Amid the escalating West Asia War, Iran on Sunday responded to the threats, a day after President Donald Trump warned that the United States would “obliterate” Iran`s power plants if Tehran fails to fully open the Strait of Hormuz in 48 hours.
As reported by news agency AFP, Iranian missiles struck two cities near Israel`s main nuclear research centre, injuring dozens and shattering apartment buildings.
West Asia War now moving in a different direction
The developments signalled that the war in the Middle East, now in its fourth week, was moving in a dangerous new direction.
AFP further reported that sirens blared across Israel on Sunday morning. The sirens further warned of new Iranian barrages as residents faced the devastation in the southern cities of Dimona and Arad. In northern Israel, a man was killed in a strike by the Lebanese militant Hezbollah group.
Whereas, in Doha, six people were confirmed killed in a Qatari helicopter crash in the Persian Gulf nation`s territorial waters. One person was still missing from Saturday`s crash, which was blamed on a “technical malfunction”.
Responding to the Qatar helicopter crash, Qatar`s Defence Ministry said that the dead included three Qatari forces and three Turkish nationals, including a military officer and two civilians. The missing person is a Qatari airman, it said.
Trump warns Iran
Earlier on Saturday, Trump said that he would give Iran 48 hours to open the vital Strait of Hormuz or face a new round of attacks. He said the US would destroy “various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!”
He may have meant the Bushehr nuclear power plant, Iran`s biggest, which was already hit last week, or Damavand, a natural gas plant near Tehran, Iran`s capital.
In turn, Iran warned early Sunday that any strike on its energy facilities would prompt attacks on US and Israeli energy and infrastructure assets– specifically information technology and desalination facilities — in the region, according to a statement citing an Iranian military spokesperson carried by state media and semi-official outlets.
Strait of Hormuz
The Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean and is a critical pathway for the world`s flow of oil. Attacks on commercial ships and threats of further strikes have stopped nearly all tankers from carrying oil, gas and other goods through the passage, leading to cuts in output from some of the world`s largest oil producers, because their crude has nowhere to go.
(With inputs from AFP)