Israel says Iran war enters ‘decisive phase’

Israel said its war against Iran was entering a “decisive phase” on Saturday, with explosions in cities across the Middle East and attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and key energy facilities in the United Arab Emirates. Security sources said Washington’s embassy in Iraq was hit by a drone attack, the second time it has been targeted since February 28, when the United States and Israel attacked Iran, plunging the Gulf region into a conflict that has sent shockwaves through the global economy. Black smoke rose over Fujairah on Saturday, home to the UAE’s main oil storage and export terminal, shortly after the Iranian military warned Emirati civilians to avoid the port area. The Israeli military on Saturday warned of possible attacks on ambulances and medical facilities used illegally by Hezbollah in Lebanon, but provided no evidence to support the claim. “Ambulances are widely used by Hezbollah for military purposes as part of its terrorist activities,” Avichai Adraee, the Israeli military’s Arabic spokesman, told Channel X. Israeli attack 826 people have died in Lebanon since March 2 Israeli airstrikes have killed 826 people, including 65 women and 106 children, since the start of the war with Hezbollah, the Lebanese Health Ministry said on Saturday, adding that another 2,009 people were injured. A statement from the health ministry said 31 nursing staff had died, and authorities said the bodies of more health workers were found following a night strike at a medical center in the south of the country, adding to the earlier death toll.