Trump said of Iran’s combat operations: “The United States military, working with its excellent Israeli partners, continues to advance and completely destroy the enemy… We are destroying more Iranian missiles and drone capabilities every hour.”Trump has repeatedly called for the collapse of the Tehran regime and suggested that the United States help choose Iran’s next leader. Among those being considered after Ali Khamenei to become the next ayatollah, his son Mojtaba Khamenei has been described as an “unacceptable” option for Trump’s America.Even after the killing of Iran’s supreme leader, the intense military attacks that began last weekend show no signs of abating. Instead, skies across the Middle East continue to echo with the roar of escalating attacks.

Here are the most important developments

Iran: “Ready for a protracted war”

The Iranian military reflected on its preparedness amid the rapid escalation of the situation, saying: “We are ready for a protracted war. Our new inventions are under development. We have not used anything on a large scale yet. Let the enemy suffer painful blows with every attack.”

U.S. airstrikes Iran’s drone carrier

The U.S. military said it hit an Iranian ship it described as a “drone carrier” and said the vessel was “now on fire.”The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) posted onCentral Command described the drone carrier as “roughly the size of a World War II aircraft carrier.”The post did not say where the attack occurred.A video released by Central Command showed the purported Iranian ship surrounded by smoke after it was attacked by the United States.

Satellite images show scale of damage

New satellite images show the extent of damage across Iran after days of heavy military strikes.The images provide a clearer picture of the massive military operations taking place in multiple parts of the country.However, attacks are not limited to military sites.

School damaged in bombing campaign

Two schools in Iran appeared to have been damaged in a U.S. and Israeli bombing campaign on Thursday.Photos of two boys’ schools, a primary school and a secondary school southwest of the capital, Tehran, showed windows shattered and classroom walls damaged or collapsed.The images were released by Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency. Photos of the exterior were later confirmed by The New York Times.Analysis of satellite imagery also showed several impact marks and burn scars around a school in southern Iran, suggesting the school may have been hit by more than one attack. Iranian authorities said Saturday’s attack killed 168 people.Two schools were damaged about a week after an attack on a girls’ school in the southern Iranian town of Minab reportedly killed dozens of people, many of them children.The two schools damaged on Thursday were located in the city of Paland, southwest of Tehran. Shortly after the attack, an image of a huge plume of gray smoke surfaced online. The New York Times later verified the image and confirmed that the smoke was coming from the area where the two schools are located.

Trump says U.S. should help choose Iran’s next leader

Donald Trump says the United States should be involved in choosing Iran’s next leader.In a telephone interview with Reuters, Trump said it would be “wonderful” if Iranian Kurdish forces based in Iraq crossed into Iran and attacked security forces.Trump said it was unlikely that Iran’s next leader would be the son of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in a military strike at the start of the war.“We’re going to have to choose that guy with Iran. We’re going to have to choose that guy,” Trump said.Speaking six days after the U.S. and Israeli attacks, Trump also backed the Kurdish militants’ actions.“I think it’s great that they want to do this, and I would fully support it,” the president said.The conflict has killed more than 1,000 people, including at least six U.S. service members, and caused widespread destruction and instability across the Middle East.

Israel launches new attack on Tehran

Israel said it launched a new round of air strikes on Tehran early Friday.The Israeli military said it had carried out a massive strike against the Iranian terror regime’s infrastructure in Tehran.Iranian state television reported multiple explosions in different parts of the capital.

Hezbollah warns Israelis near Lebanese border

Lebanon-based Hezbollah said its fighters had returned to support Iran after an earlier attack killed a senior leader of the Shiite group.Hezbollah issued a warning in Hebrew, asking Israeli residents in northern Israel to evacuate settlements within 5 kilometers of the Lebanese border.The group said in a statement that the Israeli military’s actions against Lebanese sovereignty, civilians and infrastructure “will not go unanswered.”

Qatar intercepts drone targeting US air base

Qatar’s Defense Ministry said its air defense systems intercepted a drone targeting Doha’s al-Udeid air base.Authorities earlier raised the security alert level and asked residents to stay indoors and away from windows or exposed areas.

U.S. House of Representatives backs Trump’s military action

The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday rejected an attempt to block President Donald Trump from launching an air war against Iran and ask Congress to approve military action.Lawmakers voted 219 to 212, mostly along party lines. Republicans currently hold a slim majority in the House of Representatives.Two Republicans supported the resolution and four Democrats voted against it.Opponents accused Democrats of voting simply because they opposed Trump.“We all know that if the president’s name hadn’t been Donald Trump, we wouldn’t be here today,” said House Intelligence Committee Republican Chairman Rick Crawford.Supporters of the resolution said it was an effort to restore Congress’s constitutional authority to authorize war.The conflict, which began after the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran on Saturday, has now killed more than 1,000 people and fueled instability across the Middle East.